As I did in 2016, I want to make this one of the last posts I’ll write for 2017. This post is about some of things I didn’t write enough about or didn’t write about at all.
Star vs. The Forces of Evil
My love for this animated series grows with each viewing. The reason? The storytelling is better than any series on the Disney channel with the 
exception of the Marvel and Star Wars properties. As I said in my July 2017 review, this show started out as a “fish out of water” story, but has ended up as a variation (to this point) of the Disney Princess story, Brave (Yes, I know Star is really based on Sailor Moon, but that’s another post).
Don’t let the animation style fool you because the storytelling is supreme. The royal Butterfly family of Mewni has more palace intrigue than the Tudors and Stuarts of England combined. Turns out Eclipsa Butterfly, when queen, not only practiced dark magic, but committed adultery when she ran off with a monster and later had a child. Think about that for a moment. This is a Disney program where this protagonist left her husband (a king), ran off with an enemy of her people and had a child out of wedlock by that enemy. This is heady stuff for anyone, let alone Disney. Eclipsa, her monster husband and her child lived at the Monster Temple. She was later frozen in crystal for 300 years by Magic High Commissioner Rhombulus. The child, a daughter named Meteora Butterfly (and in line for the throne) changed her name to Miss Heinous (perhaps a commentary as to how she viewed herself since she was a monster/ Mewni hybrid) and founded the St. Olga’s Reform School for Wayward Princesses. The irony of this school’s name shouldn’t be lost on anyone following the series. We’re now at the point in the series where we have all of the players on the stage: former queen Eclipsa and her daughter, Meteora, and current queen Moon and her daughter, Star. This is a true “game of thrones” and a series worth investing in.
Coco
Just because I didn’t write a review of this wonderful family movie didn’t mean I didn’t love it. Coco tells the story of Miguel, who dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz, despite his family’s seemingly baffling generations-old ban on music. Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the colorful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events. Along the way, he meets Hector, and together, they set off on a journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel’s family history. This film is colorful enough for young children and adult enough that parents will immediately get its theme of family and traditions. This is a movie to be put on your short list and will definitely be an Academy Award contender.