Tylor has a lot to learn about what laughter means…
A day after Henry J. Waternoose is arrested by the CDA for child abuse, Roz calls Mike and Sulley into the former CEO’s office to tell them they’ve been promoted. Meanwhile, a recent graduate of Monsters University, Tylor Tuskmon arrives for his first day at work but discovers rather quickly that scaring is not the ‘in thing’ now. Laughter is.
After a series of mishaps that Tylor believes will get him fired, he is told by Sulley that he actually recommended him for a scarer position before the change happened. He and Mike insist on their names being used rather than the formalities used by Waternoose.
There’s something very special about Monsters At Work and while it will take some time to get used to the format there were a few things we noticed on our two viewings.
The Monsters University References
From the moment Tylor is introduced, we get a blast from the past in the form of Professor Knight, the teacher who taught Mike and Sulley during their short tenure at Monsters University.
Sulley also mentions to Tylor that he beat his record on the scare simulator.
Also, a reference is made to Mike and Sulley working their way up the ladder from the mailroom which served as a running gag in Monsters University.
It appears that given the timeline, Monster University’s scare program has undergone an upgrade. It would make sense given that Mike and Sulley blew up certain parts of the school in their bid to escape the human world. The fake kid in the simulator is more realistic looking whereas, during Mike and Sulley’s time, it was wooden.
Given Professor Knight’s appearance, it looks like he is still on relatively good terms with Mike and Sulley as he mentions Sullivan rather warmly. It’s also really nice to see Alfred Molina reprising the role, even if it was for only one scene.
We also noticed two of the characters from Monsters University made appearances. The woman sitting next to Tylor looks like one of the emo society sisters Mike and Sulley went to MU with. Another woman – which is confirmed by Ms. Flint is one of the scarers that Mike and Sulley saw on the Scare Floor when they and Oomza Kappa broke onto Monsters Inc property to inspire OK. It’s Carla “Killer Claws” Benitez.
Running Gag
What really brings the laughter out is the running gag from Mike who struggles to come up with with a new slogan. This results in Sulley turning down his ideas.
Duncan Is Basically Tylor’s Version Of Randall… And Doctor Evil?
The moment we were introduced to Duncan, we noticed his personality resembles Randall but on a more creepy level. We can actually express our own laughter at this because Boggs wasn’t a character you can laugh at. Duncan, however, you can. Also, did anyone think he had a Doctor Evil vibe with his support animal, Roto? It’s very villainesque. Though, he does admit to Tylor that MIFT is actually full of great monsters.
Laughter Is Great, But Tylor Needs To Loosen Up Just A Little
Tylor begins his journey at the top of his class at Monsters University. After being told by Professor Knight that he’s been accepted at Monsters Inc, Tuskmon enters his new job naively. He walks into the building totally unprepared for what’s coming and finds the place in total disarray. It’s the first day of laughter being in and it results in some rather humorous results.
Tuskmon finds himself being redirected to an orientation. The instructor corrects all the scare terms and ones associated with laughter. It leads Tylor to be reunited with former classmate Val Little who dropped out after Freshman year.
What ensures the beginning of a rather odd friendship. This carries over into the second episode as well. After his conversation with Mike and Sulley, Tylor realises he needs to embrace the power of laughter. He decides to change his trajectory and to become a comedian.
Good luck, Tylor.
