Like 10 million others, I grabbed the Disney Plus app as soon as I could yesterday. I came home from work in a jiffy, signed up for the one-year free trial I get for being a Verizon customer, and prepared to buffer.
Technical Difficulties
But unlike (apparently) Disney, I was prepared for technical difficulties. So after a (mostly) patient two hours, I finally tried turning my phone off and then on again, which did the trick. I finished subscribing at last and, anticipation rising for the bounty I was about to receive, I clicked on the app.
The Layout
My favorite streaming service of those I’ve used until now (Netflix, Prime, Hulu, HBOGo) is Netflix, because of its variety, its lack of commercials, and perhaps most importantly–its layout and organization. Although I like the content and convenience, I find Prime to be user-unfriendly. Things I save to my queue, including shows I’m in the middle of, disappear and I have to go searching for them. I don’t like having to save multiple seasons of a show instead of just all of them being in one place.
Fortunately, Disney Plus looks the most like Netflix to me. It has a pristine layout with lots of categories. From my home screen, I can see big hits scrolling across the top, such as the new Dumbo, The Mandalorian, and various Marvel features.
Navigation
Right below that, there are buttons for each of the five main categories: Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and National Geographic. If I click on one–I’ll use Disney as an example–it takes me to a new screen that breaks down into smaller categories. So under Disney, there are such categories as: Live Action Movies, Animated Movies, Disney Channel Series, Mickey Mouse Through the Years, Princesses and Fairy Tales, and more. I seriously love how easy this makes it to find what I’m looking for.
Back to the Home screen. I won’t list all of them, but there are lots of subcategories underneath the main five. It’s got Recommended For You, so it can give you suggestions based on what you like and add to your queue. It’s got Trending, so you know what everyone else is watching. I don’t like that there’s no Currently Watching, so I can keep track of where I was in a show, or if I paused in the middle of a movie. I personally love that there’s a Musicals subcategory, and then of course the nostalgic ones so I can watch all the old (I’m talking ’90s and beyond) Disney content that I haven’t seen in many years.
The Search Feature
A good search feature is very important to me, as well, and fortunately there’s one easily found at the bottom of the main screen. If I click on the magnifying glass, it takes me to a new page with a Search bar at the top in case I already know exactly what I want. Beneath that is the Explore feature.
Explore features three main categories–Originals, Movies, and Series. Below those it has 15 different Collections that you can click on. So if you’re looking for all the Disney movies about princesses, there’s a collection for that. If you want all the Star Wars content, there’s a collection for that, etc. I think I personally will get the most usage out of the Through the Decades Collection, which, when you click on it, breaks down all the content on the app into decades from the 2010s all the way back to the 1920s with Steamboat Willie.
Clicking on any individual show or movie gives you a screen with details about the movie, extras (like trailers), and the options to play, download to your device, or add to your watchlist. There are also suggestions listed for similar or related content that you can jump straight to.
The Content
As a bigtime fan of vintage Disney (I still enjoy some newer stuff, but haven’t kept up with it as well in recent years), there is a lot for me to love about Disney Plus. Although it doesn’t have absolutely everything I remember from watching the Disney Channel in the late ’80s and early ’90s, it has enough for me to be satisfied that they’re still tending the garden and that their old content (back in those days they played stuff from every decade) will see the light of day again. I’m excited that new generations will get to see some of what I grew up with. I’m also thrilled that all the Marvel and Star Wars content will be in one place!
There is enough content on Disney Plus to keep me occupied for years. I started by watching some of the things from my childhood that I felt the most removed from, that I hadn’t seen in years and were starting to feel like dreams from another life. I began with the first episode of Doug (which featured a sick burn to Arthur Aardvark that I had no memory of) and the first episode of Gummi Bears. Then I just watched the intros to some of the other old cartoons–Chip ‘n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers, DuckTales, Darkwing Duck, etc. They all had fantastic theme songs.
Basically, Disney Plus makes me feel like Christmas has come early to my inner child.
Pros/Cons
Pros: Excellent layout, tons of fantastic content both old and new, great search feature, useful categories for finding exactly what you want.
Cons: No “Currently Watching” category.
For only $6.99/month, I will definitely be renewing my subscription after my free year is over.
What did you, or are you going to, watch first on Disney Plus?
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