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Showing posts with label disney channel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label disney channel. Show all posts

Monday, January 23, 2017

Former Mouseketeers Turn Up at Golden Globes

Image of Timberlake and Gosling from Giphy
    A little show titled The New Mickey Mouse Club was a serious deal on the Disney Channel in the early 1990's. I'll admit, I was a bit more invested in Nickelodeon's edgier Canadian show Round House, but that show produced no stars. I would have to go into another entirely separate post to discuss Nick's comedy show All That, and I will do that very soon.  The MMC launched the careers of some of the most well known pop stars in the last 20 years: 2/5 of N*Sync, Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears. Does anyone talk about the rich acting history that began on this musical sketch show? Not often.  I'm here to remind you that these kids are award nomination-worthy. This year the golden globes honored several former mouseketeers for their projects.

     In a post-MMC bubble world, we had no idea if these kids would have the chops to be adult performers. One woman constantly defying those odds is Keri Russell. After winning a Golden Globe in 1999 for her portrayal of  "fickle pickle" college student Felicity, Russell came back to television (with her hotly contested straight hair) as a sleeper spy mom in FX's The Americans. Russell was nominated for Best Actress in a TV Drama this year. The show picks up on March 5th for its 5th season. We last left  Elizabeth and her husband Phillip (Matthew Rhys- also nominated for a Golden Globe) delicately dealing with their teenage daughter discovering they are Russian spies in 1980's Washington, D.C. This show is phenomenal and I can't believe it's only getting award buzz for its fourth season. Russell was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy in 2016 for the same role and won a Teen Choice Award in 1999.

My Gosling Meme - With Timberlake lyrics
     Ryan Gosling walked out of the 2017 Golden Globes with the Best Actor in a Movie trophy. This was his 4th nomination in recent years. Gosling came on the scene as an adult in 2004 in the movie that makes me bawl and turn the TV channel, The Notebook.  This movie earned Gosling the "Best Kiss"  trophy with Rachel McAdams at the 2005 MTV movie awards, as well as several Teen Choice Awards that same year. His critical acclaim has come more in recent years, where he is referred to colloquially as one of "the Ryans." To my knowledge, there are only two, Gosling and Ryan Reynolds. Gosling shas just been nominated for an Oscar for this year's sweeping movie musical LaLaLand, which had cleaned up at the globes. This is Gosling's 2nd Oscar nomination. That begin said, not all of movies are winners. I thought Drive was one of the worst movies in recent years. In my old teen magazines, Gosling was always mentioned with Tony Lucca. I'm pretty sure Tony Lucca doesn't have any awards aside from the MMC cast's  Young Artists Award nomination. Tony Lucca is also not the star of multiple "Hey Girl..." Internet memes (mic drop).

     The third MMC member at the Golden Globes was jack of all trades, Justin Timberlake. He was in MMC, he was in N*Sync, and he bounced back into America's heart after the Janet Jackson 2004 "Big Game" incident. Timberlake was at the show as a nominee for the Best Original Song in a Movie category, with the Summer 2016 anthem Can't Stop the Feeling. This may seem like a technicality to qualify for this piece, but Timberlake voiced a character in the Trolls movie that launched this song. Timberlake has won multiple awards for his music and this song is an Oscar contender in a few weeks.

Saturday, June 28, 2014

Girl Meets 21st Century

     In 1993, I began watching a sitcom that would become one of the most treasured shows of all time for kids growing up in the 90's. Rarely have I met someone who does not acknowledge that Boy Meets World changed the cultural landscape. Unlike the oddball last-ditch season of Saved By the Bell: The College Years, this show followed kids really growing up from middle school through the first year of college, (and some milestones like Shawn's losing a parent, getting married, and Cory's parents midlife crisis baby) ending with them going out to the world. Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) and his wife Topanga (Danielle Fishel) now live in New York City with their two kids, pre-teen dreamer Riley and too-cute kindergartner Auggie.
   
     The new focus of the sequel show Girl Meets World is daughter Riley (Rowan Blanchard) and her journey into adulthood with with pals Maya, Lucas and Farkle. Maya Hart serves as Riley's own Shawn Hunter, a misguided attention-seeking kid of a single parent that gets kindness and guidance from the Matthews family. I hope to see Shawn unveiled as Maya's long-absent father, or on a more reasonable plot, see him mentor the kid. Maya definitely has some issues to overcome and I know she will eventually open up. We see Farkle Minkus is the son of Topanga's old rival Stewart Minkus (future guest star Lee Norris), a know-it-all. The girls befriend new kid from Texas, Lucas Friar, and Riley is in love with him from first glance. As Coy and Topanga struggle to let go with their oldest, Cory takes on the role of Mr. Feeny, teaching all of the kids at John Quincy Adams Middle school (sounds like John Adams High in Philadelphia?) more than just history, but lessons for life.

     The show is on Disney, so I'm not sure what to expect. I grabbed a bunch of friends and some beers to watch last night's first episode, followed promptly by a screening of the first episode of Boy Meets World. The clothes seem a little unrealistic for your average kid, and all of the girls (and mom Topanga) have extension-laden hair. Cory's son Auggie reminds me of Cory's little sister Morgan, and we know the cute Morgan got re-cast from about age 5 to age ten in one season hiatus, so we'll see how that goes. The plot lines for the upcoming season seem more millennial-comedic than real-life based, but there could be some hidden emotional depth to the show.

FINAL: Favorite Moment 
There was a great cameo at the end of the episode by Mr. Feeny, who appears as a subway poster urging kids to stay in school.