"OF MICE AND A TEEN GIRL" So The Football Drama and Triumph
Author's note: All characters mentioned in this work are owned by their respective companies.
FOREWORD
Mickey Mouse is the world's most recognized cartoon character. He helped build an entertainment empire for the late Walt Disney that now includes television, radio, and cable broadcasting, motion picture and television production, theme parks, recorded music, online content, the list goes on. And Mickey has had competition through the years that have tried to dethrone him as the "king" of cartoon characters: Bugs Bunny, Tom & Jerry, The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo, The Smurfs, The Simpsons, Spongebob Squarepants. Yet the Mouse has always reined supreme.
Mickey sprang to existence in the animated short, "Steamboat Willie" in 1928. In 2002, the empire that the "Mouse" built spawned another hot animated property. The television episode "Crush" debuted a character that unlike other Disney characters, wasn't a mouse, duck, dog, pig, or any other talking "funny animal", but a human teenaged girl, an ordinary girl that does rather amazing things. Her name was Kim Possible, and her show has become arguably, the most successful Disney animated franchise since "The Lion King" and "Toy Story".
The Disney All-Stars plays football in the Atlantic Conference of the United States Cartoon Football League. Established in 1983 in Orlando, Florida, the team has had many successes over the years, as well as some seasons that they'd rather forget about. Mickey Mouse is the coach, captain and quarterback of the Disney team; his "girlfriend" Minnie Mouse is one of his wide receivers. In 2005, after the lackadaisical play of his other wide receiver cost Disney a crucial game, Mickey decided to replace him with the teen girl wonder. Kimberly Ann Possible, already a straight-A student, a cheerleader for her high school, and a crime fighter who frequently has to "save the world", eagerly joined the team the following winter with high hopes and expectations. However Kim soon discovers she might not have been the hotshot she thought she was. Among her adversities; arch villains who are now her teammates that carry their personal vendettas onto the practice field. Grueling practices that leave her totally exhausted, then returning to her quarters only to face a screaming, raving tutor. The perception that her talents and abilities are being overlooked in favor of more established players. The self doubt and lack of confidence that resulted from these adversities often left Kim wondering if the house of cards she built for herself was about to collapse, destroying her young career and her spirit in the process. It was up to Mickey to help Kim find her self-esteem and rebuild her self-confidence in the face of adversity.
Join Kim as she takes us into the seldom-explored inner sanctum of USCFL football. She lets us witness first hand the grueling practices she has to endure. She introduces us to her newfound friends that are popularly known as the "Disney Princesses". She lets us join her during study table with her gruff, surly tutor. She shows us an incident where an innocent wink nearly turned into a violent physical altercation. She takes us into the locker room on game day and onto the playing field during the game itself. She lets us listen in on a heart-felt conversation she had with Mickey and one of her peers. And above all, she teaches us, through her own experiences how to be a winner in the face of adversity.
In 2006, Kim Possible's rookie season was truly "a season on the brink". It was a season where she was the brink of greatness, and on the brink of self-destruction. It was also a season of exuberance, self-pity, despair, and triumph. It was also, most importantly, a season of personal growth.
A famous college basketball coach once said, "A good player only makes himself good. A great player makes all those around him better." And the slogan for a Japanese luxury carmaker goes, "Dedicated to the pursuit of perfection." To Kim Possible, these are not empty phrases; she lives these ideas every day. She's not satisfied just to make herself just a good player; she inspires to be a great player. She pursues perfection. To this end, she works hard to make herself and the players around her better every day. The end result of what happens when a brain surgeon and a rocket scientist reproduce is fond of saying, "I've come to realize that the USCFL doesn't just teach football skills. We teach life skills here. These are ideas that every athlete should aspire to."
This is her "sitch".