Lab Rats: Elite Force

Our whole family loves all of the Lab Rats series which we have purchased on iTunes. However, Disney should never have left this to end on a cliffhanger never to be resolved. This is where Disney shows that their real allegiance is to profit, not the audience. Honestly, at this point I don't care to purchase and/or watch any more Disney series lest I be left with unresolved cliffhangers. If it weren't for the unresolved cliffhanger, I'd give Lab Rats: Elite Force a 10 out of 10.

I sort of understand what the crew were thinking and trying to do when they were creating this Disney spinoff series but it did not exactly fully work. There were several parts throughout this entire Disney spinoff series that could have been a whole lot better and stronger. The storyline throughout this entire Disney spinoff series could have been a whole lot better and stronger. There was no real direction. The cast selection throughout this entire Disney spinoff series was alright enough. They did not exactly fully commit nor connect to the storyline nor to their respective characters. The crew missed a chance.

The opening credits for Disney XD's first ever cross-over merger would have you believe that it has brought together the best parts of both; Lab Rats' action and Mighty Med's half decent plot for children's television shows. Unfortunately it is presently a sitcom about spoiled supers who bicker in a penthouse.

Mighty Med and Lab Rats were "bad TV" in that innocent and endearing way Disney have mastered to create shows endurable enough for mum & dad to stick with. Now with Elite Force the actors have grown (even in their craft, with some visibly muting their skills to keep it camp) and these 16-18 year old characters are constantly at odds, not with an enemy but with each other, and mum & dad are getting a headache. Entitlement seems to seep from their pores. Pausing to note that the casting has fallen to "passably whites" and anyone without the right waist-line is a joke, the most noticeable let-down is the upgraded awkward. The sweetness of "boy likes girl" is long gone, "boy films girl without her consent" has arrived, and it has got to stop. The actors deserve better and so does the audience.

It seems to have been the plan to inject the Kaz and Oliver characters into the formula where Adam and Leo would be. What they haven't counted on are trait similarities battling for space. With Skylar and Bree occupying essentially the same character, Oliver and Chase reduced to idiots in one another's world, and Kaz having his usually on-point cheek overcast by the constantly snarky dialogue, something's got to give for this merger to work.

I'm happy to see this come together, I'm glad they're giving this a go. It still has potential but I don't see it holding the attention of fans for much longer with this kind of forced character conflict replacing story and lack of plot-driving nemesis that would even call for the existence of an "Elite Force".

Now I don't wanna be those whiny fans who whine about everything cause I am NOT one of them. Lab Rats and Mighty Med were one of the better shows on Disney XD. Don't get me wrong, Disney XD is just like Toon Disney and Jetix into one, and that led to a great variety of cartoons and nostalgic stuff

But then came 2016 (I have predicted the fact the 2016 will be the worst year, possibly even WORSE than 2014) and this sitcom...

Elite Force was...bad, but not awful. The characters have changed DRASTICALLY! And I don't mean that in a good way. The crossover was bad enough, but THIS?! Anyway, let's move on to the characters.

Chase - Normally, Chase is the smart one. But in the first episode, he becomes SO DUMB that he doesn't even know HOW (or why) super powers work. That's not the Chase I know. And he has the nerve to ask what shape shifters are. (YOU JUST LOOKED AT ONE, DAMMIT!) Oliver - Not much, except that Oliver to too dependent on Skylar Skylar - I don't really have a problem with her. Kaz - Kaz...is still Kaz. I wonder what his last name is. Bree - She's been character derailed the most. First she was sassy but sweet, now she's a bitch to her friends. REALLY?! In the latest episode, Need for Speed, she acts like a bitch to Skylar for USING HER SUPER SPEED TO SAVE A BABY! Donald - Oh my god, he sucks. Reboots aren't always good, but reboots can be. As long as you watch the original and study what their characters are. But this show didn't try. So, 4/10 for me. Disney, you better pick up the pace.

I haven't watched the predecessors of this show actively. I picked some of it up when my sister was watching, but for some reason this series got onto my radar. I know Disney shows tend to be very low level, although it seems that it seems to get slowly better recently. Lab Rats Elite Force is a series that fits perfectly in this line.

Whether this show is good is a matter of managing expectations. It's a Disney show so there are still cheap ass sets and laugh track, but I'm impressed by how fun this show is. The acting isn't bad, especially Kaz is pretty impressive with a variety of emotions. The writing is not bad either, although there are some fillery episodes and cringe-worthy moments here and there. I know I'm not the main demographic and I can't honestly say it's a great series, but if you're looking for a fun iCarly/Flash hybrid series this might be a nice series to give a try.