Best Friends Whenever

Best Friends Whenever
Genre	Comedy
Created by	Jed Elinoff Scott Thomas
Starring	Landry Bender Lauren Taylor Gus Kamp Ricky Garcia Benjamin Cole Royer Matthew Lewis Royer
Theme music composer	Mitch Allan Lindy Robbins[1]
Opening theme	"Whenever" performed by Forever in Your Mind
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	15 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Scott Thomas Jed Elinoff Michael B. Kaplan
Producer(s)	Julie Tsutsui
Camera setup	multi-camera
Running time	23 minutes
Production company(s)	Diphthong Productions Entertainment Force It's a Laugh Productions
Distributor	Disney Channel
Release
Original network	Disney Channel
Picture format	720p (HDTV)
Original release	June 26, 2015 – present
External links
Website

Best Friends Whenever is an American multi-camera sitcom developed for Disney Channel, created by Jed Elinoff and Scott Thomas and executive produced by Jed Elinoff, Scott Thomas, and Michael B. Kaplan. The series stars Landry Bender as Cyd and Lauren Taylor as Shelby.

Plot

Set in Portland, Oregon, two girls named Cyd and Shelby are best friends living together while Cyd's parents are on an archaeological dig in Peru. After an accident in their neighbor Barry's science lab, they are given the ability to travel in time, provided they are thinking of the time they want to go and are together hugging or high fiving. When it comes to their trips to the future, they briefly find themselves strapped to tables in a futuristic lab, so now they must figure out what this means while having various misadventures along the way.

Characters

Main

The main characters. Matthew Royer as Chet, Gus Kamp as Barry, Landry Bender as Cyd, Lauren Taylor as Shelby, Ricky Garcia as Naldo and Benjamin Royer as Bret.

• Cyd Ripley (Landry Bender)^[1] is Shelby's best friend who is staying with Shelby's family while her parents are away in Peru. She owns a pet dog named Diesel.
• Shelby Marcus (Lauren Taylor)^[1] is Cyd's best friend.
• Barry Eisenberg (Gus Kamp)^[1] is an aspiring young scientist who lives in a Winnebago that is parked outside of Shelby's backyard that he also uses for his lab. One of his lasers deflecting off a cup of chemicals gave Cyd and Shelby the ability to travel through time.
• Naldo Montoya (Ricky Garcia)^[1] is Barry's best friend and lab assistant. Barry calls him "Renaldo".
• Bret Marcus (Benjamin Cole Royer)^[1] is Shelby's brother who is the twin brother of Chet.
• Chet Marcus (Matthew Lewis Royer)^[1] is Shelby's brother who is the twin brother of Bret.

Recurring

• Astrid (Mary Passeri) is the mother of Shelby, Bret, and Chet.
• Norm (Kevin Symons) is the father of Shelby, Bret, and Chet. He works as an accountant at GloboDigiDyne and later gets promoted to the company's Pelican Ball Room.
• Marci (Madison Hu) is a weird friend of Cyd and Shelby who is always relaxed.
• Ms. Nesbit (Jocelyn Ayanna) is a woman who was first seen as Cyd and Shelby's strict history teacher at West Portland High School. Due to Cyd and Shelby's time-traveling, Ms. Nesbit now works as a police officer.
• Mr. Doyle (Larry Joe Campbell) is a gossip-loving teacher at West Portland High School who teaches science and driver's ed.
• Janet Smythe (Nora Dunn) is an entrepreneur and the CEO of GloboDigiDyne who has invented many things in her life starting with wireless objects.

Episodes

• Benjamin Cole Royer and Matthew Lewis Royer are absent for six episodes each.

