NickSchedules Reviews

Wild & Crazy Kids (1990–2002)

A fun game show

[9/10 · 8 January 2024]

This is a game show revolving on kids participating in head-to-head physical challenges, such as take-offs on playground games, sports with unusual rules added, or messy games involving pies and slime (staying true to Nickelodeon's nature). It was hosted by two teen boys and a teen girl. The boys were Omar Gooding and Donnie Jeffcoat. The show had two separate female hosts. Annette Chavez was only in season 1, before being replaced by Jessica Gaynes for the next couple seasons. While not the most popular (or easily accessible, as you'll have watch all episodes on Dailymotion) game show for the network, I discovered the show a couple years back and I can say I had a lot of fun watching it. It's basically kids being kids. I bet people who didn't had a great childhood would have a blast watching this show. The challenges live up to the Wild and crazy in its title. The hosts had a great presentation. Though I personally preferred Annette over Jessica. I do not know why, but Annette's a tad snarkier than Jessica from what I remembered. I wonder if she left due to creative differences? I still like seasons 2 & 3 just fine, though. Unlike other game shows, it doesn't end with the winner being rewarded with money. It may be a game show, but it felt more about having fun than answering questions. The show may have ended in 1992, but what's impressive is the show continued in reruns for nearly 10 years. It remained on NickGAS for a while, but it briefly came back for a short lived revival in 2002, which only lasted 10 episodes.

Top Elf (2019–2020)

This doesn't get me into the holiday spirt, if you ask me

[5/10 · 1 February 2021]

So, this is yet another unscripted show of Nick I sat down and watch this show one night it was airing a new episode (it featured Peyton List). Basically, the show, like AMMF, plays out like a holiday version of America's Got Talent. Kids dress up as elves to compete against each other at the North Pole. Sort of like Ryan's Mystery Playdate, in the end, there will be a special celebrity guest star who will help out with the elves. Right off the bat, like AMMF, it is already a huge problem when you have yet another reality show for Nickelodeon, a kids network. I haven't even seen kids get interested in a show like this. So many reality shows have great shows, but have poor executions. This is gonna be another short review because I don't feel like talking about it, but what I find it interesting is Santa Claus is played none other than the guy that used to host Cartoon Network Fridays from 2003-2007 (Tommy Snider). All in all, I don't think the show is worth your time, unless you're really in the Christmas spirit. 4/10

America's Most Musical Family (2019–2020)

Nickelodeon's answer to America's Got Talent

[5/10 · 1 February 2021]

Nick wasn't kidding when they were attempting to do more unscripted content. And so we get shows that are rather unfitting for the network, like America's Most Musical Family. While the Substitute goes well with Nick's comedic style, AMMF is just your typical American Idol / America's Got Talent clone. No offense to Rob Bagshow, but when I think of reality competition shows, I think of the major networks, especially ABC. A show like AMMGF does not fit Nickelodeon whatsoever. Maybe MTV since Lord knows we need more musical themed shows on a so-called "music" channel. I only saw the first couple episodes before my household got rid of cable in favor of Disney Plus. While I did enjoyed some of the talents, I just wasn't impressed that this was on a kids network. Sure, there's a few adults joining in the kids to become the next big thing, but it proves that it should have been on another channel not named Nick. Let's go with the host and judges. Nick Lachey does an okay job as host, but the judges I am very neutral on. I am not the biggest Ciara fan, but she is okay presenting the singers. David Dobrik, on the other hand, looks like he doesn't want to be there. Then again, he is a Youtuber, and not an actual musician (correct me if I'm wrong, I haven't seen much of his works). Debbie Gibson did the best of them all due to her spunk towards the singers. Sorry, Nick, but this is one of your duds. I don't downright dislike it, but I just hate how unfitting it is on a kids network. Everyone can enjoy these type shows if they air on ABC or NBC. 5/10

Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? (2019)

A game show hosted by a wrestler

[9/10 · 1 February 2021]

