Discussing the upcoming Disney projects!

Alright! In a surprisingly delayed post, I will be discussing the projects they announced at Disney Investor's Day, which was December 10th. It is now January 19th. This is... unfortunate timing. For a full list of everything revealed during the meeting, please go here. 

Originally, this post was about everything revealed that day, but it was, like, 65 or so projects. That would not have been fun. So I'm just going to be going through all of the things that were announced, and all giving my thoughts on my favorites. And I narrowed them down... drastically. And this is only the stuff that they gave new information on. 

And, for fun, let's do a prediction: Disney+ was able to grab 70 million subscribers, their five-year plan, in one year. And they did that with only The Mandalorian. So, now that we have 60 or so projects coming out in the next three years, I bet Disney+ is going to be catching up to streaming biggies like Amazon Prime and Netflix surprisingly soon. Especially with the allure of half baked continuations of existing IPs. 

Flora & Ulysses - February 19th, 2021

Starting off the list is also the thing we'll be able to see first (In its entirety), the adaptation of Flora & Ulysses, which was originally a book about a young and imaginative little girl who befriends a squirrel with superpowers. Based on how Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made turned out, I can safely say I am excited about this. 

The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild - 2022

This is the movie we never knew we needed but always wanted. Buck is basically the best character in the Ice Age franchise, so giving him his own animated movie is a good idea. I am low-key extremely excited about this. 

Baymax, Zootopia+, Tiana, and Moana - 2022, 2023

For whatever reason, we are getting several TV shows about Disney Revival Era properties. I don't have any clue why we need these. I could see Moana or Baymax working well, since their films are open-ended, but Tiana? Princess and the Frog was an adaptation of a fairy tale, and that's it. The TV show'll have to be about restaurant managing or something. And wasn't Zootopia kind of a "One and done" movie? And will Tiana be hand-drawn, like the cartoon, or CG? 

I'm cautiously optimistic about these. On one hand, I hate the idea that we can't have singular movies that are just movies. On the other hand, I'm betting these will be pretty good, and I love the originals. Like, I won't complain I'm getting more content, but why am I getting more content? 

Iwájú - 2022

We don't know a lot about Iwájú right now. It's a collaboration between Disney and Kugali (Which, ironically enough, was created to show you could have animated movies outside of Disney), and is about a Pan-African futuristic society that's reminding me heavily of Wakanda right now. We don't have a lot in terms of plot or characters, but the concept art is enough to get me excited. 

Lightyear - June 17th, 2022

Pixar seemed to be doing really well in terms of originals. We had Onward, Soul, Luca, and Turning Red. I guess the whole "No more sequels!" thing was a sham because now we have Lightyear, which is not a spin-off from Toy Story's Buzz Lightyear toy, but rather a movie based on the actual Buzz Lightyear guy, who is voiced by Chris Evans (And not Tim Allen, unfortunately). 

Basically, it's an original movie, 2001 for kids, but they attached it to a recognizable brand to ensure box office success. A smart, if scummy, move.

Dug Days, Cars, and Win or Lose - 2021, 2022

Pixar, like Marvel, Disney, and Star Wars, is getting a bunch of television series based on their prior films. In particular, Dug Days, which is a spin-off from Up about Dug, and an untitled Cars series about Lightning and Mater. We're also getting their first original television series, Win or Lose, which we have practically no information on. I'm always excited for more Cars content. 

Loki, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, What If...?, and Hawkeye - 2021

These are the Marvel shows that seem to make sense. Loki, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, What If...?, and Hawkeye are all continuations. Their just ending their title character's arcs. Falcon will become Captain America, Hawkeye will retire and Kate Bishop will take his place, and Loki wouldn't necessarily be popular as a movie. And What If....? is just a little animated anthology series with seemingly no bearing on the MCU as a whole. I'm excited for these, what adventures the characters will go on. 

Ironheart, Secret Invasion, Armor Wars - 2022/2023

Next we have the Marvel series that I don't see the point of. Secret Invasion, which very well could be a large part of Phase 4 during which the Skrulls start replacing people, seems like it should be a big enough deal to be seen on the big screen. Armor Wars is basically Iron Man 4 but starring Rhodey, so I guess that could end his character. That would be neat, and Rhodey was the MVP during Endgame. I'm excited for him to headline his own series.

Ironheart is just... Ironheart. Iron Man 4.5. It's about a young black female genius inventor teen who creates her own Iron Man suit, which could be cool, but I feel like she should be a supporting character in a series like Armor Wars and not the main character of her own show.

Ms. Marvel - 2021

I'm very excited for Ms. Marvel. Ms. Marvel is a Pakistani-American teen from Jersey City who learns she is an Inhuman with shapeshifting powers. I'm really excited about this. It debuts next Fall, and it should be dope. Ms. Marvel is a great character. My only gripe about this is that I think Ms. Marvel is a good enough character to headline her own film, and without the big screen and a limit of two hours, the show may devolve into CW levels, where her entire group of friends get superpowers. 

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania - 2022

Nothing major was revealed about this. They're switching out the actress for Cassie Lang (And yes, they're definitely building up to a Young Avengers TV show) and confirmed Kang the Conqueror will be the main villain. And I am a huge fan of the name. A lot of people complain about how much "Quantum" is used as a blanket term for science in blockbusters, so being so self-aware about it is hilarious. I'm laughing already. 

Fantastic Four - 2024

No cast, release date, or really any information about Fantastic Four was revealed. We only got word that the director will be Jon Watts, who directed the MCU's Spider-Man trilogy, as well as the film's logo. I'm guessing a release date in 2023 or 2024. And remember: If we don't get John Krasinski as Mr. Fantastic, we riot. 

