This past week on Ronin, I shared a few of the Disney+ shows and films that I am excited to watch once the service begins streaming November 12th. I wasn’t able to get through my complete list on the show, but I still want to share my list because I combed through allllllllllll 500+ shows and films — and I don’t want that to go to waste.
Admittedly, my decision to subscribe to Disney+ was made when I found out that the entire Disney archive was included. I didn’t care much about the original content at first. I was mostly excited to have the Disney library at my fingertips, so I’ve viewed the original content as a bonus.
And, I must admit, it’s a generous bonus.
The promised library should not disappoint, especially with Walt Disney Studios, National Geographic, Marvel Studios, 20th Century Fox and Pixar all contributing original content. There are a number of reboots — like Home Alone, Cheaper By The Dozen and The Sword in the Stone, but I feel that Disney+ is a good medium for such reboots (despite how much I despise them). The Star Wars content alone is exciting.
Luckily, we don’t have to wait long for a lot of the original content — like The Mandalorian, Lady and the Tramp and The World According to Jeff Goldblum will be available on day one. There definitely won’t be a dearth of content come November 12th — movies and series included. You can check the entire list here.
So what are some of the original series and films you should be excited about? It seems like a consensus that The Mandalorian is a must see, but what about the others? And, does it really warrant the price of subscription?
Let me be your guide of MY top ten most anticipated original films and series on the day one schedule.
1. The Mandalorian
Set five years after the fall of the empire as depicted in Return of the Jedi the series follows a Mandalorian bounty hunter (Pedro Pascal) in “the outer reaches of the galaxy far away from the authority of the New Republic.” Not much else is known about the series other than Pascal describing his character as “Clint Eastwood-esque with questionable morals.” There have been a few trailers released to tease fans with the series — and it seems to have worked as many fans have subscribed to the Disney+ service because of the potential of this season — which has already been greenlit for a second season.
It seems as though Disney is going all in with The Mandalorian — and Obi Wan series (starts shooting in 2020) — because without their success that could potentially derail how Disney uses the streaming service to release original content. As long as the writing and production is at a Disney quality level it shouldn’t be an issue, because Disney seems to be all in on with both Star Wars and Disney+ original content.
Needless to say, I’ll most likely be binge watching this with my brothers.
2. The Imagineering Story
I’m a Disneynerd. I think that’s pretty well established. Within my Disney library I have a number of books on imagineering that feature the building of Disneyland, specific imagineers like Marc Davis to beautifully illustrated books of concept designs of built or forgotten attractions. Imagineering is the creative lifeblood of the Walt Disney Company — and that’s why I am excited about this docuseries debuting on Disney+.
The series which will be narrated by Angela Kinsey (aka Angela from The Office) will focus on the Disney Imagineers and what goes into building the theme parks and attractions. The series will also focus on the 65 year legacy of Disney Imagineers — something I’m particularly excited about given the esteem I hold imagineers like Marc Davis, John Hench and Mary Blair. This series will be binged … probably even before I allow myself to get into the Mandalorian?
3. One Day at Disney
Even though this is debuting in December (which is accompanied with a book) and not on Day One — I’m letting it slide. This is another series I am highly anticipating because it is giving the Disneynerd in me the opportunity to see behind the scenes at the Walt Disney Company. Each episode will be following a Disney cast member from differing divisions — the parks, kitchens, TV studios, labs, cubicles, etc. through the lense of their typical day of work. This series will launch with a full-length documentary along with 52 episode short form episodes.
4. Marvel’s Hero Project
I’m not a Marvel fan. I’m not much of a superhero fan either, but that’s a post for another day. But, I love the potential of the series. The premise is the show will be highlighting “young heroes” who are making remarkable and positive across their communities through self-less acts of bravery and kindness. Here’s the cool part — each kid featured in the show will be immortalized into their own Marvel comic.
THAT’S COOL!!!
And, quite honestly, I love this kind of entertainment. I’m a sucker for the feel good stuff. Heck, I still cry watching Extreme Makeover: Home Editions reruns. It probably won’t take much to get me hooked to this series.