Nick decided to remake a FOX game show, where the adult contestant compete to prove if they are smarter than fifth graders. Jeff Foxworthy hosted the previous version, but we get wrestler John Cena being the teacher of this version. After all, he had some sort of contract with Nickelodeon, such as lending his voice to a villain in a TMNT series, hosting the Kids Choice Awards twice in a row, and making various guest appearances on the network. I feel like this is weird that Nick is treating a well-known celebrity like royalty, but this won't be the last time. Anyways, Cena did a great job hosting, but you can tell they love to play his WWE theme song to remind everyone that he is a wrestler, and he is more active in acting these days. The contestants ranged from being smart to rather ignorant. There was one contestant that did managed to succeed without any wrong answers and got the biggest prize in Nickelodeon's history. However, there a few dumb contestants that managed to screw things up so much that one of them only won 500 dollars. Cena's chemistry with the contestants and the fifth graders could be adjusted at times, but other than that, it is a fun show. I wish it would continue for another season, but I guess John Cena is too busy to keep hosting. 9/10

The Substitute (2019–2021)

The first Nickelodeon show to premiere under Brian Robbins' presidency

[6/10 · 1 February 2021]

The first show ordered by the Robbins presidency to premiere is some reality show called the Substitute. As you can see, it is a hidden camera prank show where a random celebrity disguise themselves as a prankster and prank a school. As someone who is not too fond of reality tv shows, I actually find myself entertained with the show, even if it falls flat sometimes. However, there is a limit of how I watch this show. If the featured celebrity is someone I'm familiar with (and i actually like him or her), I will actually watch it. But if it features a celebrity I am not familiar with or I just can't stand him or her, I will simply skip it (such as the Shaun White and JoJo Siwa's episodes). Based from the episodes I have seen, the celebrities do a good job as disguises attempting to prank the entire classrooms. My favorite episode is John Cena while Lily Singh was my least favorite due to lack of comedic timing. On another note, I do like what they're producing the second season in a new style: have the school class be socially distancing while still getting pranked. And there's now a host involved as well. While it's not the type of show I would like to revisit, it's a good way to pass the time, especially when it's April Fools Day. 6/10

Game Shakers (2015–2019)

Schneider's Last Stand

[6/10 · 24 March 2020]

Dan's last sitcom to be produced for Nick...how does he end his trite ideas from here? Well, to start off while Henry Danger did not brought back any actors for their cast, Game Shakers was able to bring back a favorite from the 90s, Kel Mitchell himself. I was expecting to hate the show myself, but to my surprise I ended up liking it more than Henry Danger by a margin. Sure the concept is totally unoriginal but there one thing that keep it from being completely bad: Kel. Kel is an actor we all know and love back in the day so even in this show, his character is still as memorable as Ed from Good Burger. But like with most modern sitcoms for kids, you can see the usual flaws. First off, the acting once again is one of the weakest part of the show. Every kid actors just phone it in and their delivery are so flat compared to the likes of the past kid/teen actors from Schneider's pre-2012 shows. Then again the kids are much younger than the main actors from previous shows due to being preteen at the time the first season was airing. The characters themselves are also as memorable as a piece of paper. Ok, admittedly, the girls do have some personality (one a nerd and one a boy chaser), but the the two boys are just there. Triple G is the better boy while Hudson is just there, for comedic relief. And while he isn't too loud, all of his jokes are just unfunny. Yes he's the dumb blonde...a tired cliche. Again It's really pathetic that the best character in the show here is an adult. Double G saves the show from being worse than Henry Danger. while Kel does yells his lines too much it's funny and not in a contrived way. Just like with Henry Danger, Game Shakers first season was just mediocre. It was full with idiotic and predictable plots with abrupt ending and nothing else. While the show slowly improved it didn't get truly tolerable until season 3. Before you guy ask "but Felix what about the fact that Schneider is dragging it down?" While I won't deny that he gotten stale with his works, maybe it's his co-writers that make it tolerable rather than cliched and tiring. Now the references to his past shows are still there (there's even an episode about ICarly), but they aren't too in your face about when Victorious did it. The show did end in a cliffhanger and while that sucks to hear about that, it did marked an end of an era. After 25 good years, Dan Schneider was booted from Nickelodeon. Like I said before, he used to make such outstanding shows, but then he got too cocky and his works started to go downhill as a result. Scott Fellows May have been his single camera counterpart but he's not doing much lately. Either way I hope Nick's upcoming live action shows aren't as unbearable as pandering as Schneider's later shows. D

Henry Danger (2014–2020)

A mixed bag, but it's better than Sam and Cat

[5/10 · 24 March 2020]

