The Forum vs. Hannah Montana

[Farerb]

You know what? I have the opposite experience. In my childhood I had the tendency to prefer Walt's features. It would be tempting to pin down to say "for no reason at all". But looking back at it, there was an innocent charm to his pictures that appealed to me. It wasn't until when I saw The Lion King at the age of 10 that I became officially converted to the features from the Renaissance (despite that I was obsessed with The Rescuers Down Under). But I know that I'm repeating myself

For me it was never a either or situation. I enjoyed both Walt's films and the Renaissance, and even now I can enjoy the Revivals and Pixar. Why not enjoy from all?

[Disney's Divinity]

True, but that happens to a lot of properties and not just Disney.

Yes, I agree.

You know what? I have the opposite experience. In my childhood I had the tendency to prefer Walt's features. It would be tempting to pin down to say "for no reason at all". But looking back at it, there was an innocent charm to his pictures that appealed to me. It wasn't until when I saw The Lion King at the age of 10 that I became officially converted to the features from the Renaissance (despite that I was obsessed with The Rescuers Down Under). But I know that I'm repeating myself

I was more all over the place; I loved Pinocchio, Dalmatians, TSitS and others, along with several Renaissance films. I also love Frozen from the Revival. I meant to use that feeling for me on SW as an example of how many children now probably feel towards The Little Mermaid, Oliver & Company, etc.

[JeanGreyForever]

I do find it fascinating that people of my age who grew up on the likes of Jett Jackson, Even Stevens and Lizzie McGuire would be snooty towards the mid-to-late 2000s Disney Channel shows and say "Disney's shows were so much better in my day." And now I see the generation that grew up with Hannah Montana, Zack & Cody, Sonny with a Chance, etc. looking back fondly on those shows and saying "Disney's shows were better in my day." It's a good lesson in not looking down at what the younger generation is watching and enjoying. Because if they're enjoying them, there's obviously something they're getting out of them.

I admit to being one of those people who didn't think highly of the mid-2000s Disney Channel sitcoms like Hannah Montana, although I was still able to recognise the quality in shows like Wizards of Waverly Place (I was rewatching random episodes on Disney+ a while back and yeah, that show is actually really clever and funny) and Good Luck Charlie.

To be fair, some of the newer Disney Channel shows were just plain awful. Dog with a Blog anyone? Truly the worst.

However, I really did love Austin & Ally and especially Andi Mack (the same creator as Lizzie McGuire). I was not a fan of Shake It Up which came out around the time I was mostly done with the Disney Channel. It had really crass humor and just wasn't funny but it did make Zendaya a star (and sadly Bella Thorne one as well albeit a silver screen star which isn't exactly the same). Good Luck Charlie I wasn't a fan of at the beginning but very quickly it became evident that it was the highest quality Disney Channel show considering the other ones they had on air at the time. Liv & Maddie seemed like Disney was so desperate as to try and combine Zack and Cody and Hannah Montana together (two blonde twins, one a famous musical star) in order to make something even greater but I don't think it ever really took off.

[estefan]

I've been wanting to see Andi Mack, because of the many great things I've heard about it. I was looking forward to the launch of Disney+, partly to finally give that show a look. Unfortunately, there are a large amount of episodes unavailable (season 1 only has two episodes!), because one of the main actors was arrested for pedophilia. Since the show is apparently serialized, that just creates a large gap and so, I haven't started yet.

I understand why Disney would do this, but on the other hand, they still have the movies "Jack" (which has Bill Cosby in it) and "A Bug's Life" (with Kevin Spacey) on Disney+. So, going by their logic, shouldn't those be unavailable, too?

[DisneyFan09]

For me it was never a either or situation. I enjoyed both Walt's films and the Renaissance, and even now I can enjoy the Revivals and Pixar. Why not enjoy from all?

Of course it's possible to enjoy from all. I've never said that it was impossible to not enjoy from all Btw, I hope you didn't consider me to be condescending or something.

To be fair, some of the newer Disney Channel shows were just plain awful. Dog with a Blog anyone? Truly the worst. However, I really did love Austin & Ally and especially Andi Mack (the same creator as Lizzie McGuire). I was not a fan of Shake It Up which came out around the time I was mostly done with the Disney Channel. It had really crass humor and just wasn't funny but it did make Zendaya a star (and sadly Bella Thorne one as well albeit a silver screen star which isn't exactly the same). Good Luck Charlie I wasn't a fan of at the beginning but very quickly it became evident that it was the highest quality Disney Channel show considering the other ones they had on air at the time. Liv & Maddie seemed like Disney was so desperate as to try and combine Zack and Cody and Hannah Montana together (two blonde twins, one a famous musical star) in order to make something even greater but I don't think it ever really took off.

Austin & Ally was actually a guilty pleasure of mine (yes, I'll confess it). There was a certain freshness to the show that made it reminiscent to previous DC shows, as That's So Raven and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Not to mention that I enjoyed the songs and the characters (I loved Dez, he could be funny at his very best, despite that he could annoyingly grating once in a while). Not to mention that Ross Lynch was a skilled performer, though Austin & Ally's premise seemed to rip off and cater to the same demographic as Hannah Montana (only with a male lead).
Though Ally was overall hampered by the same flaws that most DC shows had, it was still "as bad as it was good". Shake it Up had it's moments (catchy songs and Ty Blue), but was overall crass, vulgar and off-putting (Gunther and Tinka were awfully cringe-worthy and off-putting stereotypes of German people). Good Luck Charlie was a better show, though. It had a more universal appeal and was therefore all better for it. I never saw Liv & Maddie as much, though, but those few episodes I saw were fine enough. But Dog with a Blog was bad. I mean, the premise was just cringe-worthy. I mean, come on, a sitcom with a dog with a blog?

