To my cynical eye, Cars 2 was written solely from a merchandise expansion point of view. I just don't understand why someone didn't stand up and say 'can't we

To my cynical eye, Cars 2 was written solely from a merchandise expansion point of view. I just don't understand why someone didn't stand up and say 'can't we write a good sequel and make lots of money?' In short : why not Empire Strikes Back? Lots of cool merch in that one, but a good story as well. It can be done.