"Johnny Tsunami." "The Thirteenth Year." "Brink!" Ring a bell?
There's no question about it: The 1990s was the era of the Disney Channel Original Movie.
No, I'm not talking about "High School Musical." Pshh. No. I mean the real original movies. Back when the Disney Channel came out with several TV movies each year.
The Disney Channel first started making original movies in 1983, but the term "Disney Channel Original Movie" didn't exist until 1997.
Here is my list of Top 5 favorite DCOMs (of course, these aren't the only good ones!):
1. Smart House (1999): Teen cutie Ryan Merriman plays Ben Cooper, who just won his family a "smart house" that can do everything from making strawberry smoothies to throwing a huge party without telling Dad. It even sucked garbage through the floor! (Am I the only one who wondered where that garbage went?) And the freakish mom-version of PAT turned out to be the actress who voices Leela on "Futurama"? No way! Ben and his friends dancing lamely during the party scene is quite possibly my favorite part of this film.
2. Halloweentown (1998): On her 13th Halloween, Marnie Piper gets a visit from her grandma Aggie (played by the fabulous Debbie Reynolds), who reveals that Marnie is a witch. Aggie takes her to Halloweentown, where Halloween is present all the time, and Marnie must be magically trained in order to defeat evil mayor Kalabar. This movie was so successful that it spawned three sequels. I mean, who wouldn't want to live in Halloweentown year-round?
3. Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century (1999): In this movie's version of the 21st century, people are living in outer space, and futuristic-looking bands like Protozoa perform there, too. After "supernova girl" Zenon (Kirsten Storms) is sent to Earth to live with her aunt, she finds out that her home space station is in danger and works with her two Earthling friends to save it. And who could forget this famous song from the end of the film? (Yes, that's Raven you spotted in there.)
4. The Luck of the Irish (2001): (Although this technically isn't a "'90s film," I just had to include it here.) Ryan Merriman is back! Slightly older, he plays seemingly average but lucky teen Kyle Johnson, whose family history is shrouded in mystery. One day after visiting an Irish carnival, he loses his luck, grows pointy ears and shrinks. Could his family really be...leprechauns?! In order to get his lucky coin back, he must work with his 200-year-old grandpa and fight an Irish fairy. And remember that cheesy diversity show at the end? Oh, man...
5. Don't Look Under the Bed (1999): A forgotten favorite, in my opinion. In this alternate reality, imaginary friends turn into boogeymen once you stop believing in them, and Frances Bacon McCausland is caught in the middle of it. Her little brother, Darwin, is in danger, and she must team up with Larry, his imaginary friend, in order to stop him from becoming one of the dreaded phantoms before it's too late. (The main boogeyman is pretty mean in this movie. I'm not gonna lie, it scared me pretty badly. Although Larry was kind of cute.)
One person even devoted a blog entry to where many of these DCOM stars are today!
I always thought DCOMs carried pretty powerful messages. Your past makes you who you are. Don't become too dependent on technology. Even as an adult, you should always have a sense of wonder. Bands like Protozoa will probably never be popular again.
Sure, The Disney Channel still comes out with original movies from time to time, but they will never be like the classics. Fortunately, a few of these movies are on YouTube! So if you ever feel like "going Richter," you can still relive your childhood, even if it means slowing down your productivity juuust a smidgen.
Now sing it with me: "Let's watch a Disney Channel movie!"
Posts in Gator Golf appear on Tuesdays.