[Farerb]

For me it was never a either or situation. I enjoyed both Walt's films and the Renaissance, and even now I can enjoy the Revivals and Pixar. Why not enjoy from all?

Of course it's possible to enjoy from all. I've never said that it was impossible to not enjoy from all Btw, I hope you didn't consider me to be condescending or something.

I didn't think you were condescending

[blackcauldron85]

I'm going to support Dog With A Blog...I didn't see all seasons since I didn't have cable during its whole run, but I really enjoyed that show... granted, I pretty much like all the DC shows, but I thought it was funny.

[Avaitor]

I definitely remember when Disney Channel shows were the enemy, and to be fair, it kind of made sense at the time. At the height of High School Musical and Hannah Montana's popularity, they were easily among the most promoted and profitable properties the studio had at the time, back when WDAS was at a commercial (and arguably creative) low, the parks were more or less stagnant, and even Pixar's box-office returns were down.

And as someone who wasn't in the demographic and never really liked the Disney Channel to begin with (at least the way the Disney Channel was at this point- I used to love it when we got weekly previews in the 90's, when they showed classics from the studio and Disney Afternoon favorites. When we got it and it was mostly lame sitcoms, I was disappointed)... but they had their moments. I'd leave some of these shows on while I'd do homework or something else at the time, and while the jokes were often corny and acting spotty, some of them had their moments and good performers.

Speaking of the main show in question, Hannah Montana was not my favorite of the bunch. I thought Miley was only so-so as an actress, and thought even less of her dad. I thought Lily was a good character though, and Emily Osment was the best of the bunch. Jackson and Rico could also be fun sometimes, too.

I liked Suite Life a bit more... aside from Zack and Cody, funny enough, as I thought the twins were easily the worst actors in the bunch. The rest of the cast was much better, IMO. I didn't like On Deck as much as the original, but Debby Ryan was cute enough for me to leave it on occasionally. Did not like her own show, though.

Wizards of Waverly Place was a good bit better, especially whenever Alex and Justin were on. Granted, I could totally pick up on their incest-ish vibes, but Selena Gomez and what's-his-face did good with their material, and I liked how it had some semblance of story. The parents were also pretty good, but I HATED Max. The worst kind of stupid character, with no balance to his failure.

Then there's Sonny with a Chance, which starred the love of my life (along with Julianna Marguiles... and Lily James... and Idris Elba.. and Eliza Dushku). The writing wasn't always so great on it, but I could watch Demi all day. Although I think Tawni and Chad Dylan Cooper were the MVPs, and I loved seeing Maury Levy from The Wire on it. I liked the later episodes which had her sing best. Did not like the So Random episodes at all though, and didn't stick around for the spin-off. A third season could've been good, but it's for the best that Demi left to focus on herself and other goals.

That's about it from that era. That's So Raven was around that time-ish, but I couldn't stand it. I thought Raven was unbearable. Good Luck Charlie didn't do much for me, but I liked the mom. And Shake It Off was terrible from what I saw. I stopped paying attention to the sitcoms after that... aside from Girl Meets World. Boy Meets World is one of the few things I did like from Disney Channel when I got it as a kid, and I think that it still holds up today. I think the show would've done better to have been on ABC proper, since it didn't get away with as much, but it had some fine moments. Mostly from the throwbacks to the original, but I thought the new kids were likable and good actors.

I'm not surprised that the reception to Hannah Montana and the other shows have become more positive online over the years. The kids who were watching them at the time are here to share their love, now. In a couple of years, you'll see love for Dog with a Blog, too.

[JeanGreyForever]

I've been wanting to see Andi Mack, because of the many great things I've heard about it. I was looking forward to the launch of Disney+, partly to finally give that show a look. Unfortunately, there are a large amount of episodes unavailable (season 1 only has two episodes!), because one of the main actors was arrested for pedophilia. Since the show is apparently serialized, that just creates a large gap and so, I haven't started yet.

I understand why Disney would do this, but on the other hand, they still have the movies "Jack" (which has Bill Cosby in it) and "A Bug's Life" (with Kevin Spacey) on Disney+. So, going by their logic, shouldn't those be unavailable, too?

I definitely recommend Andi Mack even if I felt the show could have used another season or at least a spin-off featuring fan favorite Cyrus. I'll also admit that the main character Andi can be pretty insufferable as the show goes on and all the fans on social media were quick to point out that she was the worst character by far. Beyond that though, I caught a little bit of it on Disney Channel and I immediately knew it wasn't like the rest of the shows and I ended up catching them all. A shame that Disney+ is keeping episodes out with that actor. I'm glad he was fired and removed from subsequent episodes but to hold back the older ones (which like you said is pretty much all of season 1 and probably a good deal of season 2) doesn't really make sense. Don't push the rest of the cast and crew for his awful nature.

To be fair, some of the newer Disney Channel shows were just plain awful. Dog with a Blog anyone? Truly the worst. However, I really did love Austin & Ally and especially Andi Mack (the same creator as Lizzie McGuire). I was not a fan of Shake It Up which came out around the time I was mostly done with the Disney Channel. It had really crass humor and just wasn't funny but it did make Zendaya a star (and sadly Bella Thorne one as well albeit a silver screen star which isn't exactly the same). Good Luck Charlie I wasn't a fan of at the beginning but very quickly it became evident that it was the highest quality Disney Channel show considering the other ones they had on air at the time. Liv & Maddie seemed like Disney was so desperate as to try and combine Zack and Cody and Hannah Montana together (two blonde twins, one a famous musical star) in order to make something even greater but I don't think it ever really took off.

