The Don’t Bothers are now the Mighty Ducks and have been invited to a hockey summer camp to improve their skills at the game in the new season of “The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers.” In season one, the Don’t Bothers won the rights to the Mighty Ducks name in an underground hockey game after being forced to forfeit the state championship game due to too many injured players. Now they are attending a hockey summer camp the Ducks normally attend after the camp mistakenly invited them. It’s another case of the underdogs being told to “don’t bother” and a group of kids who refuse to give up.

Much like “D2: The Mighty Ducks” was a rehash of the first “The Mighty Ducks” film, this starts off like a rehash of the first season of “The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers.” They are kids who just want to have fun while someone who takes youth sports way too seriously is telling them they aren’t good enough. But there’s clear potential for something different. It was obvious throughout the first season the Ducks coach was a villain. Season two lets us know the lead counselor at the camp is going to have a similar mindset, but he also seems willing to adapt. Plus, we get a glimpse at his motivations during the first drill when everyone must score a goal before they can leave the ice. The final two are the least talented member of the Ducks and a kid we learn is actually the lead counselor’s son. It was predictable, but for a series that is trying to appeal to kids and families, it works.

I’m disappointed that Emilio Estevez didn’t return for season two. Gordon Bombay is the main thread that connected the first season of the series to the original films, and I would’ve liked to see him continue in that role. Estevez chalked it up to creative differences, and he was open about being one of the first people in Canada, where the first season was filmed, to contract Covid and dealing with Long Covid. Because of his health issues he didn’t want to relocate for filming, and I don’t blame him. As someone who also battled Long Covid and spent many nights over the course of seven to eight months coughing up a lung and sleeping on the couch to not bother the rest of my family, I know it’s a tough battle. I wish him well and hope he and the creators can come to an agreement to where he appears again on a recurring basis.

There’s also a pair of nice cameos at the beginning of the episode when we found out the Ice Palace where the Mighty Ducks are supposed to play hockey has been condemned. They mention Bombay calling in the best construction worker he knows which allows us to see Elden Ratliff reprise his role of Fulton Reed. That wasn’t all that surprising but finding out that his fellow enforcer from the second and third movies, Dean Portman, is now working construction with him was a nice surprise. The Bash Brothers were my favorite part of “D2” as a kid, so it’s nice to think they are still friends and working together.

This series looks like it’s going to be predictable, but given its target audience, that’s not really a bad thing. I like seeing the Ducks back on the ice, and I want to see how they win over the hockey counselor. I don’t know if I would sit down to watch this every week on my own, but I get to share this with my son who loved the first season, and that makes me excited for episode two.

Ranking: 3 stars

What did you think of the latest episode of “The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers?”

Jeremy Brown

Jeremy has been a big Disney fan since he was a kid growing up during the Disney Renaissance. One day he hopes to go to every Disney Park in the world.

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