RJ Writing Ink

As I was leaving the movie theater after seeing Pixar’s new movie ”Onward”, I realized something. As of this November, Pixar’s been making movies for 25 years! My mind was blown, but that didn’t stop me from trying to review Onward as fairly as possible.

Taking place in a world populated by magical creatures, the world of Onward was once filled with magic-wielders. Then came the conveniences of modern-life, so people stopped using magic. All that changes, though, when a young elf named Ian Lightfoot receives an old wizard’s staff as a gift from his late father. Using the magic of the staff, Ian tries to bring his dad back for a day so he can finally meet him. When the spell’s incomplete, though, Ian and his boisterous older brother Barley set out on a quest to finish the spell so they can see their dad again.

Chris and Tom are Awesome

The heart and soul of the film come from the Lightfoot brothers, Ian and Barley. The two are almost polar-opposites in terms of personality, so the two have a good dynamic throughout the film. Ian’s soft-spoken, shy, and insecure about himself, whereas Barley’s loud, boisterous, and charges headlong without thinking things through.

It helps that Ian and Barley are played by Tom Holland and Chris Pratt, respectively. Considering how they worked together in the MCU, it makes sense that they know how to play off each other’s strengths. Tom brings his eager youthfulness as Ian, while Chris lets his most bombastic characteristics shine. They balance each other out, and their relationship drives the film to its climax.

A Story about Familial Bonds

While the trailers for the film make it seem like Onward is about Ian bonding with the dad he never knew, that’s a little misleading. The real story is about the bond between Ian and Barley and how much sibling relationships can mean for a person’s development. According to director Dan Scanlon, Onward was inspired by the fact that his own dad died when he was a baby, so he never knew him. Yet his older brother always remained supportive of him growing up, encouraging his talents and showing off what he could do.

Then one day, he was talking with a friend at Pixar, and she dropped a huge bombshell about why he never missed his dad: because his brother had been his father figure. And like Dan, Ian undergoes that same realization near the end of the film. It’s a real emotional message on how much the bonds we make growing up can make us into the people we become, and Ian becomes a better person as a result. He becomes much more confident in himself, outgoing, and his bond with Barley becomes stronger than ever.

The Good Old Pixar Formula

I’ve seen enough Pixar films to know that there’s a standard formula to them. The film starts off with some sort of conflict occurring, and the protagonist has to resolve said conflict. So they have to go on some sort of journey that changes them or the people around them as people. Then there comes the moment where they hit rock bottom and we all cry. From there, the hero gains a new will to move onward, and they resolve the conflict.

I’m pleased to say that Onward manages to follow this formula to a tee. While that would normally be a problem, it actually isn’t in this case. Pixar’s been the media giant it’s been for the last twenty-five years because of that winning formula. It works to the point where even their less-than-desirable films do well in the box office.

That said, I can’t help but feel that the Pixar Formula’s getting a little stale. Maybe Onward is a sign that they should consider mixing it up a little in the future to stay fresh. Or don’t; what do I know?

A Fun Time at the Movies

So, Onward is a good film. It’s got a solid story and great casting behind it, and the inspiration tugs at one’s heartstrings. That said, it doesn’t seem to have the same spark that all the classic Pixar films have. It’s a great movie, but I wouldn’t put it in my top five films that Pixar’s done.

If you’re a fan of any of the following though:

• Dungeons and Dragons
• Pixar
• Mystical Creatures
• Chris Pratt
• Tom Holland

Then I’d recommend you go see. It’s a nice testament to the power of brotherly love and has some pretty funny moments to it.

I Give “Onward” A 3.5/5

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I rewrite the final battle of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

I just got done writing my review of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, where I made my issues and praises for the film known. As I was writing it, though, there was one thing that I realized was bugging me more than anything: the final battle between Darth Sidious, Rey and Ben Solo.

I’ve seen what Star Wars is capable of doing with its final battles, and I don’t think that Abrams did enough to make it as epic as possible. So rather than stew over it or complain, I decided to go the fan fiction route. Here’s a summary of how I would have done the final battle.

