Critical response Kirk Baird of
The Blade described the character as irresistible, while
Columbus Alives Brad Keefe called him "loveable". Georgie Hobbs of
Little White Lies lauded Flynn as "a hero invested with enough colour to liven up what could have been a
monochromatic role". Margot Harrison of
Seven Days concluded that the character is "better than a prince". Meanwhile, Amy Nicholson of
Inland Empire Weekly reviewed the character as a significant improvement upon traditional Disney heroes, writing, "If anything,
Tangled is hommepowerment—one more step forward in Disney's slow march to treat male suitors like equals, from its early nameless princes ... to here, a dude with a full-on personality and nearly equal
screen time." Tyler Hanley of the
Palo Alto Weekly observed that "Flynn talks in a laid-back way that helps make his character both likable and relatable". Ian Bunting of the
Daily Record concluded that although "Male characters sometimes get shortchanged in Disney movies ... Flynn is one of their better efforts to add to
Aladdin,
Mowgli and
the Beast." Virtually an equal amount of critics were less impressed with Flynn. Anthony Quinn of
The Independent described the character as a "
fop", while Tom Huddleston of
Time Out called him "bland".
The Scotsman wrote, "it's a shame the prominence of Rapunzel's wayward love interest ... needlessly distracts from" the film. Michael Phillips of the
Chicago Tribune called Flynn "a second-rate
Nickelodeon TV
punk". Jeff Meyers of the
Metro Times dismissed Flynn as not "all that heroic". The
Houston Chronicles Amy Biancolli quipped that Flynn's "sensitive
chin fur, and the way he talks out of the side of his mouth – makes him look like
Dick Cheney at a
poetry slam". The
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan believes that the film's "initial shakiness" is "amplified by the irritating and overly glib nature of" Flynn. Accusing the character of "lacking both superficial and emotional individuality", Jake Coyle of the
Southtown Star panned Flynn as "rather obnoxious", Dan Kois of
The Village Voice dismissed him as "vanilla". Flynn's narration has also been widely panned. Joe Williams of the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch referred to it as "flippant".
A. O. Scott of
The New York Times described it as "annoyingly smart-alecky". Justin Chang of
Variety described the character's opening
monologue as "clunky". William Goss of
Moviefone compared Flynn to "a modern-day
Chris Evans/
Pine type, and his glib narration – combined with a hasty prologue – almost makes it feel like writer Dan Fogelman is trying too hard to make this a boys' AND girls' club". However, Goss relented, "The voice-over tapers off, though, and Levi proves to be a suitably cocky
foil to the
neurotic love interest." Meanwhile, critics lauded the character's relationship and chemistry with Rapunzel enthusiastically, likening it to that of a
romantic comedy. Writing for the
Mountain Xpress, Ken Hanke felt that "what works best is the interplay between the two leads", concluding, "these animated characters are frankly more believable and charismatic than the human ones in ...
Love and Other Drugs." Sandie Angulo Chen of
Common Sense Media wrote that the characters' "relationship is built on mutual respect and trust, something completely missing in many earlier Disney movies."
The Miami Heralds Rene Rodriquez opined, "Even though they may seem to be
boilerplate fairy-tale heroes, you genuinely come to care about Rapunzel and Flynn and root for them to be together," while Joe Neumaier of the
Daily News simply called their relationship "cute". Ted Fry of
The Seattle Times wrote, "The back-and-forth
banter of what inevitably becomes a
courtship is consistently witty and given extra sparkle from adroit characterizations by Moore and Levi." Similarly, Cathy Jakicic, writing for the
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, opined, "Moore and Levi, meanwhile, breathe new life into the classic
love-hate romance." Colin Covert of the
Star Tribune felt that both "characters are equally strong and funny".
BuzzFeed author Arielle Calderon compiled "19 Reasons Rapunzel And Flynn Rider Are The Best Disney Couple", citing their meeting and opposite personalities among them.
Babble.com ranked Flynn and Rapunzel among the "Top 10 Cutest Disney Couples". Levi's performance has garnered widespread acclaim from critics, who enjoyed the actor's comedic delivery and singing voice. Praising the directors' decision to "[bypass] big-name stars in favor of lesser-known talent",
TV Guide described Levi's performance as "charming, roguish, and, well, generic enough". Similarly, Mike Scott of
The Times-Picayune wrote that Levi "comes off as an exaggerated, narcissistic version of the rascally
Tory Belleci from TV's
MythBusters", complimenting the fact that "the cast's names are less than household stature". Rafer Guzman of
Newsday described Levi's performance as "terrific".
