I'm not doing myself any favors by admitting I'm a Disney fanatic, am I? I wouldn't think so. But suffice it to say I'm a real Disney fanatic. I'll watch anything they put on the Disney Channel here in America, no matter what it is. I've sat through fun shows like "Shake it Up!" and real junk like "Pair of Kings" and I really do appreciate the programming they've been enlisting since "Hannah Montana" mercifully bowed out of the channel.
We're seeing a lot less shows about kids trying to become fame freaks and much more family oriented shows. Which I'm all for. "Good Luck Charlie" gets heavy play on the channel and that's a family show if I've ever seen one.
"Jessie" is a new addiction because, simply put, I loved "Charles in Charge." They're basically the same premise when you think about it. A college student comes to live with an upper class family filled with mischievous children and takes care of them, handling their nonsense with patience and good humor. "Jessie" has a more varied cast this time as title character Jessie takes care of a family filled with adopted children. This is a good excuse to feature a very diverse cast of characters so all the bases are covered.
"Jessie" two episodes in is fairly addictive mainly because the show is so darn cute it's hard to find flaws with it. As with most Disney shows the mom and dad are basically MIA, appearing every so often while the young cast basically comes and goes as they please. Jessie follows after making sure they don't inflict any harm on themselves and that's the basic premise.
Okay, and there's Debby Ryan who went from gawky cute in "The Suite Life on Deck," to damn good looking on "Jessie." The rest of the characters are all pretty basic archetypes. My favorite so far is Skai Jackson who plays the baby of the family Zuri. While she's there to mainly spout one liners and look adorable, she pulls it off very well quite often.
Ryan as Jessie is likable. She's basically a branch off of Bailey Picket from her previous show as a small town Southern gal who is mysteriously very street wise. I like to think of "Jessie" as a modern "Charles in Charge" with a twist of "Mary Poppins" and I appreciate the simple stories and limitless character arcs it gives the audience. There's no end to the possibilities of sub-plots with the kids.
One is an adopted Indian boy, one is an adopted African girl, one is an adopted Brooklyn kid, and the oldest is the biological daughter of the celebrity couple featured. There has yet to be a lot of talk about the adoption process and whatnot, and I hope it stays that way. Last thing we need is a PSA about the benefits of adoption on a family show.
Nevertheless I remain a tried and true Disney fanatic and I'll be watching "Jessie" with most interest. Mainly for Debby Ryan.