As I'm writing this review, Henry Danger still have several episodes left to air. But since I am specifically making a journal for every single season produced by Dan Schneider I might as well just count the first 4 seasons. Season 5 was produced without him, and a separate will count out soon. In case you didn't know, Dan was fired from Nick after a long tenure. But we're not here to talk about that, we're here to review Henry Danger. Henry Danger is an interesting show: not only it's your usual Nick sitcom fare but it's a superhero comedy. Granted the Thundermans already came out before the show so it feels redundant. I guess Schneider wanted to make his own take of a superhero comedy so Henry Danger was born as a result. What we didn't know that it became the longest running Nick sitcom of all time. Let me just say this; while I still think Henry Danger is watered down compared to his post-2012 works it's still a massive improvement over Sam and Cat. Probably because the show is an original IP, and not based on existing IP. The show itself is average at best. The first season was probably the show at its worst because it's pacing was off and the humor were so obnoxious (something that carried over from Sam and Cat). Seasons 2-3 picked up the quality somehow even if it its not as outstanding as Schneider's pre-2012 works. By the time he was fired, the show got even better while the writing wasn't too juvenile or contrived. Well here's a very odd fact: the first season has this producer named Dana Olsen who was a co-producer for the show. This is the only Schneider Nick sitcom he got somehow to co-create with him. I really hope Olsen's involvement was the reason why the show was so uninspiring at first because of its predictable humor. You can say the show got better with his involvement but that's pushing it. I guess once Henry hit puberty the show started having more engaging plots even if they were still aren't on the same level as early Schneider works. However, like with his previous work, the endings are still as abrupt then ever. Let's get to the characters, shall we? Henry is an alright protagonist and he doesn't change much over the years. Ray is actually my favorite on the show believe it or not. Maybe it's because he's an adult, so I'm able to feel entertained by him most of the time, even if his superhero duties are questionable. Charlotte isn't the most interesting character in the show (she serves as the voice of reason), but she's from the worst thing ever. Jasper is also not interesting at least at first but he does starts to have a purpose by the time he found about Henry's secret. While every character are comedic, I consider Jasper to be the comic relief. Piper, on the other hand, just wow! I can put with Megan, I can put with Dana, I can put with Cat even at her worst, but Piper without a doubt THE worst character played a main cast member out of any Schneider shows. She doesn't ever shut up or stop yelling. Speaking of which, the acting is very unmemorable. Act that with Ella Anderson's forced shouts, Jace Norman and Sean Fox's rather wooden delivery (most likely ruined by poor direction), the kids don't feel the same passion that older live action shows had. Only Cooper Barnes is able to do well at performing and it's sad that an adult is the MVP of a kids show. All in all while I do think the show is a step up from Sam and Cat, I don't think Henry Danger is worth your time. Just skip it, even if you think the show got better. D-

Sam & Cat (2013–2014)

Easily Dan Schneider's lowest point, it didn't need to exist honestly

[3/10 · 24 March 2020]

