Win or Lose

The first collaboration between Pixar and Disney, this is an excellent series of shorts that tell the story of the week leading up to the softball championships. With each 20-25 minute episode we see the same events from different people’s point of view.

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More than that, we see how each person experiences stress, what their coping mechanism is, and how they see themselves. The baseline animation is already really lovely, with excellent textures and a soft, young palette, but each episode, as it shows us the person’s perspective, utilizes a different style of animation in places. It’s genius.

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The range of characters is also great, from the New Zealand umpire, to the asian boy, to the sassy Latina single mom. Initially, the writers (executive producers who worked together on Toy Story 4 and whose conversations about that experience are what lead to this series) wrote in to this story a child who shifts gender expression, but most of those indications were eventually written out due to pressure from Disney.

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The series deals with themes of winning, competition, honesty, how we deal with life’s pressures, and love. This appears to be for children, but I think most of the nuance would be lost on them unless someone older discusses the episodes with them. In which case, this series could be eye-opening and informative for kids. It’s a cute reminder to be kind because each us experiences life in radically different ways.

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