Response to this article about the Hasbro/Discovery Hub shift in power...which turned into another my long-winded, thoughtful rants: http://online.wsj.com/articles/discovery-to-take-control-of-the-hub-network- 1410979842 Well, that's...somewhat shocking. From what I can tell, the Hasbro/Discovery partnership in The Hub has been an amazing success. I watch the channel almost every day. Most of its programming is--and has been, for the past 3.5 years--excellent. From the original series (FiM, Pound Puppies, Strawberry Shortcake, LPS, Dan Vs., Aquabats Super Show, Family Game Night, Care Bears, Transformers, Haunting Hour), to all the other wonderful shows/sitcoms (oh my goodness!! Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, Goosebumps, Laverne & Shirley, Happy Days, Mork & Mindy, Step By Step, Who's the Boss, Family Ties, The Facts of Life, Sister, Sister, Sabrina, Atomic Betty, etc.), to the extremely well-chosen family movies (I loved it when they aired the Homeward Bound films, All Dogs Go to Heaven 2...today I saw Spaceballs...and they've just made so many other great movie picks every season.) They've been an outstanding example of listening to your viewers and giving them what they want. Even their misfires and middle-of-the-road shows are more than bearable (SheZow, animated Sabrina, Teenage Fairytale Dropouts, Kid President, Parents Just Don't Understand, and such.) If Hasbro were to grow dissatisfied with controlling six hours of its toy-based cartoons daily on Hub (which seems like a fair deal they've cut, tbh), and moved them over to Cartoon Network or Disney...well, at least the shows would still continue on, and be a MASSIVE boon to either of those channels. I like Krypto, Foster's, Johnny Bravo, Dexter, Courage, Billy & Mandy, the PPG, Juniper Lee, Jackie Chan, etc., and everything on Boomerang--all the classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons, Looney Tunes, Pokemon. But CN is otherwise quite underwhelming to me. And once upon a time, Disney had a wonderful TV channel airing terrific Saturday morning & afternoon toons: Rescue Rangers, Darkwing, Goof Troop, TaleSpin, DuckTales, Bonkers, and the like. Actually, Hasbro's gone a lot further than any other toy company (such as Mattel or Bandai) in producing entertainment based upon its toys. It's pretty cool that they've had this much control over a television channel in the first place. Their whole "cartoon based on toy line" bag is very 80s, which is very good. I rarely think that an updated version of something is as good as the original, but in the case of MLP--and even Strawberry Shortcake, to some extent--I must say that I definitely much prefer the "revived" version. Don't even get me started on what ought have been done for Puppy in My Pocket or Polly Pocket, two of the greatest toy lines to have ever been conceived-- neither of which has a corresponding cartoon. At least, not one worth mentioning or that has anything to do with the toys. [http://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/04/even-candy-land-isnt- safe-from-sexy/275283/#comment-1595850570] But OH, the potential...! *swoons* Polly & PiMPS, Lisa Frank: The TV Series...Clifford the Big Red Dog & Krypto the Superdog redone for older audiences, & Arthur "All Grown Up"...I swear, I need to be put in charge of EVERYTHING in this world. I really, truly hope that the shift in control doesn't alter the channel, the in- production series, or their toys in any very noticeable or negative way; it's all great as it is. And the name--oh, why don't they keep the name?! It rocks-- short, sweet, simple, to-the-point, effective, fitting! What with bronies, parents, kids, and other adults who have good taste, I would have thought that The Hub was doing very well exactly as it is. I have to say...all of the Discovery channels have been majorly slipping. Nat Geo is now better than Discovery--though perhaps only marginally, because they're airing some reality garbage too. TLC hasn't been good since it had Trading Spaces, A Baby Story, and the preschool 'Ready Set Learn' lineup. Animal Planet used to be one of the absolute BEST channels; there was ALWAYS something good on, with that green elephant logo in the corner. The list of their fantastic programs is LOOONG. Slowly but surely, however, they've deteriorated even AP by ignoring all of those terrific shows in favor of such non-animal-related things as treehouses, wood-carving (this stuff's cool, but it belongs on Discovery or The Science Channel), Bigfoot-hunting (okay, cryptozoology has a place on AP, but a limited one), dirty jobs without animals involved, "ice lake rebels," and more freaking rednecks playing in the mud. Please, no more cameras pointed at ridiculous redneck families! The Beverly Hillbillies are all we need! Discovery Health & Fitness has some interesting, educational programming. I never watch OWN. Planet Green was very good--Destination America is a mixed bag. Some of the paranormal- and real estate-themed shows are nice and interesting to watch, but at times they get that totally-fake feeling that's