So this is where Dan Schneider really became a bad writer and creator. He ran out of ideas to come up with so he went for two potential spin-offs. One of them featuring Sam and Cat and the other featuring Gibby. Only one got made it as a full series and let's just say that it's the most unnecessary show ever. Before you Arianators attack me, please keep in mind that this is my opinion and I have no ill of your idol as a person. I feel like this was only picked up because of two reasons: Both of the main actresses were born on the same day (just one year apart) which feel intentional. Second, due to her growing fame at the time (her first album was getting released), they only picked it because the producers thought Ariana Grande was hilarious enough to be one of the main characters. Now this is where I have a major problem with this show's existence: it is just bad and unbearable to watch. I never get so ranty but this is one of those rare exceptions. The first episode, while not bad, just had some plot holes. The titular characters literally met each other even though they interacted each other with the mediocre iParty with Victorious Special. And then guess what the show is going to be about? Babysitting: because that is one of the most mundane occupation to revolve a show on. This type of plot has been done to death on so many tv shows that you can't help but notice how predictable this is as a full series. Sam and Cat doesn't really do a great job as babysitters at all. They just endure the kids' behavior and doesn't bother taking action when they get fed up. And people wonder why I struggle taking care of younger people. Oh do I forgot to mention how unmemorable and annoying these characters are? Sam is surprisingly the most interesting main character, even though she's not as aggressive as before (and tries her best to put up with kids as much as possible instead of snapping back at them). But man, do I have to say something about Cat Valentine herself? Ever since season 3 of Victorious started, she just became this obnoxious character that just blurts out at everything. It doesn't help that Ariana made her voice even more higher pitched to reflect her deteriorating character. She doesn't even have a brain anymore in this show. She's the main reason why I won't revisit the show anytime soon (not even the best episode). And you know I can't take her singing career seriously. She will always be Cat in my ears and not herself. I forgot the boy name but he's just there. He doesn't provide much, but to take care of this manchild named Goomer. Goomer is an even more comic relief character than Cat Ever was and I just can't stand him. And there's the grandma character who name I also forgot. She's probably my second favorite main character but she's still not that interesting. Yeah, putting up with this show torture and I can see why people claim Victorious as the last decent sitcom for Nick.Almost every single plot you can find here are either idiotic or hackneyed. They make your brain cells hurt and they make you go "here we go again" at the cliche storm. That clip show episode didn't helped either and it was nonstop praising on the show. Who knew Schneider has an ego problem? And there's nothing worth reviewing the show without bringing up that controversy that lead to the show's well deserved cancellation. Because the executives loved it so much they ordered more episodes. But because of Ariana and Jennette's busy schedule, they got into arguments. Around the 2014 KCA's, Jennette didn't bother showing up (if I recall). By that point on, it was announced that the show was cancelled for good. Honestly I feel bad for McCurdy and this show killed her acting career and she's now doing something else at the moment. This show really did more harm than good, especially with production problems. I mean, Ariana is actually successful and I don't want to downplay her achievements, but her music just stinks. I'm so glad I never bothered checking this show out while it was still airing. And nothing value was lost...even though Teennick still airs reruns of it for some reason. F

iCarly (2007–2012)

iReview a Show With a Great Beginning and A Huge Bump in the Road During the Middle

[7/10 · 15 January 2020]

In 5...4...3...2...live from Felix in the Future Productions, I'm here to do the review of a highly praised show, but my opinions will be interesting. If you were watching Nickelodeon a lot throughout the late 2000s and early 2010s, you'd know that ICarly was their most favored sitcom. It was so inescapable that you couldn't went 30 minutes without seeing Miranda Cosgrove in some way (music videos or promotion for the show). True story, I couldn't get into the show because of that reason. Cool concept but Nick kept shoving it down my throats while I was busy watching SpongeBob and other animated shows at the time. I felt like it was never going to end, and so it did after 5 years with a record breaking 109 episodes (including specials) something that no other Nick sitcom achieved until 2019. The show got so mainstream that I considered it the Simpsons of Schneider's Bakery (clever comedy, decent characters, and forced celebrity guests). The longer it went on, the more they became gimmicky. It was already a gimmicky show to begin with since it does has the "Famous teen sensation" formula that Disney loved abusing at the time. However it's different this time in that it was mostly about the Internet and not a singing star. People claimed Carly was a bland character, but honestly she's not that bad (at least early seasons, anyway). Miranda Cosgrove still does a decent job even if the directing has gotten more louder forcing her to shout her lines when possible compared to her snarky and mischievous character from Drake and Josh. Sam is a love or hate character. Personally I'm neutral to her but yeah her abusive behavior to Freddie was unwanted (don't get me started with that one gimmick I'll tackle later in the review). Freddie is the Squidward of the show meaning that he's always suffering abuse and misfortune from everyone he interact with. And let's face it, while we enjoyed most of the ICarly Sketches, we mostly watched just for Spencer alone. Jerry Trainor will always delivery his lines flawlessly no matter what character he's playing. I don't recalled a Spencer plot while the other main characters had at least one bad episode under their belts. Oh and Gibby somehow became the main character in season 4 and became part of the ICarly cast, because promoted fanboy or something. He used to take off his shirt all the time but then he matured and usually utter his name in a surfer dude accent. If I'm being honest, once I finally sat down and watch the entire show, I wasn't expecting much but it was better than I thought. Of course, it's not consistent in quality because I got a lot of pros and cons to talk about especially the cons. Let get the positives out of the way first: the show's humor and storytelling g was at its peak in season 1 and parts of season 2. Not all of them were winners, but this is what I defined ICarly: a show with teenagers making a webshow and hijack ensures. I also think the character development were at its best in this era because they were more tolerable and weren't spoiled brats because the plots demand it. It also had a great finale and while I hate to say that so soon, it's true. The middle seasons were a step down (at least the last season was half-good). This is not the ICarly everyone knows and loves. The ICarly everyone knows from late 2010-early 2012 become a pandering piece of garbage because Nick and Dan got too cocky with the show's success. I can't blame myself for avoiding the show like the plague at the time because we wouldn't even had Fred Figglehorn on Nickelodeon or One Direction widely known if it wasn't for ICarly. The Victorious crossover was praised by most fans, but I'm just going to confess right now: I didn't cared for it. While it's far from the worst crossover ever, I just thought it was overhyped to the extreme. The character interactions between the ICarly and Victorious was nonexistence and it took forever for both shows to collide. At least Kenan Thompson and the theme song mashup bumped it up to a 5/10 rather than a 3/10. But let's bring the elephant in the room, which is the whole stupid Creddie vs Seddie love triangle plot that plagued the show during 2011. This is when I feel like Dan Schneider started to pander to the fans (this includes references to his older shows because he's too egotistical to reference other TV shows) and his works started to go downhill as a result. If you're a person that wants to be entertained but have no time for these love stories, I suggest you to skip season 5 altogether. Trust me it's not worth your time. Shipping wars like this are the reason why people can't have nice things. It's a shame to see this show last like 100 episodes and see it go downhill because of the gimmicks they kept churning out to please the fan base. Overall, stick to seasons 1-3 and 6, and just avoid seasons 4-5 altogether if you don't want to fight with the fandom over ships.

