It’s impossible to overstate how much of an influence PIXAR has had on my existence. Most of their movies (forgetting weaker entries like Cars 2 and Brave) has some kind of special meaning for me, and perhaps none of their characters has more emotional resonance with me than those wonderful toys from Toy Story. Their first adventure remains PIXAR’s best film for me, their second film was one I rewatched endlessly, and the third film is easily one of the best movies made in the 21st century.

Transitioning over to television for the first time in history, Toy Story of Terror! brings select members of the Toy Story gang (Woody, Buzz, Jessie, Trixie, Mr. Potato Head, Rex and Mr. Pricklepants specifically) to a motel, where things are looking pretty spooky and creepy. Things go to the next level though when toys start disappearing, one by one. It soon comes down to Jessie to save all of her friends from the mysterious force that’s pulling an Agatha Christie maneuver on these beloved characters.

Being PIXAR’s first foray into the world of half-hour television, the cast and crew behind this special (which is directed by Angus Maclane, who made the delightful shorts BURN-E and Small Fry) find themselves working well within the perimeters of television. Thankfully, they adjust to the storytelling structure of the medium without sacrificing the humor and wonderful characters that make the Toy Story movies so perfect. Speaking of characters, we get plenty of amusing creations in this special, including Combat Carl (who not only is voiced by Carl Weathers, but also humorously refers to himself in the third person) and parodies of LEGO’s and Transformers. It’s simply fascinating that, even through a whole trilogy of films and three shorts, there’s still plenty of places to explore in the Toy Story universe, places that are explored to great effect in this special.

One of the shows best touches is that everybody from the films comes back to voice their characters; Tom Hanks is still Woody, Tim Allen still brings all the personality to Buzz and the delightful Kristen Schaal still brings her splendid vocal abilities to the character Trixie. This kind of casting lends the special a comforting sense of consistency, and with no distracting substitute voices to occupy our mind, one is allowed to enjoy the specials story. Frankly, the plot is hinged a bit too much on coincidences and occasionally lends itself to stretching our suspension of disbelief a bit too much. Thankfully, those are only in passing moments and the rest of the proceedings are top notch.

While it’s always great to see the Toy Story gang, it’s especially rewarding to see them in a high quality project like this. Jam packed with laughs, interesting characters and even some chilling moments (this is a Halloween show after all!) Toy Story of Terror simultaneously brings about a joyous half hour of television and opens up new storytelling possibilities for these characters. I’d love to see what other holidays like Valentine’s Day or Christmas could bring for one of the greatest ensemble of characters ever created in the history of humanity.

Come to think of it, if PIXAR is looking at other films to turn into holiday specials, I think seeing The Incredibles dealing with Christmas would be very, very fascinating. Just sayin’.