Growing up, my older brother and I would sit in front of the TV on Saturday mornings and binge-watch shows like “Suite Life of Zack and Cody,” “Suite Life on Deck,” “Wizards of Waverly Place” and “Good Luck Charlie.” As I got older, my friends and I would scream to “Froyo-Yolo” from “Liv and Maddie,” quote lines from “Jessie” (“More tea?”) and fangirl over Chase from “Lab Rats.”
The Disney Channel I grew up with was an entertainment powerhouse, a goldmine of nostalgia and the driving force behind teen pop culture. Sadly, today’s Disney Channel is a far cry from the one I grew up with, and not coincidentally, Disney’s ratings have sunk in recent years.
What made the old shows so much better? For one, Disney Channel shows were known and loved for their bizarre plotlines. For example, ”Jessie” follows an aspiring actor who winds up being a nanny to four rich kids and their lizard, while “The Suite Life on Deck” centers around twins who go to high school on a cruise ship.
Additionally, the delicate balance they struck between childish humor and mature themes made them perfectly suited for their coming-of-age viewers. Even a decade later, some of these feel-good shows appeal to the same audience. Many of my friends still watch highly-acclaimed shows like “Hannah Montana” and “Wizards of Waverly Place.”
However, since the latter-half of the 2010s, Disney Channel’s content has been based on replication and reprise. Newer shows like “Coop and Cami Ask the World,” “Sydney to the Max” and “Andi Mack” fall flat. They lack the freshness and originality that made Disney Channel shows so unique, reading more formulaic and dull in their plot structure and characterizations.
Reprisal, on the other hand, is Disney’s favorite word. Case in point: “Bunk’d,” a once-beloved show that centered around the rich and pampered kids from “Jessie” at Camp Kikiwaka, a wilderness summer camp. The show built a loyal viewership, capitalizing on “Jessie”s success to become an entertaining spinoff in its own right.
“Bunk’d” continued pushing out episodes for nine more years, becoming Disney Channel’s longest running love action series. However, its longevity was despite its increasing unpopularity. After its original cast left in 2018, viewership began a steady decline. Without the cornerstone characters the show was deprived of the charm it originally had. Its needless continuation came off as a cash grab more than anything.
It seems the formulaic limbo Disney Channel’s has fallen into doesn’t strike the right chord with their audience. By refusing to take risks, Disney’s executives are failing to create the intriguing, explosive work they used to. In my opinion, Disney has fallen prey to its own complacency in producing cutting-edge content.
Everything has its rise and fall, and Disney Channel is no exception. Its golden era is over, but maybe it is better that way — we can look back on their shows with all the more appreciation for the good old days.
