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A Bug's Life: www.deviantart.com/thomperfan/…

Whenever a movie is made and it becomes popular, there are people that will always demand to see more, and that’s how sequels are made. At worst, sequels can feel pointless, annoying, and completely abandon the source material on which it is based, but at best, they can not only continue the story and add new aspects to the established universe, but still give us the same things we love about the original, such is the case with this one.

Seeing as how Toy Story was the first, more popular, and more marketable movie of the two the studio had released so far, it was pretty telling it would be the first one to get the sequel treatment, and boy was it worth it. Toy Story 2 is my favorite Toy Story movie of the quad, because while it does raise the stakes from the last movie and continue it in an expandable way, it’s still very fun and enjoyable throughout.

Woody and his friends don’t just travel to the local arcade and the neighbor’s backyard in this one, they’re taken into the city, they cross an intersection, they go through an airport, all the locations are bigger than before and it sucks you into the adventure.

But the biggest reason I love this movie so much is the characters. I’ll go through the old ones first.

Woody has grown a lot from the last movie, continuously showing how much he truly cares for everyone around him, old friends and new ones. He’s also confronted with the fact that eventually, Andy will grow up and not be interested in playing with him anymore, we see him trying to figure out what he should do about it, before ultimately deciding to be there when it happens, knowing that he still has his other friends that will always be there for him.

Buzz is not only a great friend in this movie, but he’s also a very good leader, since he’s the one who leads the rescue mission to save Woody. But he also ends up confronting his past self, when another Buzz Lightyear in a toy store comes to life and starts doing the exact same thing the original Buzz did when he first came to Andy’s room. The second Buzz was pretty funny, especially because of the fact he ends up doing a Star Wars parody with his archenemy, Emperor Zurg.

As for the other toys, they’re way better than they were in the last movie, Bo still acts like the caring girlfriend we know her as so far, we find out Rex has an affinity for video games, Hamm’s one-liners are even funnier, Slinky gets his share of funny moments, and Mr. Potato Head actually gets way more moments to be a good friend and a team player. That’s probably what I like most about Andy’s toys in this movie, they act more like a loving community than they did in the first movie. Like how when Woody alerts everyone about the yard sale, and everyone lines up for a roll call or when Woody gets captured by Al, the toys immediately start making plans on how to get him back. They still have moments where they make jabs at each other, Potato Head especially, but they’re still a close-knit group of friends who have each other’s backs, no matter what.

Also, you might have noticed that I didn’t really talk about Andy or his family in the first one, and that’s because I didn’t really feel like they had that much of an impact on the story, but I’m happy to say, they have much more to do in the sequel. Andy has definitely learned how to play with all of his toys equally, but it’s still clear that Woody is his favorite, since he’s the one he’s talking to cowboy camp, and the only reason he doesn’t take Woody, when his arm rips is that he’s worried that he could get even more broken, we see he still cares about Woody, and that’s shown even more in the end when he sews Woody back together. As for his mom, she is selling her son’s toys, but none of the main ones, and when Al tries to bargain for Woody, she refuses. She cares about her son and what makes him happy, too.

Now we move on to the new characters, which is where the story actually starts to shine. First, we have Al, the owner of Al’s Toy Barn, and the guy who kickstarts the whole story by stealing Woody. He’s really just a device that makes certain things happen to move the plot along, and he gets his comeuppance for stealing Woody in the end.

Then there are the three other western toys that Woody meets in Al’s apartment, which helps to delve into his backstory. Apparently, Woody was the star of an old kids' show with marionettes called Woody’s Roundup, and the other toys were his co-stars.

Jessie the Yodeling Cowgirl: Jessie is definitely the character who stands out the most, not just due to her energetic persona gifted to us by Joan Cusack, but also because of her tragic backstory. She was also owned by a kid named Emily, but had to suffer being stuck under a bed and in a box for a really long time while Emily grew up, which is illustrated to us through a flashback set to a very sad song, and it works. This is why Jessie becomes rather hostile towards Woody when she learns his true intentions, but with his help, she learns to open her heart again and becomes one of Andy’s toys.

Bullseye, Woody’s horse: Bullseye is a horse who doesn’t say anything, but rather expresses his feelings through expressions and gestures. His role is to play the loyal sidekick to Woody and Jessie, playing with them, and trying to keep out of the way whenever they’re at each other’s throats.

Stinky Pete the Old Prospector: The prospector is a figure who has never really been taken out of his box, and we initially see him as a reasonable, wise father figure, but near the end, it’s revealed he’s the villain and he’s been trying to keep Woody from leaving this whole time.

There’s also Wheezy, an old penguin that plays into the movie’s theme about growing old, the many Barbies that litter the movie, and three of the Pizza Planet aliens that Mr. Potato Head saves from flying out of a truck. Each of them makes an enjoyable contribution to the story.

And the ending, with all the toys gathering together to listen to Wheezy sing YGAFIM, with Woody reassuring Buzz he’ll be fine when Andy grows up, is probably the best ending of the franchise, because all the characters get endings they’re satisfied with without having to compromise anything super major.

All in all, this is probably my favorite Toy Story movie in the bunch. It makes the old characters greater, while also making great new ones, the story is interesting and engaging and it manages to balance out humor with heart. It is the sequel that all sequels should strive to be. It gets a 9/10. It’s great.

