Like Toy Story 2, a select few sequels are generally considered equal to, if not better then, their originals. Far from all-inclusive, here are a dozen examples:

• The Bells of St. Mary’s (1945): Going My Way’s Father Chuck O’Malley returned the following year, netting an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture, the first for a sequel.
• From Russia With Love (1963): Sure, Dr. No (1962) introduced “Bond … James Bond�? to the world, but his second outing secured his rank among pop culture immortals.
• A Shot in the Dark (1964): Often sited as the best of the many Peter Sellers/Pink Panther films (1963-1982), this being the second.
• The Godfather: Part II (1974): The only sequel to win the Best Picture Oscar along with its predecessor (The Godfather, 1972).
• The Empire Strikes Back (1980): Darker and more dramatic then Star Wars (1977) - plus: Yoda!
• Superman II (1980) and X2: X-Men United (2003): With origin stories out of the way (in Superman, 1978, and X-Men, 2000, respectively), these super hero adventures hit the ground running.
• Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982): Ditching the ponderousness of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), this action-packed film revitalized the series enough for eight more movie installments and four more television shows, for better or worse.
• Aliens (1986): Alien (1979) gets better just by adding the letter “s�?.
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991): How best to take what was essentially a cult sci fi B-movie (The Terminator, 1984) and turn it into a budget-busting franchise.
• The Barbarian Invasions (2003): Where The Decline of the American Empire (1986) was cheeky in its gender gamesmanship, the Oscar-winning follow-up is a heartfelt eulogy to one man’s effect on so many others’ lives.
• Before Sunset (2004): A rare romantic sequel, picking up nine years after Before Sunrise.