In 1995 my first wife (Tiny’s Mom) and I went to see a revolutionary animated film featuring the antics of toys who came to life when people weren’t watching.  Directed by John Lassetter and starring the voices of Tom hanks, Tim Allen, and yes one of my favorite funnymen Don Rickles, Toy Story was a huge success.  Toy Story was also revolutionary as it helped launch a multitude of computer animated films to follow.  While many companies have tried to duplicate the Magic that is PIXAR, few have come close.  Their movies always capture a sense of wonder and awe and they focus on things that we as moviegoers NEED in our theater experience; story and character development. 

This weekend PIXAR released its third installment in the Toy Story saga grossing over 109 million dollars in box office revenue.  This makes Toy Story 3 the 11^th hit that PIXAR has released and the second largest grossing animated film opening behind Shrek the Third.  The story is simple and full of familiar characters in familiar sitruations, and yet as John Tweeted Saturday “PIXAR” can do no wrong.  I believe John is right and let’s discuss why. 

The story of Toy Story 3 opens with Woody and the gang remembering the good old days when they used to play with Andy.  These days have long since gone and our toy friends spend a life locked inside a wooden toy chest, hoping that someday they will get played with again.  You see, Andy has grown up and getting ready to go off to college.  His Mom encourages him to either donate, store, or throw away his old toys.  Reluctantly Andy packs up the gang (minus Woody) and begins to haul them off to attic.  A case of mistake identity occurs and the toys find themselves on the sidewalk, soon to be fodder for the garbage truck.  After breaking free of the bag the toys revolt and sneak into a donation box headed for a day care center. 

Once the toys arrive at the center, they are greeted by a lovable pink teddy bear named Lotso-Hugs-A-lot (voiced beautifully by Ned Beatty).  He and his partner Ken (Micheal Keaton) run the toy operation at the day care center and they are excited to see a new batch of toys arrive for the kids to play with.  The toys themselves are happy to get played with as well, that is until they are whisked into the toddler room where they are abused by bratty kids who have no respect for the toys whatsoever.  Buzz complains, only to find out that the whole operation is a racket and he and the rest of the toys must find a way to escape the day care center or face a life of cruel playtime. 

There is a ton of things to love about this film.  First it follows the PIXAR formula of successful movie making; a simple story that includes moments of character development.  We watch as the characters we know and love continue to grow and explore important themes such as loyaty and friendship.  We learn what it REALLY means to be a toy and in doing so we are reminded of our youth and how precious our own toys were to us. 

I couldn’t help but smile while watching this film, my friends from PIXAR are getting even better at this than they were in 1995.  Don’t get me wrong, PIXAR films have always been fun and enjoyable for people of all ages, and the scenes with Ken in this film made me nearly wet myself.  But now they tend to be rather touching as well.  I think it stared back with Wall-E, as I felt so close to the tiny garbage collecting robot and his friend Eva.  Then in UP I found myself weeping like a baby in the first five minutes of the film.  Now in Toy Story 3, I couldn’t help but get choked up once again.  The last 10 minutes of the film were so heartwarming as Andy and his toy friends have one final moment together.  It’s a passing of the torch so to speak leaving things open for Woody and his friends to continue their adventures together. 

I didn’t spend the extra money to see this film in 3D, but Tiggermango tells me it was well worth the price.  Like all PIXAR movies there is a short 5 minute film preceding the feature.  This one is particularly touching and in 3D it adds a special touch.  Regardless of whether you choose to shell out the extra cash for the 3D experience, Toy Story 3 is well worth your time.  Whether you have kids or not you owe it yourself to go and see this film.  The animation is phenomenal and the story is superb, and if you’re a sap like me, you might even walk away feeling like a kid again.

iPhone 3GS: I know, I know. The obvious choice for the Apple Fanboy in the audience but bear with me. I never bought a 3G back when Steve and Co. debuted the new “faster internet” version of the iPhone. My old 2G hooked into the web just fine, ran Apps decently and did everything I wanted it too. Or so I thought. With this little beauty, not only do I have a much needed compass to help me find my own house when I’m lost, it allows me to stream podcasts and music on the fly and take videos of my kids before they turn into teenagers tomorrow. Hell, I can even mistakenly send that picture of me with no pants to my loan officer instead of just texting him insults to his mother. Technology is, truly, grand. What was already a device that had my very life housed inside it has somehow become an even more important and valuable piece of equipment. I’m never without it.

Vintage 1952 Telecaster Reissue: Like every red-blooded American boy, I’ve always wanted to be a guitar player. Aided by the impending Classic Rock inspired Shmopera 3.0, I decided it was time to stop fucking around and do it. I’ve had my eye on this guitar since I first saw Springsteen playing on an actual 1952 Telecaster as a kid and when it came time to buy my first serious guitar, there could be no other. It may be a reissue but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t rock the shit out of everything you play. It’s a dream and plays like a classic American guitar should: loud and sexy. Add in a new VOX tube amp and I’m in rock and roll heaven. Tom Petty cover band, here I come. If I wasn’t married, I would sleep with this thing. I’m in love.

