As I mentioned last week, I recently took a littlefield trip to Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, California for an early screening ofToy Story of Terror!,ABC's made-for-TV Halloween special (though it's technically nota Halloweenspecial; more on that in a minute), as well as a chat with writer/directorAngus MacLane and producerGalyn Susman. As a longtime Pixar fan, I've been interested in this project since it was first announced;Toy Story of Terror! marksthe first time the studiohas produced workexclusively for television, and by trading onone ofits best-knownproperties, to boot. Cynic that I am,I briefly worried thatthe special might end upa slapdash cash grab by Disney/ABC, a big media conglomeratetryingto squeeze a little extra toothpaste out of a blockbuster movie franchise. But now that I've seen it,those concerns are gone, because Toy Story of Terroris great, and I'm already hoping the company will make use of its synergy and all that business-y stuff to create more specials like this in the future.
But I'm getting ahead of myself! Read on for more details and tidbits on what to expect, in this super-sized/slightly different-than-usualedition ofHey TV.com, Should I Watch Whatever Show You're Talking About?, featuring answers from both moi and the creators themselves.
Toy Story of Terror,huh? So this isbasically likeIt's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown orShrek the Halls?
In a brand-extension sense, yes.Toy Story of Terror!is essentially a typical Pixar movie that's beenadapted forthe small screenanda 22-minute time constraint.Although I mean"typical" asa compliment; in the words of the great John Hammon, the company"spared no expense."Toy Story of Terror!spent two years in various stages of production, andhas all the trappings of aPixar featurefilm, from a big-namevoice cast to the company's signature blend of humor andheart.
The story followsWoody, Buzz, Jessie, Mr. Potato Head, Rex, Trixie, and Mr. Pricklepants on a spooky adventure through the Sleep Well Motel, where they end up spending the night afterBonnie (who inherited the toys at the end ofToy Story 3)and her mom get a flat tire during a road trip to grandma's house. That's when the toys start to vanish, one by one...
Who's behind the animated scenes?
Several of thethe franchise's major voice actors have returned toreprise their roles from the movies: TomHanks and Tim Allen continue their tenuresasWoody and Buzz Lightyear, respectively, andJoan Cusack is back in the saddle as Jessie. Also along for the rideareDon Rickles as Mr. Potato Head,Wallace Shawn as Rex,Kristen Schaal as Trixie, and Timothy Daltonas Mr. Pricklepants. Meanwhile,Carl Weathers joins theToy Story universeas Combat Carl (and his one-third scale model, Combat Carl Jr.). The aforementionedAngus MacLane(who was ananimator onToy Story 3,WALL-E,Up, and many other Pixar films) wrote and directed the special,and the aforementionedGalyn Susman (various creativeroles onRatatouille, Finding Nemo, Toy Story 2,and many other Pixar films) produced it.
When does the terrorizing begin?
Woody and the gang make their TV debutonWednesday, October 16 at 8pm ABC. Note thatToy Story of Terror! is only a one-off, so make sure to set the DVR.
What's so scary aboutToy Story? (Seriously, how scary is it really?)
Scary enough! WhileToy Story of Terror!is still kid-friendly, the title delivers on itspromise, andI definitelyjumped more than once. Yourmileage may vary, of course; I tend to startle very easi ahhh! Tim, I told you to quit sneaking up on me like that!
But yeah,roadside motels are home to plenty of things that go bump in the night, and the Sleep Well is no exception. The reveal of the monsteryes, of course there'sa monster!isdelightfully suspenseful, and Toy Story of Terror!payshomage to lots ofclassic horror tropes with some help fromMr. Pricklepants, who steps in to narrate each one as they happen:
Here's what Susman had to say about the program's scare factor:
If you think about all of ourToy Storymovies, there is an element of threatthere are frighteningmoments in those movies.Toy Story 3is WAY scarier thanToy Story of Terror. Sid's room is REALLY scary. So from the perspective ofToy Story, I don't think this is any scarier. The thing that's different is that, unlike the feature films when they are first released, some parents will choose to plop their very young children down in front of a television and walk out of the room. That's not something you have to worry about at the first release of aToy Story 3. And sowe were really firm on wanting the word 'terror' in the title. Because from our perspective, we were messaging to parents,This is scary, if your child is liable to scared, PLEASE don't leave them alone in the room with the movie. So it's notToy Story Halloween Special, it'sToy Story of Terror.
What new toys will we meet inToy Story of Terror!?
The most prominent one isCarl Weathers'Combat Carl,a G.I. Joe-type action figurethat was first seen in the original Toy Storymovie, when Sid blew one up with an M-80 as Woody and the other toyslooked on in horror. Combat Carl speaks in the third person"Combat Carl never gives up, Combat Carl finds a way!"and becomes a bit of a mentor to Jessie once thetoys haverealized what a dangerousthreat they're up against. "He hasa little bit of self doubt, which is nottotally period," says MacLane, "but the idea of him speaking mostly in, like, coach cliches, and that he was going to be [Jessie's] mentor was always kind of where we were going."
Other cleverly used playthings include Pez Cat, Lego Bunny, the Transformers-esque "Transitron,"and the curmudgeonly "Old Timer,"a mustachioed alarm clockwho looks kind of like anold Fisher Price toy.
Did the TV format present any new challenges for Pixar?
I'll let MacLane and Susman handle this one.
Susman:Our storytelling process has always been,If you need more time to tell it, you need more time to tell it.And that's just not what you work with when you're doing something for television. So for me, that was the biggest surprise, how much that fixed time had an impact on everything that we did. ... We had to be a lot smarter.
MacLane:It was a situation of limitations in a great way. It was like, okay, these are the things you're going to work with:It'sToy Story, it's going to be a scary special, it's not Halloween-themed, even though it'll be out around Halloween, because that doesn't necessarily work for international markets because it's not universaland I was glad about that limitation because as much as I love Halloween, I didn't really want to see astory where they get dressed up and go trick-or treating, that wasn't something that was interesting to me because it wassomething I felt like I'dseen it before, so that was a greatlimitation. Another limitation was that we only had a certain amount of time, and because we only had a certain amount of time we could only use a certain amount of characters to pay off that much time. So these limitations were all great for a universe that is vast and huge and has been in over three movies.
What's good aboutToy Story of Terror!?
Mr. Pricklepants' meta commentary is definitely a highlight, and it's nice to see Jessie shine as she faces her fears and steps up to save the day. Overall,Toy Story of Terror!easily achievesPixar's signature combinationof humor and heart, and adds somereal suspense, too. Oh, and just like any other Pixar production, there are lots of Easter Eggs! Keep an eye out.
Is there anything terror-able aboutToy Story of Terror! that I should know about?
Nothing as bad as the pun I just made!Honestly, my only complaint is that it feels a bitshort; I thoughtsome parts of the story seemed a little rushed. The specialeasily could've been an hour long.
So, should I watch it?
Yes,absolutely! Fans of Pixar and theToy Story franchise won't be disappointed.
Toy Story of Terror! debuts Wednesday, October 16 at 8pm on ABC.
Source: http://www.tv.com/news/toy-story-of-terror-review-abc-pixar-138186265256/
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