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date[2]	Prod. code[3][4][5]	U.S. viewers (millions)
1	"A Time to Travel"	Shelley Jensen	Jed Elinoff Scott Thomas	June 26, 2015	101	3.54[6]
Two best friends, Shelby (Lauren Taylor) and Cyd (Landry Bender), mess around in their classmate Barry's lab and end up getting powers to time travel. They use the ability by thinking about what time they want to go to and hugging or high fiving each other. The problem is that the two of them have to do it together. Guest stars: Madison Hu as Marci, Emery Kelly as Cameron
2	"A Time to Cheat"	Shelley Jensen	Jed Ellinoff Scott Thomas	July 12, 2015	102	2.02[7]
Shelby and Cyd try to avoid studying by time traveling to the day of the test because of the theory that if they time travel there they'll already know the stuff. Unfortunately, they don't know and try to go back, but get stuck in the time period without knowing what to do on the test. Guest star: Jocelyn Ayanna as Ms. Nesbit
3	"A Time to Say Thank You"	Shelley Jensen	Michael B. Kaplan	July 19, 2015	103	1.96[8]
Cyd tries to plan a thank you party for Shelby's family, but it doesn't go as planned after Shelby attempts to help. Guest stars: Mary Passeri as Astrid, Kevin Symons as Norm
4	"A Time to Jump and Jam"	Shelley Jensen	Debby Wolfe	July 26, 2015	104	2.01[9]
Shelby and Cyd's powers are broken when they try to travel back to Cyd's favorite junior high event, and they have to find out why. It turns out Shelby was holding them back from time traveling to the event because she wanted to hide an embarrassing secret she had been keeping from Cyd. Guest stars: Eryn Pablico as Jen, Jocelyn Ayanna as Ms. Nesbit
5	"A Time to Rob and Slam"	Shelley Jensen	Jim Hope	August 9, 2015	105	1.87[10]
Shelby's science teacher Mr. Doyle pairs her up with a student called The Rob. The Rob is a jerk, and Cyd and Shelby soon travel back to see why. Guest stars: Larry Joe Campbell as Mr. Doyle, Randy J. Goodwin as Vance Carroway, Madison Hu as Marci, Brendan Meyer as The Rob Absent: Benjamin Cole Royer as Bret, Matthew Lewis Royer as Chet
6	"The Butterscotch Effect"	Shelley Jensen	Steve Jarczak Shawn Thomas	August 16, 2015	106	1.67[11]
Cyd and Shelby go back in time to help Barry meet his idol. When they make it so Barry does that, they return to find that Barry has started a rock band because his idol ridiculed his theories, causing Cyd and Shelby to correct it; however, when they return to the present again, they find that Barry is an evil genius, and they go back to see that this is because they caused something else that made Barry and Naldo not meet. Guest stars: Stephen Full as Ray, Kevin Symons as Norm, Mary Passeri as Astrid, Ernie Kamp as Young Barry
7	"Shake Your Booty"	Victor Gonzalez	Jed Elinoff Scott Thomas	August 23, 2015	107	2.03[12]
Cyd and Shelby go back to the 1970s and get caught in a feud between punk and disco kids, but start forgetting each other when they start fitting in with the time period on each of the opposing sides. Guest stars: Ben Giroux as Mr. Canavan, Mollee Gray as Roller Girl Absent: Benjamin Cole Royer as Bret, Matthew Lewis Royer as Chet
8	"Back to the Future Lab" "Jump to the Future Lab"	Shelley Jensen	Michael B. Kaplan	September 20, 2015	108	2.09[13]
Shelby and Cyd discover a strange logo all throughout Barry's lab that has a tie with their brief future experiences. Upon identifying the logo, they infiltrate the company GloboDigiDyne, where Shelby's father supposedly works. Meanwhile, Bret and Chet think that Cyd and Shelby are detectives and follow them into GloboDigiDyne at the same time when the company's CEO, Janet Smythe, is testing the new robots. Special guest star: Nora Dunn as Janet Smythe Guest star: Kevin Symons as Norm
9	"Cyd and Shelby's Haunted Escape"	Victor Gonzalez	Jim Martin	October 4, 2015	109	2.18[14]