Austin & Ally was actually a guilty pleasure of mine (yes, I'll confess it). There was a certain freshness to the show that made it reminiscent to previous DC shows, as That's So Raven and The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Not to mention that I enjoyed the songs and the characters (I loved Dez, he could be funny at his very best, despite that he could annoyingly grating once in a while). Not to mention that Ross Lynch was a skilled performer, though Austin & Ally's premise seemed to rip off and cater to the same demographic as Hannah Montana (only with a male lead).
Though Ally was overall hampered by the same flaws that most DC shows had, it was still "as bad as it was good". Shake it Up had it's moments (catchy songs and Ty Blue), but was overall crass, vulgar and off-putting (Gunther and Tinka were awfully cringe-worthy and off-putting stereotypes of German people). Good Luck Charlie was a better show, though. It had a more universal appeal and was therefore all better for it. I never saw Liv & Maddie as much, though, but those few episodes I saw were fine enough. But Dog with a Blog was bad. I mean, the premise was just cringe-worthy. I mean, come on, a sitcom with a dog with a blog?

I really liked Laura Marano myself, who played Ally. Tbh Dez used to be a little bit grating to me but I'll also admit that most Disney Channel shows have that type of stupid and clueless character as comic relief and almost all of them are unbearable so Dez was actually that trope done relatively well. I'm curious as to how Ross Lynch's career will go since the show.

Ironically enough, I think most Americans liked Gunther and Tinka the most out of Shake It Up and I know my friends and I certainly did. If you look at YouTube comments for the show, generally the few positive things about it are about them or at least Tinka. She wasn't even a lead character until later on in the show for reasons I don't know. I can see why Europeans would despise their depiction though because they were pretty tasteless if you're trying to be culturally accurate. Disney Channel shows have never been good with depicting foreign cultures though.

[JeanGreyForever]

I definitely remember when Disney Channel shows were the enemy, and to be fair, it kind of made sense at the time. At the height of High School Musical and Hannah Montana's popularity, they were easily among the most promoted and profitable properties the studio had at the time, back when WDAS was at a commercial (and arguably creative) low, the parks were more or less stagnant, and even Pixar's box-office returns were down.

And as someone who wasn't in the demographic and never really liked the Disney Channel to begin with (at least the way the Disney Channel was at this point- I used to love it when we got weekly previews in the 90's, when they showed classics from the studio and Disney Afternoon favorites. When we got it and it was mostly lame sitcoms, I was disappointed)... but they had their moments. I'd leave some of these shows on while I'd do homework or something else at the time, and while the jokes were often corny and acting spotty, some of them had their moments and good performers.

Speaking of the main show in question, Hannah Montana was not my favorite of the bunch. I thought Miley was only so-so as an actress, and thought even less of her dad. I thought Lily was a good character though, and Emily Osment was the best of the bunch. Jackson and Rico could also be fun sometimes, too.

I liked Suite Life a bit more... aside from Zack and Cody, funny enough, as I thought the twins were easily the worst actors in the bunch. The rest of the cast was much better, IMO. I didn't like On Deck as much as the original, but Debby Ryan was cute enough for me to leave it on occasionally. Did not like her own show, though.

Wizards of Waverly Place was a good bit better, especially whenever Alex and Justin were on. Granted, I could totally pick up on their incest-ish vibes, but Selena Gomez and what's-his-face did good with their material, and I liked how it had some semblance of story. The parents were also pretty good, but I HATED Max. The worst kind of stupid character, with no balance to his failure.

Then there's Sonny with a Chance, which starred the love of my life (along with Julianna Marguiles... and Lily James... and Idris Elba.. and Eliza Dushku). The writing wasn't always so great on it, but I could watch Demi all day. Although I think Tawni and Chad Dylan Cooper were the MVPs, and I loved seeing Maury Levy from The Wire on it. I liked the later episodes which had her sing best. Did not like the So Random episodes at all though, and didn't stick around for the spin-off. A third season could've been good, but it's for the best that Demi left to focus on herself and other goals.

That's about it from that era. That's So Raven was around that time-ish, but I couldn't stand it. I thought Raven was unbearable. Good Luck Charlie didn't do much for me, but I liked the mom. And Shake It Off was terrible from what I saw. I stopped paying attention to the sitcoms after that... aside from Girl Meets World. Boy Meets World is one of the few things I did like from Disney Channel when I got it as a kid, and I think that it still holds up today. I think the show would've done better to have been on ABC proper, since it didn't get away with as much, but it had some fine moments. Mostly from the throwbacks to the original, but I thought the new kids were likable and good actors.

I'm not surprised that the reception to Hannah Montana and the other shows have become more positive online over the years. The kids who were watching them at the time are here to share their love, now. In a couple of years, you'll see love for Dog with a Blog, too.

I heard rumors that Emily Osment was supposed to get her own show after Hannah Montana but I'm not sure if there's any veracity to that. She did get her ABC Family/Freeform show which I never watched.

I think London Tipton is easily one of the most iconic characters that Disney Channel ever made. As much as I love Ashley Tisdale, Brenda Song blew her away in Zack and Cody. Similarly enough, Ashley Tisdale's Sharpay blew away Vanessa Hudgens' Gabriella in High School Musical. London and Sharpay were the scene-stealers, not the goody-goody characters of Maddie and Gabriella, so they tended to get overshadowed a lot. I'm not really a fan of Debby Ryan. Her character wasn't funny to me in Zack and Cody but nothing was as unbearable as her Jessie show. I truly loathed that show partly because my sisters loved it and watched it non-stop. Debby Ryan also has some weird stereotypical shtick to her character like being a military brat in Zack and Cody or from Texas in Jessie. It's like every line of hers in both those shows has to refer to her respective background. I did like her Netflix show Insatiable though although I only watched Season 1 and I pretty much only watched it for Alyssa Milano.

