AVATAR land construction progress

[doctornick]

I know a lot of people probably wouldn't love IP in Africa, but I think if it gets its own sub section down past the theater, a nice Lion King dark ride with a large Pride Rock facade could be very fun for the 50th.

Absolutely. As long as it is themed to blend into the area, it would be welcome by most. The area near the theater is actually begging for more stuff and could be framed as "nearby, but outside the city" depending on execution to fit better with a wilderness based IP.

I actually think that Tarzan (especially focusing on the gorilla tribe) would be a preferable choice just due to variety but would have no problem with The Lion King getting more representation.

 

[DDLand]

A variation of Mystic Point would be a great mini land between Africa and Pandora.
With a tweaked storyline, more focused on nature

Then it would cease to be Mystic Manor. The whole attraction centers around man's creations. Animal Kingdom concerns itself with the living and natural in our real world. No magic is required to bring Elephants to life. Any ancient or imagined creatures are brought to life by our own fascination with them and their longstanding cultural impact.

The beloved protagonist of Mystic Manor, the troublemaking Albert, also fails critically to relay any natural behavior. He's a cartoonish view of a Monkey that portrays humanity's personification of what a monkey is. While I would argue to no end that there is a time and a place for characters like Albert and the equally fun loving Chandu, Disney's Animal Kingdom is simply not one of them.

People don't go to Disney's Animal Kingdom to see man's interpretation of an animal, people go to Disney's Animal Kingdom to be dazzled by natural behavior. A key distinction.

Any clone of Mystic Manor should preserve both the excellent attractions identity, but also reinforce the park's purpose.

I think Bambi,The Jungle Book, and Tarzan would fit better compared to 101 Dalmatians and Lady And The Tramp since both are set in a different era. While Bambi,The Jungle Book, and Tarzan are mainly set in a forest/jungle setting.

None of them fit because none display true Animal behavior. Let's not turn Animal Kingdom into Magic Kingdom 4.0.

 

[brihow]

People don't go to Disney's Animal Kingdom to see man's interpretation of an animal, people go to Disney's Animal Kingdom to be dazzled by natural behavior. A key distinction.
.

Ummm.....did you know Pandora opens this summer?

 

[DDLand]

Ummm.....did you know Pandora opens this summer?

Absolutely.

Spoiler: This is not intended to start a debate, so those who can't help themselves should probably skip this. ;)

The original Fantasy area would have been justified by the below:
"Any ancient or imagined creatures are brought to life by our own fascination with them and their longstanding cultural impact."

Beastly Kingdom would have drawn from a deep tapestry of culture, much like Everest. Steeped in ancient tradition of how man viewed the world. For Himalayan and Medieval cultures, these creatures were viewed as very real (and even are today). The creatures themselves were echoes of real ancient creatures and artistic embellishments of real living creatures. Their placement is more logical.

The current Fantasy area, Avatar, is more loosely connected to the source material of Disney's Animal Kingdom. That's a problem with the IP's fit, not the Park's aspirations. I would certainly cede that, indeed, Pandora does somewhat break the mold. Though only to a point. Joe has carefully laced real natural elements into the land. Going so far into detail as to have a full food chain mapped out, scientific theories behind different Pandoran elements, and carefully crafted behaviors that will no doubt mimic real creatures.

It is less than ideal, but it does appear that he's working as hard as possible to infuse elements that match what Disney's Animal Kingdom is all about. The park is so much more than just a beautiful environments and lush vegetation, it has heart and a message.

 

[GoofGoof]

Ummm.....did you know Pandora opens this summer?

Sounds like maybe spring now

 

[GoofGoof]

Absolutely.

Spoiler: This is not intended to start a debate, so those who can't help themselves should probably skip this. ;)

The original Fantasy area would have been justified by the below:
"Any ancient or imagined creatures are brought to life by our own fascination with them and their longstanding cultural impact."

Beastly Kingdom would have drawn from a deep tapestry of culture, much like Everest. Steeped in ancient tradition of how man viewed the world. For Himalayan and Medieval cultures, these creatures were viewed as very real (and even are today). The creatures themselves were echoes of real ancient creatures and artistic embellishments of real living creatures. Their placement is more logical.

