Bucket O Soldiers
Why It's Great: With Ronseal-level purity, this is exactly what it says it is. Namely, a bucket full of toy soldiers.
Never mind the quality (although the intricate modelling and diversity of poses means these guys are prepared for any combat situation), it's all about the quantity. Dig in.
Fact To Be Toyed With: The first plastic toy soldiers were launched in the US in 1938. It's as if they knew war was looming.
Get It Here: Play.com stocks a Toy Story-branded bucket, but the contents are classic.
Ken & Barbie
Why They're Great: By most distance the most famous existing toys brought into the Toy Story fold, blondie-haired goddess Barbie and her preppy fella Ken are the American Dream encapsulated.
Poseable, dressable and accessorisable, they can do pretty much everything...apart from getting jiggy with each other. No wonder those plastic grins look so forced.
Fact To Be Toyed With: Barbie would have played the role that eventually went to Bo Peep in the first Toy Story but Mattel - fearful of the brand's image being compromised - refused permission.
Get It Here: The duo is looking fabulous in this Toy Story 3 gift set at Toys R US .
R.C.
Why It's Great: As proved by Cars , Pixar's highly profitable four-wheeled franchise, kids will never tyre (sorry) of a decent toy vehicle.
Yet, for all Lightning McQueen's cool, it's R.C.'s remote-controlled interactivity that makes it the Pixar car you'd actually want to play with.
Fact To Be Toyed With: R.C.'s remote gets dropped during Toy Story 's climactic chase...so how come Andy still has it in the sequel?
Get It Here: This controllable R.C. is part of Vivid Imagination's range of ultra-desirable Toy Story gifts, available from Argos .
Etch A Sketch
Why It's Great: Before Illustrator, there was Etch A Sketch, the inspiration for Toy Story 's resident artist Etch.
It might look cumbersome and fiddly to use to the iPhone generation, but this was once the cutting edge...and, if we're honest, its retro angularity and the satisfying sound of its 'shake-to-erase' function still enthrall.
Fact To Be Toyed With : This year sees the 50th anniversary of Etch-a-Sketch's launch in the US.
Get It Here: Etch is back in The Disney Store to tie in with the new movie.
Rex
Why It's Great: Short answer? It's a T-Rex. And - in stark contrast to its real-life extinction - the T-Rex is so enduring in toy form it will never die out.
What's particularly special about Rex is that his face is imbued with real charm and personality for the sensititve kids, but the toy remains sharp and sturdy enough to function as a fearsome predator for playground monster-mashers.
Fact To Be Toyed With: Rex is based on a model released by the Smithsonian Institute...but the actual source of the design was Tyco's tie-in toy range for the Dino-Riders TV cartoon.
Get It Here : Get articulated with the Toy Story Basic Action Figure Jump Attack Rex (or plain 'Rex' to his friends), available at Tesco .
Woody
Why It's Great: As Toy Story 2 correctly pointed out, the box is bad. Toys aren't meant to be collected in cardboard cages, but to loved and cherised, clutched close and chucked about. Woody, timeless and tactile, symbolises all toys.
Better still, the drawstring versions available in shops come complete with Tom Hanks' impossible-to-beat line readings. All together now: "somebody's poisoned the water hole!"
Fact To Be Toyed With: According to Pixar, Woody's surname is Pride. Which makes him sound even more like a porn star.
Get It Here : The Disney Store is sellnig a beautiful replica rag doll that's as close as dammit to the in-film character. But remember, kids, take it out of the box.
Mr Potato Head
Why It's Great: Sticking oogly eyes onto a potato is intrinsically funny. Adding hands, feets, hats, moustaches (or even Angry Eyes) means the hilarity need never stop.
Effectively, the Salvador Dali to Barbie's Coco Chanel, Mr Potato Head's surreal, anarchic joys don't end with childhood.
Fact To Be Toyed With: Mr Potato Head was the first toy advertised on television, shifting a million units within a year and revolutionising an industry forever.
Get It Here: The classic design is freely available. Kidults with spare pocket money might want to consider this talking model (available from Sainsburys ), whose face falls off if he hears a loud noise.
Buzz Lightyear
Why It's Great: The fold-back helmet visor. The impressive wing span. The little light bulb that blinks.
Buzz is the toy that fulfilled his character's prime objective by going well beyond infinity...in children's imaginations and sales targets alike.
It's not hard to see why: Buzz is one cool piece of design, a retro/(post)modern fusion of bold lines, cheeky attitudes, and features to die for. You want one, dont'cha?
Fact To Be Toyed With: As everybody knows thanks to Toy Story 2 , "back in 1995, short-sighted retailers did not order enough dolls to meet demand." Seriously, why didn't they just ask Mr Potato Head?
Get It Here: A companion to Vivid's deluxe Woody, this is the definitive Buzz Lightyear doll. Pick one up from Toys R Us , write your name on his foot in marker pen, and fall with style.