I was never huge on Wizards. I liked it enough but I don't love it the way so many other people do and I think in part that's because I was never a huge Selena fan. I was obsessed with Miley and I used to watch all her films, buy all her books and music, etc. Then Demi came out in Camp Rock and she was my new idol and I was absolutely in love with her much like you. So Selena, in between, never quite gelled with me the same way. I didn't realize so many people shipped Alex and Justin together or felt the actors had chemistry, I guess I was too young to notice or care. David Henrie (Justin's actor) was very good-looking though, almost to the point that it belied his nerdy character. He was too attractive and well-built to come across as naturally dweebish. I wasn't a fan of Max either.

I mentioned that I loved Demi so I was so thrilled when Sonny with a Chance came out. Sadly the show never had the same following as Hannah Montana, Zack and Cody, Wizards, etc. which is a shame because it quickly became my favorite out of them. Although I didn't like her male friends (Grady and whatever the other guy's name was) but Tawni was hilarious and Chad Dylan Cooper was amazing. His actor Sterling is from Texas like me so I always thought I had a shot with him lol. Demi and Sterling had such great chemistry or their characters did at least and it's such a shame that the show had to be massively overhauled when Demi left and she never returned.

I hope this doesn't offend you or anyone who is actually a fan of Dog with a Blog (such as blackcauldron85) but I really doubt it'll ever have a following like Hannah Montana or the other shows you listed. Hannah Montana was a phenomenon to the point that she was easily one of the most famous people in the entire world (I remember Oprah would go to children in poor countries and ask them if they knew Hannah Montana). Dog with a Blog probably didn't even have 1% of Hannah Montana's fame since it was critically reviled even during the short period it was on-air. I don't remember how long it lasted but I don't remember it being on very much so it must have been cancelled.

[DisneyFan09]

I really liked Laura Marano myself, who played Ally.

To be honest, though I certainly didn't hate her, I found her to be quite bland and completely absent of any "it"-potential. But she certainly wasn't terrible and unbearable.

Tbh Dez used to be a little bit grating to me but I'll also admit that most Disney Channel shows have that type of stupid and clueless character as comic relief and almost all of them are unbearable so Dez was actually that trope done relatively well.

To be honest, I happened to like those characters, since I found them endearing. Though some of them could be grating at times, they were mostly done well.

Ironically enough, I think most Americans liked Gunther and Tinka the most out of Shake It Up and I know my friends and I certainly did. If you look at YouTube comments for the show, generally the few positive things about it are about them or at least Tinka. She wasn't even a lead character until later on in the show for reasons I don't know. I can see why Europeans would despise their depiction though because they were pretty tasteless if you're trying to be culturally accurate. Disney Channel shows have never been good with depicting foreign cultures though.

True. I actually liked Tinka better when she was made a lead character. Because she improved herself and became less annoying.

[blackcauldron85]

JeanGrey, I'm not offended at all (re: Dog With A Blog)! I know it wasn't nearly as huge as some of the other Disney shows. It's not even my favorite, but I do like it a lot. I agree about David Henrie! I saw the first episode of Andi Mack on YouTube, since Disney puts the first episode of shows there, but I was looking forward to watching it on D+ so that stinks that not a lot of episodes are there. But if they don't censor the episodes with the offending actor, they'd get backlash (like how channels pulled The Cosby Show- I know that Bill Cosby was the main star on that, and on Andi Mack the guy wasn't, but still). Austin & Ally is another great show. And Ross Lynch was in the band R5 with his siblings & friend; they've since disbanded and now Ross & one of his brothers are in a different band, The Driver Era. I have both of R5's CDs, but haven't bought their EPs or the new band's music. I like Gunther & Tinka, too... I haven't seen too much of Shake It Up past Season 1 (I didn't have cable the whole time), but I always liked that show, too...I too love Demi, and I liked Sonny With A Chance, too. I haven't seen too much of So Random! (no cable!) but I liked the sketches, so I'm sure I'd like that too...I LOVE Sharpay, so I agree w/ what you said about London & Sharpay. I like the show Jessie a lot...(insert BC85 likes every single DC show...!).

[Disney's Divinity]

I definitely remember when Disney Channel shows were the enemy, and to be fair, it kind of made sense at the time. At the height of High School Musical and Hannah Montana's popularity, they were easily among the most promoted and profitable properties the studio had at the time, back when WDAS was at a commercial (and arguably creative) low, the parks were more or less stagnant, and even Pixar's box-office returns were down.

And as someone who wasn't in the demographic and never really liked the Disney Channel to begin with (at least the way the Disney Channel was at this point- I used to love it when we got weekly previews in the 90's, when they showed classics from the studio and Disney Afternoon favorites. When we got it and it was mostly lame sitcoms, I was disappointed)... but they had their moments. I'd leave some of these shows on while I'd do homework or something else at the time, and while the jokes were often corny and acting spotty, some of them had their moments and good performers.