Percy Jackson and the Olympians - 2024

Like Fantastic Four, we got no information for Percy Jackson and the Olympians, only an unofficial 12-second logo they put together. Rick Riordan also said they're months away before auditions begin and the earliest the series could possibly be released in 2022, so I'm banking on 2023, maybe even 2024 at worst.

And once this ball starts rolling, it's not going to stop. If the series is a success, expect five seasons of it based on the original five Percy Jackson books, and possibly an additional five seasons based on the Heroes of Olympus books. 

Indiana Jones 5 - 2022

We also didn't get any information about Indiana Jones 5, other than that it's definitely happening. I'm pretty excited about this. James Mangold has directed some great movies, so I'm cautiously optimistic. 

Willow - 2022

I have no clue what Willow is about. The original Willow is on my list of movies to watch, and I'm expecting something along the lines of Labyrinth and Dark Crystal. So a new series is definitely going to motivate me to watch the forgotten 80s b-list flick. The series will release in 2022. 

A Droid Story

Next, we get to A Droid Story, which I am absolutely not excited for. Apparently, it's about a new hero who is guided by R2-D2 and C-3PO. I'm decidedly not excited about this. C-3PO shouldn't be the main character, plain and simple. I'm also unsure about whether or not this is animated (I'm banking on animated). Just... why? There are so many other characters more deserving of their own shows (Hondo, Bo-Katan, Starkiller, Revan, etc.) that would've been much more interesting.

Rangers of the New Republic

Next, we have Rangers of the New Republic, which I am also unexcited for. I guess it's neat, and it's possible this might be The Clone Wars of The Sequels and somehow make them better by delving deep into the politics of how organized a new republic would work. I also need to know who the main characters are. Cara Dune and Migs Mayfield? Those two pilots that keep showing up in The Mandalorian? And could we possibly see Mando in this show?

Lando

Lando is interesting because we don't know which Lando it'll be about. On one hand, we have a potential show about Lando exploring the galaxy with his daughter Jannah (Didn't know she was his daughter? Yep, they didn't say it in the movies), where Lando would be portrayed by Billy Dee Williams. 

On the other hand, we have a show about cool smuggler Lando where he does... smuggler things... and in that one, he would be portrayed by Donald Glover. A Donald Glover Lando show sounds a lot more interesting, but we're already getting a lot of content between Episodes III and IV, so I don't know. 

Andor

Here we have Andor, which was one of two shows initially announced for Disney+ with The Mandalorian. This one is about Diego Luna's character Cassian Andor from Rogue One. If you'll remember, his character wasn't particularly interesting. I guess it's nice he's getting his own show, and from what we saw in the sizzle reel, it sounds like it's getting the same love The Mandalorian got, so I think it'll all turn out fine, if unnecessary. 

Star Wars: The Bad Batch - 2021

This was the only Star Wars TV show we actually got a trailer for, as it is the first one out of this batch we'll be getting. It debuts this summer, and I'm actually interested in it, surprisingly. I wasn't a huge fan of the bad batch in season 7 of The Clone Wars, where they were all pretty stereotypical kid group characters. Basically, each member of the bad batch is a clone version of a teenage mutant ninja turtle.

But, I'm still excited about it. The trailer shows that it takes place after Order 66, so I think there's a lot of stories to cover here, like what do clones do after the war is over? It also has Grand Moff Tarkin in it, and it has the same beautiful animation from Clone Wars season 7. Maybe this will be the Rebels we always wanted: A gritty show about a group of soldiers trying to survive while being hunted by the Empire. 

The Acolyte

The Acolyte is my most anticipated original television show that they announced. It's set during the High Republic and focuses on the Sith. Here we have two things we've never gotten before from a live-action Star Wars story: A Sith main character and being set outside of the Skywalker Saga. Those two draws make it a lot more exciting for me. I get that the Skywalker Saga sells, but there's so much more to Star Wars. Darth Nihilus, Darth Revan... I'm excited about something like this. 

Ahsoka

Look, guys, I love Ahsoka, but I'm not sure how much I want an entire show based on her... at least the live-action her. I'm sure that Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka will grow on me, but we need to fix some things. The first thing we need to fix is her lekku (The things on her head). They are much too short, and as a Torgruta female grows older, so do the lekku. At this point in Ahsoka's life, her lekku should not be as long as they were when she was 12. I mean, at least as long as they were in Season 7 of The Clone Wars (Waist-length). I'd also remove the creases, because that just made it look weird. 

It's the plot, however, that really makes me excited for this series. In The Mandalorian, Ahsoka mentions Grand Admiral Thrawn, which I'm assuming is a tease for this show. So, we can assume this show is going to be about Ahsoka chasing down Thrawn and trying to find Ezra Bridger, and that all sounds really dope. Maybe we'll get some Mara Jade action? I hope so. 

Obi-Wan Kenobi - 2022

Here we have my absolutely most hyped show. I don't think I've ever been as excited for a new TV show than I have for this. At first, this was an anthology movie like Solo and Rogue One. After Solo flopped, however, and Disney+ was announced, the movie was reworked into a TV series starring Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan. They also dropped the bombshell that Hayden Christensen will be returning to play Darth Vader (And possibly Anakin in Clone Wars flashbacks?), so that got the fanboy within me completely hyped. 

I have so many ideas for what this TV show could be about. On one hand, I would love just six hours of watching Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan doing stuff on Tatooine, taking down sand people and warlords, maybe dealing with the Hutts, and watching a ten-year-old Luke. On the other hand, Vader is in here. What's Vader doing? Is he sending Inquisitors out to find Obi-Wan? Is he sending Starkiller? I'm beyond hyped for this show and I can't wait to see it in 2022.