Barry creates a teleportation device, allowing Cyd and Shelby to travel to New York so they can attend the Halloween Spooktacular in New York. Special guest stars: Rowan Blanchard as Riley Matthews, Peyton Meyer as Lucas Friar Absent: Benjamin Cole Royer as Bret, Matthew Lewis Royer as Chet
10	"When Shelby Met Cyd"	Victor Gonzales	Jim Hope	October 25, 2015	110	1.76[15]
After Cyd and Shelby return from the trip to their kindergarten years, things start going wrong when they begin de-aging due to never having time traveled to when they were that young. Barry and Naldo must help them by getting them to drink a lot of milk. However, while it works on Shelby, it does not work on Cyd. It turns out that Cyd was scared of growing up. After a pep talk from Shelby, all ends well. Guest stars: Larry Joe Campbell as Mr. Doyle, Lauren Lindsey Donzis as 9yr old Cyd, Amiah Miller as 9yr old Shelby Absent: Benjamin Cole Royer as Bret, Matthew Lewis Royer as Chet
11	"Cyd and Shelby Strike Back"	Shannon Flynn Shelley Jensen	Steve Jarczak Shawn Thomas Jim Martin	November 27, 2015	111–112	1.72[16]
Cyd and Shelby discover that Janet Smythe is the one behind the future lab and seek to get rid of the lab and GloboDigiDyne. With Barry and Naldo's help, and an unauthorized biography of Janet, the girls find out Janet came up with the idea of wireless technology after being shocked by her desk lamp in 1991. When they plan to prevent Janet from coming up with GloboDigiDyne, the results will not be as they expected. Special guest star: Nora Dunn as Janet Smythe Guest stars: Kevin Symons as Norm, Madison Hu as Marci, Tamela D'Amico as Young Janet Absent: Benjamin Cole Royer as Bret, Matthew Lewis Royer as Chet
12	"The Girls of Christmas Past"	David Kendall	Kevin Engelking Sarah Jeanne Terry	December 6, 2015	114	1.33[17]
Cyd is feeling guilty on Christmas Eve that Shelby's gifts are always a lot better and jumps in bed with Shelby in order to jump back to a year earlier before she moved in. Cyd does her best to keep Shelby from finding out that they jumped while Shelby was sleeping; however, Shelby eventually finds out. Meanwhile, against Naldo's wishes, Barry performs an experiment and causes a war between Bret's group and Chet's group. However, he later realizes that what he did was wrong and apologizes. His apology is accepted, but he ends up being tied up in Christmas lights. Guest stars: Kevin Symons as Norm, Mary Passeri as Astrid
13	"A Time to Double Date"	Robbie Countryman	Debby Wolfe	February 21, 2016	113	1.64[18]
Using their time travel ability, Cyd and Shelby plan to go to different events on the same night. Though it ends up backfiring then both boys they were dating end up at the same event. Meanwhile, Barry's laser accidentally causes Bret and Chet to switch bodies. Guest stars: Mary Passeri as Astrid, JT Neal as Drake, Jay Jay Warren as Joaquin
14	"Jump to the '50s"	Shelley Jensen	Loni Steele Sosthand	March 20, 2016	115	1.61[19]
Shelby's adventurous Grandma Rita comes to visit where Astrid makes a claim that she had encountered time-travelers during her youth who set her up with Shelby's future gradfather Paul. This causes Cyd and Shelby to jump to 1958 to investigate. Meanwhile, Barry works to raise money when he parents plan to sell his RV. Special guest star: Marion Ross as Grandma Rita Guest stars: Mary Passeri as Astrid, Anna Grace Barlow as Rita, Garrett Westton as Paul, Casey Campbell as Vesper Absent: Benjamin Cole Royer as Bret, Matthew Lewis Royer as Chet
15	"Diesel Gets Lost in Time"	Shelley Jensen	Jim Hope	April 17, 2016	116	1.55[20]
Cyd and Shelby track down Diesel after he accidentally swallows a time travel tracker. Meanwhile, Barry and Naldo watch the phases of the moon with Marci. At the same time, Bret and Chet watch a horror movie that their father told them not to watch. Guest stars: Madison Hu as Marci, Kevin Symons as Norm, JT Neal as Drake, Justin Lopez as Griff
16	"Fight the Future: Part 1"[21]	TBA	TBA	May 8, 2016	117	TBD
17	"Fight the Future: Part 2"[22]	TBA	TBA	May 15, 2016	118	TBD
18	"Fight the Future: Part 3"[23]	TBA	TBA	May 22, 2016	119	TBD

