Going back to some of my childhood Toy Story books, some pictures struck me as odd, and I couldn’t put a finger on what it was. Looking deeper into it, I realize that some pictures published in these books are unfinished! Of course, with most of these products being put out in time to promote the film, it makes sense that some scenes wouldn’t be completed at this time. The changes are subtle, but it’s still an interesting process; I’ve found three examples from three different sources. I’ve put the scans of the picture next to a similar scene from the finished film for comparison.
This first one is from the Toy Story Golden Book by Betty Birney. It’s actually hard to spot on its own, but the lack of lighting gave it away, as these scenes had a powerful red tone to them. Oh, and the sky isn’t in place yet.
This one is from “I Come In Peace” by Jan Carr. The pictures are extremely dark, so it was hard to make out in the first place (my scanner lightened it up considerably). Originally, the red rocket parts appeared dark green, but now, it looks like they weren’t colored at all. Also, in addition to the lack of lighting, notice the lack of details (no ‘Binford’ logo, no milk crate text, and no tape on Buzz).
Finally, this is from the Toy Story chapter book adaption by Cathy East Dubowski. There’s a whole thread on the differences from the film and the book, which resulted from being adapted from an earlier treatment of the script. Though this picture almost blended in with the other full-color pictures from the movie, except the dead giveaway was the lack of tape on Buzz. Then, I saw that the lighting also wasn’t completed.