Up!: I’ve heard tell of animated movies that made crowds weep with emotion. I’ve never had an animated movie move me that way, until Pete Doctor’s Up!, that is. In the course of about three minutes, the story of a man and his wife goes by and ends with the main character sitting alone and holding a balloon after the funeral of his wife. An animated movie had me crying in the theater. Call me a baby, call me a wimp. I call Pete Doctor and the artists at Pixar some of the best storytellers and craftsmen that have ever lived. Thank God they exist.

Twitter: Hilden from 2008 wants to punch the Hilden of 2009 right in his pussy fucking face with this pick. It’s true, however, that Twitter has become one of the most important communication tools for Drunken Gamers Radio and it’s community of kick ass listeners. Not to mention, it’s a great way to keep in touch with what’s going on in world of entertainment, politics, comedy, music, comics and anything else I have an interest in. It’s everything I love about forums but without all the shit I hate. It’s what I wanted Facebook to be before a shit ton of people I didn’t even talk to in High School made the social network the equivalent of a yearbook popularity contest. Twitter is how I like to keep in touch with people. Short and to the point communications with a link to more shit if you want it. Twitter, I hate to say it, is the missing piece to the DGR/Robot Panic puzzle that started with a forum burned to the ground by a merciless robot. I love to Tweet. There. I said it. Fuck you.

LOST: For a show that really started to flounder around Season 3, this show really found it’s stride and once again sits as one of the best shows on television. In it’s 2009 Season, the element of time travel was used, not as a groan-inducing “we don’t know where to go from here” cop-out but as a brilliantly executed tool that was integral to a compelling and pivotal story arc. With only one season to go, LOST has taken it’s place as one of the most engaging stories I have witnessed on television and in 2009, it consistently delivered on it’s promise. My only regret is that it’s only got one more season before it’s over.

The Beatles Re-Masters: I’ve always been a Beatles fan but I’ve never seriously delved into their music. I’m not sure if it just wasn’t the right time in my life or what, but I’ve always had a passing fancy with the group. When the Re-Masters hit this year, the aspiring audio engineer in me decided to pick them up just to learn something about the mastering process. What ended up happening is a multiple month long voyage of musical discovery regarding song writing and construction. Those lessons ended up infusing most of my contributions to the ZomBOOsical! and gave me a whole new insight into what makes a great band great. My only regret is that it took me this long to really understand what the Beatles were all about. The new versions of these classic albums not only sound fantastic but they also restored my love of the physical medium of the CD for my music purchases. While I still download many songs digitally, if it’s anything of worth, I’m back to buying it on CD thanks to these albums.

The Protomen: Act II-The Father of Death: We’re obviously big fans of the rock “opera” thing here at Robot Panic. As such, The Protomen’s latest offering is one of my favorite albums of the year. Yes, it tells a great little story that is set in the world of one of my favorite videogames. However, it’s the songs themselves that set this album apart. They all have great hooks, some fantastic 80′s synth action and they’re catchy as hell. It’s a really well produced album and from a musical perspective, it sets the bar high for other folks hoping to do much the same. Um..yeah…that would be us.

Dexter: I’m a bit late to the party on this one, but I have to mention that Dexter goes down as one of the most cleverly crafted shows to appear on television. It got my wife and I to plunk down another $10.00 a month we don’t have just to see them all in time. I was in love with Season 3, even though many didn’t like it as much. I, however, thought it would be pretty hard to top. With Season 4′s scary, disturbing, brilliant and completely shocking story now over, I have NO idea where things go from here but I’ve never been more anxious to see a season of television start.

And that season finale ending scene will haunt me for months. I’m fucking serious.

All of You: Excuse the bit of cheese that’s about to be written here. I have to say that one of my favorite things of 2009 was all of you who read, listen and contribute to our little home on the web. I’m not gonna lie. A little over a year ago, I was done with websites, forums and podcasts. For reasons of my own addled brain, I was fighting hard to kill everything and shut it all down. Thanks to my good friends talking me down off the ledge, we managed to find what was missing and move things in a more positive direction for the three of us.

In turn, all of you who have been with us since the beginning of Team Fremont (or even GWX) and those of you only a week old have written in, called, submitted articles, left iTunes reviews and (most shockingly) donated your hard earned money to our show. There are simply no words to express how grateful I am for all of you and your contributions. I only hope that our show and site continue to entertain you or at least make you laugh once before you unsubscribe in disgust.

Thank you for making 2009 the best year we’ve ever had.