It occurred to me on Friday morning while chatting with a friend that I was quite excited to watch the new episode of Elena of Avalor.  This is for a lot of reasons, but I think the biggest one is that this is a Disney show which took every complaint I had about Disney female characters and corrected them.  And it made it look so easy.  In this week’s episode, we got to know a rock golem by the name of Charoca who, by getting angry, has the power to set off a volcanic eruption.  Luckily, the children of the village have only been stealing from him, so he’s as happy as a clam.  Oh wait, no he’s not.  Let’s take a look at the episode.

Are you talkin’ to me?!

Something I love about this show is its persistence to the theme that everyone is different and THAT’S OKAY!  Early on, Elena, while being instructed by her small council, makes this great analogy.  Everyone wants to simply get rid of the angry rock monster without trying to solve the real problem, or even find out what the real problem is.  She gets up from her squeaky chair and exclaims that she needs to throw it out.  It’s too squeaky.  Her uncle objects.  “Why throw it away?  I’m sure we can fix it.”  Of course, Elena uses this to make the point that you don’t just get rid of something without first trying to fix it.  What’s great about making this point in this way is that it’s very logical.  I love watching this powerful female character in this kid’s show use logic to argue her point.  Once again, the empowerment for young women is so on point in this show!

But just in case it all fails, this guy brought a sword. That’s sure to give the “We’re just here to talk” vibe.

This empowerment is taken a step further.  When things don’t go as planned, the council decides to rid themselves of Charoca.  Elena once again states that there is a better way but she is voted down.  Knowing they are wrong, she disobeys and goes to do the right thing.  Knowing that in the end the Kingdom will be better for it.  There’s a strategy in business that says if you really believe in something you should do it, and ask for forgiveness after it’s successful.  Adults take years to master this concept.  Elena of Avalor just taught it, to kids, and made it easy to understand.  Sooooo…that’s pretty awesome.

Oh right, there’s also this nifty dance number.

If I have a complaint about this show, it’s that I don’t get nearly enough of it.  I want to know more about the magic in this world.  I want to see the other characters and what they’re up to.  I know something is up with that evil curse.  Those things hang around like bed bugs.  I feel as though we’ve only just peeked into this world and I want more!

Oh, maybe the rock monster is angry because you keep stealing from him!!

This week’s episode shows that there are two sides to every story and that problems can be fixed by communicating.  It also once again reminded us that just because someone is different from us does not make them an enemy.  The best thing we can do is to learn and work together with those that are different in order to create the best world possible.  Only Three episodes in, Elena of Avalor has already established itself as a force of good in the children’s TV category.  It’s full of female empowerment and real, viable life lessons that are not only great to teach, but deserve to be taught.  The world is rich and vibrant and the constant theme of learning from one another is fantastic.  I can’t wait to see more of this show!

I definitely did not eat the cake you left on the table.