A Real lightsaber fight

I would have kept everything the same up until the moment when Sidious drains Rey and Ben of their life force. At that point, the Emperor would be restored to his full power. Having no further need for the two, he then attempts to choke the life out of them. But Ben and Rey use their combined Force power to hurl Sidious back into his throne, giving them a chance to recover. Enraged, Sidious vows to break them before making them watch as he destroys everything they hold dear. Brandishing his twin lightsabers for the first time in decades, the Dark Lord then unleashes his decades of Dark Side mastery upon the two Jedi. Then, we start hearing a remix of “Battle of the Heroes” and “Duel of the Fates” play in the background as the duel between the last Sith Lord and the last Jedi begins.

What follows is an incredible display of swordsmanship and skill in the Force as the three combatants put every ounce of their abilities on full display. Lightning-fast strikes, near misses, epic leaps and acrobatics. Basically, it’s what the lightsaber duels should have been like, but weren’t because Abrams couldn’t get it through his head.

The fight continues as the battle in the sky above Exegol continues to rage, with everything proceeding as it does in the film as the cavalry arrives. In the temple below, Rey and Ben are barely able to hold off Sidious, as he’s getting progressively stronger as the fight wears on. By this point, he stops using his lightsabers altogether and begins hurling portions of the temple at the pair. Finally, he then batters the two with thrown debris in a moment mirroring Luke and Vader’s duel in Cloud City. He then hurls Ben into the crevice.

A Final Clash

Having seemingly bested the two Jedi, Sidious then arrogantly decides to make Rey suffer and feel utter despair for her insolence. Thus, he unleashes the full extent of his power on the Resistance Fleet as Rey can only look on. When all seems lost, though, Rey feels a familiar voice and a hand on her shoulder. In her mind’s eye, she then imagines that Luke is standing before her once more, telling her to not give up and let Sidious win. We then see visions of each of the Jedi we’ve come to know throughout the franchise, each offering their own words of encouragement:

• Obi-Wan
• Qui-Gon
• Yoda
• Mace Windu
• Ki-Adi Mundi
• Ashoka Tano
• Kanan Jarrus
• Ezra Bridger
• Leia
• Anakin
• Any Jedi we see in the franchise!

With their words ringing in her ears, Rey then slowly stands, with Luke and Leia’s lightsabers in hand. Now fully committed to finishing his granddaughter, Sidious then brings his devastating force lightning to bare on her. Slowly but surely, Rey pushes forward as we see images of the spirits of all the Jedi Sidious murdered joining her with every step. However, when it becomes clear her lightsabers are not enough, Rey puts them aside and uses the raw power of the Force against the embodiment of evil.

Force Tug of War

Rey continues to bravely stand her ground against the Dark Lord, pushing him back before he begins to retaliate. Right when all hope seems lost, the throne behind him comes hurtling out of the air, forcing Sidious to momentarily shield himself with the force. We then see that this was the result of Ben, who managed to crawl out of the crevice while Sidious was distracted. Rey uses the chance to overwhelm Sidious with his own Force lightning. As the Dark Lord’s claimed by oblivion once more, we then see flashes of all the previously mentioned Jedi standing behind Rey. This symbolically shows that she’s carrying the weight and strength of the entire Jedi as they cast the ultimate evil into the depths of hell. Thus Darth Sidious, the tyrant who enslaved a Galaxy and nearly destroyed the Jedi, finally dies.

That’s How You Do a Final Battle, Abrams

If part of this seems familiar, then there’s a reason for that. I got the inspiration for the final clash between Rey and Sidious from the beam struggle between Gohan and Cell in Dragon Ball Z. That’s a hallmark moment of the series, and a good example on how to kill a good villain.

So, at any rate, that’s how I would have wanted the final battle to play out. I know a lot of it couldn’t happen due to the constraints of budgets and reality. However, I still think we should have gotten that epic lightsaber duel. The Sequel trilogy lacked any good ones!

Do you agree with my idea? How would you have wanted the fight to end?

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My Honest Review of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

I would like to state, for the record, that I’ve always been unsure about the Star Wars Sequel films. I love the franchise to death, but I thought making new movies could end up backfiring. However, I buried by concerns and went to see the new movies anyway. I put up with the fact that The Force Awakens rehashed the original film; and I tried to accept what Rian Johnson did to Luke. Now here I am, having seen The Rise of Skywalker bring an apparent end to the Skywalker Saga. My ultimate verdict: meh. Here’s why.

