In terms of character addition to Small World, I disagree fully. I feel the attraction is still the same in general, same message, but with a cute little addition that does not take from the attraction, and only made it stronger. Again, I think the fact it was likely corporate mandated should be taken into account. They were integrated quite well, minus maybe Woody/Jessie.
The original themes of small world... the idea that each culture is powerful, valid, special, and that the world belongs to us all despite our differences are timeless and powerful.
Reducing each of these cultures to the fake Disney movie that took place there cheapens the experience. Not to mention the fictional fish scene that was added for Ariel
. Good thing Hawaii now has stitch as their mascot!
Adding characters to small world would have potentially worked if instead of fictional Disney characters, they added representations of important and legendary individuals from each culture to show how each place has influenced the world.
Sure, it might have been mandated and dumped onto Irvine... but the execution was far from perfect. In fact, the new scenes are easily the worst parts of it, since there was none of Mary Blair's wonderfully designed show scenes to distract from Irvine's ineptness. The America scene stands out as a cheap copy of Mary Blair's unique style, and the Little Mermaid scene is also incredibly poor.
The other issue? By adding characters, the ride is now dated and limited to the characters that were around in '08. Instead of being the timeless attraction it was for decades that required little to no changes, it's going to require updating in the next 20 years as some of the characters added being irrelevant, or stronger characters for each culture are created within Disney and Pixar. Already, Coco is a strong candidate for Mexico... and Moana a far stronger candidate then Lilo and Stitch.
Let me add, one of the strengths of early Disneyland is the fact it didn't always rely on the films for content in the park. This allowed it to operate with some independence from the studio, and allowed the park to thrive during times when the studio wasn't. Not everything needs Disney characters. Adding Disney characters to small world is a strong indicator of a shift in Disney's approach to Disneyland. No longer is it a place where highly trained and passionate designers can craft and realize a Disneyland that's always improving and becoming stronger in it's own identity. It's now simply a place where Disney can sell the latest merchandise and (literally) advertise the latest film. This shift might not have short term ramifications... the fans the park gained through the 1900s and early '00s are still enamored with the park... but I worry that the people being born now are going to experience a Disneyland that's far weaker and far less appealing then the park we all know and love. Modern Disneyland is a far more superficial experience then in the past. That's not to say there shouldn't be IP in new experiences... but it's incredibly important that how IP is handled is carefully considered to help strengthen the Disneyland brand instead of fracturing and weakening the park and existing attractions (looking at you Galaxy's Edge and Disney characters in small world).
