Opinion: Toy Story Trilogy Retrospective

Do Walt Disney and Pixar's classic animated films hold up in 2013?
To this day, the three Toy Story films remaining much-vaunted aspirational targets of quality for any successive animated movie that will release in 2013 and beyond. Of course, inevitably at some point, a viewer must begin to wonder and question whether these allegedly classic movies still live up to the hype surrounding them years after release. As such, that's a truth we're going to discover in full right here. Let's take a retrospective on the Toy Story Trilogy, then, voyaging back to 1995 and journeying through fifteen years of filmic entertainment...
TOY STORY (1995)- There's absolutely no denying that the original Toy Story marked a profound breakthrough for the animated film industry. Woody, Buzz and the gang all look absolutely terrific even eighteen years later, and locales such as Andy's room and the glorious setpiece of Pizza Planet lay the strong foundations for what's to come in the two successive instalments. There's little in the way of concrete weaknesses here, other than that the climax involving Sid and the race to catch the removal truck don't quite gel fully with the tone of acceptance and growth that arc across the rest of the film and its themes. Toy Story remains a captivating watch with just a small few terribly minor narrative shortcomings, still a defining target for animated films to attempt to match in 2013. 5/5
TOY STORY 2 (1999)- Following up on a colossal Disney hit was always going to be challenging. Indeed, Toy Story 2 isn't quite the sequel masterpiece that fans sometimes like to make out. New character elements such as Jessie and Bullseye were definitely compelling for the overall series lore, yet Stinky Pete and Al are needlessly poor additions to the storyline in comparison to Sid and the natural 'antagonists' of a race against time and conflict among the toys. The second instalment's plot is a lot more straightforward, its themes less complex and layered, a trait which does work to the film's detriment at times. However, Toy Story 2 is still a brilliant animated film that's been matched recently by Wreck-It Ralph, yet still marks a rarity of animated comic success. 4.5/5
TOY STORY 3 (2010)- Eleven years were most certainly kind to the Toy Story franchise. This trilogy finale brings the series thoroughly up to date, integrating plot elements steeped in the present day such as social networks, daycare centres and of course growing out of toys into the days of university. Incredibly, this may yet be the perfect rendition of what it means to be a teenager, or indeed in general what it means to grow up, to become a man. Better yet, the climax is perfectly handled, with a plentiful number of tear-jerking scenes in the seemingly resigned gang's fate in the dump, Andy's departure and "THE CLAW!". Toy Story 3 is by far a modern animated classic- no, scratch that, it's a modern movie classic that's still just as relevant to viewers across the world nearly three years later. 5/5