Foil

Character Role Analysis

Joy and Sadness

Joy and Sadness are like Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart. They're an odd couple, but, in the end, it works. Their energies complement one another: Joy keeps Sadness from giving up as they struggle to return to HQ, for example, and Sadness teaches Joy about empathy.

Through their differences, they enhance each other's essential traits, and, when they team up, it allows Riley to experience more complex emotions. Simply put, Joy is the blue-haired yin to Sadness's blue-everything yang.