Yeah, I forgot about the enmity for the Disney Channel from fans during WDAS' dark age of the 2000's... Like you, I simply didn't care for most of it because I first experienced the channel the way it was before. I didn't care for it when it changed; they did some weird Toonami-esque thing to begin with, that was just really bizarre. Zoog? I can't remember what it was called. Anyway, I miss the way it was more now than I did then... My first experience with Ghibli was actually seeing Kiki's Delivery Service on one of those channels... And it's still my favorite of their films all these years later. Aside from McGuire, I liked Jett Jackson. Ryan, Sharpay, Chad, and the theater teacher were my favorite parts of HSM. I always think of Boy Meets World as an ABC show and don't really associate it with the Disney Channel.

Yes, David Henrie was really cute, and so was the other brother. I admit that's the only reason I even watched Waverly Place as much as I did... I watched a couple of episodes of Shake It Up because Gunther's actor was cute, too, although that show was much worse (and one of the main reasons I've never liked Zendaya). Come to think of it, I think part of the reason I watched so much of Lizzie McGuire back when was because Gordo was cute, too. I must have more of a one-track mind than I realize. I did like Hilary Duff's character as well though, and the show's little animated take on her internal reactions. The show always had the same vibe to me as As Told By Ginger.

[Avaitor]

I think London Tipton is easily one of the most iconic characters that Disney Channel ever made. As much as I love Ashley Tisdale, Brenda Song blew her away in Zack and Cody.

ha, yeah, London was pretty good. I still get her "London Tipton is really great" song stuck in my head, sometimes. But I think that her character worked best with Maddie and Mr. Mosby. She never had much chemistry with Zack and Cody (again, I don't think Dylan and Cole were the best actors, and I haven't seen Riverdale to see if that's changed for the latter), and that was part of the problem with On Deck, as it kind of forced her to spend more time with her, and double down on her stupidity.

I was never huge on Wizards. I liked it enough but I don't love it the way so many other people do and I think in part that's because I was never a huge Selena fan. I was obsessed with Miley and I used to watch all her films, buy all her books and music, etc. Then Demi came out in Camp Rock and she was my new idol and I was absolutely in love with her much like you. So Selena, in between, never quite gelled with me the same way.

My half-sister was around the right age for these shows, and while she loved Hannah Montana, High School Musical, and Camp Rock, she never liked Wizards, or Selena in general I believe. Her mom is also super religious and banned her from Harry Potter, so I think that was also a no-go for her. Not sure if she's moved away from that viewpoint, since I have not caught up with them in years.

Musically, Selena is easily the least talented of the three main Disney girls. I'm not really a big fan of Miley's music or voice, but she obviously has artistic goals and power to her voice, and even if you're not a fan of Demi's voice, you can at least admit that she has a lot of power and soul to hers, as well. Selena... doesn't, nor does most of her material sound all that inspired. From what I understand, her most recent album has more passion than other stuff, though. I think she's a decent enough actress, but it seems like she's not as interested in pursuing that lately. Ah well.

I do agree that David Henrie is pretty nice-looking. I didn't realize that at the time, as I didn't come out as bi until a few years ago. I don't think him being so conventionally attractive takes away from his dweebish

I mentioned that I loved Demi so I was so thrilled when Sonny with a Chance came out. Sadly the show never had the same following as Hannah Montana, Zack and Cody, Wizards, etc. which is a shame because it quickly became my favorite out of them. Although I didn't like her male friends (Grady and whatever the other guy's name was) but Tawni was hilarious and Chad Dylan Cooper was amazing. His actor Sterling is from Texas like me so I always thought I had a shot with him lol. Demi and Sterling had such great chemistry or their characters did at least and it's such a shame that the show had to be massively overhauled when Demi left and she never returned.

Yeah, the other kids weren't great. The little girl had this weird delivery that made her sound like she was a detective in a film noir movie, but I thought she was at least better and tried harder than the boys, who kind of coasted throughout. Luckily Chad and Tawni made up for them, as did Demi, who I thought was becoming a better actress as the show went on. Even seeing her on Will & Grace recently, I think she's still pretty good at it. I love her music and think that's what she's meant to do, but it wold be cool if she did some more acting, too. I think I heard something about her being in a Will Ferrell movie soon? Not my favorite guy, but maybe it can be good. And yes, she and Chad had good chemistry.

I hope this doesn't offend you or anyone who is actually a fan of Dog with a Blog (such as blackcauldron85) but I really doubt it'll ever have a following like Hannah Montana or the other shows you listed. Hannah Montana was a phenomenon to the point that she was easily one of the most famous people in the entire world (I remember Oprah would go to children in poor countries and ask them if they knew Hannah Montana). Dog with a Blog probably didn't even have 1% of Hannah Montana's fame since it was critically reviled even during the short period it was on-air. I don't remember how long it lasted but I don't remember it being on very much so it must have been cancelled.

I mean yeah, it probably will never be as beloved as those shows for the exact reasons that you mentioned, but I don't think it'll remain as reviled in a few years. It'll probably be something like a My Gym Partner's a Monkey compared to Hannah Montana or Good Luck Charlie or so being an Ed, Edd n' Eddy or Foster's Home, if I can compare these shows to another network lol.

I have no opinion on Dog with a Blog, btw.

Yeah, I forgot about the enmity for the Disney Channel from fans during WDAS' dark age of the 2000's... Like you, I simply didn't care for most of it because I first experienced the channel the way it was before. I didn't care for it when it changed; they did some weird Toonami-esque thing to begin with, that was just really bizarre. Zoog? I can't remember what it was called.

That sounds right. Before the shows of that time like Even Stevens, Famous Jett Jackson, So Weird became the face of the Channel, I believe those shows were a part of "Zoog Disney" or whatever.

