What movies have a sequel that are as good as the original?
I think The Godfather Part 2 is as good as the first part.
I think the Empire Strikes Back is better than Star Wars.
Toy Story 2 is equally fantastic as the original.
Also, I think Aliens is just as good as Alien but there are many who would dispute that.
Hodge
Aliens
I agree.
I also like Evil Dead II better than the original.
Terminator 2, for starters.
Most if not all of the James Bond sequels are better movies than Dr. No.
If it’s fair to call A Shot In The Dark a sequel to The Pink Panther, I’ll add it to the list, because ASITD is a freakin’ HILARIOUS movie, much better than the rather blah intro to the Pink Panther series.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Superman II were better than their originals.
I prefer Star Trek I, it was deeper 
As for sequels, I think “Eat out my dirty f*ckholes: part 21” was far supperior to any of the previous films.
— G. Raven
The Bride of Frankenstein and The Bikini Carwash Company II.
Lethal Weapon II improved on the first.
There was the sequel to “Re-Animator” that was pretty good (“Beyond Evil” I think it was).
I thought “Beverly Hills Cop II” was just as strong as the first one.
I agree with all the movies already listed, except Bikini Carwash Company II which was a slap in the face to the vision and integrity of the original Bikini Carwash Company.
I’ll add Henry V, which was much better than Henry IV
Another vote for Toy Story 2. I liked Mission Impossible 2 just as much as the first one, but most of my friends didn’t.
Mi2 had an element of crapness due to Tom’s input to the writing of the film.
Can we include films that were based before but made after?
So if we were including prequals I would say Episode I was not as good as the other star wars movies (Stupid Pod race, stupid jajabinks, stupid ‘let’s keep hinting via long time shots of Senator Palpatine after mentioning the Dark Sith lord’ if you didn’t catch that your an idiot.)
The prequal to Dragon Heart was one of the crappest movies I have ever seen.
Back to the Question at hand…
I thought Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan was an awesome movie, better than the original (Why was the AI in the original so darn stupid?? More like Actual Stupidity [AS])
PerfectDark
Tagential hijack:
First, what sounds like a dumb question: What is a sequal? Or put better, what constitutes a sequal, and sets it apart from a series of films. IMHO, only Star Trek III and IV were true sequals (to Trek II: The Wrath of Khan), as I see a sequal to mean carrying on the same basic plot elements, in this case the death, search for and ressurection/beginning his life again of Spock (I believe fans call II, III and IV, the “Genesis Trilogy”). The others only involve the same chaacters and more or less stand alone, which I would consider a series. The subsequent Alien films I would consider sequals as they all involve Ripley and the Aliens in an on-going struggle. The Indiana Jones films I consider a series, etc., etc.
Sir Rhosis
Speaking of Indiana Jones…
I always thought The Last Crusade was an incredibly powerful movie, even though I think the other two are also the bee’s knees (and a possible fourth coming out? Ooh!).
If you wanna talk books, I think The Lord Of The Rings was MUCH better than The Hobbit… although I loved The Hobbit, it’s just that LOTR was a much darker, more impactful movie.
The James Bond movies aren’t sequels per say, but more episodes in a series, with a few exceptions. “From Russia With Love” was a true sequel, because its plot is tied direnctly to its predecessor, “Dr. No” (SPECTRE puts out a hit on Bond as revenge for his killing Dr. No). I would also say that Star Trek and Indiana Jones movies are also episodes in a series rather than true sequels.
Sequels better than the original:
The Silence of the Lambs
The Empire Strikes Back
The Bride of Frankenstein
A Better Tomorrow 2
A Chinese Ghost Story 2
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Operation Condor (Which is the sequel to “Operation Condor 2”; the numbering was reversed for American release for no apparent reason)
Drunken Master 2 (Renamed “The Legend of Drunken Master” in the US)
Supercop (or Police Story 3: Supercop**)
Once Upon a Time in China 3
And of course the greatest sequel to a TV series is the sequel to the 60’s British TV series “Secret Agent”. Dang it, what was the name of that show? Give me a minute, I’ll think of it . . . .
You’re thinking of “The Prisoner,” but McGoohan, AFAIK, has never really confirmed this.
Sir
Okay, duh on me, I posted without looking at your nick.
Sir Rhosis (egg will come off my face I hope)
Yep, yep…though they’re all great, The Last Crusade is probably my favourite of the series. I don’t know if I’d say it’s better than the first one, but it’s a close call.
Pretty much all of those said I’d agree with. The other main one that comes to mind is Hellraiser 2: Hellbound, which is better than the original Hellraiser. Truthfully, they are each a different kind of horror movie: the first one is pretty much a haunted house flick, whereas the second one goes way beyond it. Though I do really like the first one.
I’d also say that I enjoyed Return of the Killer Tomatoes more than Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.