Michael Jacobs has one of the most authentic voices in television today. He and the entire âGirl Meets Worldâ team will not only continue to entertain families but also help kids discover who they are and who they want to be in this world.
Disney Channels Worldwide EVP of Programming Adam BonnettÂ
AKA âGuess weâre not moving to ABC Family any time soon.âÂ
Iâm really looking forward to see how they will play serious high school issues on Disney. Weâre all taking a risk here by letting this be pulled off on Disney, GMW being our life force and all. Donât make this into another clichĂ©, stereotypical, cheesy high school drama/comedy Disney. Remember, youâre about to attract more number of older audience, so donât let let them label GMW as âanother tween show on Disney that doesnât know that high school isnât a High School Musicalâ from this season.Â
I understand that there are boundaries, but let GMW be close as you can get to those lines. GMW is girlâs POV of BMW. There are things that could be addressed that do not cross/is close to the line such as:Â
seriousness of exams and educationÂ
pressures of college selections, applications, preparations, interviews and entrance exams
types of teachers and how to deal with each type
student expectations in high school
bullying from upper class girlsÂ
realm and realism of popularityÂ
Driving (Lucas will turn 16 next year)
dating someone due to their reputation/wealth
realism and seriousness of marriage (most girls think marriage is the culmination of an epic love story and itâs a happily ever after. Some marriages happen without a love story and for some itâs the end of their love story. Corpanga isnât the case with everyone.)
mediaâs effect on young girls and young boys
being put in unhealthy competition against your own gender (cat fights)
feeling invisible and being an outsider
feeling too old to be beautiful (sounds like a job for Topanga and Katy. Many women lose self worth (not confidence) because weâre told that beauty is everything in a women and if you got wrinkles and saggy skin, youâre not beautiful enough and that youâre âtimeâ is over. This happened to someone I love dearly)
feminism and equalism (doesn't this scream like a job for queen Rowan?)
murder (yes suicide should be addressed separately)
cheating and temptations to cheat on significant other
truth about the portrayal of life, women and men in movies and on tv
double standards faced by women
love triangles (we already have this going on, so kudos. Some may not like it, but this is very natural and real.)
Police involvement in school
However, there are soo many other things that girls (including myself) go through in high school and Iâm still highly doubtful whether you could even address them on the channel. Here are some examples of sexual/intimate realism girls face in todayâs world. Yes, they cross your borders but they are real. These are serious things Iâve seen and heard happen.
peer pressure into sex from boys/bfs
peer pressure into losing your virginity, whether boy or girl
sexuality (This is here because have you heard what happened to the girl who played Charlie on Good Luck Charlie?)
inter-faith dating (this is hardly EVER seen on a tv show, but it does happen and is common in countries with high diversity (like the country Iâm living in currently). I have plenty of real stories (plural) that has happened in my very own class itself, to my very own friends and myself.)
abuse (sexual or otherwise, abuse is abuse)
Sexual double standards faced by women
dressing provocatively just to keep the guyÂ
teachers hitting on student (I believe this was covered in BMW so Iâll give it a pass if itâs not addressed)Â
po*n and its addiction (this is territory mainly for the guys and some girls. This is 99.99% something that high school students go through these days with advancements in technology. This something that definitely needs to be addressed.)
how the above mentioned word affects guysâ expectations and mentality (such as sleep deficits/prone to anger and violence/mistrust in significant other/addiction), thereby affecting his idea of sex and girls. (Lady parts and guy parts donât always look like that!)
teen pregnancy (yes this happened to a 11th grade girl)
Cat called continuously on streets by men (I wanna see how Cory and Shawn would react to this so badly. I think this is something that just crosses the Disney border.)
Harsh break-ups and threats (There was someone who had broken up with her bf and the guy constantly threatened her and even cut his hand until she gave into his requests. Iâm not kidding).
Threats through social media (not cyber-bullying as in making derogatory and offensive remarks, but like asking for photos of certain uncovered body parts.)
Actually just bringing up the subject of sex (and not just in the context of reproduction)
Actually having the guts to go to the police to report in any case of threats, harassments and domestic/sexual violence (and be thankful that youâre not living in Rosewood where the police is useless as a gun without a trigger. PLL anyone?)
I will applause if above subjects are even lightly touched (using an innuendo for example) during their high school experience. If you could put a warning sign or some sort of content advisory, Iâll salute you. Let this be the show that changes everybodyâs view of Disney.
Yes, my expectations are quite high because Iâve devoted soo much time for this show, (no wait, I mean universe) and Iâm still holding on tightly because important issues are brought up and talked about as far they were allowed (example cyber-bullying). But Iâm lowering the bar a little bit because I donât want to have unrealistic expectations, with GMW still being a Disney show. That doesnât mean that I underestimate the writers ability, I just have low-very moderate hopes on how far Disney will allow. I mean, they didnât air certain episodes of BMW. Hereâs what it says on wikipedia:
âDisney Channel edited many episodes that contained scenes with suggestive content deemed inappropriate for the channelâs target audience of 7- to 14-year-olds. All 158 episodes aired during the seriesâ initial run on the Disney Channel, however due to the adult subject matter and complaints from parents, Disney Channel omitted three episodes from later airings: season fiveâs âIf You Canât Be with the One You LoveâŠâ (due to its depictions of underage drinking) and âProm-ises, Prom-isesâ (whose main storyline involves Cory and Topanga contemplating losing their virginity on the night of their prom), and season sixâs âThe Truth About Honestyâ (due to its sexual references).â
I still truly truly hope that GMW moves to ABC Family after the 4 season limit. Those subjects mentioned above are 100% real and cannot be ignored. Which other show will actually address those topics maturely and give Mr Feeny level lessons about it? BMW was a phenomenon because it touched real life, mostly from a boyâs perspective. Now show the girlâs perspective on real life.Â
Iâm giving you a big chance here Disney, so DONâT mess it up. :)
-Sincerely
 17 year old fan, in her senior year of high school, really hoping that high    school on GMW is relatable, realistic and accurately portrayed.Â
PS: Iâm proud of you Michael and the entire team of writers, you truly are a legend. Thank you for all your efforts.
PSS: Iâm sorry for this being so long and if you have to scroll past for a mile or two. This is the most serious thing Iâve written and it took over three and a half hours to type, but it was worth it.Â
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