Disney+ 2020 The Year Of Tactical Laziness
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The big news for Disney+ is that in 2020 they’re launching Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge, a kids quiz show with Jar Jar Binks actor Ahmed Best as its host. This is what we Star Wars fans have to look forward to in 2020. No, it’s not a nightmare, it’s a reality.

The streaming giant has come to market, become a download phenomenon and its 2020 looks emptier than a pre-colonoscopy bowel. I’m a 39-year-old man so maybe Disney+ ain’t for me. Yet I’m drawn to Star Wars and Marvel in the same way as I’m drawn to burnt ends at a BBQ. Disney scalped Netflix, killed great shows like Daredevil and then thought, “f*** it.”

Disney phoning it in

Take away The Mandalorian and Disney+ would be Pixar shorts, a Jeff Goldblum “thing” and a documentary patting itself on the back for its theme parks. It leaves me shell shocked. This is the biggest entertainment company in the world and this is everything new they could give us.

No matter which way you look at it, they made The Mandalorian and thought “yeah, that’ll do!” It doesn’t make sense for a 2019 launch to be so phoned in. Worst still, 2020 is just as “meh”. On the surface, it appears no one bothered to put content into development when they decided to on Disney+.

The best originals coming in 2020:

  • Series: The Falcon and Winter Soldier (fall 2020)
  • Series: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (new season)
  • Movie: The Phineas and Ferb Movie
  • Movie: Stargirl
  • Series: Monsters at Work
  • Movie: Timmy Failure
  • Movie: Togo
  • Docu-series: Marvel’s 616

Perhaps Netflix has spoilt me but outside of the movies hitting theatres, or movie licenses ending, the above content is Disney+’s 2020. Unless a documentary about the Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast lyricist Howard Ashman gets your juices flowing?

Disney+ tactical laziness

This over-reliance on back catalogs rather than new originals makes me a big ball of hairy rage. Disney isn’t stupid, which means this lack of launch and 2020 effort must be tactical. Which when you consider the Verizon offer and bundling discounts could make sense.

So, is Disney keeping original content back for when the service isn’t populated with people running out deals? The fact lots of original content is coming in 2021, post those first-year offers, makes this seem probable. Sly old Disney.

The reality today is that Disney+ is for babysitting and The Mandalorian. However, once it is in a household, it’s unlikely to be shelved by parents. This means drip-feeding big licensed content like The Falcon and Winter Soldier keeps the service relevant enough for bingers during these early years.

Disney+ conclusion

At this point for me, the Disney+ service is a dud, and 2020 looks to have the same periodic interest as 2019 (30 minutes weekly). The only thing left to enjoy is The Mandalorian conclusion and more of the adorable baby Yoda. It’ll be interesting to see how Disney+ does in 2020 with subscribers, because a Jar Jar Binks quiz show ain’t going to do much for geeks like me.