ABC Online appreciated the fact that "the voices of the hero and heroine were not recognisable", concluding, "Zachary Levi and Mandy Moore ... do a really good job on the voices". Dustin Hucks of
Film School Rejects wrote that Levi "creates a significant amount of range and emotion with his voice that truly makes the suave thief with a heart of gold Flynn pop on the screen". Hucks went on to call Flynn "one the better [Disney heroes] that have come out of the Disney stable in quite a while". Mathew DeKinder of the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch appreciated the comedy in Levi's "quick-tongued delivery", while
Rolling Stones
Peter Travers wrote that the actor "does a nice job" as Flynn. James Luxford of
The National wrote that both Levi and Moore "adeptly flesh out what could have been basic characters", while
Digital Spys
Simon Reynolds described Levi as "excellent as the rogueish hero". Stephen Whitty of
The Star-Ledger called Levi "a surprisingly perfect choice for the self-mocking Flynn". Also pleasantly surprised, David Nusair of
About.com wrote that "Levi effortlessly captures the character's transformation from a vain (yet charismatic) rogue to a compassionate love interest". Praising the actor's singing voice, Jim Vejvoda of
IGN described it as "impressive". Flynn is often regarded as one of Disney's most attractive heroes. In 2012,
Vanity Fair conducted a poll for which readers were asked to vote for the sexiest Disney hero of all-time. Pairing Flynn against
Prince Eric from
The Little Mermaid, Flynn beat his competition by less than one percent, garnering 50.35 percent of the total votes.
E! ranked the character third in its article "The Definitive Ranking of Disney Princes Based on Overall Dating Eligibility". Writing for
Seventeen, YouTube personality
Tyler Oakley ranked Flynn the sixth most "dateable" Disney prince. Oakley joked, "I like a man who is unaplogetically himself", continuing, "If you gotta go around with a fake name ... then you're simply not on my level." BuzzFeed author Louis Peitzman ranked Flynn the fourth most attractive Disney prince, praising the character's hair and eyebrows in 2013. BuzzFeed also ranked Flynn second on the website's list of the "Top Ten Hottest Male Cartoon Characters", calling him a "bad boy with a heart of gold".
Marketing controversy and criticism Critics harshly criticized the film's controversial change in title from
Rapunzel to
Tangled. Tom Charity of
CNN received Flynn as "an attempt to lure boys and men into the theater". One of the film's trailers features Flynn "trying to win over ... Rapunzel by giving her 'the smolder'" while "emphasiz[ing Flynn's] ... action components ... over the more girl-oriented fairy tale stuff", according to Christian Blauvelt of
Slant Magazine. Jennie Punter of
The Globe and Mail felt that Flynn was "obviously designed to keep the young male audience from spurning yet another princess movie". Referring to the film's title as "idiotic", Matt Neal of the
Standard-Examiner wrote, "Disney claims it changed the film's title from
Rapunzel to
Tangled to emphasise Flynn Rider's role in the film ... but that title-change excuse doesn't fly." Similarly,
A. O. Scott of
The New York Times received Flynn as a "hijacking of a princess's tale", panning the character as "a crude commercial calculation, a sign to the anxious boys in the audience that things aren't going to be too girly, or to Disneyphobes that the studio can bring some
DreamWorks-style attitude." Directors Nathan Greno and Byron Howard disputed reports that the film's title change from
Rapunzel to
Tangled was a marketing decision. They said the fact that Rapunzel is not the only main character in the film was the reason for the title change. Greno and Howard went on to say that "you cannot call
Toy Story "
Buzz Lightyear," and they really needed a title that represented what the film is, and that it stars the duo of Rapunzel and Flynn Rider.
Empires Helen O'Hara defended Disney's claim "that the new title reflects the fact that [
Tangled] is very much a
two-hander, with Mandy Moore's innocent but (inevitably) feisty Rapunzel and Zachary Levi's street-wise yet clueless Flynn sharing the lead". O'Hara went on to argue that both characters "get decent
character development too, and base their growing love story on more than a
single longing glance". Todd Hertz of
Christianity Today observed that "Disney changed the film's title and showcased the swashbuckling Aladdin-meets-Robin-Hood character who replaces the original story's prince", but felt that "Luckily, these marketing moves don't compromise
Tangleds phenomenal storytelling or considerable charm. Hertz concluded, "Still, the movie wisely takes a page from Pixar's playbook to fill the movie with so much well-done slapstick humor, action, goofy characters, and genuine fun that boys won't feel like the ads gave them the old bait-and-switch to trick them into a 'girl' movie." == References ==