The Disney Channel Drop

I think the Disney Channel has gone downhill. Big time.

Let’s flash back a few years to a time when the shows had decent writing and when the DCOMs (Disney Channel Original Movies) were actually entertaining. I grew up on reruns of Phil of the Future, Even Stevens, That’s So Raven, and many more. I also grew up watching new shows to the channel such as Hannah Montana, The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, Wizards of Waverly Place, short lived shows like Sonny with a Chance, and many more as well. I found these shows to be incredibly influential and I looked up to a lot of the stars, especially Miley Cyrus. Let’s just add her to the list of talented child stars who wanted to get as far away from image as possible. These shows weren’t just influential, they were actually entertaining. Whoever was behind the writing knew how to grab the attention of young people, creating the empire that is the Disney Channel. Though, I believe that this empire is starting to crumble and fall.

I tried watching some of the new shows and it was very hard to sit through an episode. I feel like instead of catering to a wide age range of kids, they’re simply trying to cater to the lowest demographic. The jokes aren’t funny, so there’s no need for the added laugh track. I just feel like the shows have lost the charm they once had.

Something just as iconic, or possibly more, than the shows on the Disney Channel are the DCOMs. These weren’t just movies, they were events. I loved watching the DCOMs. There’s so many great ones, but I think the greatest DCOMs ever made were the High School Musical movies. This trilogy was an empire in itself. Great writing, catchy music, charismatic characters, and a compelling story with a message all contributed to the success. These attributes could be applied to several other DCOMs as well. I can’t say the same for some of the most recent DCOMs. I went into watching Descendants thinking that I wasn’t going to like it. I was proven wrong and thought it was a wonderful movie. I don’t think the movie would have been as successful had it not been directed by Kenny Ortega, the great mind behind the iconic Disney classic Hocus Pocus and also the High School Musical movies.  If you have a great team behind the movie, it’ll probably be good. I just don’t feel like some of these movies have had a lot of effort put into them and I feel sorry for the actors that have to try and give their best performance with this material.