Toy Story 2

Initially, Toy Story was going to have a direct-to-video sequel produced by Disney. But when the story proved promising, it was upgraded to a theatrical release and Pixar became unhappy with the quality. So Lasseter decided to take the reins and Toy Story 2 was released November 24, 1999. Starring all the original voice actors, plus Joan Cusack, Kelsey Grammer and Wayne Knight, the film had a troubled production but was praised highly by critics.

A year or two after the first film, Woody (Tom Hanks) is accidentally damaged while being played with. He becomes concerned about becoming an unwanted broken toy and later, is stolen at a yard sale by the toy collector Al (Knight). So Buzz (Tim Allen) leads a group of Andy’s (John Morris) toys to rescue him. Meanwhile, Woody finds out he’s old merchandise from an old TV show and is a valuable collector’s item. Now he must decide to go back to Andy or a museum with three other toys from the series (Cusack, Grammer, and Frank Welker).

As with The Rescuers Down Under, this film didn’t try to shoehorn the characters into a forced redo of the first film, nor did it ruin the characterization. Instead, the continuation was fluid and the characters developed off of the qualities they already had.

Remember how Woody had an ego in the first film? What with him being so jealous of Buzz becoming Andy’s favorite toy? It resurfaces, but not in the same way because he’s already dealt with that. Instead, he finds out he’s famous and becomes willing to throw away the love of his owner to last forever. It’s not until Buzz hits him with a near identical lesson that he’s meant to be played with and loved, with the exact quote Woody used on him in the first film, that he realizes ego and fame aren’t worth anything if you’re giving up something that matters more.

And we can’t talk about this film without Jessie’s arc. Her struggle with abandonment is reasonable and perfectly played out. She doesn’t’ take too much stock in the love an owner shows their toys because her previous owner left her by the wayside to focus on other things. And once Woody’s snapped out of his ego trip he shows her that she can still be played with and loved.

The Prospector is also understandable. He’s never been played with, never been shown love by a child and never known what it means to enjoy living. Because he’s lived his whole life in a box. He’s got a justified motive. The problem lies in how he says he wants his existence to have purpose, but won’t let the other toys choose their own purpose. He’s a hypocrite is what he is.

The internal conflict within Woody is also amazing. He has to choose between the finite love of Andy, who will eventually grow up and being adored by children forever. It’s a conflict where there’s no clear victor when it comes to the pro and cons and he must decide what is ultimately the most unselfish choice. Sooner or later, we all must do the same.

Toy Story 2 is a great film where, once again, every character fits. The CGI also greatly improved since the last film, where Al, Andy, and Andy’s Mom actually look better.

Also references to Star Wars never get old. 

The series could have ended here and it would have been totally fine. But fortunately, 11 years later, it didn’t.

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