Production

Best Friends Whenever was created by Jed Elinoff and Scott Thomas, who have also created Randy Cunningham: 9th Grade Ninja. On March 6, 2015, Disney ordered Best Friends Whenever with production starting the same month.^[24] The series was renewed for a second season by Disney Channel on February 29, 2016.^[25]

Broadcast

Best Friends Whenever premiered in the United States on June 26, 2015, directly after Teen Beach 2.^[26] The series airs on Disney Channel in Canada.^[27] It premiered on Disney Channel in Australia and New Zealand on October 16, 2015.^[28]

Critical reception

Brian Lowry, writing for Variety, thought the show's pilot episode was formulaic and did not take full advantages of the time travel premise. In particular, the show "appears more content to focus on the humdrum details of Shelby and Cyd’s frantic lives than, say, sending them back to meet Abraham Lincoln or ahead to a time of flying cars."^[29]

References

1. Lakeitcha, Thomas (June 16, 2015). "Best Friends Whenever: Fact Sheet" (Press release). Disney Channel. Retrieved April 27, 2016.
2. "Best Friends Whenever Episode Guide". Zap2it.
3. "Public Catalog". United States Copyright Office. Archived from the original on March 19, 2016.
4. "Best Friends Whenever Episode Listings". The Futon Critic.
5. "Best Friends Whenever Episodes". Disney ABC Press.
6. Kondolojy, Amanda (June 29, 2015). "Friday Cable Ratings: 'Teen Beach 2' & 'Alaskan Bush People' Top Night + 'Girl Meets World', 'Best Friends Whenever' & More". Zap2it. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
7. Bibel, Sara (July 14, 2015). "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Naked and Afraid XL' Wins Night, 'True Detective', 'Basketball Wives', 'Ballers', 'The Strain' & More". Zap2it. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
8. Metcalf, Mitch (July 21, 2015). "Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 7.19.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved July 21, 2015.
9. Metcalf, Mitch (July 28, 2015). "Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 7.26.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
10. Metcalf, Mitch (August 9, 2015). "Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 8.9.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
11. Metcalf, Mitch (August 16, 2015). "Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 8.16.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved August 18, 2015.
12. Metcalf, Mitch (August 23, 2015). "Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 8.23.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved August 25, 2015.
13. Metcalf, Mitch (September 22, 2015). "Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 9.20.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
14. Porter, Rick (October 6, 2015). "Sunday cable ratings: 'Fear the Walking Dead' finale leads night, plus 'The Strain' finale, 'Rick & Morty,' 'Kardashians'". Zap2it. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
15. Metcalf, Mitch (October 27, 2015). "Top 100 Sunday Cable Originals: 10.25.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
16. Metcalf, Mitch (November 27, 2015). "Top 100 Friday Cable Originals: 11.27.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved December 1, 2015.
17. Metcalf, Mitch (December 8, 2015). "Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals: 12.6.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved December 8, 2015.
18. Metcalf, Mitch (February 23, 2016). "Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals: 2.21.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
19. Metcalf, Mitch (March 22, 2016). "Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals: 3.20.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved March 22, 2016.
20. Metcalf, Mitch (April 19, 2016). "Top 150 Sunday Cable Originals: 4.17.2016". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
21. "Best Friends Whenever: Fight the Future: Part 1". Zap2it. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
22. "Best Friends Whenever: Fight the Future: Part 2". Zap2it. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
23. "Best Friends Whenever: Fight the Future: Part 3". Zap2it. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
24. Andreeva, Nellie (March 5, 2015). "Disney Channel Orders ‘Best Friends Whenever’ Series Starring Landry Bender". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 27, 2015.
25. Petski, Denise (February 29, 2016). "Bunk'd, Best Friends Whenever Renewed for Season Two on Disney Channel". Deadline. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
26. Wagmeister, Elizabeth (May 6, 2015). "Disney Sets June 26 Premieres for ‘Teen Beach 2’ & New Series ‘Best Friends Whenever’". Variety.
27. "Disney Channel September 2015 Programming Highlights" (Press release). Toronto: Corus® Entertainment Inc. September 8, 2015. Retrieved October 12, 2015.
28. "Best Friends Whenever". Foxtel. Archived from the original on October 11, 2015. Retrieved October 12, 2015.
29. Lowry, Brian (June 25, 2015). "Disney Channel's 'Best Friends Whenever". Variety. Retrieved July 8, 2015.

External links

• Official Website
• Best Friends Whenever at the Internet Movie Database