The second 20 year anniversary from Disney this year has arrived in the form of Miley Cyrus’ claim to fame, Hannah Montana. 

Unlike High School Musical, Disney went through the trouble in celebrating this milestone for Hannah Montana, mainly because Cyrus kept saying there was a Hannahversary in the works when there really wasn’t. But, Disney had to make it come true since Cyrus kept telling interviewers they had something. 

If you somehow don’t know what Hannah Montana is, it’s a show about a girl, Miley Stewart, who lives a double life. As Stewart, she’s a brunette that goes to middle/high school with her best friends Lily, played by Emily Osment, and Oliver, played by Mitchel Musso. But put on a blonde wig and she becomes Hannah Montana, teen pop sensation.

Throughout the course of the four season run, the show featured many guest stars including Dolly Parton, Cyrus’ show and real life godmother, Taylor Swift, the Jonas Brothers and Selena Gomez, just to name a few.

Speaking of Gomez, she made an appearance in the Hannah Montana special, one of the only people to show up that had a role in the original show. Gomez, who played Montana’s rival in season two, showed up for roughly 3 minutes. 

Chappel Roan, who was in some pretty hot water when the special was released due to a non-interaction with a fan, was also a guest in  the special… for some reason. Between her making an appearance and Alex Cooper being the host, the special was pretty rough.

Cyrus was the only reason the special wasn’t a failure. She explored the set, did a scene read through with her dad, told some behind the scenes stories and explored the Hannah Closet with her mom, Tish. 

However, the best part of the special was the beginning. It began with Cyrus driving to the studio lot with “Rockstar” playing and saying it’s good to be home. She went on to recreate the opening scene from the Hannah Montana Movie where she sings the title song, “Best of Both Worlds” during a concert. 

Cyrus then made it to the Stewart residence looking exactly how she left it all those years ago. Alex Cooper, for some reason the interviewer of the production, proceeded to walk in and ruin the whole vibe. If anything, Jason Earles, who played Jackson Stewart, should have been the host given the fact he has a Hannah Montana podcast. 

The main cast of the show didn’t make it into the special. Osment was missing, probably because of the show she’s working on, “Georgie and Mandy’s First Marriage” Musso was also missing, most likely because he’s been involved in some legal issues, primarily involving heavy drinking. 

Overall, as much as I hate that Cooper was the one interviewing Cyrus, an interview does work for this show because of how many interviews were used in the show’s run but the songs, of course, worked even better. 

At the end of the special, Cyrus walked out of the iconic house and recreated the iconic scene where she left the house for the last time at the start of season four. Cyrus then premiered a new song that was based on her younger self, her Stewart self, talking to Cyrus as she is now.

All in all, good on Cyrus for sticking to her roots and campaigning hard for a Hannahversary, unlike the High School Musical cast did this past January. Cyrus knew her fans wanted something and she delivered the best she could.

Categories: Arts & Entertainment