Dad Advice For Disney Sidekicks with a Sidecar

A sour Sidecar, a delayed Disney stop, and a microphone—sometimes that’s all it takes to spark the most honest conversation about the characters who keep the story moving. We poured a not-quite-right cocktail and turned it into a theme: sidekicks deserve real advice, not just punchlines. From Genie’s bottled brilliance to Sebastian’s steam risk, we dish out dad-level guidance with a mix of warmth, wit, and just enough mischief to keep it fun.

We walk through a lineup of beloved Disney sidekicks and ask what they actually need to hear. Genie gets a reminder about freedom and self-care. Mushu learns that swagger isn’t rank. Kronk discovers how to build a life around empathy and craft instead of bad bosses. LeFou faces the truth about loyalty without reciprocity. Timon and Pumbaa’s carefree philosophy gets a reality check, while Charlotte LaBouff receives a nudge toward pairing big dreams with a plan. Hei Hei becomes a lesson in chaos navigation, Zazu proves that rules without play lose the room, and Iago raises the ethics of side-switching. Phil from Hercules brings mentor accountability into focus, Baymax teaches boundary-setting for caregivers, Vanellope reframes glitches as grit, and Pain and Panic remind us that competence counts. We land with Sebastian—the line between composer and crossing guard—where duty meets letting go.

Along the way, we share a quick Bartesian sidebar, some questionable puns, and a surprising amount of practical takeaways: choose better leaders, protect your batteries, learn the map, and turn jokes into growth. If you love Disney deep cuts, character psychology, and cocktail chatter, pull up a chair and sip with us. Enjoyed the ride? Follow the show, share it with a Disney-loving friend, and leave a review to tell us which sidekick we should “advise” next. Cheers.

Chapters

• 1:18 Sidecar Setup And Disney Bar Talk
• 2:54 Recipe Remix And ChatGPT Misstep
• 4:14 Why Sidekicks And How We Chose Them
• 4:36 Genie: Wishes, Lamps, And Boundaries
• 5:27 Mushu: Fire, Rank, And Respect
• 6:07 Kronk: Angels, Spinach Puffs, And Career Paths
• 6:39 LeFou: Friendship, Labor, And Gaston
• 7:39 Timon And Pumbaa: Hakuna Matata Reality Check
• 8:59 Charlotte LaBouff: Romance Vs. Reality
• 10:14 Hei Hei: Chaos Navigation
• 11:34 Zazu: Procedures And Play
• 12:59 Iago: Loyalty And Side Switching
• 14:24 Phil: Training Heroes And Taking Blame
• 15:09 Baymax: Batteries, Boundaries, And Bumps
• 15:59 Vanellope: Glitches, Grit, And Crowns
• 17:19 Bartesian Sidebar: Keurig For Cocktails
• 19:49 Pain And Panic: Minions And Mistakes
• 20:54 Sebastian: Hot Water And Undersea Careers
• 21:59 Wrap Up And Listener Feedback

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:39

Hello and welcome to Cheers to Ears. Today we're sipping on a sidecar from Abracadab Bar at Disney's boardwalk, Aaron. A place we still haven't been.

SPEAKER_01: 0:48

No.

SPEAKER_00: 0:49

I know. Bummer.

SPEAKER_01: 0:50

I was gonna go on my last trip, but they changed my flight and I got in three and a half hours late, and I didn't have time to go to the boardwalk. I did not have time to go to Abercadabar.

SPEAKER_00: 1:01

And when we were there, they opened later than we were there. So yes, we just miss out on this place every time. It's not in the cards yet for us to go there. But this next sidecar is made with EJ VS brandy, Quantraux liqueur, house made sweet and sour, and it sells for$14.50. And tell us how we didn't make it like that, Aaron.

SPEAKER_01: 1:21

That is Disney cheap. I'll say that first. Okay. So we did the EJ VS brandy. We did one shot of that. We did three quarters of an ounce. So instead of the sweet and sour, I I asked ChatGPT to pull up a recipe. And it just did lemon juice. So instead of sweet and sour, we did lemon juice. And then we did three quarters of an ounce, or which is half a shot of cointreau. So shot of brandy, shot half shot of cointreau, and a half shot of lemon juice, which made it a little more tart. It is tart. I just took a drink that's pretty tart.