The Folly of the Sequels

Going into this, The Rise of Skywalker had a lot of things working against it that the original films didn’t. Thanks to the Internet, fans could now be very vocal about what they liked or disliked, and Star Wars became no exception. As we saw with reactions to The Last Jedi, this could divide a franchise’s fanbase in two. As a result, Disney tried to reconcile both parties in the span of a single film and give everyone a satisfying ending. Truth be told, though, I think that making the perfect ending to the Skywalker story was impossible. We can’t please everyone, especially in regards to something as beloved as Star Wars.

Then there’s the effect of The Last Jedi. Despite what critics say, that movie was divisive among fans. Rian Johnson had good intentions, but him trying to subvert expectations split the fanbase in two. I didn’t like how Luke got handled, and I especially didn’t like how Holdo’s actions almost wiped out the Resistance. Needless to say, but The Last Jedi put things in a bind for The Rise of Skywalker.

Lastly, there’s the elephant in the room: the passing of Carrie Fisher. When I heard about Carrie Fisher’s death, I mourned for her like so many others. After that, my thoughts turned to the future of Star Wars. How could they finish the Trilogy without Leia, when The Rise of Skywalker was supposed to give her a prominent role? I think we all knew that this film would be the final chapter in Leia’s story, and the fact that Carrie didn’t live long enough to film it gave the movie a bittersweet tone. That said, I think they did the best with what they could.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

Now that I’ve gone over all that, time to dive into the spoiler zone as I talk about five major plot threads that left the biggest impact on me. I wanted to do this without spoiling anything at first, but I realized that’s impossible for me.

Palps is Back!

This one’s so obvious I don’t even count it as a spoiler: Darth Sidious’ back. First off, the film does confirm that Palpatine did die in Return of the Jedi like we saw. However, what the film doesn’t confirm is how the Sith Lord came back from the dead. The closest we get to an answer is Palps quoting what he said at the Opera House in Revenge of the Sith about the Dark Side being a pathway to many abilities. So I’m just using the headcanon that he used the Dark Side and cloning to come back.

Fortunately for the Galaxy, the process brought him back more dead than alive; his body’s falling apart and kept alive by life support. However, while he’s as cunning and manipulative as ever, I think death damaged the Sith Lord’s mind. Whereas before he hid his true nature behind a facade, in TROS he drops all pretenses and openly proclaims himself a Sith Lord to the Galaxy. That would explain why his master plan sounds so convoluted, though:

1. Lure Rey to Secret Base
2. Transfer spirit into Rey’s Body
3. Unleash massive armada of retro-looking Star Destroyers with mini-Death Star cannons to reconquer Galaxy

I’m going to have to devote another post to this, but my point is, I think they could have done a little better bringing Sidious back into the films. When you’re so evil that your actor considers you to be more evil than the Devil, you want to do this character justice

A Look at How Darth Sidious Cheated Death in the Expanded Universe

Ever since the trailers for The Rise of Skywalker dropped and we heard the laughter of Ian McDiarmid, Star Wars fans went crazy. As a lifelong fan of the franchise, who is admittedly a little bitter over the loss of the EU (#MakeRevanCanonAgain), I was skeptical. I immediately asked one question, the same question everyone is asking: how the heck could Darth Sidious still be alive? We saw Anakin throw him over the railing and explode in a ball of dark side energy. Not even a Sith Lord could survive that.

However, assuming it’s not a red herring or he’s a ghost, I keep coming back to a single theory: cloning. We know Palpatine has access to advanced cloning technology. It’s possible he could have made clones of himself when and if he died. It’s a theory that’s been proposed already, but that’s not what I want to talk about. What I want to talk about the time in the Expanded Universe where Palpatine did, in fact, come back from the dead. It’s called the Dark Empire series, and I think it gives us clues on his possible return in The Rise of Skywalker.

Sidious’ Cheat Code

Like many Sith, Palpatine tried looking for a way to cheat death so he could rule his Empire for eternity. Fortunately for the Galaxy, while the Force has ways to extend one’s life by decades, even centuries, true immortality is a myth. Thus, Sidious found himself a workaround using cloning technology. He made an army of mindless clones of himself that he could inhabit when his original body died.

As a result, when a redeemed Anakin threw him down that reactor, he did die, but his spirit stayed behind. He traveled to his private fortress near the center of the galaxy, where he possessed a younger clone of himself. Thus, Darth Sidious returned from death.

