Liv and Maddie

               I am completely surprised that my desire for tame is not yet over.  Usually these streaks don’t last this long.  I can feel it starting to wane a bit, but there are some things I am still holding onto.  One of those things is the TV show Liv and Maddie.  I mentioned this show when I wrote about the Disney Channel, and since then my interest in it has grown.  Why, I’m not fully sure.  As I said, usually by now I would be back to my more dark things which is my norm.  There is just something about Liv and Maddie that keeps having me tune in.  While I figure out what that thing is, I will enjoy the show.

                Liv Rooney (Dove Cameron) has returned to her home in Stevens Point, WI after spending a few years in Hollywood starring in a TV show.  While away, her twin sister Maddie (also Dove Cameron) became a star basketball player, which is the complete opposite of Liv.  Her interests lie in acting and fashion, and nothing to do with sports.  This does not mean the two sisters are not close, though.  They are always there for each other, and while they have separate interests, they work to make sure nothing breaks them apart.

                Also in the Rooney family are two younger brothers.  Joey (Joey Bragg) is the older of the two.  He attends the same high school as Liv and Maddie and is into everything stereotypically geeky.  His siblings all roll their eyes at Joey over his interests, but the one most embarrassed by them is the youngest sibling, Parker (Tenzing Norgay Trainor).  The ironic thing is that a lot of the things Joey gets excited about, Parker likes as well.  So why he picks on Joey about them, I’m not sure.  Parker also spends a lot of time inventing things and coming up with schemes.  Sometimes these two things are successful and other times they are not.  When they are not, there is usually a big mess left behind that someone else is forced to clean up.            

                While Maddie, Joey, and Parker live their lives like normal, Liv continues to pursue her acting while also trying to acclimate herself to living in Wisconsin again.  She makes friends and deals with common teenage problems as she tries to figure out how to balance both her career and normal life.  Maddie, on the other hand centers most of her attention on basketball and her friends from the team.  She also has a boyfriend, Diggie (Ryan McCartan), who she really likes but can be extremely awkward around.  Their relationship is actually really sweet, because even though Maddie is awkward, it is clear Diggie adores her anyways.        

                To be honest, one of the biggest reasons I watch this show is because of the relationship between Maddie and Diggie.  I always enjoy their scenes together, especially as they become more comfortable around each other.  What’s going to happen with this couple I don’t yet know.  They are only in high school after all and I’m not sure which direction the writers are going to take their relationship.

                Joey is another character I really like to watch.  Yes, he can get a bit over the top.  However, I like the fact that he rarely ever lets anyone take him down for what he is interested in.  Even thought he gets teased about the things he likes to do, Joey stays true to himself.  The few times where he hasn’t, or where he has hidden what he was up to, in the end he came back to who he truly was, which I was really happy to see.        

                What I like about Liv is definitely that looks can be deceiving.  At first glance one might think she is superficial, but she really isn’t.  Liv is actually a very strong female with a good heart.  She wants people to be happy and she wants people to be happy with who they truly are.  Liv is always encouraging people, especially girls, to love themselves.  It does not matter what someone’s interests or what they look like, it is important to be proud of being you.           

                Parker is the only main character that I really have a problem with.  Most of the time he is picking on Joey or making a mess that someone else needs to clean up.  He also has a tendency to act superior because of his intelligence.  None of this sits well with me.  Although, I am happy to see that through the seasons this behavior has lessened.  When Parker is not behaving in these ways, he is actually a really great character.           

                Something I like to do while watching this show is try and figure out who is really on screen.  Since Liv and Maddie are played by the same person, stand-ins sometimes have to be used.  When Liv and Maddie are in a scene together I always try and figure out how it was filmed.  Is there a stand-in in the shot, or are both characters Dove Cameron and somehow the film was put together to create one shot?  I never know the answer for sure, but I do always have my suspicions.  No matter what the answer, I always have fun. 

                   Even though this show is only in its third season, I have to wonder how much longer it’s going to be on. Liv and Maddie are currently seniors in high school and Maddie is already expecting college acceptance letters. I can see how the writers could stretch the senior year through a fourth season, or have a year of college (there is a university in Stevens Point after all), but I don’t know if they will do that. I’ll just have to wait to find out. In the meantime I’ll enjoy the episodes that already exist. There are so many I haven’t seen and I am having a great time catching up.