Anyway, I miss the way it was more now than I did then... My first experience with Ghibli was actually seeing Kiki's Delivery Service on one of those channels... And it's still my favorite of their films all these years later.

Oh yeah, they used to show Kiki's Delivery Service on Disney Channel! That's such a far cry from what they'd be doing in a few years, let alone now. It's funny how even when Disney had the rights to Ghibli, their films would go to Cartoon Network instead.

I would've bene too young to appreciate it if we had it for more than just those previews, but Disney Channel in the 90's looked pretty lit. Besides all the classic stuff from the studio during the day, their late-night programming was like a mix of TCM and the old VH1 Classic. They could air a Katharine Hepburn marathon one night, then show a Billy Joel concert the next. I'd love something like that now! It also looked like their synergy with the other facets of the studio were stronger and less channel-pandering, as when they'd show previews of the movies and parks, there would be more information and wouldn't be hosted by actors from the shows. It's fun to check that out on YouTube.

[Farerb]

Does anyone remember the song about Hannah Montana wearing some girl's jeans?

[JeanGreyForever]

I really liked Laura Marano myself, who played Ally.

To be honest, though I certainly didn't hate her, I found her to be quite bland and completely absent of any "it"-potential. But she certainly wasn't terrible and unbearable.

Tbh Dez used to be a little bit grating to me but I'll also admit that most Disney Channel shows have that type of stupid and clueless character as comic relief and almost all of them are unbearable so Dez was actually that trope done relatively well.

To be honest, I happened to like those characters, since I found them endearing. Though some of them could be grating at times, they were mostly done well.

Ironically enough, I think most Americans liked Gunther and Tinka the most out of Shake It Up and I know my friends and I certainly did. If you look at YouTube comments for the show, generally the few positive things about it are about them or at least Tinka. She wasn't even a lead character until later on in the show for reasons I don't know. I can see why Europeans would despise their depiction though because they were pretty tasteless if you're trying to be culturally accurate. Disney Channel shows have never been good with depicting foreign cultures though.

True. I actually liked Tinka better when she was made a lead character. Because she improved herself and became less annoying.

That's understandable about Laura Marano. I think I liked her because she felt like your approachable everyday girl who almost anyone could see themselves as.

London is really well done as comic relief and so was Chelsea from That's So Raven. But I really didn't like Max from Wizards and felt he didn't really add anything to the show. I couldn't stand the big brother on Good Luck Charlie (don't remember his name now). He played a similar character on Cory in the House who was even more stupid and clueless if you can believe it and I didn't care for him in both shows. Luke in Jessie played the similar dumb character. I suppose I've found that the female ones tended to be more interesting at least to me. Like I said, Dez was probably my favorite out of the male ones and that's in part because he had great chemistry with Trish so it was a bit of a duo act with her being the worldly cynic to balance him out. Hannah Montana, interestingly enough, never had the super dumb character. Jackson may not have been book smart but he was street smart and he wasn't a bimbo. I wonder if that's also why I liked Hannah Montana because it didn't embrace a tired cliche like that.

I feel like the early seasons, which centered more on Gunther, tended to have the most stereotypical material. When Tinka came in as a lead character, they didn't rely on those crummy comic relief jokes so that helped like you said.

BTW, what was everyone's opinion of a few other shows we haven't discussed here yet like Phil in the Future and Cory in the House? I really loved Phil in the Future but that show was never super popular and it ended early and nobody ever talks about it. I loved the little sister Pim and especially the character that Aly from Aly and AJ played. I always loved Aly and AJ as a musical act and felt that they should have gotten a show together or at least Aly should have since she acted more. At least they got Cow Belles together.

As for Cory in the House, I was a huge Raven fan but this show did not do it for me. I only liked Maiara Walsh's character and she's better at playing the role of HBIC like she did after she left Disney Channel. Jason Dolley basically played the exact same character in Good Luck Charlie.

[JeanGreyForever]

JeanGrey, I'm not offended at all (re: Dog With A Blog)! I know it wasn't nearly as huge as some of the other Disney shows. It's not even my favorite, but I do like it a lot. I agree about David Henrie! I saw the first episode of Andi Mack on YouTube, since Disney puts the first episode of shows there, but I was looking forward to watching it on D+ so that stinks that not a lot of episodes are there. But if they don't censor the episodes with the offending actor, they'd get backlash (like how channels pulled The Cosby Show- I know that Bill Cosby was the main star on that, and on Andi Mack the guy wasn't, but still). Austin & Ally is another great show. And Ross Lynch was in the band R5 with his siblings & friend; they've since disbanded and now Ross & one of his brothers are in a different band, The Driver Era. I have both of R5's CDs, but haven't bought their EPs or the new band's music. I like Gunther & Tinka, too... I haven't seen too much of Shake It Up past Season 1 (I didn't have cable the whole time), but I always liked that show, too...I too love Demi, and I liked Sonny With A Chance, too. I haven't seen too much of So Random! (no cable!) but I liked the sketches, so I'm sure I'd like that too...I LOVE Sharpay, so I agree w/ what you said about London & Sharpay. I like the show Jessie a lot...(insert BC85 likes every single DC show...!).

I'm glad to hear you aren't lol because I wouldn't want to deride somebody for enjoying a show they like/love. I'm glad you seem to enjoy pretty much all of the Disney Channel shows lol! My issue with censoring Andi Mack is that the character the offending actor played wasn't a big one. He was never part of the main cast and he always had a very small role so it seems unfair to hide away everyone else's work because of a bit role. I'm very glad especially now that he never had a huge presence on the show because a lot of people used to wonder why he was the only family member not to be part of the main cast. Thanks for updating me on Ross Lynch. I clearly haven't been aware of his music career since and I feel like I don't hear much about him now the way I do with Zendaya, Bella Thorne, or Dove Cameron and he was from that era essentially.