The Shadow Hand

One would think that his first priority would be letting the Galaxy know he’s alive. Rather than do that, Palpatine stayed in the Deep Core and watched his Empire tear itself apart like a pack of starved Womp Rats. He built up his forces and created an arsenal of super weapons. These included the Eclipse and Eclipse II, two Super Star Destroyers with miniature versions of the Death Stars superlaser. There were the World Devastators, mobile factories that sucked planets of resources and churned out ships and weapons. Then my personal favorite, the Galaxy Gun, a platform capable of firing planet-destroying missiles through hyperspace. It’s like the galaxy’s biggest sniper rifle.

Around six years after the defeat at Endor, Sidious made his move. Using the Force to create a portal to his fortress world of Byss, Sidious captured Luke Skywalker. Rather than face certain death, Luke pretended to bend to the reborn Sith. However, Sidious eventually broke him for real, turning him into the leader of his armies. With an armada of ships and deadly superweapons, Sidious announced his return to the Galaxy.

However, Sidious once again underestimated the power of love for another person. Leia chose to confront her brother, and was able to bring him back from the Dark Side. Together, they used the Force to cut off the Emperor’s connection to it. As a result, he lost control of the massive Force Storm he just created, destroying him and his flagship.

He then came back, again.

Final Death

Having suffered several major setbacks, things only got worse for the Sith Lord. Due to the actions of a traitorous guard, Sidious’ remaining supply of clones were falling apart; even the genetic template was damaged. Desperate, Sidious sought the aid of the spirits of the Ancient Sith Lords. They advised him to take the body of Leia’s infant son, Anakin Solo.

Yes, Leia and Han names their youngest son Anakin. They wanted the name to stand for something good again.

Sidious tracked the family to Onderon and brought his armada in to finish the job. However, Luke arrived soon afterwards. Alongside him and Han was a Jedi survivor of Order 66, Empatojayos Brand, and his padawan, Rayf Ysanna. The three Jedi engaged in a furious fight with the Sith Lord and his Dark Jedi guards. Despite besting his guards, the Emperor killed Ysanna and mortally wounded Brand. However, Han Solo arrived, and with a well placed blaster shot, struck the Dark Lord down; which is what Sidious wanted. No longer needing his body, his spirit rushed towards young Anakin. Before he could do anything though, Brand used the last of his strength to throw himself in front of the baby and his mother.

Knowing that he was dying, Brand used all his power to trap Sidious within him. He told Luke he would drag the Emperor to the depths of hell, where all the Jedi he’d murdered would ensure he would never return. Thus, cursing the Skywalker bloodline, Darth Sidious died, this time for good.

A Similar Scenario for Sidious?

First off, this story came out in the early 90s, well before the Prequel Trilogy established the idea of the Chosen One. Thus, even though it’s said the Chosen One would destroy the Sith, Sidious’ survival seems to contradict that. It was a crazy time for Star Wars.

Secondly, I bring this story up now because, in my opinion, cloning may be the best way to explain how Sidious’ returns in The Rise of Skywalker. He could have created clones of himself on some remote planet where he could lay low and gather his strength over the next thirty years. That, and he’d probably see the Galaxy falling apart as some sort of sadistic entertainment.

How he came back, though, doesn’t matter in the end. What matters is that Darth Sidious is back from the dead, and by the look of things, he has dark plans for Kylo Ren and Rey. What’s surprising, though, is how I’ve warmed up to the idea of Sidious returning. If the rumors and speculations are true, then he’s been behind everything in the movies. He’s one of the greatest villains of all time, the overarching antagonist to Star Wars. Seeing him one last time will be awesome. Plus, after all’s said and done, he’s still got the Villain Pub on How it Should Have Ended to go back to.

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Check out this fan animation for the comics that I just found!

Jay’s Month of Scares, Day 17- Disney’s Sleepy Hollow

After recalling the tale of the Hopping Hessian from the Rocko Halloween special, I knew what I wanted to watch tonight. I have seen many ghostly stories and ghoulish tales in our culture. Out of all of them, though, I think that my favorite has to be The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

First published by Washington Irving back in 1820, Sleepy Hollow‘s one of the most enduring stories in American fiction. Over the years, Irving’s famous story has been adapted and reimagined into many different iteration. There’s that Sleepy Hollow show a few years ago, a Johnny Depp movie, and cameos and references in all manner of shows and books. However, of all the adaptations, my personal favorite has to be the Disney cartoon. Coincidentally, the special turned 70 earlier this month.

