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- Inside Out 2
- Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Every Emotion In 'Inside Out 2,' Ranked
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Vote up the best manic moods that make up Riley.
Our little Riley Andersen isn't a little girl anymore. She's now a full-fledged teenager, and with that comes a whole host of new emotions. Aside from Joy, Anger, Disgust, Fear, and Sadness, Riley is now riddled with Anxiety, disinterested thanks to Ennui, filled with pangs of Envy, and suffering from Embarrassment whenever her parents are around. And that's not all. But how do these emotions rate against the old tried and true moods that got her through her childhood? Vote up your favorite emotions, as well as the other colorful characters who have made a home in Riley's headspace.
Voiced By: Phyllis Smith
What's Her Deal: After Joy was born into baby Riley's mind, she was quickly followed a few seconds later by big, blue bummer Sadness. And that made Joy a little less joyful. At first.
Initially thought to be an unnecessary emotion who got in the way of Joy with her somber attitude, Joy eventually realized that Sadness was crucial to Riley's development. Sadness soon became a pivotal member of the gang. While Sadness generates blue-tinged melancholy memories, she can mix her blue with the memories of others to give the reflections bittersweet qualities, allowing more complex memories to develop, and thus allowing Riley to have more complexity.
In the new world order of Riley's teen years, Sadness must step up to be the hero as new emotions threaten to take over headquarters.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: Though initially dismissed by Joy as a downer emotion with no purpose, Sadness is crucial to Riley's development because without Sadness, Riley can't fully express her true self. Everyone needs a good cry, and for a long time, Joy denied that of Riley, thinking that crying was a useless activity that got in the way of smiles and jokes. But no person or child can be happy, or angry, or fearful, all the time. Sadness is there to let the hurt out in a meaningful way, and once the crying and pain is over, the Joy can return.
When Riley was forced to move away from her friends, Sadness helped Riley heal from that and grow. And when Riley discovered she was going to a new high school away from her best friends, Sadness let her express her pain from that revelation. Sadness works with Joy now to help Riley let go of her grief so Joy can return and do her job.
Gives you the feels?- 2
Disgust
Voiced By: Liza Lapira
What's Her Deal: “This is Disgust. She basically keeps Riley from being poisoned, physically and socially.”
True to her name, Disgust protects Riley from potentially harmful situations that can offend her sense of being, protects her delicate morality, and stops her from being a pariah in society. She knows what is cool and what must be avoided at all costs, like broccoli or mom when she tries to talk cool. Green from head to toe with an accent of a purple scarf for color, Disgust's job is to support Joy and make Riley happy, by avoiding the gross stuff that would make her unhappy.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: Sassy and sarcastic, Disgust is there to make sure Riley knows when her parents are getting out of hand and when her food is not fit for human consumption. Disgust is also the fashionista of the group as well, always making sure Riley is dressed to impress. She will do what it takes to make sure Riley is always looking her best.
Gives you the feels? Voiced By: Lewis Black
What's His Deal: Anger feels strong about a lot of things. All the things, actually. When he feels that Riley is being treated unfairly, he is there to help her express her rage. And as a teenager, Riley has a whole new range of hostility at her disposal, including irritation, animosity, and fury, that allow her to use her anger efficiently.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: When she was small, Anger helped her handle issues like no dessert, but now as a teenager, Anger has the task of handling her wildly fluctuating emotions, such as her bouts of irritation and exasperation with the people who surround her (i.e. her parents), and life's little injustices, no matter how small. This can help Riley during her hockey games, or when navigating issues with her parents, or having to deal with the fact that her best friends Grace and Bree are going to a different school. Anger is there to help Riley let others know she is not alright with the situation.
Gives you the feels?- 4
Joy
Voiced By: Amy Poehler
What's Her Deal: Riley's very first emotion back when she was a newborn and the console only had a single button, Joy is leader of the emotions, even though she has her occasional doubts and makes the odd mistake. Bright yellow with blue hair in a bright yellow and blue flowered dress, Joy has a sunny disposition and always tries her best to make Riley happy all the time, even when the situation calls for a different emotion.
Sometimes it is hard for Joy to let go of Riley because she loves her so much, which is understandable. But she is slowly learning that Riley needs all of her emotions in order to function. It is a hard lesson for Joy, but one she is willing to learn because in the end, it benefits Riley, and for Joy, Riley is what matters most.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: Joy's goal in life is to make sure Riley is happy at all costs. Riley's humor, the goofy parts of her personality, and moments of bliss like when Riley is on the ice, those are Joy's best moments. Joy is Riley's default emotion, thus why she is the leader. Joy is also what follows after Sadness, Anxiety, Ennui, and Embarrassment have done their jobs correctly.
When Joy finds herself away from the headquarters, be it by accident or when she is banished by Anxiety, Riley is thrown into chaos. Other emotions do no know how to navigate Riley the way Joy does, and so she often doesn't act like herself and gets into trouble or makes bad decisions. It is only when Joy is at the helm that Riley is able to blossom, though it is still very much a group effort.
Gives you the feels? - 5
Nostalgia
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Voiced By: June Squibb
What's Her Deal: Though she arrives a tad too early (about a decade, according to Anxiety), Nostalgia is one of Riley's new emotions. An elderly emotion who lives in the past, Nostalgia is there to remember the good times.
“Remember when we all finally came up to headquarters?”
“That was like 30 seconds ago, Nostalgia,” sneers Ennui.
