I've been an avid watcher of the Disney Channel since my parents shelled out the cash for cable in the 3rd grade. At that time, it was primarily cartoon shows that dominated the Disney channel airspace. I watched a regular round of the animated series Aladdin and The Little Mermaid almost daily. The only other really worthwhile programming on Disney at the time were the incredibly awesome original movies (I believe Brink! was my first).
Over time, Disney began expanding its live-action library and also dabbled in a few experiments (remember Zoog Disney? wtf was that about...strange looking robots that told me what was on next, no thank you). Anyway, all of this heralded the era of "So Weird", "The Jersey", and "The Famous Jett Jackson." The only one of these shows I really enjoyed was "So Weird" and looking back, the show was wayy to mature for Disney's target audience (Mackenzie Phillips making out in a pool with a dude that turns out to be a mermaid named Gil...).
As these shows began winding down, Disney came back with a defining set of programming that really revolved around two shows: Even Stevens and Lizzie McGuire. At this point, I was at an age where I learned that the TV remote can take you other places and the reflex action of pressing "on-2-9" on the remote could be overridden with some concentration and training. I started watching more "grownup" shows like "Friends," "ER," "The Practice," and of course "Alias." Still, that inclination to go to channel 29 whenever I turned on the TV remained, mostly just to see what's on, but also because those two shows (Even Stevens and Lizzie McGuire) were actually pretty good.
Even Stevens was way ahead of its time. It was just the right mix of offbeat and mainstream. Shia LeBeuof was seriously funny and ridiculous and Disney really let the show develop as this totally wtf kind of show. Even Ren Stevens, the supposedly normal over-achiever, has her moments of hilarious insanity. Lizzie McGuire, on the other hand, was a perfect foil for this show even though it was also a comedy. It was much more traditional, but it did introduce interesting ideas to television. The situations on the show were mostly run-of-the-mill middle school issues (cute boys, school pictures, monster teachers) but what was really interesting about the show was in the production. The show was filled with moments that looked like they came from Gordo's camcorder as well as a cartoon version of Lizzie's inner monologue. Pretty Cool if you ask me.
Because Disney is a children's channel, they have much more license and time to try out all sorts of creative things, especially in comedy. When you look at "adult" television comedy, there is really very little room for innovation. Shows like Arrested Development are under so much ratings pressure that they really don't have time to build up the audience it deserves. Furthermore, TV comedy has largely lost its footing trying to figure out what to do in a post-sit-com world. NBC definitely wins in terms of the most creative comedies (The Office, 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation) but they still don't win in ratings. "Adults" still want to watch traditional "group of friends" sit-coms. This explains the success of shows like How I Met Your Mother.
On the other hand, Disney has total control over its shows and can keep them on for longer because they don't face the same advertising pressure because the generate revenue in other ways. The channel is basically a giant advertisement for everything else it makes money from.
In the post-"Friends" and post-"Even Stevens" era, TV comedy was really trying to figure out what the eff to do and it was not a fun time. Network shows took many of the same characters and put them in new situations (rehashing the sit-com) or greatly exaggerated characters and put them together (30 Rock is a great example). Disney basically did the same thing when they started Hannah Montana, but they did one major thing that can both be seen as a positive and a negative. First of all, they made the characters throw out bitting sarcasm at almost every turn, something that is funny to someone older like me but not something a young girl should try to be. The title characters are not exactly people you want to be (the older brother, Jackson, has to go to community college) and much of what they say is regular fare on network TV sit-coms. I actually can't believe that most of their target audience is in on a lot of the jokes.
Disney also realized that if they can get more than just a TV show out of someone, they will. Their current trifecta of stars (Miley, Selena Gomez, and Demi Lovato) cover all the bases in a way that is just incredible, but more on that later.
Now, to be perfectly honest, Hannah Montana is not really my favorite show on the Disney channel. That distinction belongs to Wizards of Waverly Place. Firstly, the title of the show doesn't do it any justice, because it really is a funny show. It's premise also bring me back to my earlier point: no other network could ever even think of making a sit-com about a wizard family, but Disney tried it out and let it go for awhile, and it really does work. Selena Gomez is unbelievably funny on the show and her character is like the anti-Hannah: she isn't very girly, doesn't really care about what people think, makes fun of her nerdy older brother, and takes shortcuts whenever she can. With Wizards, i'm sure that most of the kids that are supposed to watch the show don't get most of the jokes.
I've been watching the Disney Channel for just over 12 years now, and I can still find something that I want to watch. Most people who give me an over-exaggerated eye-roll when I talk about Disney Channel shows have never even seen one, and if they did, they'd be singing a different tune if they were really honest with themselves.
Some of the best episodes of grownup comedies come when the characters are acting like children. Why should it be any less funny of a 17-year-old does it?
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