Zoey 101 (2005–2008)

A Schneider show with a different format/feel

[8/10 · 15 January 2020]

Ah, this show was something else, even for Nickelodeon and Dan Schneider standards. For starters, it was done in a single camera style meaning that there's no laugh track involved. And since it was mostly set at an educational place, it was shot on location at an university in Malibu. This is the most unique Schneider show ever because of this. And the show has a cult following mostly due to starring Britney Spears' sister Jamie who was a cast member for the 2000s revival of All That. If you want to watch a comedy-drama without having to endure laugh tracks, Zoey 101 is something I would recommend. Especially if you wanted to go to a place like PCA. Like Ned's Declassified, majority of the show conflict happens at the campus. While it's not as consistently well written as Ned's, Zoey 101 does a good job with characters interaction mans storytelling (especially in the middle seasons). It also got a memorable cast. While not the greatest character, Zoey is alright protagonist and while she can come off as a live action and female version of Arnold Shortman, I've seen worse main characters. Her brother, Dustin, however, is the least memorable character of the show because of his limited screentime (he's the youngest, but I don't know if his actor was busy during the episodes he was absent in or the lack of budget). I'm not the biggest fan of Chase nor James since they exist for ship bait, but they're likable at least. Can't say the same for Logan however since most of the conflicts are usually caused by him and it's always satisfying to see him suffer, even if karma goes too far sometimes. Michael is the funniest character in the show. It helps that his actor is actually the brother of the boy who played Corey Baxter. Dana is actually my least favorite main female character because she came off as arrogant and didn't had other traits besides being the tough girl. Her replacement Lola is much better and have a better chemistry with the characters. Being played by Victoria Justice made it better. Nicole wasn't bad but she can be a nuisance at times and doesn't add up to the plot (doesn't help her actress was fired after season 2). Quinn is actually my favorite female character in the show. She developed a lot and her character from season 1 to season 4 is a far cry from the weird nerd stereotypical character. (Though I gotta say that one episode just didn't do for it for its predictable and forced setup when it comes to her dating game) In my opinion, the show started off rather weak because it was Schneider's first attempt of making it a drama (and trying his best to make sure the humor isn't too much like Amanda and Drake and Josh). Like I said, Dana didn't do the first season any favors because I just outright didn't liked her. The plots were also cliched and they these kind of stories you'll see in a million tv shows (such as two friends fighting, boy getting bullied, School play, etc). I only really enjoyed a few of episodes, and that's about it. Season 2 picks up the quality even if there were a few predictable contenders (Back to PCA, Election, and Girls Will Be Boys). But the good episodes are really exciting to watch and it's what makes this show interesting with character development (Time Capsule, Robot Wars, Haunted House, Quinn's Alpaca, and Spring BreakUp). Season 3 continues the consistent quality and it's without a doubt my favorite season of the show. There's only a few weak spots, but the writing this season is so strong and the characters are probably at their best as well. This season is home to Curse of PCA, my favorite episode of the entire show. Unfortunately, season 4 is a step down because of a few things. Chase is reduced to guest star role because he accidentally went to England without knowing that Zoey came back to PCA. So in the meantime we get a blander replacement of him played by Austin Butler. The first few episodes were still good, but the absence of Chase made it not as interesting as before. But then there's a few episodes in the second half where the writers didn't know what to know with their characters so they just randomly make these little subplots to give them clout. Yes I'm talking about a plot twist of an unlikely couple, but I'll spoil the surprise if I mention it. Rollercoaster was the best episode in the second half due to how relatable it was, and sadly the next episode which is the finale, wasn't as impactful as Drake and Josh's or ICarly's finales. All in all, while Zoey 101 was a nice break from the laugh track filled show, I still recommend it even if the quality is inconsistent throughout its 3 years run.

