MiceAge Rumor: Disney Jr. Closing In April '17 - Marvel Plans???

[flynnibus]

MiceChat updated the rumor today:

A Quick Note From Our Rumor Desk
The plan to infuse Marvel into the Hollywood Land area this summer continues to evolve quickly after the holidays. Disney Jr. is still planned to close this April, but the plan to do a Marvel stage show and meet n’ greet in that venue has been scrapped. The stage show and meet n’ greet will now take over the Hollywood Backlot Stage, the venue used for hosting high school choirs and traveling talent groups. When Marvel takes over that stage, a temporary stage for school groups will be thrown up in front of Stage 12 nearby. Disney Jr. will be re-purposed into a new toddler stage show still hosted by the Disney Jr. cable channel when it reopens later in the year.



The Marvel entertainment plans will include daytime dance parties and interactive street theater in another band-aid attempt to breathe life into that dying corner of DCA. TDA is also now considering bouncing Mickey’s Soundsational over to DCA this summer to replace the aging Pixar Play Parade, and let Paint The Night and an all-new Fantasmic! have the spotlight at Disneyland. While TDA dabbles in temporary entertainment, WDI continues to push ahead with plans for a big budget Marvel E Ticket expansion of DCA to open in 2020.

Sounds more like "we got our story wrong.."

 

[Curious Constance]

Sounds more like "we got our story wrong.."

That's how I read it too, things may change, but I doubt it's as day to day and as Willy nilly as they make it out to be.

 

[Phroobar]

At least they are getting better at their detractions. Remember how they insisted the sub's were going into mothballs and then turned into a Ewok treehouse instead of just being referbed.

 

[mickEblu]

At least they are getting better at their detractions. Remember how they insisted the sub's were going into mothballs and then turned into a Ewok treehouse instead of just being referbed.

That would of been cool though. I love rides that actually move.

 

[wdwfan22]

According to another site, when Disney Junior closes they will be removing the puppets. The attraction will become screen based with a single entertainer from then on.

 

[BrianLo]

At least they are getting better at their detractions. Remember how they insisted the sub's were going into mothballs and then turned into a Ewok treehouse instead of just being referbed.

That was the actual plan for the longest time. Disney was working on iteration after iteration for multiple years before settling on what we are getting. The board scoffed that Universal was doing grand things with Potter and Disney was falling into the usual trope of a tack-on to a pre-existing land.

The plans were essentially a MF ride and some Ewok theming over the subs and autotopia. The subs went down, they went to the board with the plans and were told to go back and try again.

So then after months of mothballing they gave up on Tomorrowland and refurb'd the subs. Invigorated with the new mantra of bigger, more expensive, tie into the new episode VII coming out, they looked towards the next most obvious site that they could create a larger dedicated land (Toontown) and the rest is history...

Until someone came up with the elaborate rivers scheme to expand DL instead of simply replace, again. High fives for all, D23 announcement, etc.

Mice Chat never missed a beat, but they have been punished for reporting on the drama along the way. Star Wars was a real bumpy road. One of the rare times where it was bumpy because it wasn't good enough though instead of constant cuts.


This time they clearly published old info, they usually sit on this stuff for months and collect it... only to get an email from one of their sources saying 'er, actually guys, that Disney Jr thing changed'.

 

[brb1006]

The Hoopla and other non-serious Star Wars pursuits were dropped like a hot potato once Lucasfilm was acquired. That's why you'll never see the fab five making appearances in their Star Wars outfits ever again - Lucasfilm says no, and they have the political clout now that they're in the family. The Hoopla show is now relegated to the weird history books.

And the time Minnie was dressed as Slave Leia. I'm not making this up!

 

[brb1006]

Ya Splash Mountain, Star Tours, Indiana Jones, Thunder Mountain, Fantasyland redo. Nuff said. I'll forgive him for the Astro orbiter in the hub.

And the original Journey Into Imagination attraction.

 

[Phroobar]

And the time Minnie was dressed as Slave Leia. I'm not making this up!

That is way too much mouse showing.