SPEAKER_00: 1:57

But maybe I'm thinking of that right now.

SPEAKER_01: 1:58

Now, and then it's got the sugar rim on the glass, which helps if you get a little bit of that sugar, it helps kind of soften that. It does make it the sweet and sour. But yeah, that was like the biggest mistake that I didn't go back to the original recipe. I just went ahead and trusted Chad GPT. And Chat GPT is they can mess things up. Right. Which is why you never just go with ChatGPT. You always double check your work with that. So anyway, not bad. Now I kind of want to try another one made correctly. Although I gotta say, probably a sidecar isn't gonna be my drink of choice when I go out for something to drink.

SPEAKER_00: 2:40

Yeah, it's not bad. I don't think that I would uh I don't know how to order anyway, a sidecar. Yeah, I don't think brandy. I'm not a big I don't order drinks with brandy in it too often. Yeah, and uh and that that shows us we need to have multiple sources for our drinks. Yeah. There's a few good Disney sites that people recreate drinks. Anyway, we've made a sidecar because today we're talking about Disney sidekicks. Yes, dad advice to Disney sidekicks. This is one of Aaron's favorite subjects. Yeah. Because the dad advice series.

SPEAKER_01: 3:10

The series, part three in our series. We've done princesses, villains, now sidekicks. Someday we'll do heroes, I believe. But sidekicks, which was difficult because they aren't necessarily sidekicks. Some of them might be like main characters. Yeah. They're not playing second fiddle. Some of them obviously are like LeFu. He's a sidekick.

SPEAKER_00: 3:33

Yeah, we did this differently than we usually do, because you came up with a list of sidekicks.

SPEAKER_01: 3:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 3:37

And we both did the same exact sidekicks. Well, we did that with we did? Yeah. Oh, I forget all of our things. What was it? No, this is your thing. You tell them what you and I roll with it. Villains, yes. So I came up with punny things like you did the first time. Yeah. And uh let's roll. You want to start off with Jeannie?

SPEAKER_01: 3:55

We started off with Jeannie from a lad. Have at it. So if you're ever feeling blue, give your outsides a little polish and put a couple good wishes into the universe. That is my advice to Genie. That's a nice advice. That's unlike you. It's usually just a joke. If you're ever feeling blue. Yeah. Got some good puns in there. Give yourself outside a little polish. A couple of good wishes. Right. What about you?

SPEAKER_00: 4:18

I was waiting for your mean, you'll have some there. I throw down. Really? That's not like you.

unknown: 4:24

I don't know.

SPEAKER_00: 4:24

I thought you'd be so excited. I don't think they've ever been mean. Not mean, just out there. So we'll see. We'll see. Yeah. Yes. Okay. Potentially, yeah. So mine is if someone tells you they need a break, maybe do not trap them in a lamp for 10,000 years. Take a hint. They probably need a nap, not internal confinement. That's good advice. Okay.

SPEAKER_01: 4:46

Move it along. Yeah, moving along. Mushu from Milan. Okay. Which I haven't actually watched in a while. So never play with fire. And if you're gonna wake up your ancestors, make sure they're morning people. Good one. Good one.

SPEAKER_00: 5:01

Mine is remember, son. I like to start mine like that. Yeah, remember son. Because this is very good talk. Sitting you down. We're having this conversation. Remember, son, if you want respect, maybe don't start by faking a military rank and yelling at ancestors. That's not leadership. That's just Tuesday at a renaissance fair. How do you know what a Tuesday at a renaissance fair is like? Who doesn't?

SPEAKER_01: 5:23

Come on. Good point. Point taken. Next one, Kronk from the Emperor's New Groove. Always listen to your shoulder angel. And remember to set a timer when baking. He burnt the spinach puffs. For those not in the know. Very authoritative with your drink afterwards. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 5:43

Son. Son. If your greatest skill is talking to squirrels, maybe don't follow evil masterminds. Start a nature vlog. At least your audience expects nuts.