Drake & Josh (2004–2007)

This was Dan Schneider at his finest

[9/10 · 15 January 2020]

In the early 2000s, The Amanda Show had these two guys as supporting cast members. In 2003, their own sitcom was ordered by Nickelodeon. From the producer of the aforementioned show brings you a sitcom about two stepbrothers whom parents get married. Many people claim this to be among of Schneider's greatest work of all time and I can see why. Drake Bell and Josh Peck have such amazing chemistry together. They both delivery their lines so well that I consider them one of the most iconic teen actors ever. This was also the first Nickelodeon project with Miranda Cosgrove. Here she played one of the most mischievous bratty girl you can ever think of. Megan really does drag the show down whenever she gets away with her actions, but her one liners make up for it. Besides, I've seen worst and more annoying kids characters than her. Their parents are alright characters but they hardly have any impact to the plots. They get even less screentime as the show goes on. The early episodes were so different for that matter. The parents appear more and Megan wasn't the main conflict for most episodes. It wasn't until sometimes around season 3 where Josh become the voice of reason as well as losing a lot of weighr and Drake become the idiot character (and Megan just got more brattier and the parents more neglectful). But it still kept the charm and the humor that we all know and love. I enjoyed all of the TV Movies for the character development, great humor, and interesting story. They're arguably one of the show's finest hours. All in al, the second best Schneider show and easily his best situational comedy. After this, no subsequent works will top this.

The Amanda Show (1999–2002)

One of the funniest live-action Nickelodeon shows of all time

[10/10 · 15 January 2020]

While Dan (Schneider) produced All That, the first official show he created for Nick was the Amanda Show which first aired on October 16, 1999. It was a sketch show starting the then 13 year old Amanda Bynes. This was my one of my favorite live action shows growing up (and this was back when I could watch whatever show was on instead of limiting myself with the same shows), and watching clips from the show will prove my point. Let's talk about the best thing of the show. Amanda Bynes herself is one of the funniest actresses in show business. Every single sketch she's in are just priceless to watch and she never fails to disappoint me. After all she did came from All That and was a cast member between seasons 3-6 and she really deserved her own show the same way Kenan and Kel did. I really don't wanna talk about her life nowadays because it's just so sad seeing her suffer the same path as some Disney Channel stars has suffered. All I hope is for her to act again once she's normal. I want to entertained by her again. On another note, the first season had two cast members that we'll never seen again. One of them is a guy named John Kassir who actually voiced Raymundo on Rocket Power. The other is a black girl named Raquel Lee, and they didn't gave her that much memorable moments (she was overshadowed by Amanda). Also worth noting that if it wasn't for this show, we wouldn't even have Drake and Josh. Yes as you can see, 3 out of 5 cast members were part of the Amanda Show: the mom (Nancy Sullivan) and the boys themselves (Drake Bell and Josh Peck). They were obviously a lot younger back then and they both had high pitched voice. So all in all, we wouldn't have all of these Schneider produced shows if it wasn't for All That and the Amanda Show. Definitely worth a watch if you want to be entertained. Dan Schneider's magnum opus imo.