Lightyear, the iconic character from the Toy Story animated film, is back with his own story in the movie Lightyear, directed by Angus MacLane. Released in June 2022, this action, adventure, and animation movie tells the journey of a ranger space named Lightyear who fails his crucial mission, causing chaos among his team, and his tragic journey to redeem himself.
Hibernation Ends, Mission Begins
Lightyear, portrayed by Chris Evans, wakes up from hibernation earlier than his time to lead the Star Command Explorer Ship called The Turnip. He is not alone, as his friend Alisha Hawthorne (Uzo Aduba) also wakes up and together, they embark on their mission.
During their journey through space, they receive a signal from the planet known as T’Kani Prime, which indicates the presence of life. Lightyear and Alisha change their course towards that planet to investigate this unknown discovery. However, upon landing on the planet, they are attacked by mysterious creatures, forcing them to return to their ship.
Things start to fall apart when Lightyear, Alisha, and their new companion Featheringhamstan (Bill Harder) begin researching the planet. They are not listening to the advice of the virtual assistant, I.V.A.N. (Mary-McDonalds Lewis), which causes the Star Command Explorer Ship, The Turnip, to crash into a mountain. Lightyear blames himself for the accident and tries to fix things.
A New Journey Begins
Lightyear takes charge of repairing The Turnip by waking up all the colonists from their hibernation. Lightyear volunteers to become the test pilot for the newly created hyper crystal fuel, which will enable them to leave T’Kani Prime. However, during his experiment, he causes the time on the planet to expand, and in just four minutes, 40 years have passed on T’Kani Prime.
Upon his return, Lightyear discovers that Alisha is engaged to an old scientist named Kiko whom she met three years before. Lightyear discovers a town on the planet with robot cats called Sox (Peter Sohn), which Alisha created for Lightyear’s company. Lightyear asks Sox to investigate the fuel’s formula, unaware that time is moving quickly.
The Tragic End
After several unsuccessful attempts, Lightyear finally resigns himself to his fate. He mourns Alisha’s death and is discharged from his mission. Commander Cal Burnside (Isiah Whitlock Jr.) takes over as Lightyear’s successor, stating that the colony is giving up and settling for life on the planet.
Despite experiencing sadness, there is news of hope. Sox has stabilized the hyper crystal formula allowing Lightyear to take off to test the ship once again. He manages to succeed, and during his journey, he meets the grown-up Izzy (Keke Palmer), Alisha’s granddaughter, who reveals that another robot is attacking T’Kani Prime’s colony.
Thus, Lightyear and Sox ignore Commander Cal’s orders and embark on a mission to stop the robot’s attacks. He meets up with two cadets, Mo (Taika Waititi) and Darby (Dale Soules), who join him on this thrilling adventure. After defeating the robots and their leader, Lightyear realizes that his future self is Zurg, the robot leader he defeated.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Lightyear is a movie that takes you on a rollercoaster of human emotions. It showcases the hero’s journey of a ranger space who fails his mission, the tragic end of his beloved friend, and his redemption journey. Lightyear’s determination to fix his mistakes and protect his friends from harm is admirable. His courage and selflessness inspire courage and hope in viewers. Overall, Lightyear is an evergreen movie that will remain in our hearts for years to come.
