SYWTBAI Season 18 - Round One: Team Next Gen Brainstorming Thread

[montydysquith-navarro]

Because the idea of a Sci-fi land got brought up in the other thread, I just want to state for the record that I'd like you guys to stick to a singular IP for this round as part of the challenge of the prompt. That would include anime. A particular anime is fine, but a more than one IP being represented within the land is pushing it.

Hi everyone! Really excited to be working with you all!
I was actually going to suggest a multi-IP cartoon land given the Bikini Bottom idea, but @TheOriginalTiki posted first before I could hit "Post reply":

I know I'm not alone with having the childhood dream of being able to eat a Krabby Patty Squidward-style (you know, before he goes "ka-boom" due to overeating), so I know there's a market for guests who wants to explore Bikini Bottom and become an honorary resident for the day. In fact, one thing I noticed with Universal Orlando's attractions line-up is that there's not much kid-friendly fare unlike Walt Disney World's, so I think that might be a niche we could go for.

Going off this direction, I propose that we can do a Mickey's Toontown-style land based on Warner Bros./Viacom's cartoon characters. Group them up by neighborhoods a la Pixar Pier, so we can have Bikini Bottom (Nickelodeon/Viacom) as one neighborhood, a Looney Tunes-themed neighborhood (Warner Bros)., and an Avatar: Legend of Aang/Korra-themed land (Nickelodeon/Viacom)...


@PerGronStudio, you said you were familiar-ish with Miyazaki's works, and so am I (in a way). Any particular Studio Ghibli work that you are familiar with? I think a "Spirited Away" themed dark ride (a la Radiator Springs Racers) would be a great idea.

 

[TheOriginalTiki]

I'll allow Nickelodeon as an IP since there's some crossover potential in the properties in stuff like video games. If you go this route, just be sure to stick to NickToons and don't work in other cartoons that aren't considered in that canon.

 

[Outbound]

Hello everyone! I'm very excited to work with you guys. Next-Gen in the best gen because we are always improving! I also won't be looking at Old School to not get influenced by what they're doing.

Hi everyone! Really excited to be working with you all!
I was actually going to suggest a multi-IP cartoon land given the Bikini Bottom idea, but @TheOriginalTiki posted first before I could hit "Post reply":

I know I'm not alone with having the childhood dream of being able to eat a Krabby Patty Squidward-style (you know, before he goes "ka-boom" due to overeating), so I know there's a market for guests who wants to explore Bikini Bottom and become an honorary resident for the day. In fact, one thing I noticed with Universal Orlando's attractions line-up is that there's not much kid-friendly fare unlike Walt Disney World's, so I think that might be a niche we could go for.

Going off this direction, I propose that we can do a Mickey's Toontown-style land based on Warner Bros./Viacom's cartoon characters. Group them up by neighborhoods a la Pixar Pier, so we can have Bikini Bottom (Nickelodeon/Viacom) as one neighborhood, a Looney Tunes-themed neighborhood (Warner Bros)., and an Avatar: Legend of Aang/Korra-themed land (Nickelodeon/Viacom)...


@PerGronStudio, you said you were familiar-ish with Miyazaki's works, and so am I (in a way). Any particular Studio Ghibli work that you are familiar with? I think a "Spirited Away" themed dark ride (a la Radiator Springs Racers) would be a great idea.

This could definitely work. My only fear is it'd be a bit disjointed as a land: if were to stick with only Nickelodean or Looney Tunes I think it'd more unified as a concept. But if we went this route, I'd be totally down.

Another idea I will throw into the mix: the prompt says we need an IP to replace Fantastic Beasts because it's not a "tentpole IP ". So, we need an IP to replace Fantastic Beasts, ideally like how Fantastic Beasts all disappointed, something that surprised us. So ideally...
-- The IP is a suprise hit with modern audiences
-- The IP has a proven future and dedicated fandom (while still being popular to general audiences)
-- The IP is very unique compared to other Universal lands
-- The IP already has a history in Universal Parks (the horror mazes)

With this in mind, I suggest:

 

[NigelChanning]

Hello everyone! I'm very excited to work with you guys. Next-Gen in the best gen because we are always improving! I also won't be looking at Old School to not get influenced by what they're doing.



This could definitely work. My only fear is it'd be a bit disjointed as a land: if were to stick with only Nickelodean or Looney Tunes I think it'd more unified as a concept. But if we went this route, I'd be totally down.