SPEAKER_01: 5:55

So now we got Lafu or Beauty and the Beast. Pick your friends wisely. And if they burst into song about themselves, maybe you should keep your distance. Yeah. That's good. Anyone who b bursts into song needs a wide berth about themselves. I think more people should just break into song.

SPEAKER_00: 6:14

I think it should just be a day. Musical day and just start singing. Like Shmigadoon. Have you ever seen Shmigadoon? No. Shmigadoon's a show where people end up in a musical and they have no idea and they know nothing about musicals. They get drawn into it. Yes. It's hilarious. Because it's got key?

SPEAKER_01: 6:33

One of the key impels. And then Cecily from centering it. It was very attractive in my book.

SPEAKER_00: 6:41

Anyway, LeFoo. If you're fetching eggs, lifting pianos, and singing backup every day. Hate to break it to you, but you're not a sidekick. You're unpaid labor with jazz hands. He is unpaid labor.

SPEAKER_01: 6:55

Yeah, don't carry people's water. See now we're Tamone. We have both Timon and Pumba, but we'll start with Timone. Always trust your gut unless Poomba is cooking dinner.

SPEAKER_00: 7:07

That's funny.

SPEAKER_01: 7:08

That's funny.

SPEAKER_00: 7:09

That's how gut's very good. If your ide mine is if your idea of problem solving is singing a song and walking away, congrats. You're ready for middle management.

SPEAKER_01: 7:19

That is a tight summary of middle management right there. Yeah. Okay, next one up, Pumba from the Lion King. If life stinks, remember all of your troubles come from within, and you should maybe change your diet.

SPEAKER_00: 7:32

That's funny. That's funny. Okay, here I go. Okay. I can get more into this. Son. If your life philosophy is when the world turns its back on you, you tune your turn your back on the world, congrats. You just invented emotional flatulence. I like how we both did fart jokes. Well, I mean, what else would you do?

SPEAKER_01: 7:51

Boomba. You kind of have to do the fart jokes. That's how they roll. Okay, so let me see. Blah, blah, blah. Oh, Charlotte LaBeouf. From The Princess and the Frog. Right. She's the blonde friend, Big Daddy, always yelling Big Daddy. She's my favorite character in that movie.

SPEAKER_00: 8:07

It's a great character.

SPEAKER_01: 8:08

Dream big and always keep your lipstick handy in case you meet your frog. Oh. Yeah. That's more cute than any. Very touchy.

SPEAKER_00: 8:15

Yeah, that's a touchy one. We need like music behind this or something. We because I mean, like emotional music. Because we're saying these. Oh, yeah. That should be like Jack Handy stuff. Okay. I could look around. I could maybe add some background music. Because this is this is very touching, and it would sound better than us just saying these lines. Yes. It sounds kind of hollow because we say them and then what? And then what? And then we laugh at each other and move on. So for you at home, hope you're giggling a little. I don't know. Or in your car. Yeah, here we go. Because we're about halfway through. So sit down and hold on. Don't crash your car. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 8:52

In laughter.

SPEAKER_00: 8:52

And if you're not laughing, we're almost done. So mine is sweetheart. If your idea of romance is chasing after frogs, hoping they turn into princes, maybe it's time to kiss a career plan instead. That's harsh. I know. That's very harsh. I almost went with a Cinderella reference.

SPEAKER_01: 9:12

That would have been, I think, how she used to sweep the floor more. Only she's not like of the mental makeup of Cinderella. No, she wouldn't. She's very entitled. She would not survive. Yes. She comes from wealth in New Orleans. Yeah, this drink's pretty sour. It is. Yeah. I'm going to finish it though. Oh, why wouldn't we? Yeah. I mean, that would be that's par for the course. That's that is a requirement. So if it is, just turn it a little and get a little sugar mixed in. That's how you do it. So hey, hey, from Moana. Very good sidekick. From the great Alan Tudic. He's in a lot of people.

SPEAKER_00: 9:47

I know we talked about this year ago or so. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 9:51

I don't know. Something like that. At some point. He went through his whole career. Hey, hey. Keep your head up. Even if you have no idea what's going on. Sometimes you just have to wing it. These are dad jokes.