5. The World According to Jeff Goldblum
This series intrigues me — it feels like a Wikipedia hyperbole. Something I love to do — often. The premise of the series is that Jeff Goldblum will delve into familiar objects we love and unravel their world through astonishing connections, science and history, amazing people and of course the trademark Goldblum insight.
The show kind of feels like if Goldblum stole the Magic School Bus and took us, the audience, on an adventure. My interest is definitely peaked and I’ll definitely be tuning in each week!
6. Be Our Chef
This may seem a bit high compared to what’s below, but I love food shows. I love to cook, period. I don’t miss an episode of Chopped, MasterChef and of course Nailed It! In fact, I’d choose watching a food show over almost anything else. It shouldn’t be much of a surprise that I will be on a cooking game show, Dinner Takes All on BYUtv, airing in December.
Be Our Chef will be hosted by Angela Kinsey (Angela from The Office) and each episode will feature two teams of families, from diverse backgrounds, cooking family dishes with “the magic of Disney.” The finalists for the season will then be asked to create a dish that represents their family through a Disney lens.
I’m tuning in. Heck, I’m applying!
7. Lady and the Tramp
This feels low for Disney+’s headlining launch day’s original film. But, let’s be honest — it’s another remake. It’s basically the same story told in the 1955 animated feature. Would I have gone to see this in the theaters? No. And, for the record this is why I haven’t seen the live remakes of Cinderella, The Lion King, Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast — I forced to go to Dumbo.
But, with that said, I think Disney+ is a good platform for these remakes if Disney is INSISTENT on making them for each of their animated movies. In fact, Disney is in production for live remakes of Sword in the Stone, Fox and the Hound and Peter Pan exclusively for the platform. I am sure that list will grow.
8. Legend of the Three Caballeros
One of the most underrated films in the Disney archive in my opinion is The Three Caballeros. Not only am I a HUGE Donald Duck fan, but I love the chemistry between him Jose and Panchito. But, this series, follows Donald Duck as he inherits a catina from his uncle and are thrust into a journey to save the world from an evil sorcerer. I hope this series isn’t overlooked, because this is the type of content I want from the Disney animated characters I love.
9. Noelle
With a platform release so close to Christmas I am glad that Disney included an original Christmas film. It’s only one, so they have quite a bit of work if they ever plan on competing with The Hallmark Channel. Noelle stars Bill Hader (Nick Kringle) and Anna Kendrick (Noelle Kringle), who play Santa’s children. Their father, Kris Kringle (played by Brayan Brendle) is retiring and handing the reigns over to the role of Santa to Nick. Well, Nick ends up going awol. So, this whole story evolves around Noelle trying to convince Nick to return to his job before their cousin turns the North Pole into an online service.
Basically Noelle is trying to save Christmas from today’s technology?
Either way, I think this will be a fun family holiday movie. I enjoy Hader’s comedy. I’m not a huge Anna Kendrick fan, but I feel like the pairing should work. I don’t expect an instant Christmas classic, but I’m definitely going to queue this up to watch in December.
10. Togo
When I first read the synopsis for Togo, I could have sworn this movie has been done before. A lead sled dog faces the elements across a wintery Alaskan wilderness to get serum to the smalltown of Nome to save them from an epidemic. If that sounds vaguely familiar — it should — Universal Studios made the film Balto back in 1995. But, this film isn’t about Balto, it’s about Togo a completely different dog and essentially story.
Togo stars William Defoe as Leonhard Seppala the owner of Togo and chronicles their part in the Great Mercy Race, which Balto and 18 other sled teams took part in to get the serum from Anchorage to Nome (a 674 miles distance). Balto gets a lot of the credit because he finished the last leg in the relay, but Togo is the one that is credited for covering the most treacherous and difficult stretch of the relay.
I won’t go much more into the details of Bogo’s journey, but I can tell already this is something I will love to watch. I am sure I’ll get emotional and probably cry (I bawled during Seabiscuit, soooo …) because I love me a good animal movie. This seems like the perfect movie for a lazy Saturday afternoon.
What do you think? Did I get it right? Did I rank certain films or series too high, or too low? Which original content are you looking most forward to come November? Let me in the comments below!
Come back next Friday as I will rank my top ten most anticipated Disney Archive films and series here on RadioRonin.com.