now so pervasive in every network. Plus, the channel feels a little redundant...like, everything on it could just as well be on Discovery itself. American Heroes? Good historical documentation, but it also feels redundant. That's what the History Channel is for, and why bother having "H2?" A 24- hour network should be plenty for any given topic. Investigation Discovery is good--real-life stories of mystery, survival, and crime-solving. I could've believed the disparity in viewership back in early 2011 when The Hub was very new, but by now it's nothing short of appalling that it gets so much less viewership than Nickelodeon and the Disney Channel. Nickelodeon was the best channel for kids during the 90s and partly into the 2000s, but now I think the only good things on it are Spongebob, The Fairly Oddparents, and the occasional Kung Fu Panda episode. Even Jimmy Neutron, their third "last good show," seems to be barely on anymore. Thank goodness for TeenNick and NickToons, where you can sometimes see it--and the beautiful, glorious "90s Are All That" block every weeknight. And Disney? Let's just say I think the only reason that and Nick are still the most-watched "kid's channels" is that they've always been known as THE kid's channels. Cartoon Network is the only other one, and even that many parents may consider a little mature for children. So every school-age child and guardian automatically flips to Nick & Disney for them. Maybe they still somehow haven't discovered The Hub, or don't receive it. ABC Family IS pretty nice, but Hallmark is loads more important; ABC Fam's just invaluable for the Halloween & Christmas marathons, really. Anyway, all you need is one GOOD kid/family channel, which is what Nick used to be. Now, The Hub has become a quality blend of an oldschool Nick & Nick at Nite/TV Land-esque feeling, with its own unique flavor. In the interest of thoroughness and fairness, I should absolutely mention that more minor contributions to crucial TV viewing came from Kids' WB, Fox Kids, Ion/Qubo, and of course ABC's One Saturday Morning (ABC being, naturally, a Disney property.) Gotta catch 'em all, yo. At least preschool-age kids still have some good shows on Nick, Jr. and Sprout, but even Nick Jr. (temporarily known as Noggin when it became a 24- hour channel; loved that name as well) has certainly been degraded. Face, Moose A. Moose, and Zee were awesome hosts for very, very good shows...haven't seen any of them in a while now. The "Nick Mom" BS at night was heavily protested, yet continues--presumably because that kind of pointless "reality TV" garbage is so cheap to produce, that nearly every once- excellent channel is becoming overrun with it. (And the rest, almost hardly worth getting!) When The Hub was Discovery Kids, it was okay. My favorite shows on it were The Future is Wild and Chuck & Friends. Those are the only things I miss, but at least they were short-lived cartoons, and I'd seen every episode multiple times. LET'S LIST ALL THE GOOD TELEVISION PROGRAMS EVER PRODUCED: Angry Beavers CatDog Rugrats Recess Doug Hey Arnold Rocko's Modern Life Courage the Cowardly Dog Aaah! Real Monsters! KaBlam! Animaniacs Tiny Toon Adventures Histeria The Wild Thornberries Pokemon Captain Planet Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers TMNT Heathcliff & the Catillac Cats Garfield & Friends Gumby Adventures Jem & the Holograms Looney Tunes (Sylvester/Tweety Mysteries), Merrie Melodies All Hanna-Barbera/classic cartoons (Tom & Jerry, Pink Panther, Scooby-Doo, Josie & the Pussycats, Yogi Bear, Top Cat, Smurfs, Snorks, Flintstones, Jetsons, Casper, Huckleberry Hound, Auggie Doggie, Snagglepuss, etc.) Mighty Mouse Felix the Cat Little Lulu Underdog Other 80s cartoons & earlier (Smurfs, Snorks, Wacky Races, Rocky & Bullwinkle/Mr. Peabody & Sherman, etc.) Are You Afraid of the Dark? All That Kenan & Kel Clarissa Explains It All Salute Your Shorts Hey Dude Space Cases The Secret World of Alex Mack The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo The Adventures of Pete & Pete The Secret Life of Alan Strange Legends of the Hidden Temple Wild & Crazy Kids Double Dare Global Guts Figure It Out That's My Dog You Lie Like a Dog Zig & Zag: The Alpha Dog Challenge Johnny Bravo Krypto the Superdog Powerpuff Girls Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends Dexter's Laboratory Winnie the Pooh House of Mouse & classic Disney shorts DuckTales Darkwing Duck Chip & Dale's Rescue Rangers TaleSpin Goof Troop Bonkers Certain other cartoons (movie-based, Marsupilami, Tazmania, Quack Pack, etc.) Atomic Betty The Magic School Bus Fraggle Rock Muppet Show/Babies (also Looney Tunes Babies) Inspector Gadget Goosebumps The Haunting Hour The Baby-Sitters Club Tintin The Life & Times of Juniper Lee Jackie Chan Adventures Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? Spongebob Squarepants Jimmy Neutron The Fairly Oddparents Back at the Barnyard Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness My Gym Partner's a Monkey Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi Jem & the Holograms W.I.T.C.H.