SPEAKER_00: 10:02

Yep. I couldn't resist my start to this one. Okay. Hey, hey, hey. Is it a welcome back cotter reference? Hey, hey, hey. Hey, hey, hey. If your GPS is fall off the boat, then hope for the best. Maybe it's time to update your software or at learn or at least learn which way is forward. It's very sound. That's sound advice.

SPEAKER_01: 10:24

And then I'm thinking of you saying that to a stupid chicken.

SPEAKER_00: 10:27

Well, let's go to Dis. We have to go to Disney World, the Animal Kingdom, and say it and see what he says. Do they have is Hey Hey ever is what is he walking around anywhere?

SPEAKER_01: 10:35

There's birds. Kevin walks around. Kevin walks around, no heyes. No hey hays.

SPEAKER_00: 10:39

Come on, Disney World.

SPEAKER_01: 10:40

That would be hilarious to have Hei Hei walking around. We need a Hei Hei. There is a Moana meet and greet, isn't there?

SPEAKER_00: 10:47

Oh, maybe. I don't know. I just thought there was a Hei Hey for some reason. Now I'm disappointed. Ruined beer. Darn it. Frash and bird. No, I really thought there was a heyhei. I don't know why I thought there was one, but now I'm kind of bummed. Okay.

SPEAKER_01: 11:01

Next one, Zazu from the Lanking. Now I realize I actually misspelled this when I sent the list over. I tried to spell it like Zha.

SPEAKER_00: 11:11

Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 11:11

But Zazu, Z-A-Z-U, and I put Z-S-A-Z-S-U. Zhazu. Zhazu. Zhajah Gabors. Zhazu. Love child. Bird love child here. It's a Lion King perfume. Always keep an eye on the kids. And it's straight to the point, simple. That's it. Always keep an eye on the kids.

SPEAKER_00: 11:33

Mine's way longer.

SPEAKER_01: 11:34

Because he did not.

SPEAKER_00: 11:35

And the kid wandered off. Yep. So if your idea of fun is reciting protocol while everyone else is singing Hakuna Matata, maybe loosen the feathers a bit. You're not a bird, you're a flying spreadsheet.

SPEAKER_01: 11:49

That is a very good summary of Zazu. Flying spreadsheet. What is it? Protocols? Procedures. Procedures, yes. Have you ever been part of a team writing procedures for whatever at work related? Not really. It's not a fun experience unless you're a Zazu type. And I'm not a Zazu type. Where I want to inflict suffering on those who don't do it perfectly. Yeah. Good. It's torture.

SPEAKER_00: 12:21

It is. We're paused a lot this episode. Look at each other appoint more than ever.

SPEAKER_01: 12:26

Okay. The next one. Talk amongst yourselves. Actually, I just realized three birds in a row. Oh.

SPEAKER_00: 12:33

So I, Zazu, and Iago. So should we throw a stone at him?

unknown: 12:39

No.

SPEAKER_00: 12:39

Try to kill three birds with one stone.

SPEAKER_01: 12:41

Oh, we could. So Iago from Aladdin. Yep. Don't talk back to your boss. It's best just to repeat his instructions back to him and live to walk away.

SPEAKER_00: 12:51

You're giving really sound advice today.

SPEAKER_01: 12:53

Be a parrot. Well, I'm throwing in the ref movie reference.

SPEAKER_00: 12:57

You took a movie reference though, and you made it serious. You really took it to the like you're really sitting down. You're like when I reminded myself of the first time we tried this and I failed. You were very, very serious. I was very serious in depth with my observations.

SPEAKER_01: 13:12

And I was a little goofy.

SPEAKER_00: 13:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 13:14

And then we were both goofy with the video because I because I learned your ways.

SPEAKER_00: 13:18

Yes. But now you're being pretty serious. I'm trying to be funny. I try I I stress trying. I don't know how much this is. These are off the top of my head while I was watching the baseball game today. Okay, so this is who are you doing now? Ago. Yeah. Yago. Yago. Yago. Lago. Lago. If you keep switching sides every time someone loses a lamp, maybe you're not loyal. You're just frequent flyer miles for evil plans.

