Toy Story That Time Forgot

Sometimes I'm so impressed with how much creative geniuses like the folks down at Pixar can do with such a limited running time, in this case 22 minutes. This time, they chose to focus on different characters and I appreciate that, with so many characters in the Toy Story saga, and new additions as well. It's a nice and warm story, the pace is comfortable, it wraps up in a good manner: Trixie teaching the dino toys (especially Reptilus Maximus) the delightfulness of play; a moral of how these toys need to know their actual place in this story, and not let themselves be misguided by a third party.

In my opinion, Trixie worked as the lead, for this short special at least, and I strongly favour the message of not spoiling your fun only with videogames, there's other things out there, in this case: toys and imagination. Oh and I know this was supposed to be a Christmas special, but to me, it didn't feel Christmassy at all.

Woody, Buzz and Rex got a bit of screen time and as usual they are great themselves as well as the interactions between them. So, in all fairness, it is a decent effort, not the best of course, but very enjoyable nonetheless.

It's always fun to see "the old gang" get back together. The Toy Story characters have so endeared themselves to our hearts that there is an automatic connection with them every time they appear on screen. In "Toy Story That Time Forgot", some new blood is introduced.

For a basic plot summary, this little short tells the story of a Christmas playdate at a friend of Bonnie's. While at the friend's house, Bonnie is sucked into playing a new video game instead of playing with the toys. So, Woody, Buzz, and the gang must "go it alone" and interact with a new set of dinosaur toys (led by Reptillus Maximus) that still don't yet know they are toys.

Like I said, it's great to see and hear from the toy characters again. In this installment, dinosaur Trixie gets a lions share of the screen-time, much like Combat Carl stole "Toy Story of Terror". That being said, each of your favorite character has at least a line or two.

The only reason I can't give this the full five-stars? Because I think that maybe a bit more time was given to the battle dinosaurs than necessary. What makes Toy Story great is the emotion and the humorous interaction between the characters. Both of those things are indeed present here, but there is a lot of "setup" to pull it out of the story.

So, I have to say that I liked last year's Halloween special a bit more than this Christmas effort. That being said, this one is still quite enjoyable and will, at times, have you both laughing and feeling in equal measure.

It's just after Christmas. Bonnie has a play date with Mason. She brings along Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Trixie the triceratops, Rex, and Angel Kitty. Mason got a new video game and he has't play with his other new toy, the Battlesaurs. Bonnie's toys meet Reptillus Maximus who is taken with Trixie. The Cleric has set up a gladiatorial world where the other toys are smashed by the Battlesaurs. Trixie explains the joys of play to Reptillus Maximus.

The central message is to play more with imagination and toys, less with the video games. Trixie is the lead in this half hour special. She's alright to lead a special and the message is passable. There are a couple of fun scenes especially when Woody and Buzz are in it. Angel Kitty speaks with a child's voice which caught me off guard. She could be funnier. The show looks good, has some good moments but isn't anything particularly special. It's a reasonable showcase for Trixie.

After Toy Story 3, Pixar continued the story of Woody and Buzz through short cartoons, and even two holdiay specials. This is the second of the two specials, set after Christmas, where Woody, Buzz, Rex, Trixie, and Angel Kitty, an ornament who is exclusive to this special, for a playdate Bonnie has with her friend, Mason. As the two kids are hooked on a new video game console, the toys are taken hostage by the Battlesaurs, action figures led by Reptilus Maximus, and while Rex and Trixie are treated nicely, Buzz, Woody, and Angel Cat are sent to fight to the death at the arena, causing Trixie to see that her new friends were not played with, and therefore, do not know they are toys.

Basically, like the first special, Toy Story of Terror, focused on Jessie conquering her fears, this special focuses on Trixie and her problem of Bonnie not playing with her as a dinosaur. Most of the cast from the film reprise their role (in fact, this would be Don Rickles' final movie before he would pass away in 2017). However, it does get violent at some points, even if the victims are all toys (one scene has Reptillus Maximus decapitating toys, while sock monkey is thrown out of the arena and mauled to death by smaller dinosaurs, with fluff flying out), but nothing too dark or scary happens (and since these are toys, there is no gore, other than fluff being spilled, and they are still alive even if their heads are knocked off). With a good story and cast of chatacters, as well as a good lesson Trixie teaches Reptillus, this is a neat TV special for the whole family.

Am a big fan of Pixar, films and shorts, and the three 'Toy Story' films (the first of which being ground-breaking) are among my favourites from them as far as their feature films go. For me, none of their work is below mediocre (even my least favourite 'Cars 3'), though that is probably not going to be a popular opinion with the post-'Toy Story 3' films getting a lot of hate. Meanwhile their best work is masterpiece level, all three 'Toy Story' films being on that level.

'Toy Story that Time Forgot' has a very cheesy, corny title but the actual special itself is the opposite of that and it is not as muddled as it sounds. It is instead very charming, quite cute and has enough amusing moments, a good position to be for a special released around Christmas but not really one. It is nowhere near Pixar at its A-game, but there is nothing really here that disgraces them or the 'Toy Story' franchise.

Part of me did feel though that 'Toy Story that Time Forgot' could have been longer than it was, which could have been used to give the original characters more screen time, and the pace can be uneven here, at times rushed.

Bonnie also sounds rather mature for her age and it doesn't quite gel with her character design.

On the other hand, there is an awful lot to like about 'Toy Story that Time Forgot'. The animation is very good for a television special made on a lower budget. Such beautiful attention to detail in the backgrounds and the character designs and the colours are so vibrant. The music more than serves its purpose well, with the right amount of energy and charming orchestration.

Loved the writing, which saw some wonderful wit in the dialogue and it was both very funny and emotive. The story is very sweet and charming, and really liked that it showcased Trixie who had enough of an interesting, not annoying or too sugary, personality to be a worthy lead. The moral/message was delivered well, making its point without over-emphasising, and it was one that is relevant and important. Would have liked more of the original characters but they are still fun and likeable without being out of character at any point. The conflict is handled entertainingly and sensitively with enough tension without going over the top on it. The voice acting is very good excepting Bonnie.

In summary, worth a look if not essential. 7/10