Disney’s Sleepy Hollow Balances Scares with Silliness

I’m well aware that Disney’s version of Sleepy Hollow is far more light-hearted than the original story. Above all, it is Disney that’s making this. Most of the segment relies on the humor that Disney garnered a reputation for. It’s silly and relies on visual gags and sound effects, but nonetheless, it has that Disney charm.

However, all that largely changes in the final part of the story as a result of Brom Bones’ song. While watching Ichabod freak out was funny, it consequentially leaves viewers on edge as Ichabod makes his way home. By the time the Horseman actually appears, most of the humor is gone. Even the antics of Ichabod during the chase do little to lighten the mood.

American Gothic At Work

I took a college course on American gothic storytelling, and I remember a few things about it. Among the major themes found is the sense of isolation and fear of the other, the unknown. Disney’s Sleepy Hollow did an impressive job of matching this. From the time Ichabod rides into the Hollow, the setting serves to remind us of how utterly alone he is. Even the narrator stops talking, and aside from repeating a line from Brom’s story, there is no dialogue. As a result, everything’s conveyed through sound effects, music, and Ichabod’s screams.

I thought that this is masterful storytelling. As a result of the lack of talking, the tension continues to build as Ichabod begins seeing danger all around him. Therefore, it keeps the viewers constantly on edge, before letting that culminate with the appearance of the Horseman to create sheer terror. The entire sequence is legitimately scary, and I can see how it would scare most kids. Even the more realistic way the Horseman’s and his steed are drawn is unsettling. They had to keep Sleepy Hollow appropriate for the kids. If I saw this as a kid, I’d probably be too scared to watch. That’s awesome!

One of the Best Sleepy Hollow Adaptations

It may not be apparent, but I’m a little obsessed with The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. It’s one of my favorite Halloween stories. Remember how I said I made a text-based game for St. Patrick’s day? The original purpose was what can essentially be called fan fiction. I wanted to do a story involving the Headless Horseman, only instead of horses, we’re riding Harleys.

My point is that while there may be scarier adaptations of Sleepy Hollow out there, my favorite remains the 1949 Disney Cartoon. It brings the humor of Disney with the gothic storytelling of the story. Plus, it’s got a really catchy song.

Happy Halloween!

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Spider-Man: Far From Home Review

Well, true believers, we’ve reached the end of an era for the MCU. The Infinity Saga that it’s been building up to since the beginning is over, and so are the Stan Lee cameos. The only question now is how Marvel will be able to top something as massive Avengers: Endgame? I’m worried about the MCU’s future, but after seeing Spider-Man: Far From Home, I realized that even as the old cast exits, the movies are in good hands.

Spoilers for Endgame are to follow.

Quick Plot

It’s been eight months since the events of Avengers: Endgame, and Earth’s trying to adjust to having half its population return, all while asking who will take Tony Stark’s place as its greatest hero. All eyes seem to think Spider-Man’s the next Iron Man, but after everything he’s been through, all Peter wants to do is take a vacation. No matter how hard Peter tries, though, trouble seems to find him. Next thing he knows, his summer trip to Europe’s been hijacked by Nick Fury and a man named Mysterio as a new threat emerges. Now he has to save the world, all while dealing with typical teen angst like telling MJ he likes her. So much for summer vacation.

A Hilarious Epilogue

This film is essentially an epilogue to the universe-shaking events of Endgame, and I cannot thank Marvel for doing this for us. After dealing with the highest-grossing superhero film of all time, fans needed a chance to unwind and relax. Granted, this is a superhero movie, but Far From Home’s as close as we’re going to get to a relaxing story.

Like Spider-Man: Homecoming, Far From Home’s as much of a comedy as it is a superhero movie. Most of the characters give us moments that make us want to laugh that include classic scenarios such as:

• Walking in on something at the worst possible time and misunderstanding the situation
• Dorky/useless teachers
• Awkward confessions when everyone thinks they’re about to die (“I’m in love with Spider-Man’s aunt.)
• Awkward Teen Romance
• And More!

