Why Disney Plus is my favorite streaming service

The number of streaming services that my husband and I are subscribed to is approaching the double digits (crazy). Off the top of my head, we have: Netflix, Hulu, YouTube TV, HBO Now, Amazon Prime Video, DC Universe, Apple TV+, and Disney+. This is just streaming video services alone — but at least we have all the bases covered (I think).

Still, despite the outrageous number of video streaming services that we currently pay for, I have been getting the most use out of my Disney+ sub, which I have paid for three years in advance when they had the D23 member deal last August.

It may seem a bit silly, but let me explain why Disney+ is one of the must-have streaming services that I don't think I could give up.

The sense of nostalgia hits hard

Like many of you, I grew up with Disney when I was younger. The first Disney movie I saw as a child was The Little Mermaid, and I developed a love for that movie and my favorite princess was (and still is) Ariel. I had a lot of toys and various The Little Mermaid things that my mom bought me, including one of those TIGER Electronics LCD Handheld games.

Even though The Little Mermaid was my first Disney movie, it didn't stop there. I remember watching Beauty and the Beast and falling in love with that one too (it's my second favorite), and Aladdin was always interesting. As I grew up, I always had and took the opportunity to go watch a Disney movie with my older siblings, and I even had a bunch of VHS tapes of Disney movies.

Eventually, at some point, all of those VHS tapes were donated, along with the toys and other things that I considered myself "too old for." I still had an interest in Disney, but it wasn't the same as when I was younger, as I was beginning to get into other things, like anime, in my high school days. Disney was still a part of my life, just a smaller part.

Things changed drastically once I met my husband, though. As we began dating, one of our dates was going to Disneyland, and before him, it was rare that I went (it's hella expensive). I soon found out that his entire family is either an Annual Passholder or works at the park, so Disney has always been a big part of his family's history. This reignited my love for Disney, and I began wanting to rewatch my favorite movies, catch up on things I never actually saw, and everything in between. But there was one thing standing in the way.

Remember Disney's "vault?" Basically, they would release classic animated movies for a limited release on VHS or DVD, and then they would return to the vault, for an indefinite amount of time — who knew when a classic was going to get released again for those who missed the previous version?

Because of this dumb system, I missed out on getting physical DVD or Blu-ray copies of a lot of my favorite movies, and it was also impossible to find them streaming on other platforms like Netflix at the time. And even though my husband had a lot of DVDs and Blu-rays, it wasn't everything. So whenever I had the itch to watch a classic Disney film (live or animated), the struggle was real.

So when I the news broke that Disney was going to have their own streaming service, I was ecstatic, like you wouldn't believe. All (well, mostly) Disney classics available to stream in one place, along with my favorite Star Wars and Marvel titles? It's literally what I've been dreaming of for years, and it was finally coming to fruition. I was signing up for this as soon as I could, and I did. Honestly, I couldn't be happier.

Ever since Disney+ came out, I've been watching my favorite childhood classics, like The Little Mermaid (though I bought the 30th anniversary Blu-ray last year), and catching up on everything else that I hadn't seen as I was growing up, like Bambi, Lady and the Tramp, and Sleeping Beauty (yes, yes, I know, shame on me).

With Disney+, I'm able to relive my happy childhood memories with those animated classics, and sometimes, that's all you need when the rest of the world can be a bit depressing.

The backlog of content is huge

Going back on the topic of Disney classics, there were a lot of movies or series that I didn't see when they originally came out. Yes, I know, shame on me. But with Disney+, there's literally no reason for me to say, "Oh, I haven't seen that yet." Instead, I can now say, "Oh, I haven't seen that yet, but I'll check it out on Disney+ ASAP."

For the most part, the Disney catalog can be found on Disney+ (with a few notable exceptions, like Song of the South), along with everything Star Wars, Marvel, National Geographic, and even Fox. A lot of the stuff that I have yet to see is on Disney+, and I've slowly but surely been catching up on things that I've missed out on earlier in my life.

Even though I love Star Wars, I never watched the animated series before, just the core movies. So lately I've been hooked on Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and it's perfect timing since the seventh and final season comes out next month. If it weren't for Disney+, I would not have been able to catch up with this amazing series.

And even if I don't feel like checking off another Disney classic from my list, or need a break from The Clone Wars, there is still a ton of content to enjoy on Disney+. In fact, I remember feeling slightly overwhelmed when the service first launched, because I was gaping at the huge library of content that was suddenly available at my fingertips — where do I even start?

The original content is just so good, and more on the way!

Since Disney+ launched, my husband and I have already finished two of the Disney+ original series: The Mandalorian (like everyone else, I'm sure) and The Imagineering Story.

With The Mandalorian, it's an incredible addition to the Star Wars universe and story, and just highlights that there is so much more to Star Wars besides the Skywalkers. And The Imagineering Story was magical and had more of a meaning to my husband and I since we frequent Disneyland and aspire to go to all of the Disney parks someday. It gave us a behind-the-scenes look at how Disneyland and the other parks, came to be, giving us even more appreciation for what we have each time we visit.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg. The Mandalorian has already been renewed for a second season, and there's a ton of Marvel shows that I'm looking forward to, like Loki.

Even though one of my biggest reasons for having Disney+ is to catch up on the old stuff, I am eager and excited for all of the upcoming original content too. I have another couple of years of Disney+ to get through before renewing, so I can't wait to check out more of the original offerings.

Are you enjoying Disney+?

Disney+ launched with much fanfare, and I believe that it's living up to it. Out of all of the streaming video services that we currently have, Disney+ is the one I watch the most, and I don't see that changing any time soon. After all, I still have a lot to catch up with!

Are you still subscribed to Disney+? What's your reasoning for keeping or dropping the service? Drop a line in the comments below!