Another idea I will throw into the mix: the prompt says we need an IP to replace Fantastic Beasts because it's not a "tentpole IP ". So, we need an IP to replace Fantastic Beasts, ideally like how Fantastic Beasts all disappointed, something that surprised us. So ideally...
-- The IP is a suprise hit with modern audiences
-- The IP has a proven future and dedicated fandom (while still being popular to general audiences)
-- The IP is very unique compared to other Universal lands
-- The IP already has a history in Universal Parks (the horror mazes)

With this in mind, I suggest:
View attachment 472220

The only problem I have is that since it’s a Netflix original series, it wouldn’t appeal to a lot of people. The horror mazes are temporary and don’t cost at much as a whole land. It’d be like if Disney made a land based on “The Mandalorian” in which not everybody has Disney Plus. I do like the idea though and I believe that it would be super cool.

 

[NigelChanning]

In a perfect world where Scooby-Doo 2002 became an instant classic, we could’ve had a real life Spooky Island

 

[goofyyukyuk]

I like the Stranger Things idea; my only question is how could we create a cohesive, entertaining land out of it? Another thing to consider- a decade from now Stranger Things will likely not be as culturally relevant as it currently is, whereas IPs like Lord of the Rings have remained relevant for decades.

 

[goofyyukyuk]

Also, I do think it would be a struggle to have a cohesive, Nickelodeon based Pixar Pier type of land that held up better than Fantastic Beasts would have as a centerpiece of this new park.

 

[NigelChanning]

NickToons Block

Themed to a neighborhood where all the NickToons characters can live. Fairly Odd Parents, Danny Phantom, Hey Arnold!, and Rugrats could all fit but Avatar and Spongebob would be a struggle.

 

[PerGron]

Hello everyone! I'm very excited to work with you guys. Next-Gen in the best gen because we are always improving! I also won't be looking at Old School to not get influenced by what they're doing.



This could definitely work. My only fear is it'd be a bit disjointed as a land: if were to stick with only Nickelodean or Looney Tunes I think it'd more unified as a concept. But if we went this route, I'd be totally down.

Another idea I will throw into the mix: the prompt says we need an IP to replace Fantastic Beasts because it's not a "tentpole IP ". So, we need an IP to replace Fantastic Beasts, ideally like how Fantastic Beasts all disappointed, something that surprised us. So ideally...
-- The IP is a suprise hit with modern audiences
-- The IP has a proven future and dedicated fandom (while still being popular to general audiences)
-- The IP is very unique compared to other Universal lands
-- The IP already has a history in Universal Parks (the horror mazes)

With this in mind, I suggest:
View attachment 472220

I've not seen Stranger Things so I could be totally wrong, but didn't the third season disappoint pretty heavily? I could be totally wrong, but I thought it did. I feel like Stranger Things falls into the same issue as Fantastic Beasts where it may not hold the same relevance 10 years down the road, but I could be totally wrong here too.

Going off this direction, I propose that we can do a Mickey's Toontown-style land based on Warner Bros./Viacom's cartoon characters. Group them up by neighborhoods a la Pixar Pier, so we can have Bikini Bottom (Nickelodeon/Viacom) as one neighborhood, a Looney Tunes-themed neighborhood (Warner Bros)., and an Avatar: Legend of Aang/Korra-themed land (Nickelodeon/Viacom)...

I'm not big into a Toontown/Pixar Pier Nicktoons land, but the idea of Avatar/Korra is very interesting. I'd say it's held its relevance since premiering, and while I still think Bikini Bottom is a more recognizable kids area, I could 100% see an area where you can train to be a bender, a ride riding Appa, etc. It could be a really neat concept

 

[goofyyukyuk]

NickToons Block

Themed to a neighborhood where all the NickToons characters can live. Fairly Odd Parents, Danny Phantom, Hey Arnold!, and Rugrats could all fit but Avatar and Spongebob would be a struggle.

The thing to remember is we’re trying to come up with a concept to replace a Harry Potter based IP. I’m not sure how well a Nickelodeon themed “neighborhood” fills that void. The park is called Epic Universe, and we want something truly epic to go along with Monsters, Nintendo, and How to Train A Dragon.

 

[Orange Cat]

I’d go with lord of the rings, I’m not exactly an expert but I know enough about the franchise to be useful

 

[montydysquith-navarro]

I'm not big into a Toontown/Pixar Pier Nicktoons land, but the idea of Avatar/Korra is very interesting. I'd say it's held its relevance since premiering, and while I still think Bikini Bottom is a more recognizable kids area, I could 100% see an area where you can train to be a bender, a ride riding Appa, etc. It could be a really neat concept

Hm, interesting! Though @goofyyukyukyuk17 is right, the replacement land has to be "epic" in scope and I'm worried about confining all four kingdoms in one land (unless we pull a Galaxy's Edge and place the land in "neutral" territory post-Sozin's Comet/Kuzira's Attack).

