If you have a kid who watches Disney Junior on a regular basis, you have heard of the purple-clad girl in the village who was doing alright, and then she became a princess overnight. You may have watched (with your littles, of course) as she figures out how to do it right–as there is so much to learn and see, as she navigates life in the castle with her new family, in her school that’s just for royalty–
You see where I’m going with this.
I’m talking, of course, about Sofia the First, the story of a girl whose mother marries the king and then she becomes a princess. And the truth is, I freaking love Sofia. I watch an episode of it pretty much every day (did I mention that Disney Junior is literally the only thing we watch here?), and as a result of watching this show over and over and over again, I’ve developed opinions. And theories. And opinions about the theories that OTHER people have about this show.
And to be honest, in between back to back episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Miles From Tomorrowland and DO NOT GET ME STARTED ON Jake and the Never Land Pirates, Sofia’s a breath of fresh air.
And the thing is, I’m not the only one who loves her. Many of my adult friends who are stuck in the same vortex of the Mouse’s television offerings agree with me. Sofia is, by far, the best show that Disney Junior has to offer–and here’s why:
1. The Music
If you’ve watched Disney Junior, you know that the musical offerings are not generally the best. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard Mickey proclaim that it is time to do the Hot Dog Dance, but it’s been way, way, WAY too many times, friends.
But the music on Sofia? It’s catchy as anything.
Allow me to share my favorite song from Sofia the First, from the episode The Little Witch.
AM I RIGHT?
Sofia consistently delivers catchy tunes, with a vocally gifted cast (Ariel Winter and Wayne Brady especially). Guest actors are often given their own numbers to show off their singing chops (one of the best examples of this I can think of is Megan Mullally, who has appeared on two episodes as a rogue fairy named Miss Nettle–I had that “Make Way for Miss Nettle” song in my head for months!).
2. Sofia is smart.
Not just Sofia herself. She’s pretty quick–in fact, I really do not understand how Enchancia did not fall apart before she became a princess. This question bothered me and my friend Crystal so much that we took to Twitter to ask one of the creators this question. His response:
@thebookprincess @CrystalPaschal Aunt Tilly & Baileywick. Also, Roland was more work-oriented b4 marriage & jiggly wiggly pudding addiction.
— Craig Gerber (@_CraigGerber) September 21, 2015
Many thanks to Craig Gerber for his sense of humor.
But it’s not just Sofia’s competence, it’s the show itself. It’s even raised some interesting questions in my household.
Those of you who know me well are probably surprised to hear that I get away with watching Sofia, seeing as how I am the lone estrogen carrier in a house with my husband and three boys, who are 5, 3, and 2. But get this: All of them also love Sofia. We jokingly call them the Bro-fias. And we have talked about Sofia, a lot. My oldest has on more than one occasion remarked that he does not get why Amber is such a mean girl. And my husband and I even had a deep philosophical conversation one night about Lucinda the little witch…
Me: Here’s the thing though. Why exactly should Lucinda conform to society’s standard of “good”? What does it mean to be good, anyway, and why should she have to go along with it just because someone in a higher caste than her tells her to? Does she really want to change, or is she just doing it because of peer pressure?
Jon: Because it’s not nice to turn somebody’s clogs into frogs? Or someone’s flute into a newt?
Me: (warningly) Jon…
Jon: Give her a chance, Amanda. She’ll make the switch.
Me: YOU GOT THE SONG IN MY HEAD AGAIN.
3. It’s fun to come up with Sofia’s backstory.
There are many, many questions about Enchancia that are not answered in the show, probably because it’s G-rated, but allow me to present you with many of the occurrences I have questioned (and developed theories on)…
-What happened to Amber and James’ mother?
-Who is Sofia’s real father? (I have a pretty Young and the Restless style theory that Crystal and I came up with)
-Why do Cedric and Baileywick hate each other so much?
-How does Roland NOT KNOW that the amulet is magical? I mean, seriously.
-Back to Cedric–why is his mother so freaking evil?
In all seriousness, I do think one of my favorite things about Sofia is the show has brought me together with people I love–my friends, my family. And I’m grateful for it, and looking forward to live tweeting the new episodes as they come down the pipeline.
Especially since they only show Kansas City Mickey once in a blue moon.