Lilo & Stitch tells the oft-told tale of a kid and their dog, except in this case the dog is actually Experiment #626 AKA Stitch. Stitch, a galactic fugitive banished from his home world for being the result of illegal genetic testing, crash lands on the Hawaiian island of Kaua'i and becomes the new pet for protagonist Lilo. Whereas most Disney films start with a happy family that undergoes a tragedy in the first act, Lilo & Stitch bucks that trend by having the tragedy occur before the film begins. Lilo and her older sister Nani (voiced by Baberham Lincoln herself, Tia Carrere) have been orphaned and currently live together in their parents' home. Nani does her best to care for young Lilo but the eccentric younger sister does not make it easy. Her behavior eventually leads to social worker threatening to take Lilo away from Nani.

The family dynamic of Lilo & Stitch cannot be praised enough. As Stitch says during one of the many poignant scenes, "This is my family. I found it, all on my own. Is little, and broken, but still good." Even broken families, torn apart by death or tragedy can be good. Just because a family isn't the classic 'Dad, Mom, Child' archetype doesn't make it any less worthy, no matter what your Republican relatives tell you. Lilo and Nani are constantly butting heads in their coexistence, trying to care for each other even when there's almost no hope to be found. It's a unique and exceptional representation of siblings for a Disney film, and one they've rarely been able to top.