It's a tale as old as time. A shiny new thing comes along, becomes hyper-trendy, and then fades into obscurity as soon as the next best thing comes along. We see it with iPhone models. We see it with cars. We see it with fashion trends. And we see it with toys.

Woody was once the top dog: the most coveted toy in Andy's toybox. But as soon as Buzz and his shiny suit get unwrapped, Woody's yesterday's news.

Sure, Woody knows that Andy loves him, but he also knows he's just a retro cowboy doll with a worn-sounding little pull-string voice box. He's obviously a vintage toy (in fact, in Toy Story 2, we find out that Woody's a highly valuable collectible, too). How can an old-timey cowboy compare to a space ranger with all kinds of cool buttons and lights and sounds?

In fact, we'll let Woody explain exactly what Buzz's flashy new features mean for him:

WOODY: You're a Buzz Lightyear. Any other toy would give up his moving parts just to be you. You've got wings, you glow in the dark, you talk, your helmet does that—that whoosh thing. You are a cool toy. As a matter of fact you're too cool. I mean—I mean what chance does a toy like me have against a Buzz Lightyear action figure? […] Why would Andy ever want to play with me, when he's got you?

Poor ol' Woody.

Retro-Modern Mix

So, Woody and Buzz literally symbolize the battle of old and new. Woody is a cowboy from the old west and Buzz is a spaceman from the new frontier. Some folks even think that Woody and Buzz might represent the clash between old hand-drawn animation and new-fangled computer animation: when Pixar comes along and makes an awesome movie that blows everyone's socks off—where does that leave Disney and its hand-drawn stories? (Source)

Of course, the moral of Toy Story is that there's room for all—old and new. Andy can still love and play with both Woody and Buzz, just like people can still adore the magic of Cinderella while marveling at the cool visuals in Inside Out. The way something's made or how retro it is isn't what matters—it's the love that counts.

Aww. We think we might need a tissue.