SPEAKER_01: 13:46

Ooh. I don't know. And I'm thinking frequent flyer miles for a bird. Yeah. Yeah. It just kind of struck me as funny. Like, wait a minute. Would a bird ever need? Maybe they do. Maybe they do. So the ones who like chickens. They can't fly. Penguins. You're not an expert on bird culture. Penguins, they can't fly. They need they need to get on that plane. Don't act like you know bird culture. So next one up. Moving along. Phil from Hercules. Phil. Train hard. Eat your veggies and never trust a guy in a toga with a lightning bolt.

SPEAKER_00: 14:21

Well, good one.

SPEAKER_01: 14:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 14:23

Good one. If your heroes end up causing property damage, maybe the problem isn't the demigods. Maybe it's the goat behind the clipboard. I did laugh at that one. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 14:34

But I was taking a drink at the same time.

SPEAKER_00: 14:36

I finally got you to laugh when you're taking a drink.

SPEAKER_01: 14:38

Yeah. And I can't risk spitting alcohol over all over my laptop. Okay, Baymax from Big Hero 6. Yes. Don't let a drain battery deflate you.

SPEAKER_00: 14:48

So I have a deflate one too. Well, there's like two two three different ways you go on.

SPEAKER_01: 14:53

He's got two things about it. Right.

SPEAKER_00: 14:55

His battery drains and he can deflate. If you deflate every time someone bumps into you, maybe you're not a healthcare companion. Maybe you're just a high-tech whoopee cushion with good intentions. Another flatulence joke. I know what's going on there. Alright.

SPEAKER_01: 15:11

Who knew? Yeah, my next one's just fart. That's all I said. So gas. I had to I actually watched Wreck It Ralph because I'd never watched it. And we're doing Vanelope. And so I had to watch Wreck It Ralph to actually do this next week. Right. So I watched it today. Life's a race, kid. Don't let the glitches stop you. Well, good one.

SPEAKER_00: 15:31

Yeah. Wow, you are deep. Well, that's not really deep. That's deep. Oh. That's deep. Kiddo. If your leadership style is burping in a tiara and declaring yourself president, maybe you're not a ruler. You're just a sugar rush with a crown. Maybe. Yeah. I'm way more mean than you this time. You are. And that's okay.

SPEAKER_01: 15:52

We gotta flip it every once in a while. You know, so while I was watching this, so a little sidebar, a little rabbit trail right here.

SPEAKER_00: 15:59

We need one.

SPEAKER_01: 16:00

So Sarah Silverman p voiced Venelope. And I just and I couldn't quite place the voice, so I had to look it up on IMDB, who's voicing everybody. I have a hard time, once I learn that information, watching it after that. Because of Sarah Silverman's typical humor is fairly off can be very off-color. And to watch a Disney movie with her voicing it, it's hard for me to reconcile that. Interesting. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 16:31

So you just get more in a Zen moment when you watch the shows. Take a deep breath. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 16:37

Hey, hey, a show-related question. I just got a text from my cousin, middle of our show. What is the name of the cocktail machine that Erin has? Oh. Should I make her wait until this comes out to respond? Because then she has to listen to the Does she listen to us anyway? She does.

SPEAKER_00: 16:55

Well, then why wait? Why wait? Let's talk about hopefully our future sponsor who does not sponsor us right now, Bartesian. Hey, now I wonder if they had a sidecar.

SPEAKER_01: 17:06

They do. We have them. I think we have them. Well, what do we make this crap for? I don't know. I didn't think about that. We should do a comparison after we're done with this. We should go drink a s. I kind of don't want it though, but.

SPEAKER_00: 17:17

Thank you, Christy. Yeah. Thank you, Christy. Yeah, we'll say that as we're easier in machine. Maybe we just make a linen split. Yeah, so it's the Bartesian. If you don't know, we're gonna put a plug-in for it anyway, even though they have nothing to do with our show. The Bartesian's a machine, it's like a Keurig for cocktails. It is. That's the best way to describe it. It's a little pod, and you put the little pod inside the thing. Just like a Keurig has a little scan bar, it scans what drink. You have five different liquors that's installed, four installed at a time, and one switches out vodka and something.

SPEAKER_01: 17:46

Like vodka, gin, whiskey, rum, and tequila.