I saw some of those So Random episodes but I wasn't a fan tbh. Maybe they would have been better if Demi was starring in them but even then, the sketches were typically my least favorite part of the show so I definitely didn't have an interest in just the sketches alone although I did appreciate that Chad Dylan Cooper's character was a part of them.

LOL, I used to ship Zac Efron's Troy and Sharpay together moreso than Troy and Gabriella. I felt they had a lot of chemistry especially in that Zack and Cody episode where Zac Efron guest-starred (in Season 2) and he and Ashley Tisdale's Maddie hate each other but they're secretly deeply attracted to each other.

[JeanGreyForever]

I think London Tipton is easily one of the most iconic characters that Disney Channel ever made. As much as I love Ashley Tisdale, Brenda Song blew her away in Zack and Cody.

ha, yeah, London was pretty good. I still get her "London Tipton is really great" song stuck in my head, sometimes. But I think that her character worked best with Maddie and Mr. Mosby. She never had much chemistry with Zack and Cody (again, I don't think Dylan and Cole were the best actors, and I haven't seen Riverdale to see if that's changed for the latter), and that was part of the problem with On Deck, as it kind of forced her to spend more time with her, and double down on her stupidity.

I was never huge on Wizards. I liked it enough but I don't love it the way so many other people do and I think in part that's because I was never a huge Selena fan. I was obsessed with Miley and I used to watch all her films, buy all her books and music, etc. Then Demi came out in Camp Rock and she was my new idol and I was absolutely in love with her much like you. So Selena, in between, never quite gelled with me the same way.

My half-sister was around the right age for these shows, and while she loved Hannah Montana, High School Musical, and Camp Rock, she never liked Wizards, or Selena in general I believe. Her mom is also super religious and banned her from Harry Potter, so I think that was also a no-go for her. Not sure if she's moved away from that viewpoint, since I have not caught up with them in years.

Musically, Selena is easily the least talented of the three main Disney girls. I'm not really a big fan of Miley's music or voice, but she obviously has artistic goals and power to her voice, and even if you're not a fan of Demi's voice, you can at least admit that she has a lot of power and soul to hers, as well. Selena... doesn't, nor does most of her material sound all that inspired. From what I understand, her most recent album has more passion than other stuff, though. I think she's a decent enough actress, but it seems like she's not as interested in pursuing that lately. Ah well.

I do agree that David Henrie is pretty nice-looking. I didn't realize that at the time, as I didn't come out as bi until a few years ago. I don't think him being so conventionally attractive takes away from his dweebish

I mentioned that I loved Demi so I was so thrilled when Sonny with a Chance came out. Sadly the show never had the same following as Hannah Montana, Zack and Cody, Wizards, etc. which is a shame because it quickly became my favorite out of them. Although I didn't like her male friends (Grady and whatever the other guy's name was) but Tawni was hilarious and Chad Dylan Cooper was amazing. His actor Sterling is from Texas like me so I always thought I had a shot with him lol. Demi and Sterling had such great chemistry or their characters did at least and it's such a shame that the show had to be massively overhauled when Demi left and she never returned.

Yeah, the other kids weren't great. The little girl had this weird delivery that made her sound like she was a detective in a film noir movie, but I thought she was at least better and tried harder than the boys, who kind of coasted throughout. Luckily Chad and Tawni made up for them, as did Demi, who I thought was becoming a better actress as the show went on. Even seeing her on Will & Grace recently, I think she's still pretty good at it. I love her music and think that's what she's meant to do, but it wold be cool if she did some more acting, too. I think I heard something about her being in a Will Ferrell movie soon? Not my favorite guy, but maybe it can be good. And yes, she and Chad had good chemistry.

I hope this doesn't offend you or anyone who is actually a fan of Dog with a Blog (such as blackcauldron85) but I really doubt it'll ever have a following like Hannah Montana or the other shows you listed. Hannah Montana was a phenomenon to the point that she was easily one of the most famous people in the entire world (I remember Oprah would go to children in poor countries and ask them if they knew Hannah Montana). Dog with a Blog probably didn't even have 1% of Hannah Montana's fame since it was critically reviled even during the short period it was on-air. I don't remember how long it lasted but I don't remember it being on very much so it must have been cancelled.

I mean yeah, it probably will never be as beloved as those shows for the exact reasons that you mentioned, but I don't think it'll remain as reviled in a few years. It'll probably be something like a My Gym Partner's a Monkey compared to Hannah Montana or Good Luck Charlie or so being an Ed, Edd n' Eddy or Foster's Home, if I can compare these shows to another network lol.

I have no opinion on Dog with a Blog, btw.

I get so much of London's songs and lines in my head like the PRNDL. I know that's not the real name but it's far more catchy. I agree that London's best foils were Maddie and Moseby so at least The Suite Life on Deck had Moseby still. I always wondered why Ashley Tisdale didn't return as a main character but I guess her profile had risen after High School Musical and she was trying to branch out as an actress and singer. I haven't seen Riverdale either to really judge the Sprouse twins but I did see Dylan Sprouse in one film where he's playing a student psychopath and I did enjoy his role there.

Your half-sister and I must have had very similar taste then although I guess that was also true for most tweens/teens at the time. I think Wizards is one of the most watched shows on Disney+ and I know my younger sister watches it still so clearly that show hit it off with viewers and is still considered one of the most rewatchable even if I've never had the interest to do so.

