The Proud Family released on the Disney Channel back in 2001. The animated TV show focused on Penny Proud and the ups and downs she faced with her friends and family. The series lasted for two seasons but was one of Disney's more popular TV shows from the early 2000s. It's so beloved that a reboot, The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder is coming to Disney+ in February 2022.
Although Penny is the main character, it's her best friend, Dijonay Jones, that's in the spotlight. She may be Penny's co-called best friend but she's made more mistakes in their friendship than positive steps. Dijonay can be self-serving and disloyal to Penny, but Penny never goes too long without talking to her "best" friend.
Dijonay Was The Worst Friend
Refusing To Choose Penny As A Cheerleader
The pilot wasn't one of The Proud Family's best episodes, but it was the start of it all. In the episode, Dijonay was the head of the cheerleading squad and was in charge of adding one new cheerleader for the schoolyear. Penny thought she'd be a shoo-in as one of Dijonay's best friends, but as soon as LaCienega Boulevardez tried out, Dijonay changed her tune.
Dijonay chose LaCienega because she was the newest and coolest girl in school instead of simply choosing Penny because they were best friends and had a loyalty to each other. Penny was bothered by Dijonay's decision.
Ditching Penny's First Big House Party
The Proud Family was one of the Disney Channel's best shows for a short time because Penny showed the ups and downs for pre-teens. "The Party" was a great example of the pressures of fitting in.
In the episode, Penny's allowed to have a house party. Dijonay was excited to dance the night away but the second she heard LaCienega was having a house party on the same night, she ditched her best friend. Penny ended up having people she didn't care for at her party while Dijonay partied the night away across the street. That was a low blow for Penny.
Making Penny Babysit Her Siblings
As many babysitting comedies as there are in movies and on TV, The Proud Family's "Adventures in Bebe Sitting" did not have the same effect on viewers. In this episode, viewers felt horrible for Penny and blamed Dijonay for treating her so horribly.
When the girls want to go to a concert, Penny and Dijonay intended to stay home and babysit their siblings since their parents were out of town. But at the last minute, Dijonay ditches Penny so that she can go to the concert. This left Penny with multiple, misbehaved children. Dijonay's decision was premeditated and proved what a selfish friend she was to Penny.
Dirching Penny During Her Election
Sadly, whenever something bigger or better comes along, Dijonay tends to choose it over her best friend. This was shown in "Election."
When Penny runs for the student body at school against Wizard Kelly's son, Dijonay stops supporting Penny and votes for Wizard Kelly's son because of who he and his dad were. Penny was stunned that she didn't have many supporters, but the behavior tracks for Dijonay.
Starting Rumors About Penny
The Disney Channel had plenty of groundbreaking moments in its shows that taught lessons to its young audience in an understanding and realistic way. The Proud Family did this perfectly in "Rumors."
When Dijonay convinces Penny to throw a party while her parents are away, Penny hesitantly agreed. The party got worse when Penny was supposed to kiss the school "nerd," Myron. Rumors soon swirled that Myon and Penny were an item, which Penny loathed. To add salt to the wound, Dijonay had Myron as a guest on her school TV show, where she pestered him for information about his kiss with Penny. Penny was backstabbed and embarrassed by the false rumors, and it was all because of Dijonay.
Liking BeBe & CeCe Better When They Grew Up
Penny had some of the best parents shown on the Disney Channel. They were caring, attentive, and involved. However, Trudy, Oscar, and Dijoany did not handle the growth of BeBe and CeCe well.
BeBe and CeCe were Penny's baby brother and sister. In a strange turn of events, the twins were zapped into 14-year-olds and joined Penny on her adventures. Not only did Penny's parents now prefer the twins to Penny, but so did Dijonay. Penny's friends preferred the twins and ditched her on multiple occasions because of it. Dijonay has never been loyal to Penny but expected Penny to stay loyal to her.
Dijonay Was A Great Friend
Getting LPDZ Off The Ground
The Proud Family wasn't a Disney Channel musical, but it contained multiple music-related episodes, showing how important music was to Penny and her friends. The friend group even created a music group, LPDZ.
LPDZ gave each girl confidence as they found themselves through music and the industry. However, they would have never come to be without Dijonay's cousin, Bethany Jones. Bethany worked for a popular music contest show and was able to get LPDZ on as contestants. With Dijonay's help, Penny wouldn't have had this opportunity.
Handling The Poetry Slam Debacle
In "Poetic Justice," Penny taught Dijonay how to write and speak poetry to perform at a poetry slam. As good as Penny was, Dijonay took a liking to poetry and did far better than Penny. Penny became jealous of Dijonay's skill and success, which upset Dijonay. She later expressed her love for Penny's friendship through poetry.
As much as the two have wronged each other, Dijonay took the high road in this episode and proved her loyalty to Penny through art.
Helping Penny Throw A Boy-Girl House Party
As aforementioned, "Rumors" was a heartbreaking moment between Penny and Dijonay because of the torment Dijonay put Penny through regarding a kiss with Myron. But on the same token, Dijonay did exactly what her friend Penny wanted – a boy-girl party.
Penny never had a boy-girl party before and it was because of Dijonay that it happened in the first place. Sure, the party was a bad idea at the end of the night and shouldn't have happened, but Dijonay did it for her friend. It's this positive bond that makes it a good idea to reboot this beloved 2000s Disney TV show.
Giving Penny Confidence
Regardless of all of the bad things Dijonay did to Penny, the two were friends. In a lot of ways, Dijonay was a Disney villain because of the things she put Penny through, but she always seemed to redeem herself.
From the outside, Dijonay gave Penny confidence. Dijonay lived her life fearlessly and passionately. There wasn't much she was afraid of and she was willing to give everything a try. Even though Dijonay came off selfish or self-centered, viewers can't blame her for taking opportunities when they presented themselves. And those are all qualities that Penny learned from Dijonay.