Best LiveAction Shows on Disney+ Right Now

Agent Carter

Alas, Agent Carter, we only knew ye for a pair of all-too-short seasons. The series, created by Avengers: Endgame writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, is a truly unique and endlessly charming pocket of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, led by Hayley Atwell’s consistently dynamite performance as Peggy Carter. Set in the 1940s after Captain America crashed into the Arctic ice, the series saw Carter emerge as one of the brightest live-action characters in Marvel’s catalog while also filling in fascinating layers of the modern-day MCU. Way more of an espionage show than your classic superhero fare, Atwell’s Peggy Carter was a force as she balanced personal life with top-secret missions for Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper), usually accompanied by Edwin Jarvis (James D’Arcy, always a delight). Definitely make some time in your Disney+ scrolling schedule for a few more dances with Agent Carter.

The Mandalorian

The Mandalorian was one of the most heavily promoted new series at this year’s D23 Expo and it’s not surprising why. Creator Jon Favreau compared it to both a “space opera” and an old-time Western with its story of a lone gunfighter (played by Pedro Pascal) traveling through the outer reaches of the galaxy. The series takes place five years after the events of Return of the Jedi and showcases how the galaxy is doing in a period of relative lawlessness. The show is a mix of John Ford Western and Star Wars futurism. Add to that a cast that includes Ming-Na Wen, Giancarlo Esposito, and Werner Herzog and you have the makings of a series that not only Star Wars fans will gravitate to, but also those looking for engaging drama.

So Weird

Disney isn’t just aiming for new fans of their programming but all those still living life like it’s 1999. So Weird was a three-season show that focused on the adventures of Fiona “Fi” Phillips (Cara DeLizia) who, along with her rock-star mom, investigated supernatural phenomenon. Often called The X-Files for kids, So Weird garnered a legion of fans during its three seasons though it hasn’t been on television screens since 2003. The series starred not only DeLizia, but real-life Hollywood royalty Mackenzie Phillips as Fi’s mom and Disney’s original ‘90s dreamboat Erik von Detten. It’s great that Disney is sharing nearly everything from their catalog, including the television shows only a select few probably remember.

High School Musical: The Musical: The Series

In 2006 Disney dropped the first High School Musical film. The tween version of Grease was a monster hit, becoming the fastest-selling television movie of all time when it was released on DVD later that year. A year later the sequel, High School Musical 2, was the most watched television show in history at the time and gave the network enough faith in a theatrical release for the third feature, High School Musical 3: Senior Year. That film, released in 2008, became the highest-grossing musical of the time and another cog in an industry that saw ice shows, merchandise, and Billboard hits.

So it’s amazing that it’s taken this long for a series to be developed but, have no fear, because we have High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. Yes, the title is silly and it seems like Disney is in on the joke. The series tells the story of the students of the school where the High School Musical movies were shot doing their own rendition of the movie that started it all. There are so many meta-loops it’s enough to make you go cross-eyed but the premise sounds inventive enough to be compelling and the first trailer is humorous. There are obvious comparisons to Fox’s Glee to be drawn which it will be interesting to see how the fans of that series do or don’t respond to this. The trailer’s jokes seem to skirt the line of tween and adult, too, which might be enough to draw in fans who absolutely hated the High School Musical franchise.

Boy Meets World

Whether you watched it or not, you couldn’t be a ‘90s kid and not know about Boy Meets World. The series, launched in 1993 and running for seven seasons, followed the exploits of Cory Matthews (Ben Savage) as he navigates life, friendship, love, family, and the transition from middle school to high school, college and beyond. The show was well-regarded at the time for focusing on serious issues affecting teenagers such as sex, child abuse, sexual harassment, and drinking. When the series was syndicated and re-runs were aired on the Disney Channel several of these episodes were not released because of their heavy themes. In 2012 the show received a spin-off, Girl Meets World, about the daughter of Cory and his wife Topanga (Danielle Fishel) which ran for three seasons before being cancelled in 2017. Thankfully you can visit the complete oeuvre on Disney+ as both Boy and Girl Meets World will be available to stream.