In honor of Pixar’s Up coming out this Friday, today’s incentive sketch is my own rendition of the movie’s septuagenarian protagonist, Carl Fredricksen. To view it, simply vote for Theater Hopper at Top Web Comics.

An additional bit of business before we get on with the blogging: Monday’s comic was delayed by the Memorial Day holiday, but was posted on Tuesday. So if you were away from the site for whatever reason on Tuesday and want to view it, click here.

I don’t know if today’s comic captures the level of righteous indignation I normally express against Pixar-haters. If I wanted to, I could have really gone on a rant. I suppose that’s what this blog is for!

This is something I’ve noticed when it comes to Pixar films: The first trailer comes out about a year to 8 months before the film hits theaters. There are people (like myself) who are immediately excited about it and then there are… others who want to pick it apart.

Now, far be it for me to say these people don’t have a right to pick things apart. If I apply that logic, then that logic can be applied against me. Considering what I do here, picking things apart is my bread and butter. So I’m not saying these people don’t have the right to a negative critical opinion.

What I *AM* saying is that these critics are on the losing side of history.

Since its inception, Pixar has been putting out quality film that not only push the boundaries of 3D animation, but achieve mass and critical acclaim for their emphasis on solidly constructed stories.

Why then, when the teaser trailers come out, do some people automatically poo-poo them? I’ve seen it done with nearly every movie the studio has produced since A Bug’s Life and some people refuse to let it go.

Considering Pixar’s unprecedented string of hits, I can only assume that these people want Pixar to fail.

Everyone has an axe to grind. I know this. One only need look at my baseless grudges against Ben Affleck and Shia LaBeouf for proof of this.

But whereas Affleck and LaBeouf have earned condemnation for their public antics and their sometimes questionable choices in movie rolls, Pixar has been turning out hit after hit after hit. 10 blockbusters, by my count. TEN classic films that can stand shoulder-to-shoulder to some of the most technically innovative and engrossing films in all of animation.

Is Pixar headed for a fall? The realist in me says “eventually.” At some point they’re going to trip over their own feet. Maybe it’ll happen with Toy Story 3. Maybe it’ll happen with Cars 2. Despite the fact that Toy Story 2 is probably one of only a handful of sequels better than the original, sequels are generally a bad idea. So who knows?

All I’m saying to the haters is stop anticipating it so readily. Because you know it and I know it… the minute that trailer for Up with the talking dog came out, you were all over this movie like white on rice. You’re gonna see it and you’re gonna love it, just like all the other Pixar films.

Please, leave the self-aggrandizing predictions to professionals like myself. ;D

Who else is excited about Up this weekend? Leave your comments below!