 

[mickEblu]

As a designer Tony Baxter had a unique viewpoint and incredible influence at WDI. However the TL '98 debacle and his campaign to preserve The Subs back was what did it for me. I'm also turned off by his cultish following, but like I said he had a terrific career at Disney and no one can deny his passion for Disneyland.

The Cultish following isn't his fault.

Lets go ahead and completely place the blame on him for TL 98 and Nemo. At the same time if we completely give him credit for Splash, Indy, Star Tours, FL 83 Redo, Thunder Mountain, Disneyland Paris and journey into imagination the positive far outweighs the negative.

Personally, I don't blame him for Nemo, who knows what the lagoon would of been now if he hadn't gottten involved. Maybe another store, like they wanted to turn the Swiss Family Robinson tree house into before he intervened.

 

[VJ]

Tony Baxter is one of the last of his kind. A group of sort of "sorcerer's apprentices" who were trained by people who trained under Walt. To say that he doesn't deserve the following he gets is misguided cynicism, to be completely honest. We need more people like Tony Baxter to both honor Walt's original plan and vision for the park while also taking it into new directions, like Walt intended. To honor the past but welcome the future.

 

[Deleted member 107043]

As you all know I have fairly progressive tastes in Disney theme parks that often veers away from the typical online Disney fan sentimentality, so in my view it's far more cynical to adhere to the romanticized WDI coffee table book story line than it is to have a balanced view that acknowledges where the organization had success and where it fell short. It's the sum total of those things that make the parks what they are today.

The point being that Tony Baxter's best work is not the final word in Disney theme park design; the parks are constantly evolving. Yes Splash Mountain is cool, but it'll pale in comparison to SW Land. There, I said it.

I don't know about you guys but I'm more optimistic about DLR's future right now than I've been in a long, long time.

 

[Curious Constance]

As you all know I have fairly progressive tastes in Disney theme parks that often veers away from the typical online Disney fan sentimentality, so in my view it's far more cynical to adhere to the romanticized WDI coffee table book story line than it is to have a balanced view that acknowledges where the organization had success and where it fell short. It's the sum total of those things that make the parks what they are today.

The point being that Tony Baxter's best work is not the final word in Disney theme park design; the parks are constantly evolving. Yes Splash Mountain is cool, but it'll pale in comparison to SW Land. There, I said it.

I don't know about you guys but I'm more optimistic about DLR's future right now than I've been in a long, long time.

I think we can all agree this is in large part due to Bob Iger. I don't want to see him go. Who's with me? FOUR MORE YEARS! FOUR MORE YEARS!

 

[DDLand]

I agree with you the backstory is 'stupid'. It's temporary, reeks of temporary. But soon enough ToT will be part of Marvel land and the problem will be solved in a similar fashion.

From the sounds of things groundbreaking will begin within very close proximity to its opening. A full announcement will come in July at D23.

Probably, their mistake was if they were going to announce GoTG in the Fall, they should have just announced the whole Marvel initiative at the same time. On the flip side people could have just been blindsided by the tower and had a negative reaction to the better parts of the plans in that scenario.

I do have to wonder if it's ever going to change.

That building and its story are very very weird. Adding 1940s Cap (it is the 40s?) right next to Mission Breakout isn't going to solve anything. To back that type of thing up, they'd have to make a conscious effort with attractions and architecture to match. I doubt that a fortress turned power plant is ever going to jive with the area. Unlike some others I don't find it truly offensive (I actually think it's one of the oddest most interesting buildings I've ever seen. Pretty cool). I do understand it is seemingly out of place though.

I just don't think any Marvel Land is going to have a coherent explanation for why it exists. Joe may actually be telling the truth when he says it just does. For better or for worse the only connective thread may end up being Marvel.

I also hope this is MCU and not the somewhat ambiguous approach they took for Iron Man in Hong Kong. Go Kevin, who apparently is a Disneyland fan!

 

[Phroobar]

For all we know once they start building Marvel land around the Tower they may decide to reskin the outside again. This might be temporary.

 

[DDLand]

For all we know once they start building Marvel land around the Tower they may decide to reskin the outside again. This might be temporary.

