Ultra Buzz 2000 was a character that was created for Disney/Pixar's 1999 animated film, Toy Story 2, debuting in earlier scripts since 1996. He was a sleek, metallic version of the basic Buzz Lightyear himself, whose wings pop out from the sides of his jetpack (similar to the real-life original figures of the 1990s) and had a utility belt containing a grappling hook and magnets or suction cups. After defeating Zurg, he would gift his belt to our Buzz after defeating Zurg. In this version, he had a shorter role than in the final film. He would also have been voiced by Tim Allen.
Despite not making any appearances in the final franchise, Ultra Buzz 2000 made his way being released as a real-life toy for Toy Story 2 released by Mattel in 1999, albeit going under the name of "Techno Gear Buzz" and in smaller figure sizes too. Another alternate design of him was released as a remote control alarm clock system by Thinkaway and a model kit version.
While having a shorter amount of screentime, much like in the final film, Andy's Buzz would first climb up onto Ultra Buzz's display stand, Andy's Buzz was curious and would about to press one of Ultra Buzz's buttons, until suddenly, Ultra Buzz snapped to life, grabbed classic Buzz's figure and believed himself to be the real Buzz. Ultra Buzz told him that he was in violation of code zero section seven dash B, and would explain Zurg's plan to him (the exact same quote Buzz in the original film explained to Woody when they were both under the Dinoco tanker truck). This would remind Buzz about his delusional past and would be embarrassed about it, Buzz would then try to explain to Ultra Buzz that they are all not the real character, and are just toys, Ultra Buzz however doesn't listen well and instead thinks he has been brainwashed by Zurg's agents. Original Buzz pops out his wings and tries to tell him that they are plastic and that their lasers do not shoot stuff, he then points his at Ultra Buzz, but this backfires and thinks he is trying to kill him and thinks he is a traitor and starts pointing his at Buzz. Buzz gives up, and starts to miserably walk away and Ultra Buzz gets shocked of him walking away from his laser.
The two would then start brawling until they knocked down a box of their archenemy, none other than being... the Evil Emperor Zurg, and escaped out of his box. Zurg would think he crashed onto a hostile planet and would see Ultra Buzz and his eyes start to light up and prepares to kill Ultra Buzz, pulls out his signature ion blaster from his box and attaches it to his back. Ultra Buzz pushes Buzz behind Zurg's box and the latter begins to shoot balls at Ultra Buzz, but the latter keeps dodging them with his movements which impresses Andy's Buzz. Classic Buzz would then step into the fight to help, Ultra Buzz tells him to stay covered if he doesn't believe he is a real space ranger and asks him how he can fight with that such attitude, and the latter would then fire his utility belt's grappling hook onto a low shelf and swings over Zurg, would run over and furiously stand up to him. Buzz smiles, and is inspired by the deluded space ranger's confidence and tells Ultra Buzz to step aside and allow him to handle this, and would suddenly walk into Zurg's spray of nerf-life balls, and would laugh as his ion ball's bounce harmlessly off his chest. Ultra Buzz is astonished and would question him "What kind of superhuman are you?!"
Ultra Buzz gifts his utility belt to our Buzz.
Buzz replies that he is not a human at all, and is a toy, a cool toy. Buzz would walk cooly behind Zurg's back and pulls out his batteries and Zurg's blaster stops firing, causing Zurg to gain fright and realise that his ion blaster is rendered useless. Zurg would back away cowardly and throws his ion blaster gun at Buzz and flees in terror. Buzz smiles at the amazed Ultra Buzz. Ultra Buzz gains pride at his performance and calls him the Buzz Lightyear and considers him a greater knowledge than he is. The two space men would do the secret space ranger palm press to each other. Ultra Buzz says he will be going to the Desert of Neptar to meditate, and thinks that perhaps someday he will gain the confidence Andy's Buzz displays. Ultra Buzz would then remove his utility belt from his waist and hands it to our Buzz, he also says that he has no idea what he did with his belt (when he never really had one), he asks him to take it as he thinks he's more deserving of it and tells him to go in peace with a farewell.[1]
Physical description[]
While in many scripts, he was a sleek, metallic version of the basic Buzz Lightyear himself whose wings pop out from the sides of his jetpack and had a bulkier body style with more design additions as seen on his real-life toy releases, some concept arts and the available 1-second animated footage of him depicts him with the classic Buzz Lightyear suit style with said colour variations. He also wore a green utility belt containing magnets with purple handles (suction cups in some scripts) that can be pulled out from the sides and contained a working grappling hook at stored at the back which accesdory he would hand down to our buzz as a gift of defeating Zurg.
By the time after the sequel's troubled development, the toy companies making figures based of Ultra Buzz didn't have enough time to adjust their toys to account for the script change, so they started off by only releasing his concept art-based designs. It wasn't until 2001 when Hasbro released the first figure of Ultra Buzz's final design in the film in the Toy Story and Beyond! toy line. These designs were dropped as time moved on where the companies started to mainly focus on producing his design in the final film.
Despite being scrapped from the final version, his concept art utility belt design (which is a bit different to the one seen in the final version, such as being green and having a different insignia) would be used in some stock artwork and coloring pages for Buzz Lightyear himself which were most likely based off Ultra Buzz's earlier concept arts.
In the late 1990s or early 2000s, Thinkaway released a Buzz using his original 1995 design in a chrome blue colour scheme under the name of "Buzz Lightyear 2000", most likely as a nod to this Buzz himself.
Save for his toy releases, originally, nothing of Ultra Buzz 2000's design surfaced anywhere to the public and it was for a long time thought that the toys where all what was left of him, until in 2018, a 1-second footage of him was finally discovered in a Pixar DVD named Made In Point Richmond, in the Toy Story 2 Wrap Party.
Hasbro's very similar-looking Search And Rescue Buzz Lightyear released in 2001 may very well have been inspired off one of his final design seen in an available 1-second footage from an early piece of animation for Toy Story 2 dating back to 1998 where the latter's belt is seen on Andy's Buzz giving him the vulcan salute.
His Techno Gear Buzz toy release of him by Mattel includes a working grappling hook in the utility belt that can be removed (although no magnets, likely due to limitations) just like in the film, with the second being Mattel's Rescue Gear Buzz Lightyear released in the same line, unlike any of the final version's full-sized releases.
In 2001, Mattel re-released the toy under the name of "Battle Commands Buzz Lightyear" with Mattel's basic-styled Buzz Lightyear body and lacks a utility belt. Unlike presumably other full-sized Buzz Lightyear action figures, this one doesn't have a laser, and is instead a sticker.
Gallery[]
Techno Gear Buzz released by Mattel in 1999.
Alarm clock system
Toy Story And Beyond Reissue of Techno Gear Buzz under the name of 'Battle Commands Buzz'
An early prototype of Techno Gear Buzz seen on an advertisement reusing Thinkaway's original 1995 Buzz model.
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