Review: Sofia Returns with Fantastic Music, Princess Cameos, and Some Familiar Magical School Tropes with "Sofia the First: Royal Magic"

Sofia the First is back again, for the first time in nearly a decade, with a sequel series of sorts, Sofia the First: Royal Magic. 

The new Disney Jr. series follows Sofia as she attends The Charmswell School for Royal Magic, where she discovers she is the most magical princess in the realm and must learn how to master her powers while making new royal friends. 

Now, Sofia is without her family (most of the time), older, and on her own making new friends.

While at the school, she is divided into clubhouses that best represent their magical abilities and personality traits, named after some favorite Disney fairies. 

A magical school with different houses? Haven’t we done this before? 

Full disclosure, I didn’t follow the original as much as Disney Jr. and Disney Channel have become more relevant in my life than they were back in 2012, so I did have to do a bit of a dive. However, at least based on the initial entry in the new series - it sets up its own unique storyline and outside of a few references, there is no need to be fully versed in the original series. It will help greatly, as to catch some of the fun callbacks - and even appreciate the headmaster at the new school - Miss Nettle - who had quite the storyline back in the original series. 

Though there are favorites from the original series peppered throughout, Sofia the First: Royal Magic includes a new set of characters that fans will be able relate to, including her fellow students. 

Though, at least based on what we have seen so far, some of these students also are from another of the school’s clubhouses, and seem to be built solely on oneupmanship and some bullying. 

While the series does make them out to be “the bad guys” of sorts, we also know that Sofia will be facing some real villains throughout this new adventure - so do we really need that kind of peer behavior in another Disney Jr. series? 

Speaking of those villains, they appear to be well known, classic Disney villains as the series is building into a sort of Disney Princess Multiverse, with cameos from Rapunzel and others promised for the new series helping guide Sofia along her journey. This idea alone will likely grab a number of Disney fans beyond the target demo of the new series, building into the lore of the Disney princess universe. 

Where the series truly stands out though, even amongst the other series of the very network that Sofia the First: Royal Magic will be found on, is the music. While other Disney Jr. fare might spin catchy and memorable jingles when a character arrives on scene, or other little jaunty tunes and earworms, Sofia the First: Royal Magic (at least in its initial entry) puts on a show-stopping number, seemingly jumping from a musical theater stage into this animated series. 

The tune, “Time to Shine,” sets up the premise of the series in about three and a half minutes and if the rest of the new show has numbers like this, it will stand out with some of the best Disney full-length features from a musical standpoint. 

With a premise that will have some of the more nostalgic fans who grew up with Sofia coming back for more, an expansive presence in the wider Disney Princess and Villain universe drawing those fans, fantastic musical numbers, and a whole new generation growing up with the new stories and characters, Sofia the First: Royal Magic will surely delight viewers and keep them coming back. It’s only hindered by its striking similarities to other predecessors in the fictitious world of magical education, not that the average Disney Jr. viewers will pick up on that, but Mom, Dad, and the adult fans won’t be able to overlook it. I give the new series 3.5 out of 5 Puppercorns. 

Sofia the First: Royal Magic arrives on Disney Jr. on May 25, the next day on Disney+.