I'm almost 20 years old now, so my taste in television has changed over the years. I still enjoy most of the shows I loved as a child (mostly cartoons from Nick and Cartoon Network) and I still enjoy a lot of sitcoms my mom showed me when I was younger (Friends, Fraiser, Seinfeld, etc). But my love for television remains with shows such as Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, and Halt & Catch Fire. But I do like to tap in to my inner-child every once and awhile. I saw a promo for this show when I was watching an episodes of Star Wars: Rebels. I had NO idea what to make of it and I didn't care. But I was so bored one day and they were giving an episode of this show. The episode in question was Frankie Has a Hater. My only reaction was surprise, because of how many times I laughed. Here are some of the aspects of the show that work and don't work.
Work: 1. Madison Hu as Frankie Wong: Madison Hu (at least in my eyes) as a future in Hollywood. She's cute, talented, and incredibly funny. A large portion of the show's success and enjoyment comes from Hu's performance. The perfect cross between subtle, stoic nuances and a crazy and incredibly relatable outbursts, Madison Hu's Frankie Wong is one of the most memorable characters in recent Disney Channel history.
2. Paige & Amelia: While Madison Hu is the show's brightest show, the series' 2 other main actresses are also enjoyable. Oliva Rodrigo as Paige Olvera and DeVore Ledridge as Amelia Duckworth can best be described as teenage girl versions of Jason Bateman's Michael Bluth and Portia De Rossi's Lindsay Bluth from Arrested Development. One is more sarcastic and relies on her interactions with her environment and other characters. While the other is more self-involved, concerned with her looks, kinda mean, but never gets on your nerves. I also love that Amelia isn't your stereotypical dumb hot blond.
3. The Chemistry Between the Actors: All the actors (while not all great) all work very well together. Hu and Rodrigo especially.
4. No Over-Reliance on Social Media trends: The series could have easily just have been "LOOK, SOCIAL MEDIA TRENDS! LOOK HOW HIP WE ARE!!!!". Instead they use SM as a way to show you how all the characters are different.
5. It's Just Plain Fun: The show isn't smart, original, or even great. But I'm glad that this show isn't just mindless or annoying. The show isn't concerned with teaching the audience a lesson (watch Girl Meets World and Andi Mack for that) but it is concerned with making you laugh. And if that was the show's sole goal, well they accomplished it.
Don't Work: 1. Jake Paul as Dirk Mann: This show would be EONS better if Jake Paul wasn't on this show. The difference between him and the 4 other series regulars is that Jake Paul sticks out like a sore thumb. Hu, Rodrigo, Ledridge, and Wacker are all ACTORS. Jake Paul was a viner, not an actor, and there are not the same thing. Paul only works when he doesn't talk. He gets on your nerves, he over does it, and sinks the show's quality very very very low. He should have stayed with Vine. Oh wait...
2. Ethan Wacker as Bernie Schotz: Wacker is not bad in the show, in fact he's actually quite funny. It's just that I hate the treatment of the character.
3. The Treatment of Male Characters: In traditional Disney Channel tradition (even from shows of my youth) the male characters are treated as idiots and jerks. Surprise surprise.
4. The Music: The Bizaardvark songs take up too much time and most of them aren't even funny. Some are, but most of them aren't.
5. A Severe Lack of Memorable (Or Good) Recurring Characters: When it comes to ANY sitcom (or even all kinds of TV shows) you need a memorable cast of characters. Not only series regulars, but recurring characters as well. This show has a few (Belissa, Liam, and others) but the problem is that NONE of them are memorable or even that good. They come and go without any sort of impact on the viewer. Hopefully this changes in Season 2 or in Season 3.
CONCLUSION: The show isn't perfect and has a lot of problems, but it has a lot of problems that can be easily fixed. With great lead actresses, interesting humor, and a relatable cast of characters, Bizaardvark is some of the most fun I've had on TV in a long time. B
