Tylor Tuskmon, voiced by Ben Feldman, had wanted to be a scarer for a long time, but when he got the letter of acceptance from Monsters, Incorporated, he was just a little too late to live out his dream. 

In Monsters at Work, a new Disney Plus TV show that started on July 7, 2021, we follow Tylor’s journey. His story allows us to see what the transition from the scare floor to the laugh floor looked like, despite having to wait 20 years from Monsters, Inc. until now. 

Tylor had a very different experience from James P. Sullivan (John Goodman) and Mike Wazowski (Billy Crystal). Opposite of the two fan-favorites, Tylor was invited to join the scare floor right away but was quickly demoted, as he wasn’t trained in the field of comedy. 

In his demotion, Tylor made his way to the all-important Monsters, Incorporated Facilities Team—or MIFT for short. This team is a tightly bound family composed of the father-figure and boss Fritz Everett (Henry Winkler), the “cool aunt” Cutter Sterns (Alanna Ubach), the “annoying little brother” Duncan Anderson (Lucas Neff), and the “energetic little sister” Val Little (Mindy Kaling). 

This team was a little bit much for Tylor at first—especially given his mindset of becoming a scarer. He found them annoying and too energetic and decided he would get out of the job as soon as he could—he had a new goal. Tylor would join Mike and the other funny monsters up at the laugh floor. No matter what, he would open a human door and provide energy to the monster world. 

As someone who grew up with Monsters, Inc, Monsters at Work was a great way to end my summer and start my school year. It was light, and I didn’t have to focus very hard on it to understand what was going on. 

Many shows made in the past few years, even shows geared towards younger kids, do not make sense to watch out of order and may even require a clear mind to be able to follow the events. Monsters at Work was not this way. Sure, there were some details from previous episodes like the new slogan and some running jokes, but they weren’t so important that if you watched the shows out of order the first time you would have no idea what is going on. 

While it isn’t necessary to watch all of the episodes or the previous movies to understand the plot, the movies did have an effect on the TV show. The original characters, especially Mike, were able to expand their personalities. 

Mike was already a competitive, rowdy little monster who was sarcastic and could make Boo laugh along with all of the audience members. As Monsters at Work progressed, we got to see even more of him and his personality as he taught a comedy class to aspiring jokesters at the end of each episode and throughout the season. 

While seeing the monsters I grew up with, hearing the original voice actors, and watching their personalities deepen yet remain the same, I felt like a little kid again. I learned about a new monster team. I discovered how the transition from scare to laugh power went. I was ready to meet a monster and become its best friend.

Each Wednesday, I was excited to see what the MIFT team would do next, and each Wednesday, I was satisfied with a new adventure in my mind.