“Yeah. Those were the days.”
Nostalgia is set to return after high school, but appears on occasion when remembering Grace and Bree after Riley goes to a new school.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: Eventually, Nostalgia will be there to help Riley think fondly on the past and give her memories a beautiful, waxy sheen that only Nostalgia can bring to them. But right now she arrived just a tad too soon. She is still forming her memories, not living in them.
Gives you the feels? - 6
Embarrassment
Voiced By: Paul Walter Hauser
What's His Deal: The largest of all of Riley's emotions, but the quietest, Embarrassment has a hard time making eye contact or even looking at any of the other emotions. His main form of communication is pulling the strings of his hoodie until his face disappears. The strong, silent type, Embarrassment can be easily pushed around by Anxiety at times, much to the detriment of Riley.
Embarrassment has been used as the muscle of the group by Anxiety. When Anxiety gives the order to bottle up Riley's older emotions, Embarrassment grabs them all and puts them in a jar. But he later amends the situation when he realizes that Anxiety is hurting Riley and he opts to help Sadness and return the other emotions to their rightful place in the headquarters.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: Embarrassment's main job is to make Riley feel shame when she acts socially inappropriate in front of her peers. While at hockey camp, Riley's attempts to relate to the older girls (particularly Val) doesn't quite work out the way she planned, causing Embarrassment to pull those hoodie strings extra hard. Embarrassment is a gentle reminder of how not to act in front of others, particularly when one is not true to themselves.
Gives you the feels? - 7
Fear
Voiced By: Tony Hale
What's His Deal: Fear's main job is to protect Riley at all costs and to keep her safe by instilling her with a sense of terror and panic on occasion. Fear manages the risks that Riley takes everyday and guides her to safety. Lavender in color, Fear is the embodiment of a person's basic nature to protect themselves at all costs. He takes his job seriously, and is often the voice of reason when other emotions get too wrapped up in the moment.
He also hates Dream Duty.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: When Riley was smaller, Fear manifested as a self preservation, such as being scared of tripping over a wire, clowns, or nightmares. But as Riley got older, her fears got a bit more complex, as she became scared of a multitude of things. Riley utilizes Fear the most during hockey, so she doesn't hurt herself during a game, but she also uses Fear in social situations.
Gives you the feels? - 8
Ennui
Voiced By: Adèle Exarchopoulos
What's Her Deal: One of Riley's newer emotions that moved in once the Puberty Alarm went off, Ennui is the name for Riley's newfound sense of complete disinterest and boredom that comes with being a teenager. She is responsible for the emotional distance Riley will place between herself and her parents, as well as her newfound interest in her phone and Riley's new ability to create Sar-Chasms within her mind with a single, caustic remark. This will eventually become the sharpest weapon in Riley's teen arsenal.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: As a teenager, it is important to keep one's parents in their place. One must keep them close, because they provide necessary items such as food, shelter, and funds, but not too close, or else they will take too much interest in one's affairs and life. Thus, Ennui's job is to keep parents at a safe distance so they might still provide the necessities of life without becoming cumbersome. She is also responsible for sarcasm, as well as the disdain needed by any teenager before heading into the battlefield known as high school. Ennui will help Riley fit in with other teens thanks to her cool disinterest.
Gives you the feels? - 9
Anxiety
Voiced By: Maya Hawke
What's Her Deal: Orange and high-strung, Anxiety is one of four brand new emotions causing an upheaval in Riley's new teenage life. Anxiety can help Riley plan for the future, but can easily get a bit carried away if left unchecked. If she isn't calmed down immediately or given a nice cup of Anxie-Tea, she will take over all of Riley's higher functions, including her other emotions, her creativity, and even her ability to sleep, forcing her to act against her own Belief System because she has convinced Riley it is for the greater good.
Anxiety isn't bad, she just doesn't know better. She honestly believes what she is going through is best for Riley, even though she doesn't know Riley all that well. And when obstacles occur that she cannot control, Anxiety becomes a tornado of trepidation, unable to calm herself in an attempt to control the situation.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: When monitored with gentle support, Anxiety can be a great motivator and help Riley plan for a better future. With Joy by her side, Anxiety learns that she cannot plan for every outcome and sometimes has to accept what cannot be controlled. However, with a steady head and guided by more tempered emotions, almost anything can be accomplished.
Gives you the feels? - 10
Envy
Voiced By: Ayo Edebiri
What's Her Deal: One of Riley's new headspace inhabitants, Envy is the smallest of Riley's emotions but the one with the most emotional needs. Her purpose is to express exactly what Riley's heart wants, not matter how big or small. And sometimes because she wants it so bad, she causes Riley to act in irrational ways. For example, when Riley first met her hero Val, the leader of the Firehawks, she saw the red streak in her hair and immediately envied it. Envy took control and reached out to touch Val's hair, much to Disgust's and Embarrassment's horror.
Envy also has a way of enabling some of the more negative traits in the other emotions, such as Anxiety. When Anxiety takes control, she becomes her right-hand-emotion, helping every scheme along the way.
How This Emotion Helps Riley: Envy can give Riley long-term and affirmative goals if used correctly, like wanting to be a Firehawk or to have cool hair. In that, she acts as a motivator for the other emotions to help them achieve good objectives for Riley. She also has the ability to come up with great ideas and solutions if encouraged in the right direction by some of the more positive emotions like Joy.
Gives you the feels?