 

[NigelChanning]

Hm, interesting! Though @goofyyukyukyuk17 is right, the replacement land has to be "epic" in scope and I'm worried about confining all four kingdoms in one land (unless we pull a Galaxy's Edge and place the land in "neutral" territory post-Sozin's Comet/Kuzira's Attack).

I think Avatar could be too similar to the world of How to Train your Dragon with the adventure setting. That’s why I believe Bikini Bottom is the right choice because it sets itself apart and is more recognizable to every day audiences.

 

[PerGron]

Also, just remember everyone, we don't have to come up with our decision on day one, so if there's nothing that really hits everyone in the right way, we can take two days to come up with a good compromise. Don't feel a rush to jump on the first idea that we have if it's not an idea you really love, we can debate it a bit more and see if something else can rally everyone

 

[Outbound]

I would say LOTR is the safest and clearest bet. It’s certainly epic and the movies will be forever iconic. It also has a future, though we’ll have to see how it turns out. I would love to work with it. My only concern is how “bland” it could be perceived to the judges, given its the most obvious pick in my eyes.

 

[Outbound]

This just popped into my head but currently Epic Universe has
—Nintendo (Animated Style)
—Monsters (Horror Style)
—How to Train Your Dragon (Fantasy Style)

Some genres that haven’t been touched in Universal are Western and Sci Fi. Maybe focus a land around one of these concepts. Given Nintendo has proven video games can be used as an IP, perhaps we could try using RDR or Cyberpunk 2077.

 

[Orange Cat]

one thing I noticed with Universal Orlando's attractions line-up is that there's not much kid-friendly fare unlike Walt Disney World's,

that’s something that they very much do on purpose. As an obvious way to make themselves “stand out” from Disney’s “kids & kids at heart“ motto

 

[montydysquith-navarro]

This just popped into my head but currently Epic Universe has
—Nintendo (Animated Style)
—Monsters (Horror Style)
—How to Train Your Dragon (Fantasy Style)

Some genres that haven’t been touched in Universal are Western and Sci Fi. Maybe focus a land around one of these concepts. Given Nintendo has proven video games can be used as an IP, perhaps we could try using RDR or Cyberpunk 2077.

Good point, Outbound! We've yet to see a land themed to those genres in Universal in real-life (since Disney has Frontierland and Tomorrowland in the parks), so it would be interesting to retell those themes in a different light. I'm admittedly not well-versed with games though, but from a cursory read through both games' Wiki pages (I'm assuming RDR is Red Death Redemption from 2014?), I think Cyberpunk 2077 would be interesting to adapt given the eclectic architectural styles present in Night City, which could probably easily lend itself to various experiences.

 

[goofyyukyuk]

I would say LOTR is the safest and clearest bet. It’s certainly epic and the movies will be forever iconic. It also has a future, though we’ll have to see how it turns out. I would love to work with it. My only concern is how “bland” it could be perceived to the judges, given its the most obvious pick in my eyes.

I’d agree that we’d have to work harder to make it really work and not come across as bland, but I’m not sure that it’s an obvious choice.

This just popped into my head but currently Epic Universe has
—Nintendo (Animated Style)
—Monsters (Horror Style)
—How to Train Your Dragon (Fantasy Style)

Some genres that haven’t been touched in Universal are Western and Sci Fi. Maybe focus a land around one of these concepts. Given Nintendo has proven video games can be used as an IP, perhaps we could try using RDR or Cyberpunk 2077.

My hesitation with that is that I think RDR and Cyberpunk are too niche to appeal to a wide variety of audiences. The more universal (pun intended) the IP, the better... IPs like Spongebob, LotR, Star Trek, etc are significantly more universal than those or even, in my opinion, most anime options.

 

[Sharon&Susan]

Since there’s a lack of IPs that originated on TV or in the 50’s or 60’s in Epic Universe, I think the Golden Age of Television is a good place to start:

Outer Limits:

• The sci-fi horror intrinsic to the IP, would complement its next door neighbor, the Universal Monsters area, really well while having its own distinct feel.
• Not an overused IP, with only a barely themed roller coaster at Kings Island previously being themed to it.

Setting it in Nevada and having the main attraction be set in Area 51 would be a great excuse to use recognizable alien species from both the original series and the 90’s version.


Gotham City ‘66

- Would stylistically be a middle point between a comic book look and the replication of reality style that we’ve seen many superhero lands go to one extreme or the other.

-Many death traps to take advantage of, that are too over the top for the modern version of Batman.

-Could cross over with the George Reeve’s version of Superman and Lynda Carter’s version of Wonder Woman since both have been canonized into the Adam West Batman universe.