The first film in the series is similar to Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Chip ’n Dale: Rescue Rangers in its desire to pay homage to the meaningful cultural artifacts of its creators’ youth and wrestle with its own status as commodity. The sequel doesn’t bother pretending to offer anything but a realistic depiction of the metaverse Disney is building all around us: a fully branded virtual shopping mall and arcade that dispenses with anything ­resembling public or communal space that isn’t monetizable.

XREF: Connects to commentary on brand saturation in metaverse spaces and theme-parkification of public life.

Andrew deWaard, Derivative Media, loc. 437