Disney has been a formidable player in pop culture for decades, of course. But in the last several years, the Mouse House has upped its already solid game to dynasty status when it comes to tweens. Between the Hannah Montana and High School Musical franchises, Disney now owns the tween demographic the way Michael Jordan once owned the air between him and the hoop.

But that isn't stopping Disney Channel from reloading again with Wizards of Waverly Place.

Magical Manipulations
Wizards of Waverly Place feels like one part Hannah Montana, one part Family Ties and one part Sabrina, the Teenage Witch. From the outside, the Russo family looks normal. Jerry and Theresa Russo live in an apartment above their Manhattan sandwich restaurant, along with their three preternaturally precocious children, Justin (a 10th grader), Alex (in 9th grade) and Max (a grade-schooler).

Just like Miss Montana, they share a secret: All three children brandish magical power. So when they're not making hoagies or negotiating perilous teen romance, they're learning from their father how to rewind time for a do-over, how to teleport, levitate, etc.

Alex (played to Disney perfection by Selena Gomez) is the star of the show. Ever the rebellious one, this headstrong middle child won't take no for an answer if there's a way she can get what she wants. And there always is. Magic mixed with manipulation and mild deception is her favorite strategy—such as when she duplicates herself to go to a big clothes sale and be present at magic class.

Fortunately, Dad is just as eager to teach his magical brood discipline as he is magic. That means not using magic to accomplish tasks the kids can accomplish without it (such as straightening up the living room). His reason? Eventually, only one of the three children will end up being the family magician, while the other two will lose their powers (which is what happened to their now non-magical father). Presumably, Dad wants all three to learn how to function apart from their wizarding ways, knowing that those skills are only temporary for two-thirds of his offspring.

Thus, breaking rules—Alex's forte—generally results in getting grounded. And most episodes deal positively with subjects such as lying, cheating, seeking revenge, taking responsibility and putting other family members' needs first.

Magically Marred Mirth
But Wizards also concocts an unsavory potion using some ingredients families aren't used to seeing and hearing very often in Disney's usually silly-minded shows. Beyond the belching, flatulence and animal droppings, Justin prepares for his first kiss by frantically making out with a soccer ball ... then a dirty floor mop. Yuck. Elsewhere, Alex accidentally animates a giant zit on Justin's face. It then takes on a Monty Python-like life of its own and makes suggestive comments to girls at the prom ("I loves to watch you shake that junk!").

And even though Dad does value discipline, sometimes his own immaturity undermines his character-building lessons—such as when he wants to deceive his wife and needs Alex's magical help, never mind that he's just disciplined her for the same thing. Speaking of Mrs. Russo, her always-on-display cleavage is impossible to miss. Likewise, girls' hemlines seem to be creeping up when compared to Lizzie McGuire and That's So Raven.

As for the magic, we don't hear much (if anything) about the source of this power. This family is magical because, well, this family is magical. The show obviously borrows from Harry Potter, but like Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and Bewitched before it, self-awareness and mild mockery of magic take the fore here. A special double episode, for example, finds Justin and Alex taking summer classes at Wizard Tech, where they have to wear huge Potter-esque glasses as a goofy wink-wink, nudge-nudge poke at that other teen magician and his friends.

Still, even if clear links to the occult are thus far absent, that doesn't mean Wizards is incapable of inspiring a deeper interest in magic. MTV News recently profiled witchcraft in a detailed online article and commented that many of those drawn to it first became intrigued by various entertainment influences. "So how does one become a witch?" asked writer Alex Mar. Her answer? "A surprising number of young witches MTV spoke with ... said that they became curious about their faith through misguiding pop-culture fare like the camp Neve Campbell vehicle The Craft and the Harry Potter series. (Guess a few conservative Christian groups were right about that one.)" Those are words well worth remembering when magical storylines seem innocuous.

Also worth mentioning is the fact that Disney eagerly promotes multiple programs with occult themes. For example, April 6-12 of this year was "Halloween in April" week, and it featured Twitches, Halloweentown and The Little Vampire.

A summary: While Wizards of Waverly Place may be Disney's way of reloading its roster for another championship run, the channel's latest contender isn't sinking quite as many baskets as previous series have.

And a postscript: In the wake of Miley Cyrus' controversial Vanity Fair photos, Disney is apparently putting more stock in Wizards' star Selena Gomez than ever before. An unnamed source quoted by E! Online says Disney is eager to promote Gomez: "Selena sings and acts and is really young. She's going to be the next Miley Cyrus. [Disney executives] really want this. ... The studio has high hopes for this." Those hopes seem to be well-founded. Even before anyone saw Miley's immodest images, Wizards of Waverly Place had begun replacing Hannah Montana as Disney Channel's highest-rated show.