SPEAKER_00: 17:50

Right. Those are oil available liquors, and you put it in there, and we have many garnishes. Then this is a Bartesian garnish that we're using today, right here. Yes, it's a Tamara sugar. Yeah, something like that. Yeah, yeah. So many different pods, every kind of thing, and it so tastes like they're good. They're good, actually, great cocktails. It's surprising.

SPEAKER_01: 18:11

They're old fashioned is a very tasty cocktail. Yeah, it's surprising. I really like their old fashioned.

SPEAKER_00: 18:14

Now, are they better when you make them by hand most of the time? Yes. Because they're you can pick the ingredients. Like we use a we like in ours, we use a base whiskey. Yeah. Because there are so many different whiskey drinks. We don't use like a bourbon and then a whiskey, and then it's just a whiskey that we use. So it depends. You can switch them out and do whatever you want if you're just drinking one kind. You could probably buy extra bottles and have different bourbons in them.

SPEAKER_01: 18:36

And one of the things is you can do virgin cocktails, you can do normal alcohol level, or you could do a one with a heavy pour. Right.

SPEAKER_00: 18:44

And I think even weak, I think there's four levels. It's like oh, there's a week. Right, that's a week, weak, normal, strong. I think that's how it goes. Okay. Yeah. But yeah, so that's a great question. Great Christmas gift for a loved one. And we record between 3 and like 7 p.m. on Wednesdays. So if you give us a text during our show, we might just answer live. Pacific time. Thank you, Roxanne. That was a really good because I find this is we're going on and on. We needed a sidebar from our subjects.

SPEAKER_01: 19:14

Well, we went from the vanelope whole sidebar to the I got a text and we had to talk about the Partesian. So if you're still here, thanks for sticking in. Thanks for hanging with me. There's only two more left. So I combined the two, pain and panic from Hercules. Correct. So here we go. My sometimes bosses have a fiery temper. Learn to walk away before you get hurt. Another walk away from your boss. Right. Before you get hurt.

SPEAKER_00: 19:39

That's all that's good advice for any villain. Yes. If you're following any villain. Mine is if your master plan involves turning into cute animals and still blowing it, congrats. You're not evil minions. You're just discount mascots for bad decisions. I thought there was going to be a Wonder Twins reference in that.

SPEAKER_01: 19:58

Yeah. Shape of Aladdin. So originally I wasn't going to go with Pain and Panic. I went with them, but originally I was going to do Flotsam and Jetsum. So those are the eels from Little Mermaid Ursula's eels. I like those. Flotsam and Jets. So but I went with Pain and Panic instead because they're a little more humorous. Perfect. So last one, Sebastian, Little Mermaid. Stay out of hot water and remember, life is better down where it's wetter. Just don't get steamed.

SPEAKER_00: 20:27

I was going to sing, but you will thank me, everyone. We're not doing that. That's funny. Okay, let's end this.

SPEAKER_01: 20:36

Let's not end this. In this one. Well, that is funny. Out of hot water. I was just don't get steamed. Although that Brian, but the right. Yeah, the whole went with the whole song and stuff.

SPEAKER_00: 20:50

Did go with the song. I had the song on my head the whole time. See, I could get a little mean with this one. But no, you're telling you're giving him a warning not to. So it's still kind of nice. Yeah. Yeah. You're not telling him he's gonna get steamed or he should get steamed. I'm implying that he could get steamed. He could. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 21:06

So you're giving him safety advice. And I if he did get I'd dip him in butter. Yeah. Yeah. Have a nice meal. But that's just me. Anyway, and should we do a drum roll? Okay, drum roll okay. Let's end the room. Sebastian, let's land this plane.

SPEAKER_00: 21:23

So your job description is royal composer, but you spend most of your time yelling, Ariel, maybe it's time to admit you are less Mozart, more crustacean crossing guard. I'm picturing that. So email us or message us if you laugh at any of these.

SPEAKER_01: 21:40

Or if you think that maybe we should have commented about Sebastian pimping out Ariel. You know, with that's more of what you do.

SPEAKER_00: 21:47

Yeah. That's more of your style. Stop pimping out young ladies. There you go. All the time. So yeah, message us if you think either that or you think the series should be canceled forever. Either or we will listen to your demands. But until then, cheers. Cheers.