The best sequel ever (9/10)

Monsters Inc.: www.deviantart.com/thomperfan/…

Description
A Bug's Life: www.deviantart.com/thomperfan/…

Whenever a movie is made and it becomes popular, there are people that will always demand to see more, and that’s how sequels are made. At worst, sequels can feel pointless, annoying, and completely abandon the source material on which it is based, but at best, they can not only continue the story and add new aspects to the established universe, but still give us the same things we love about the original, such is the case with this one.

Seeing as how Toy Story was the first, more popular, and more marketable movie of the two the studio had released so far, it was pretty telling it would be the first one to get the sequel treatment, and boy was it worth it. Toy Story 2 is my favorite Toy Story movie of the quad, because while it does raise the stakes from the last movie and continue it in an expandable way, it’s still very fun and enjoyable throughout.

Woody and his friends don’t just travel to the local arcade and the neighbor’s backyard in this one, they’re taken into the city, they cross an intersection, they go through an airport, all the locations are bigger than before and it sucks you into the adventure.

But the biggest reason I love this movie so much is the characters. I’ll go through the old ones first.

Woody has grown a lot from the last movie, continuously showing how much he truly cares for everyone around him, old friends and new ones. He’s also confronted with the fact that eventually, Andy will grow up and not be interested in playing with him anymore, we see him trying to figure out what he should do about it, before ultimately deciding to be there when it happens, knowing that he still has his other friends that will always be there for him.

Buzz is not only a great friend in this movie, but he’s also a very good leader, since he’s the one who leads the rescue mission to save Woody. But he also ends up confronting his past self, when another Buzz Lightyear in a toy store comes to life and starts doing the exact same thing the original Buzz did when he first came to Andy’s room. The second Buzz was pretty funny, especially because of the fact he ends up doing a Star Wars parody with his archenemy, Emperor Zurg.

As for the other toys, they’re way better than they were in the last movie, Bo still acts like the caring girlfriend we know her as so far, we find out Rex has an affinity for video games, Hamm’s one-liners are even funnier, Slinky gets his share of funny moments, and Mr. Potato Head actually gets way more moments to be a good friend and a team player. That’s probably what I like most about Andy’s toys in this movie, they act more like a loving community than they did in the first movie. Like how when Woody alerts everyone about the yard sale, and everyone lines up for a roll call or when Woody gets captured by Al, the toys immediately start making plans on how to get him back. They still have moments where they make jabs at each other, Potato Head especially, but they’re still a close-knit group of friends who have each other’s backs, no matter what.

Also, you might have noticed that I didn’t really talk about Andy or his family in the first one, and that’s because I didn’t really feel like they had that much of an impact on the story, but I’m happy to say, they have much more to do in the sequel. Andy has definitely learned how to play with all of his toys equally, but it’s still clear that Woody is his favorite, since he’s the one he’s talking to cowboy camp, and the only reason he doesn’t take Woody, when his arm rips is that he’s worried that he could get even more broken, we see he still cares about Woody, and that’s shown even more in the end when he sews Woody back together. As for his mom, she is selling her son’s toys, but none of the main ones, and when Al tries to bargain for Woody, she refuses. She cares about her son and what makes him happy, too.

Now we move on to the new characters, which is where the story actually starts to shine. First, we have Al, the owner of Al’s Toy Barn, and the guy who kickstarts the whole story by stealing Woody. He’s really just a device that makes certain things happen to move the plot along, and he gets his comeuppance for stealing Woody in the end.

Then there are the three other western toys that Woody meets in Al’s apartment, which helps to delve into his backstory. Apparently, Woody was the star of an old kids' show with marionettes called Woody’s Roundup, and the other toys were his co-stars.

Jessie the Yodeling Cowgirl: Jessie is definitely the character who stands out the most, not just due to her energetic persona gifted to us by Joan Cusack, but also because of her tragic backstory. She was also owned by a kid named Emily, but had to suffer being stuck under a bed and in a box for a really long time while Emily grew up, which is illustrated to us through a flashback set to a very sad song, and it works. This is why Jessie becomes rather hostile towards Woody when she learns his true intentions, but with his help, she learns to open her heart again and becomes one of Andy’s toys.

Bullseye, Woody’s horse: Bullseye is a horse who doesn’t say anything, but rather expresses his feelings through expressions and gestures. His role is to play the loyal sidekick to Woody and Jessie, playing with them, and trying to keep out of the way whenever they’re at each other’s throats.

Stinky Pete the Old Prospector: The prospector is a figure who has never really been taken out of his box, and we initially see him as a reasonable, wise father figure, but near the end, it’s revealed he’s the villain and he’s been trying to keep Woody from leaving this whole time.

There’s also Wheezy, an old penguin that plays into the movie’s theme about growing old, the many Barbies that litter the movie, and three of the Pizza Planet aliens that Mr. Potato Head saves from flying out of a truck. Each of them makes an enjoyable contribution to the story.

And the ending, with all the toys gathering together to listen to Wheezy sing YGAFIM, with Woody reassuring Buzz he’ll be fine when Andy grows up, is probably the best ending of the franchise, because all the characters get endings they’re satisfied with without having to compromise anything super major.

All in all, this is probably my favorite Toy Story movie in the bunch. It makes the old characters greater, while also making great new ones, the story is interesting and engaging and it manages to balance out humor with heart. It is the sequel that all sequels should strive to be. It gets a 9/10. It’s great.

The best sequel ever (9/10)

Monsters Inc.: www.deviantart.com/thomperfan/…