Disney Channel shows that we think deserve a second life
TV reboots and revivals are in. Original shows are out.
In this age of television, there’s no room for original ideas because everyone’s seen everything. As a result, TV networks are resorting to this tired action — reviving and rebooting old shows.
For example, “Twin Peaks,” a show that redefined television drama, returned to the small screen this summer — 25 years after it ended in 1991.
It isn’t necessarily bad that these shows are coming back, because our favorite characters get a second life. Whether the second life is deserved depends on the revival or reboot itself.
This past summer, Disney Channel revived “That’s So Raven” in the form of a spinoff called “Raven’s Home.” The show focuses on psychic Raven Baxter (Raven-Symoné), now a divorced mother of twins and living with her best friend Chelsea Daniels (Anneliese van der Pol).
When one of Raven’s kids inherits her psychic abilities, however, it leads to some hilarious chaos and adventures – just like the original series.
With that in mind, here are our choices for shows that deserve a second life.
The Proud Family (2001-2005)
Don’t fight me, but “The Proud Family” was ahead of its time.
The animated series centered on the lives of teen Penny Proud (Kyla Pratt) and her family.
What made this show stand out was that the Proud family was a black family, which wasn’t the norm for animated sitcoms back then. The show helped push boundaries and break stereotypes while instilling good values — tinged with sharp humor — on its viewers.
The show was so successful back then that it spawned “The Proud Family Movie,” which, in our opinion, is one of the best Disney Channel Original Movies ever created.
Now that we’re in an age when black families are heavily featured in mainstream media, this show could easily return and thrive on the small screen.
Also, we need to thank the show for one of the most iconic theme songs in history — performed by Solange and Destiny’s Child.
Phil of the Future (2004-2006)
Phil Diffy (Raviv Ullman) is just like any other 22nd-century boy.
Yes, I did say 22nd century.
“Phil of the Future” was truly ahead of its time – 117 years to be exact. The sitcom focuses on the misadventures of the Diffy family who are stuck in 2004 after their time machine breaks down during their vacation.
What made this show fresh was that instead of taking place in the future, the comedy flips the script by placing a futuristic family in the past.
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Although Phil and his family return to the future in the final episode, they could always vacation in 2017 and coincidentally get stuck in time again.
Kim Possible (2002-2007)
Kim Possible (Christy Carlson Romano) is your basic average girl and she’s here to save the world.
In a world dominated by male heroes, “Kim Possible” was a welcome change, as it featured a heroine instead.
On top of protecting the world from criminals like Dr. Drakken (John DiMaggio) and Shego (Nicole Sullivan), she’s a teenager trying to balance school, family and her social life.
And what’s a hero without a sidekick? Well, Kim has Ron Stoppable (Will Friedle), a nacho enthusiast with a pet naked mole rat.
What’s great about this show is that it flips the gender typically associated with heroes, breaking stereotypes in a world full of them.
With female heroines being more prevalent in the media today – think “Wonder Woman" – who says "Kim Possible" can’t make a comeback?
Even Stevens (2000-2003)
To go along with the Christy Carlson Romano hype, “Even Stevens” focuses on the tumultuous brother-sister relationship of Ren (Christy Carlson Romano, the same actress who played Kim in "Kim Possible") and Louis Stevens (Shia LaBeouf).
Like “The Proud Family,” “Even Stevens” also created one of the best Disney movie spinoffs of all time, “The Even Stevens Movie.”
We are definitely on Team Ren — yes, she was extremely high-strung and an overachiever, but Louis went out of his way to be mean to her. Ren deserved better.
Lizzie McGuire (2001-2004)
We just really need to know what happened to Lizzie McGuire (Hilary Duff).
Did her performance in “The Lizzie McGuire Movie” catapult her to pop-stardom?
Did her relationship with Gordo last through high school?
Is Paolo still a piece of trash?
These are the questions a reboot could answer for us.
“Lizzie McGuire” told the story of a teenage girl with an animated inner self. She’s clumsy, she wants a bra and she tries her best to navigate middle school with her two best friends, Gordo (Adam Lamberg) and Miranda (Lalaine).
While Lamberg and Lalaine have basically dropped off the face of the earth since “Lizzie McGuire,” Duff’s career has been going strong, and a reboot could only add to her upward trajectory.
