DCOM Guide Part 1: Science Fiction

Disney Channel is about to debut their 100th Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM) on June 24th with a remake of the Touchstone classic Adventures in Babysitting. The network will spend Memorial Day weekend with a 51 movie DCOM marathon of the most popular films, while the rest will air throughout June leading up to the premiere. I’ve assembled this guide as an expert in DCOMs, broken down by theme, because who honestly has time to watch 100 films in one month? Our first theme is Science Fiction, chosen first because it contains my very favorite DCOM of all time, which is…

Zenon: Girl of the Twenty First Century

ZenonCetus Lapetus! While we’re 16 years into the 21st century now, life after the millennium was a big mystery in 1999 when this masterpiece premiered. Zenon Carr is a teenager living on a space station in the future. But when she gets in big trouble, she gets grounded (literally) when her parents send her down to earth to live with her aunt. Prepare for a future where every car is a Volkswagen New Beetle (not the newest version, the one before that) in this fish-out-of-water story. When Zenon discovers an evil plot to destroy the space station, she will have to sneak back up there with her favorite rock star (Proto Zoa) for the first concert in space to save her home and her family. The song “Supernova Girl” will be stuck in your head for days (Zoom, zoom, zoom!) plus it costars Raven Symone pre-That’s So Raven and also look for a brief cameo by 1999’s dial-up internet. (Airing Monday, May 30th, at 1:05pm)

Zenon: The Zequel

ZequelGet ready to nova major! Zenon is back exactly one year after the end of the first film. While working in the space station’s alien surveillance lab, Zenon is contacted with a trifecta of “Zooms.” After realizing that aliens are trying to reach Proto Zoa, Zenon travels back to earth to find the reclusive singer. Meanwhile, the military has taken ownership of her space station and plans to close her parents bay, meaning her family will have to move back to earth permanently if she can’t find a way to stop them. As with the first, this one ends with another stellar song (“The Galaxy is Ours”). If only Disney Channel had made a Proto Zoa tie-in album. Also, don’t be too alarmed when you don’t see Raven Symone this time around, she was busy filming Dr. Doolittle 2. (Airing Friday, May 27th, at 11:45pm)

Zenon: Z3

Z3Zenon returns one final time (sniff) to compete in the Galactic Teen Supreme contest, but is thwarted at every turn by her newly adopted cousin. As the competition prepares to hold its closing ceremonies on the moon, earth experiences outrageous weather patterns that could destroy all life on earth. When Zenon discovers that the moon celebration has disturbed the moon goddess Selena, Z will have to set things right to save the planet. While Proto Zoa is back for the finale concert, he has sadly recast and the song is nowhere near as catchy as the first two. But this trilogy is guaranteed to be the most stellanarious thing you’ve ever seen. (Airing Sunday, May 29th, at 1:05am)

Phineas & Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension

2nd DimensionThe popular Disney Channel series Phineas & Ferb never made it to the big screen, but they did get a full length adventure with their DCOM, Across the 2nd Dimension. World’s collide when Phineas and Ferb stumble into Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s lair and help him fix his Other Dimension-inator. When the two end up in another dimension, they discover that the evil Doofenshmirtz rules as a dictator and that their cherished pet platypus Perry is a secret agent. The boys will have to get over their pet’s betrayal and round up their alternate reality friends in order to save their world and get back to their own. (Airing sometime in June)

Smart House

Smart houseWhen the Cooper family wins a contest, they find themselves living in the world’s first smart house. The home can do anything a human can, including self cleaning rooms and a kitchen that prepares its own food. It even comes with a holographic servant named Pat, but when the artificial intelligence program begins to think of itself as part of their family, things quickly turn sour. Trapping them inside the house, the family must find a way to get through to Pat in order to free themselves from her homey prison. (Airing Monday, May 30th, at 2:55pm)

The Other Me

The Other MeAndy Lawrence stars as Will Browning and Will Browning in The Other Me. While doing his school science project, Will accidentally clones himself thanks to a science kit that had come in contact with a cloning serum. While his outgoing clone attends classes, Will stays home and goofs off. But when he discovers that his clone has made him popular and has improved his grades, Will trades places back. The only problem is that some evil scientists mistake him for the clone and want to kidnap him for research! (Airing Monday, May 30th at 2:55am)

The Suite Life Movie

Suite Life MovieWhen you think of The Suite Life you picture Zack and Cody causing mischief in either a hotel or on a cruise ship, but the film version finds the boys on a sci-fi adventure. When Zack and Cody become test subjects in a twins research project, they develop telepathic powers. But when they discover that the project’s goal is to merge them into one, they will have to fight to defeat Project Gemini to maintain their individuality. (Airing sometime in June)

The Poof Point

2260269,zRuUIysAIjbMeYayMHi2FI+OUV3tjCe2zQDHxr6N8MR1Em+3vDb9zfon3uv_jNxJfz3ogxTr3jHE26akqhRXcA==After inventing a time machine, Marie and Eddie’s parents begin to grow younger and younger. What’s worse, is they discover that at a certain point their parents will disappear, going “Poof.” Now it’s up to the two teenagers to find a way to reverse the process to save their parents from reaching “the poof point.” Tahj Mowry from Smart Guy was the main draw when this DCOM came out in 2001. (Airing sometime in June)

The Proud Family Movie

The_Proud_Family_Movie3When the Proud family take a vacation to a private island, they discover that an evil inventor wants Oscar’s new multiplying formula. In his effort to obtain it, he clones every member of the Proud family, attempting to turn them on each other. And when an army of peanut clones attempts to take over the world, the family’s strength will be put to the test. (Airing Saturday, May 28th, at 8:05am)

Zapped

ZappedZendaya plays Zoe, a girl whose life is overrun by boys when her mom gets remarried and she inherits some step brothers and a dog. But when her cell phone goes through a series of bizarre events, she discovers that she can make any guy do anything she wants! With great power comes great responsibility as she realizes that she may have gone too far with her phone’s new features. (Airing Friday, May 27th, at 6:15pm)

How to Build a Better Boy

Build a better boyWhen two brilliant outcasts can’t get a date for homecoming, they hack into the government’s top-secret programs division and build their own robotic boy. He quickly becomes one of the most popular guys in school, making both girls the envy of all the others. But when their dream date turns out to be a government super soldier, they will have to jump through hoops to protect him from being turned into a weapon by the military. (Airing Sunday, May 29th, at 11:40pm)

 

Minutemen

minutemenWhen Jason Dolley and his two best friends invent a time machine, they decide to go back to the first day of high school to prevent embarrassing moments that made them social outcasts. But the time traveling soon gets them in trouble when the government catches wind of their invention. And when repeated time travel creates a black hole, these boys are the only ones who can save time as we know it. (Airing sometime in June)

Invisible Sister

invisible-sister-trailer-rowanRowan Blanchard from Girl Meets World accidentally turns her sister invisible at Halloween when a science experiment gets confused with her sister’s mouthwash. Now she must pose as her sister in costume to save her sister’s reputation while also trying to return her sister to her old, visible self. (Airing sometime in June)

Alex Reif
Alex joined the Laughing Place team in 2014 and has been a lifelong Disney fan. His main beats for LP are Disney-branded movies, TV shows, books, music and toys. He recently became a member of the Television Critics Association (TCA).