Partysaurus Rex is the third and final short film in the Toy Story Toons series. The short was released with the 2012 theatrical 3D release of Finding Nemo.[1] It is the fourth Pixar Canada production.[2] The short has been rated G by the MPAA.[3]
Rex disrupts the other toys blowing soap bubbles, worried they may make a mess. He is chastised by the other toys for spoiling their fun, with Mr. Potato Head calling him "Partypooper Rex." The other toys sense Bonnie approaching, and scatter, leaving Rex alone when she enters. She takes him to play with while she takes a bath. Rex enjoys being played with the other bath toys, but soon Bonnie's mother comes to turn off the bath and take her out. Once alone, the bath toys wish they could continue to have fun, but none of them have arms (except Rex) and can only function if afloat in the water. Rex initially thinks drawing a new bath is a bad idea, but after recalling Mr. Potato Head's insult, he asserts that he is "Partysaurus Rex," and helps the bath toys to start a new bath.
The toys quickly start to sing and dance in a rave-like fashion, aided by a carefree Rex throwing a bubble bath solution into the tub, and blocking the overflow drain with a sponge. However, he suddenly realizes that if the tub overflows, it will leak out into the hall; the bath toys care little if this happens and continue to party. He tries to turn off the water, but only causes the handle to fall off, and the drain stays plugged when he tries to pull it out. Finally, he spots the knob on the faucet that stops the flow from the faucet, but realizes too late that this only diverts the water to the shower head. The tub starts to overflow while the other bath toys oblivious to the problem, simply thinking Rex's efforts to stop the bath is him trying to make things more fun. Outside the bathroom, Woody and the other toys go to see how Rex is doing when suddenly, the bathroom door bursts open and a flood of water pours out.
Later, Bonnie's mother is paying to have plumbing repairs done to the house. Rex, though he knows this was all his fault, is enjoying the short-lived fame with the other toys in Bonnie's room. Outside, pool toys, who have heard of Rex's exploits from the bath toys, ask the Partysaurus to help them turn on the outside faucet to let them party as well, Rex tells his friends that duty calls and quickly jumps outside to start a new party, ending the short.
Partysaurus Rex was released theatrically with Finding Nemo 3D. It premiered on Disney Channel in the United States on October 8, 2012. On October 10, the short was released online for free by Disney Video.[5][6][7] The short is also available on iTunes,[8] Amazon,[9] and YouTube.[10] In October, Mark Walsh came to VIEW Conference in Turin, Italy, which he brought Partysaurus Rex with him, having its European premiere.[11] The short isn't included on the Pixar Short Films Collection Volume 2. The short made its home video debut as a special feature on the Monsters, Inc. 3D Blu-ray and Ultimate Collector's Edition, which was released on February 19, 2013.[12] According to Disney Brochure 2013, it is shown with Wreck-It Ralph in the United Kingdom.[13] (The brochure was incorrect; Wreck-It Ralph actually showed in the UK with Paperman, as in other markets. In the UK, as in the US, this short appears with Finding Nemo 3D, whose UK release was on Good Friday 2013.)
Reception
The short was very well-received. Ben Kendrick of The Christian Science Monitor said that Partysaurus Rex is "easily the most enjoyable franchise spin-off to date."[14]
Merchandise
Partysaurus Boat
Disney has also announced a bath set, called the "Partysaurus Boat" based on the short, and that was released in the fall.[15][16]
Music
Electronic artist BT, who composed music for the short, said about it: "I'm in the middle of scoring a film for Pixar right now. It's a short for Toy Story and I'm not allowed to say the whole story, but quite literally, it's like a Toy Story rave - and I'm actually not kidding either. The toys get into all these shenanigans and it's like pounding club music. So it's really not very Pixar, but in a really hysterical way, everyone laughs really hard when they see it."[17]
The song from the short, titled "Partysaurus Overflow", was released as a digital download on November 19, 2012, on iTunes and Amazon. Beside BT, the cover art also credits electronic dance producer Au5.[18]
A T-Bone toy can be seen during the bathtub's overflow.
The toy car seen at the bottom of the bathtub is modeled as the one of the Condorman toy from Small Fry.
In the end, Rex told Mr. Potato Head about how he was creating a party in the bathroom, but Mr. Potato Head didn't believe him. Then, the bathroom toys were outside at an inflatable pool, asking Rex to start another party, proving that Rex was creating a party. That is similar to how Cars Toons: Mater's Tall Tales usually end.
A few of the bathroom toys seem to resemble Peach and Mr. Ray from Finding Nemo. Incidentally, the short was released with Finding Nemo's 3D re-release of September 14, 2012.
When the tap's handle comes off with one of the bathroom toys on it and sinks into the water, the toys that are seen on the bottom of the bathtub are some of the Sunnyside Daycare toys in Toy Story 3, including a Rubik's Cube.
This is the only Toy Story Toons episode that doesn't include a post-credit scene.
A sound effect used by Rex in Toy Story 2 when Buzz's rescue party uses Slinky to get to the ground is re-used in one scene in this short, as well as one that was used when Rex saw the Buzz Lightyear: Attack on Zurg strategy guide.
This is Woody and Buzz's smallest speaking role in the Toy Story franchise, as they each only had one line in this short.
A toy resembling the Tractors from Cars appears at the bottom of the tub.
This was the first Toy Story production to feature the 2011–present Disney Castle logo.
This is the only Toy Story Toons episode where Joan Cusack and Timothy Dalton don't reprise their roles of Jessie and Mr. Pricklepants. The credits say they do but this is wrong.
Home Media
Monsters, Inc. special edition DVD, special edition Blu-ray combo pack and Blu-ray 3D combo pack released February 19, 2013.
