It’s 2008. You get off the bus wearing your orange and blue plaid Etnies or black suede DCs, your favorite flowers on the butt pocket JC Penney jeans, and obviously the newest Hollister shirt. Your hair was probably greased down and your bangs were slicked to the side. You also probably had an obnoxious amount of bracelets on your wrist... Why did we think this was so cool? Anyways... Obviously you were looking so fabulous. You walk up to the door, run to the computer to check MSN, and then go to the kitchen to grab a pack of Yo-Gos, maybe a Cosmic Brownie, some cheese balls or anything that had absolutely no nutritional value at all. Grab your favorite glass of juice and plop your butt on the couch for some major Disney time. It was the best part of the day. Oh just your luck, Suite life of Zack and Cody is on... (Those twins are so cute) Here are some lessons Disney Channel taught us in the early 2000s.
"That’s So Raven"
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You either hated this show or loved this show. Everything in this show was always extremely over the top. I mean who can forget the time Raven had to eat all of that cheese just to get rid of the smell? But, I guess the writers kind of had to make it over the top considering she could see into the future. Through all of the dramatics and corny jokes there were actually some valuable lessons in there that you probably didn’t realize until now. Raven taught us that people come in all shapes, sizes, and colors, and that we’re all beautiful. This shows in the episode where the fashion show director didn’t want Raven to model because she thought she was “plus size.” But Raven stands up for herself and shows the world that you are beautiful no matter what implications you may have.
"Sister, Sister"
"Sister, Sister" had some of the cheesiest jokes out there. But, they were actually funny. Lisa Landry and her yams, and of course Roger and all of his crazy antics. The girls experienced living together in a half-blended family, dating, friends and just being a teenager overall. It was a cool story that two sisters who had never met ended up meeting in a clothing store and decided to move in together. This proves that family doesn’t always have to be a picture perfect idea of a white picket fence and two married parents. "Sister, Sister" taught us that family doesn’t always have to be 100 percent blood related, and your parents don’t have to be the two that gave birth to you. This show showed support to adopted and blended families everywhere.
H"annah Montana"
Hannah Montana was every girl’s dream show. All the glitz and the glam and the boys, the bone dance, cheeze jerky and the songs of course! Hannah montana was one of the most unrealistic shows on disney channel, I mean besides "Phil of the Future" and "Wizards of Waverly Place" of course. But even though it was unrealistic it was highly entertaining and very catchy. Hannah (Miley) was a rockstar, and she was what every girl wanted to be. She got to wear a cool wig and sing and dance, and also live a normal life! This taught us that it’s OK to lead a double life and lie to all of your friends and family…. Just kidding, sort of... but all in all it did teach us that it’s important to stay true to who you are. Also it taught us that fame isn’t as good as it seems. Even though Miley could’ve just let the world know she was Hannah Montana she wanted to live a normal life. Miley taught us to stay true to who we are and to chase our dreams. She taught us that nobody’s perfect, And, not to drink loco hot cocoa before 9 p.m. 'cause we all know what happened after she did that.
"The Suite Life of Zack and Cody"
Ah, those darn twins are at it again! Zack and Cody were always up to trouble, whether it was messing with Mosby or spying on a rich hotel guest. They never seemed to let us down when it came to the excitement factor. London Tipton’s jokes were always way more dumb than they needed to be, but I guess when you’re entertaining a bunch of middle schoolers you have to work all your angles. Her and Maddie definitely had their fair share of arguments, but in the end they always worked it out. This show taught us about different worlds. Different money values, and that it shouldn’t matter how much money you have or make, or where you’re from. We’re all valuable and valid people no matter our ranking in this society.
"Lizzie McGuire"
I think a huge majority of us can agree that this is definitely one of the best shows Disney Channel has ever produced. It had so many great and real qualities to it that most other shows didn’t have. Lizzie was a regular teen girl, real, no super-powers or not an unrealistic body type. Lizzie was real. Lizzie had crushes on boys, had school to deal with, and also had a normal family to deal with. But most of all, Lizzie had some really great friends. Lizzie taught us that friends are the most important thing when you’re young. And that it’s okay to be best friends with a guy! We were with her when she first started wearing a bra, to when she was belting “this is what dreams are made of” with that phony Paolo on stage. Lizzie, ode to you for being a real cool girl.
Ahh, this brought back a lot of nostalgia. I hope it brought the same for you.
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