Knee jerk reaction is to say that he wants control over the worlds, which is true to an extent, but it's also worth asking why. I mean, Pete goes through an awful lot of of trouble to do what he does. He gets pushed around, beaten up, bruised, has his plans dashed time and time again, and his boss seems to think that he's worthless, and lets him know about it. But come hell or high water, Pete keeps coming back for more. There's something that drives Pete to take this kind of punishment on a regular basis, to the point where I don't think "he wants to take over the world" is a satisfactory answer. Because there's something greater than a physical motivation here: after all, he's not getting paid, and given that he has yet to actually take over a world means that he's not seeing physical dividends for his hard work. In fact, when you consider that his perseverance matches that of our heroes, and while the latter gets to see the benefits of their labors while Pete does not, it might even be the case where Pete is driven just as much, if not perhaps more, than some of the people on Team Light.
So what makes Pete get out of bed every morning to take on the world(s)? If I can quote Citizen Kane, "Maybe it was something he lost."
During the flashback to Timeless River, we see that Pete used to be somebody: everyone knew who he was, respected him, and in some cases, maybe even liked him. He got to be the number one guy on the river. This was a guy who was, if you'll pardon the obvious pun, the biggest cat on the street. From when he was starting out, Pete knew what it was like to be a big shot. Or, at least, he thinks he did. Pete interprets authority and respect by seeing it in terms of power, because that's all he knows: he believes that to run the show, you can't be soft, and have to call your own shots and make everyone else listen.
Here's the thing, though: he got it wrong. In Timeless River, some of the comments about Pete are in admiration because, well, he wasn't really that bad of a guy. A bit grumpy, a bit bumbling, but what can you do? Even Sora comments on the fact that the past Pete is somewhat nicer than that of the present. People liked Pete because he was likable, and Pete, in turn, likes to be liked. And for Pete, this is his utopia: We see that when Maleficent chews him out and calls him worthless, this is the mental retreat that Pete goes to: he goes to a time when he wasn't alone and hated.
But the tragic thing is, that's exactly what Pete wants to get back, but he doesn't know how to get it. He mentally connects power with admiration, and thinks the only way to be loved is to beat it out of people. To be the bigger force and to make them love you. And, of course, by "causing trouble," as Goofy puts it, Pete manages to do exactly the opposite of what he intended to do: he alienates everyone around him, and winds up alone and hated. Fast forward to Birth By Sleep, where the Pete we see in Disney Town is practically hated and shunned by all, while he tries, without success, to win their affection. But he can't, because he doesn't know how.
So why does he turn to Maleficent? For starters, she's the only one who will have him, and its probably why he puts up with her abuse: sure, she might be a terrible person, but at least she's there. Second, having found a vacuum in his heart where any kind of affection may have long since vanished, Pete has simply learned to replace that void with hate and anger. He can get up every morning and go out there and try his best to screw over the universe, because every morning, the universe wakes up and goes out there to screw over him. His pride is injured, he's lost everything that mattered to him, and because he doesn't know any better, he's going to go out there and get his revenge.
But here's the thing: his goal is actually still the same. Pete wants to be back in that spotlight, to have people look up at him, and to have them either love or fear him. He wants to rule the worlds because he's not self secure enough to rule alone: he wants people around him to respect him while he rules. He wants their admiration, and he wants their love. Essentially, he wants to take back everything that he used to have. But he only knows one way how to go about doing that, and it is, unfortunately, the wrong way. So he will keep going out there and take a beating, because the longing for his past is enough to shrug of the scars of failure.
Here's a fun question: What does Pete want?
Knee jerk reaction is to say that he wants control over the worlds, which is true to an extent, but it's also worth asking why. I mean, Pete goes through an awful lot of of trouble to do what he does. He gets pushed around, beaten up, bruised, has his plans dashed time and time again, and his boss seems to think that he's worthless, and lets him know about it. But come hell or high water, Pete keeps coming back for more. There's something that drives Pete to take this kind of punishment on a regular basis, to the point where I don't think "he wants to take over the world" is a satisfactory answer. Because there's something greater than a physical motivation here: after all, he's not getting paid, and given that he has yet to actually take over a world means that he's not seeing physical dividends for his hard work. In fact, when you consider that his perseverance matches that of our heroes, and while the latter gets to see the benefits of their labors while Pete does not, it might even be the case where Pete is driven just as much, if not perhaps more, than some of the people on Team Light.
So what makes Pete get out of bed every morning to take on the world(s)? If I can quote Citizen Kane, "Maybe it was something he lost."
During the flashback to Timeless River, we see that Pete used to be somebody: everyone knew who he was, respected him, and in some cases, maybe even liked him. He got to be the number one guy on the river. This was a guy who was, if you'll pardon the obvious pun, the biggest cat on the street. From when he was starting out, Pete knew what it was like to be a big shot. Or, at least, he thinks he did. Pete interprets authority and respect by seeing it in terms of power, because that's all he knows: he believes that to run the show, you can't be soft, and have to call your own shots and make everyone else listen.
Here's the thing, though: he got it wrong. In Timeless River, some of the comments about Pete are in admiration because, well, he wasn't really that bad of a guy. A bit grumpy, a bit bumbling, but what can you do? Even Sora comments on the fact that the past Pete is somewhat nicer than that of the present. People liked Pete because he was likable, and Pete, in turn, likes to be liked. And for Pete, this is his utopia: We see that when Maleficent chews him out and calls him worthless, this is the mental retreat that Pete goes to: he goes to a time when he wasn't alone and hated.
But the tragic thing is, that's exactly what Pete wants to get back, but he doesn't know how to get it. He mentally connects power with admiration, and thinks the only way to be loved is to beat it out of people. To be the bigger force and to make them love you. And, of course, by "causing trouble," as Goofy puts it, Pete manages to do exactly the opposite of what he intended to do: he alienates everyone around him, and winds up alone and hated. Fast forward to Birth By Sleep, where the Pete we see in Disney Town is practically hated and shunned by all, while he tries, without success, to win their affection. But he can't, because he doesn't know how.
So why does he turn to Maleficent? For starters, she's the only one who will have him, and its probably why he puts up with her abuse: sure, she might be a terrible person, but at least she's there. Second, having found a vacuum in his heart where any kind of affection may have long since vanished, Pete has simply learned to replace that void with hate and anger. He can get up every morning and go out there and try his best to screw over the universe, because every morning, the universe wakes up and goes out there to screw over him. His pride is injured, he's lost everything that mattered to him, and because he doesn't know any better, he's going to go out there and get his revenge.
But here's the thing: his goal is actually still the same. Pete wants to be back in that spotlight, to have people look up at him, and to have them either love or fear him. He wants to rule the worlds because he's not self secure enough to rule alone: he wants people around him to respect him while he rules. He wants their admiration, and he wants their love. Essentially, he wants to take back everything that he used to have. But he only knows one way how to go about doing that, and it is, unfortunately, the wrong way. So he will keep going out there and take a beating, because the longing for his past is enough to shrug of the scars of failure.