If they were doing it on the cheap, maybe. There isn't any inclination they are though. In fact, it seems like they're taking a fairly aggressive approach with this attraction.

I'm starting to think Joe Rohde has become the interface in which Imagineering uses for creatives. Try telling Joe that the work he does is not art or impressive and I'm sure those Hollywood types would be in for a ear full. (No pun intended) He's an intense and clearly knowledgeable guy who could easily talk and even slightly intimidate the likes of James Cameron and the Marvel folks. The difference is he doesn't seem like a belittling jerk in the same vain as someone like Cameron...

Ironically everyone was saying his days were numbered. It seems like it could be exactly the opposite. He may actually be remaking himself as more valuable then ever.

Note: I know he's the portfolio lead for Marvel and DAK, but why? Why has he stayed on so long? I think besides being an intense creative, he also fits the criteria I wrote above.

 

[Antaundra]

I think we can all agree this is in large part due to Bob Iger. I don't want to see him go. Who's with me? FOUR MORE YEARS! FOUR MORE YEARS!

I'm not sure if you're being serious or not but I truly believe the entire Disney company has experienced another golden age under Bob Iger. Nobody's perfect and of course there are always things to complain about but if you think back to where the company was when he took over from Michael Eisner... the movies, the parks, the tv networks were all in decline Bob Iger revitalized each of those and made them more financially successful and popular than ever. We can complain about the implementations Marvel of Star Wars in the parks but at least they're expanding the parks and not just closing attractions and letting unessential theming rot and disappear.

 

[englanddg]

I'm not sure if you're being serious or not but I truly believe the entire Disney company has experienced another golden age under Bob Iger. Nobody's perfect and of course there are always things to complain about but if you think back to where the company was when he took over from Michael Eisner... the movies, the parks, the tv networks were all in decline Bob Iger revitalized each of those and made them more financially successful and popular than ever. We can complain about the implementations Marvel of Star Wars in the parks but at least they're expanding the parks and not just closing attractions and letting unessential theming rot and disappear.

Iger was good for the company...but he never seems to "get it", imho...he never LOVED the company. He got us a bunch of new nerd toys to play with, and gave exactly that to us.

He is Eisner 2.0, frankly, and retiring before he gets desperate and has to make his flower drop juice, as Eisner did.

What I mean by that is partially tenure. Eisner revitalized the whole company, and spent his political and creative (limited, but important) wealth on what we know as the 90s...then he entered a slump phase, and Disney is entering that now again.

And, Iger, who saw it through another up cycle...is jumping ship.

Make sense?

 

[Antaundra]

Iger was good for the company...but he never seems to "get it", imho...he never LOVED the company. He got us a bunch of new nerd toys to play with, and gave exactly that to us.

He is Eisner 2.0, frankly, and retiring before he gets desperate and has to make his flower drop juice, as Eisner did.

What I mean by that is partially tenure. Eisner revitalized the whole company, and spent his political and creative (limited, but important) wealth on what we know as the 90s...then he entered a slump phase, and Disney is entering that now again.

And, Iger, who saw it through another up cycle...is jumping ship.

Make sense?

I think another slump is inevitable but I don't think we're entering one yet. Ask me again in 6 months and I might change my mind. Mission Break Out and the next round of franchise movies will be a good barometer of which direction the company is headed. I agree Iger is retiring before he sees his legacy tarnished though. He knows better than anyone how the end of Eisner's tenure tarnished his legacy.

 

[Californian Elitist]

I'm not sure if you're being serious or not but I truly believe the entire Disney company has experienced another golden age under Bob Iger. Nobody's perfect and of course there are always things to complain about but if you think back to where the company was when he took over from Michael Eisner... the movies, the parks, the tv networks were all in decline Bob Iger revitalized each of those and made them more financially successful and popular than ever. We can complain about the implementations Marvel of Star Wars in the parks but at least they're expanding the parks and not just closing attractions and letting unessential theming rot and disappear.

In regards to the bold, I feel like this is exactly what's been happening under Iger. Respect for theme has gone out the window.

I'd rather there be no expansion than continuously have things I feel are wrong for the parks, especially Disneyland, be implemented.