Weirdly enough, I like Selena a lot more now from her singing career although I even used to enjoy her sings back in her Disney Channel days (Cruella, A Year Without Rain, Naturally, Love You Like a Love Song, etc.) but she just never hit it off with me like Miley and Demi. Her recent songs are a lot better though so I might suggest listening to them because they did make me change my mind about her.

I guess if you compare David Henrie's character of Justin to his friend Zeke it because a little more obvious. Zeke was the nerdy, socially awkward guy and while Justin is supposed to be too, he's too well-built and muscular to really come across that way. There are a lot of cute nerdy guys but never ones I've seen who look like athletic stars like David Henrie did. And I guess because most of his scenes were with Selena and everyone saw a lot of chemistry in them together, that didn't help. I've heard stories from people who thought they were a real-life couple and even people who first watched the show and didn't realize they were siblings but thought they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

I don't remember the little girl's name from Sonny With a Chance (I think it started with a Z or something), but I actually didn't mind her. Like you said, she was better than the boys at least who represented the dumb comic relief I typically loathe in these shows. I've been loving Demi on Will & Grace and I remember I was super disappointed when she appeared on Glee but her role was barely anything substantial. They had some pretty prominent roles for some big actors on Glee so it surprised me that Demi was basically just there to be there and had nothing to do. Not a fan of Will Ferrell but I guess I'll support anything Demi does.

See, I wasn't a big fan of Ed, Edd n' Eddy either and it was always a very bizarre show for my taste. I did like Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends but I don't think that show ever caught on. When Miss Peregrine's Peculiar School for Children came out, I thought it was connected to Foster's Home at first.

[JeanGreyForever]

Does anyone remember the song about Hannah Montana wearing some girl's jeans?

Yes, Old Blue Jeans. I loved that song and I've been thinking about it and some of Hannah's other songs recently for some reason. They've been stuck in my head even though I haven't listened to them in years. Ironically enough, when the first Hannah Montana soundtrack came out, I used to listen to the songs on the bus ride from school on my iPod and memorize the lyrics. I still remember most of those lyrics but I never realized that other people could hear me singing to myself until someone very rudely pointed out that I should go back to singing Hannah Montana.

[blackcauldron85]

*So many new posts since I typed mine- I was about to hit Send!*

PRNDL

OMG *memories*

Does anyone remember the song about Hannah Montana wearing some girl's jeans?

Are you talking about the song "Old Blue Jeans"? JeanGrey beat me to it

I couldn't stand the big brother on Good Luck Charlie (don't remember his name now). He played a similar character on Cory in the House who was even more stupid and clueless if you can believe it and I didn't care for him in both shows.

Aww, Jason Dolley! I liked him in both shows, and he seems like a really nice guy; when this site used to do interviews, I interviewed him and he was really nice!

BTW, what was everyone's opinion of a few other shows we haven't discussed here yet like Phil in the Future and Cory in the House?

Phil of the Future was AWESOME! I love Aly & AJ, too- I remember when Aly sang on the show for the first time, I was hoping she'd have a music career! (I actually jammed out to Aly & AJ today when I was working! <3 Love them.) I liked Cory in the House as well; not quite as much as That's So Raven, but it had its funny moments.

I watched all of Coop & Cami Ask the World when I first got Disney+, and I really liked it. That's the only new Disney Channel show that I've seen so far, (besides a few episodes of Tangled: The Series), but eventually I'd like to see them all.

I love the show Jessie- I think it has a lot of funny characters. And Liv and Maddie is great, too- I still had cable when that show started. I think Dove Cameron has a great voice, and the show was funny, too. Good Luck Charlie is one of the best Disney Channel shows; I appreciate that the parents aren't doofuses, that they play an important part in the show. I used to watch A.N.T. Farm a lot.

As far as show from a couple decades ago (OMG), American Dragon: Jake Long was a big favorite of mine. Kim Possible, Phineas & Ferb, Even Stevens, + Lizzie McGuire are absolutely classic. That's So Raven, Life With Derek, and The Suite Life I really enjoyed, too. Wizards of Waverly Place I think is a clever show. I think that Harper is one of the best Disney Channel sidekicks- I liked her & Alex's friendship. I didn't love it, but I liked The Jersey enough to watch it regularly. Obviously as a huge Jonas Brothers fan, I think that JONAS was the best thing since sliced bread. I still like watching that, I love the songs that JB now cringe at, like Pizza Girl and Scandinavia. The show was less cringy for lack of a better word in season 2, but I love it all. And don't forget As the Bell Rings (Demi was only in the first season).

but Disney Channel in the 90's looked pretty lit.

So I am getting old and DC in the '90s was amazing. The first time I played hookie from school was to stay at home and watch Dumbo's Circus; I was so obsessed (I also loved Welcome to Pooh Corner and Under the Umbrella Tree). I used to watch Mousercise probably every morning. Kids, Incorporated and MMC were obsessions of mine (in addition to non-Disney Star Search, The Monkees, The Partridge Family- any show with music). I was still pretty little, but OBSESSED! Adventures in Wonderland was an amazing show- I was pretty obsessed with that, too. I was also a huge fan of Flash Forward, The Torkelsons, and Ready Or Not.. Walt Disney World Inside Out was epic, since I had never been to the parks as a kid. Bug Juice was amazing; for a few summers I begged to go to summer camp, but the answer was always no (too $$$). The Famous Jett Jackson was SUCH A GREAT SHOW!!! I was sad when Lee Thompson Young recently died. I never watched So Weird or In A Heartbeat too much- the dramas of '90s DC.