Chick-fil-A Launches A Messy Streaming Service
Image Courtesy of Chick-fil-A
By Luis Zonenberg
Chick-fil-A officially launched their own clucking streaming service on November 18 through the App Store. Ever since its announcement in August, people have been wondering what this would look like and how it may affect their daily streaming consumption. The answer is finally here in the form of Chick-fil-A Play, which is way more disorganized than one might expect.
Upon surveying their limited service, I found very little original content, as most of it is regurgitated YouTube commercials and storybooks. Aside from the family-friendly games, the only original content would be one episode of an animated series and two episodes of a podcast. This lack of original content puts a real dent in their service and prompts me to wonder why they even needed to make one.
The animated series titled Legends of Evergreen Hills focuses on the adventures of a girl named Sam, who serves as an apprentice to the Time Keeper. In case this sounds familiar, it serves as a loose continuation of The Time Shop commercial Chick-fil-A first aired in 2021. While you can now stream that on the service, you can see what new adventures Sam embarks on in the show.
The series focuses on her helping others in order to nurture a magical forest that grows in the back of the time shop. The first episode, also released on YouTube with over two million views already, details her doing simple acts of kindness like finding a lost dog or helping someone plan his anniversary. Amidst this, she battles strangers stealing from the forest while her grandmother visits from out of town.
The animation is reminiscent of Disney Junior’s programs, which ironically pales in comparison to the stunning animation the commercial had three years prior. The show is clearly aimed at preschoolers, with writing on par with Netflix children’s programming. The first episode itself sets the stage for future episodes and could be a decent way for children to spend a few minutes watching TV.
The podcast titled, Hidden Island is loosely based on The Swiss Family Robinson. It focuses on the exploits of a family shipwrecked on an island in the Pacific Ocean. They learn how to survive without technology and all the comforts of the modern age. The first two episodes were posted, and ten are scheduled to be released altogether.
The story centers on Colin Robinson inviting his family to join him at a remote research station for Christmas. A powerful storm soon hits, and they encounter all sorts of strange creatures on the island. A mystery soon begins to emerge as they uncover that the island is not present on any map. The experience is like listening to the exploits of Journey 2: the Mysterious Island at Christmas.
Both forms of entertainment are fine for what they are, as they are clearly meant to warm the hearts of children and families of all ages. The service itself is annoying to navigate as it is divided into sections for reading, watching, listening and playing games. There is also a browse all section that shows most of their past content and little of their original content. Overall, this service marks a confusing albeit lackluster start to a new era for Chick-fil-A media.