After seeing Endgame, this film’s what we needed: a good, long laugh. The kind that we can count on Spider-Man giving us.

Legacies and Next Generation

A significant part of the film’s plot is dealing with the aftermath of Endgame and Iron Man’s passing. After giving his life to save the universe, Earth considers Tony Stark, the greatest hero of all time. Everywhere you look in the film; you see images of Tony. There’s graffiti art, tribute videos, and photos. I think I saw a documentary or movie about his life. It’s both annoying and heart-warming to see how everyone almost everyone loves Tony Stark now. I say annoying because I know that if he were still alive, it would inflate Tony’s already massive ego.

All joking aside, this film’s about dealing with the loss of the character who started the MCU, and figuring out who will take his place. Everyone, both in film and in real life, hopes that Spider-Man will be Iron Man’s successor. I do, too; Spidey is Marvel’s poster boy. Nick Fury even gives Peter the proverbial keys to the armory: a set of glasses with one of Tony’s AI’s that gives him access to the Stark satellite network. The AI’s also named EDITH: Even Dead, I‘m The Hero. Classic Tony.

A New Hero

As the film makes visible, though, Peter doesn’t think he’s ready or able to be Iron Man’s successor. He’s still a teenager, and he’s being thrown into the deep end without any floaties. He even tries to pass on EDITH to someone else, only for it to nearly end in disaster.

What Peter learns in the movie, though, is that he doesn’t have to be like Tony Stark. No one can replace Tony Stark. Instead of focusing on living up to Iron Man’s legacy, Peter learns that he needs to be the hero only he can be. When he learns to stop living in his late mentor’s shadow, we see he’s more than capable of being Tony’s successor. In a particularly touching moment before the final battle, we see Peter hard at work on a new suit in a moment that mirrors that of Tony Stark. That’s the moment I knew the MCU was in good hands.

Plus, it helped that Happy put on “Back in Black” by AC/DC. That’s a callback to the very first scene in Iron Man.

Conclusion

I’m still worried about the future of the MCU, but after watching this film, I can tell that it still has plenty of fire left in it. The story of the Avengers may be over for now, but there are plenty of other stories waiting to be told. If anything, I think Spider-Man: Far From Home has shown me that the MCU’s in good hands. Tom Holland’s still my favorite Spider-Man, and I hope that he has the time of his life playing him for years to come.

This film’s a fun story that bids goodbye to the Infinity Saga and paves the way for the next stage in the MCU. I can see it becoming a must-see film for the Summer of 2019. So, get ready for plenty of action, teen drama, and laughs with Spider-Man: Far From Home, now in theaters.

I Give Spider-Man: Far From Home a 4.5/5.

In a few days, I will be talling about the post-credit scenes for Far From Home. Check back soon.

By the way, I TOTALLY CALLED IT ABOUT MYSTERIO!

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Toy Story 4 Review

Mention the words “Toy Story” to a lot of millennial’s today, and they’ll probably respond with nothing but praise and affection; myself included. Watching Toy Story on VHS is one of my earliest childhood memories. I consider Toy Story 2 to be one of my all-time favorite movies. Plus it gave us this scene:

I never get tired of that. For all my love of Toy Story, though, I never saw Toy Story 3 in its entirety. I was too sad about it being the end to see it in theaters (note to self: watch it this summer). Then out of the blue, Pixar gave us another Toy Story film this summer. While experience has taught me that this could potentially be a shameless cash grab, I decided to give it the benefit of the doubt. It is Pixar, after all. After going to see the new Toy Story 4, I’m pleased to say that it is no cash grab.

Quick Plot 101

It’s been two years since Andy’s toys got adopted by Bonnie, and they’ve settled into their new lives pretty well. Woody’s being neglected by Bonnie for weeks now, something that bugs him more than he’d care to admit. When Bonnie comes home from her kindergarten orientation with Forky, a toy spork she made with trash, Woody takes it upon himself to look after Bonnie’s new favorite toy. As we see in the trailers, Forky doesn’t want to cooperate, leaving the two stranded while on a road trip. As Woody tries to get them home to Bonnie, he ends up running into his old sweetheart, Bo Peep, whose post-Andy life makes him reconsider his purpose as a toy.

