Disney XD. Launched in 2009, we watched our kids grow up with it.
But the channel is arguably not the same as it used to be five, six years ago.
With the current cartoon and anime blocks, the channel simply does not contain any of its glories that it did back in the day.
You could say that Disney XD is about 90 percent cartoons and anime now.
But it wasn’t always this way. Arguably the greatest era of Disney XD lasted from 2012–2014, with 2013 being its center point.
You could say 2013 was the best era for our kids’ television, because of Disney XD. But sadly, 2013 is gone. And so is the great era of Disney XD.
However, these glory days could almost be relived if Disney XD ever aired any reruns of shows from this era. But sadly, the only show from this era they still air reruns of is Lab Rats, and it’s not enough.
If Disney XD ever aired reruns of the shows in this list, maybe viewers who are older now, but lived and watched the channel during the glory days, would return. But they don’t. And their ratings continue to decline.
If you’re still confused about all this, here are five Disney XD television shows that defined the channel back in its glory days. It’s listed in bottom-to-top order, so the top show on this list is at the end.
#5) Crash & Bernstein (2012–2014)
Crash & Bernstein was a series that revolved around 13 year old Wyatt, from Portland, Oregon. Growing up in a house with a single mom and three sisters was tough for him, so when he builds his own puppet in a Build-a-Bear-like workshop for his birthday, and the puppet comes to life, he now has a new puppet-bro to hang out and cause manly mischief with.
Sounds a bit odd? Well, that’s because it was. The show often involved silly plots that barely made any sense, but that was all part of the silly nature that made up this show. Its humor was cruddy and sometimes made you shake your head thinking how stupid it was, but that was part of the whole effect that made this show legendary.
The show premiered in 2012, and after a successful season, was renewed for a second season in 2013. But rapid declines in the show’s viewership caused the series to be canceled halfway through its second season, abruptly ending the show in 2014. The show’s cancellation left many viewers scratching their heads, wondering what would happen to Crash’s talking pimple that came to be in the series finale (yes, that was the plot of the series’ last episode). Maybe it’s plots like that which caused the demise of the show, but we’ll never know.
#4) Pair of Kings (2010–2013)
Pair of Kings revolved around two nerdy brothers (who were said to be twins in the series, but looking at the two brothers pictured above, it’s hard to believe that) who, unbeknownst to them, were the descendants of a monarch that ruled a secret island in the Pacific Ocean. They are one day randomly removed from their home in Chicago and set forth on a journey to live on the island, the island that they will now rule as kings together. But are two foolish teenage boys cut out to rule an entire island kingdom? That’s what the series revolves around, showing their antics along the way.
The series was actually comical at times, and following the antics of these two brothers was fun to watch. The show premiered in 2010 and after two successful seasons, Mitchel Musso (pictured above, left) was replaced by Adam Hicks (who also played Luther in Zeke and Luther, which we’ll get to) for season 3. Unfortunately, season 3 was the series’ last, and when it ended in 2013, the show was played on Disney XD until early 2015. And then, never.
#3) Lab Rats (2012–2016)
The only show from the Disney XD classic era that is still aired today, Lab Rats involved three bionic siblings who secretly performed missions to save citizens in peril. When normal innocent teenager Leo Dooley moves into the home where these bionic siblings live, he teaches them how to live in the real world.
The show premiered in 2012 and was met with positive response and massive rating boosts for Disney XD. Its first season often contained hilarious quips that would give you a good chuckle. The first half of season 2 did this as well, but the show arguably got itself too much involved in a complicated storyline that didn’t always make sense, sacrificing comedy for cheesy plots and visual effects. The second half of season 2, all the way to the show’s end in season 4, focused too much on cheesy plots and visual effects, as mentioned, rendering it barely funny. Granted, there were some funny moments here and there, but not nearly to the extent of season 1 and the first half of season 2.
Following season 4, a spin-off series, Lab Rats: Elite Force, aired in 2016. The show was a crossover between Mighty Med–a show that probably would’ve made number six on this list, but its second season suffered the same problems as Lab Rats’ later seasons faced, discussed above–and of course, Lab Rats. That spin-off, however, was based upon complicated and stupid storylines and visual effects, and cheesy, forced comedy that was completely unfunny. To clarify, I’m not including the spin-off with Lab Rats in this list, as the spin-off was forced garbage, but it’s still worth a mention.
Of course it’s a positive thing that Disney XD still airs reruns of this show, often airing episodes from season 1 and 2, which is what the viewers want to see. They don’t want to see any of that cheesy story and nonexistent comedy garbage that was seasons 3 and 4 (or maybe they do, but certainly I don’t).
#2) Zeke & Luther (2009–2012)
Ah, Zeke & Luther. What don’t we love about this silly series?
We love the fact that it revolved around two irresponsible teenagers, Zeke Falcone and Luther Waffles, who loved to skate and would often get into mischief. Although its first season was a bit bland, its second and third seasons corrected this, offering the most fresh content on Disney XD at the time. Some argue that the show was stupid, and it often was, but like most shows during this era of greatness, that stupidness made the show epic.
Zeke & Luther aired in 2009, the year Disney XD was founded, making it the second-oldest show on the channel, second to I’m in the Band. It ran from 2009 to 2012, over the span of three seasons. Although the series ended in April 2012, right before the era of greatness began in the summer of 2012, reruns were frequently aired until 2014, therefore including the show in the era of greatness.
#1) Kickin’ It (2011–2015)
Arguably the greatest (and funniest) show to ever air on Disney XD, Kickin’ It immediately became a phenomenon when it premiered in 2011. Its series premiere garnered 873,000 viewers, making it the most watched premiere episode of any series in Disney XD history, a record that still stands today.
The show involved five karate students and a sensei–who was both wise and filled with wise-cracks–who practiced at the Bobby Wasabi Dojo in a strip mall in California. The show would follow the antics that these group of friends found themselves into, and always included epic fight scenes and comedy that left you laughing. It, along with Lab Rats, was the only show of this era of greatness to last four seasons, as the others were canceled before they could reach that milestone. Unfortunately, we all know that all Disney shows must end after four seasons, a rule that never made sense and sat well with me.
It’s no surprise these shows all contributed to Disney XD’s era of greatness that was 2013 (and some of 2012 and 2014). Unfortunately, cheesy cartoons such as Pickle and Peanut, Star vs the Force of Evil, Wander Over Yonder, and several anime and superhero cartoons came along and ended the channel’s glory days. But the glory days will always live on in our hearts.
Some other legendary shows on Disney XD that were not listed here but played crucial roles in the era of greatness include Mighty Med and the cartoons of Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil and Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja (as well as the short-lived cartoons of SlugTerra, Packages From Planet X, and Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures).
Some, and I repeat some, of these shows are available to watch on the Disney Now app. But don’t expect to be able to binge-watch these shows and relive the glory days, because only some of the shows are available, and only a few episodes can be watched. On the bright side, the app’s completely free, so if you just want to relive some moments from the glory days and watch a few, but not all, episodes of some of the shows, go knock yourself out and download the Disney Now app, available for mobile devices and Roku TV.
But for many, including myself and kids, the glory days will never be revived unless Disney XD decides to air reruns of all of these episodes, which will most likely never happen. They’ve started to air reruns of Kick Buttowski and rarely Randy Cunningham, so maybe that’s a good sign. If you feel as I do, and want these episodes to be aired again, you could always email info@disneyxd.ca and ask them yourself. But will that really help? That remains unknown.
Chris is a writer and publisher who travels America, and loves doing it. He also loves pizza, video games, and sports, and can tell you a thing or two about each. Follow him on Medium to be informed of new articles.
