When Pixar released Toy Story in 1995, they were able to capture our hearts and minds with one simple premise—What if all of our toys were sentient? Over the years, the franchise has explored themes of family, friendship, envy, love , loyalty, and did so without ever caring how or why the toys were alive. Whether intentional or not, the conceit of Toy Story 4‘s story—as well as a repeated gag throughout the film—establish new rules that seemingly govern all matter in the franchise universe.