Now that that’s out of the way let’s get to the meat of this review: what I loved, and what to nitpick.

The Spectacular

Forky Is our Spirit Toy

The Internet has spoken, and it adores Forky! The Toy Story 4 website describes him as the kind of toy that only a kid who spent twenty minutes making him would love. That’s accurate for the newest toy in Bonnie’s room. Of course, that’s Forky’s main problem: he’s not a toy, and he knows it. The other toys realize it, too, but they support him in his new life anyway. Forky wants nothing to do with them, though, and insists that he’s trash, and tries several times to throw himself out.

While annoying at first, Forky reveals his obsession with trash is because it’s his comfort zone. It’s what he remembers from before being a toy, and it’s warm and comforting to him. It’s like his security blanket, and he’s not ready to part with it.

At a crucial point in the film, Woody uses Forky’s love of trash to get through to him finally: he makes Bonnie happy the same way garbage makes him happy. Once that realization hits, Forky begins to embrace his life as a toy and his newfound purpose.

I can see why everyone loves Forky so much: he’s an insecure fish out of water that’s thrown out of his comfort zone, and that’s scary for most people. He tries to reject his new circumstances in life, but as time goes on, he learns to embrace them and starts forming an actual personality. He’s kind-hearted, naive, friendly to other toys, and has a mischievous streak that we can’t help but smile at. He also proves to be insightful, as he picks up that Woody hasn’t gotten over Andy.

Woody’s Character Growth

Remember how jealous Woody was of Buzz in the first film, and how much trouble that put the two of them in Toy Story? As if coming full circle, this film puts him in a very similar set of circumstances: his favorite toy status gets replaced by Forky. Thankfully, Woody takes it all in stride and tries to put Bonnie’s happiness over his own status. At least, that’s how it looks on the outside.

No matter how he denies it, two things become apparent. He’s upset at no longer fulfilling his purpose in life, and he misses Andy. So he attempts to cover up the fact that he misses Andy through his loyalty to Bonnie and protecting Forky, even when the other toys want to give up. This almost alienates him from the now childless Bo, who embraces the freedom of being a lost toy.

Woody’s always been unfailingly loyal to his child and his friends. It’s his biggest strength, but Toy Story 4 shows that it can be a weakness. He’s too loyal to Bonnie to accept that, maybe, she doesn’t need him anymore. The experiences that Woody has in the film, though, help to give him a new perspective on life. Serving as Forky’s mentor helps him move on from his past as Andy’s toy, and reuniting with Bo makes him realize that he could help a lot more kids and toys in the world.

The Less than Spectacular

I had to nitpick to find things about this movie that I didn’t like. I can’t help it, I love the franchise. In the end, this was the only major complaint that I could think up.

Franchise Veterans Get Neglected

As I was walking out of the theater after seeing the movie, a thought crossed my mind: I don’t remember seeing the Little Green Men. I didn’t even hear them say anything! Considering they’re some of the most popular characters in Toy Story, this was a disappointment. It also serves as a springboard for a problem I had with the film: it neglects the veteran cast members.

That’s right: the Potato Heads, Hamm, Rex, Slinky, Jessie, and Bullseye have little to no effect on the plot. They only say a few lines, but that’s about it. If this is the last film in the Toy Story franchise, then this will be the last time we may ever see a lot of these guys. To see the characters we loved growing up with being pushed aside was sad.

My Final Verdict

When Toy Story 3 came out, it felt like the proper end to the story that gave Pixar its big break. So when the studio announced Toy Story 4, we could be forgiven for worrying that it was a cash grab. Plenty of movie series got wrecked because people got greedy. Thank god Toy Story didn’t end up like that.

This movie may not have been necessary, but that doesn’t change the fact that we welcomed it anyway. Toy Story’s just that kind of story: simple yet oh, so elegant. The best part of it is that the kids who grew up watching the original are old enough to have kids of their own, and they’re taking them to see Pixar’s latest film. That inspires a new generation that will love the movies as much as we did.

I don’t think this is the last we’ll see of Woody, Buzz, or the others. I know that its’not the last we’ll see of Forky. In some form or another, Toy Story will continue. For now, though, I think this film ties the series up with a neat bow.

I give Toy Story 4 a 4.9/5. It’s Playtime.

Click here to see my reviews for various films.