The current Fantasy area, Avatar, is more loosely connected to the source material of Disney's Animal Kingdom. That's a problem with the IP's fit, not the Park's aspirations. Though I will certainly cede that, indeed, Pandora does somewhat break the mold. Though only to a point. Joe has carefully laced real natural elements into the land. Going so far into detail as to have a full food chain mapped out, scientific theories behind different Pandoran elements, and carefully crafted behaviors that will no doubt mimic real creatures.

It is less than ideal, but it does appear that he's working as hard as possible to infuse elements that match what Disney's Animal Kingdom is all about. The park is so much more than just a beautiful environments and lush vegetation, it has heart and a message.

I hear what you are saying and agree about not creating MK 4.0. I do think there is some room for IP based rides in AK. Just because a movie features cartoon animal characters doesn't make it a fit though. Lion King or Jungle Book would possibly work IMHO. The ride would have to feature the characters but be geared to the overall theme of the park as opposed to a book report ride retellimg the story of the movie. It's doable without destroying the heart and soul of the park.

 

[S 2]

Have you guys seen this!?!?!

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https://www.facebook.com/WaltDisneyWorld/videos/10155035623388274/&show_text=0&width=560

 

[GoofGoof]

Have you guys seen this!?!?!

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https://www.facebook.com/WaltDisneyWorld/videos/10155035623388274/&show_text=0&width=560

Yep. It aired during the Disney Christmas Day parade but that version is higher quality.

 

[Pi on my Cake]

None of them fit because none display true Animal behavior. Let's not turn Animal Kingdom into Magic Kingdom 4.0.

Do real life insects put on musical variety shows? Cuz they do in the Bugs Life 3d movie literally built into the heart of the park.

What about Lions and Meerkats singing songs? Cuz they do in Festival of the Lion King which is one of the biggest attractions there. A show so beloved that it survived longer than the land it was in.

What about singing fish with family issues? Cuz that happens in another signature show. Don't forget the rollerblading monkeys from the ago it replaced.

Cartoony animals have been a huge part of the park since the beginning. The key is that they are done right. There's no reason a Bambi attraction in the Oasis area or in a new area. Or, if implemented well, a Jungle Book ride in Asia.

 

[roodlesnouter]

Everyone knows you are a master of understatement.

And that's putting it mildly

 

[DDLand]

Do real life insects put on musical variety shows? Cuz they do in the Bugs Life 3d movie literally built into the heart of the park.

What about Lions and Meerkats singing songs? Cuz they do in Festival of the Lion King which is one of the biggest attractions there. A show so beloved that it survived longer than the land it was in.

What about singing fish with family issues? Cuz that happens in another signature show. Don't forget the rollerblading monkeys from the ago it replaced.

Cartoony animals have been a huge part of the park since the beginning. The key is that they are done right. There's no reason a Bambi attraction in the Oasis area or in a new area. Or, if implemented well, a Jungle Book ride in Asia.

Attempts to drive synergy and quickly increase capacity do not the park make. Look at the core attractions. Walk the trails. Study its message.

Nature is center stage.

 

[marni1971]

Attempts to drive synergy and quickly increase capacity do not the park make. Look at the core attractions. Walk the trails. Study its message.

Nature is center stage.

You forgot it's mainly tourists who visit.

 

[Mike S]

You forgot it's mainly tourists who visit.

What do they know?

 

[brb1006]

Do real life insects put on musical variety shows? Cuz they do in the Bugs Life 3d movie literally built into the heart of the park.

What about Lions and Meerkats singing songs? Cuz they do in Festival of the Lion King which is one of the biggest attractions there. A show so beloved that it survived longer than the land it was in.

What about singing fish with family issues? Cuz that happens in another signature show. Don't forget the rollerblading monkeys from the ago it replaced.

Cartoony animals have been a huge part of the park since the beginning. The key is that they are done right. There's no reason a Bambi attraction in the Oasis area or in a new area. Or, if implemented well, a Jungle Book ride in Asia.

He's right

 

[Timothy_Q]

Then it would cease to be Mystic Manor. The whole attraction centers around man's creations. Animal Kingdom concerns itself with the living and natural in our real world. No magic is required to bring Elephants to life. Any ancient or imagined creatures are brought to life by our own fascination with them and their longstanding cultural impact.

People don't go to Disney's Animal Kingdom to see man's interpretation of an animal, people go to Disney's Animal Kingdom to be dazzled by natural behavior. A key distinction.

I don't think that's true at all.
Animal Kingdom is about both Nature and Man and how they come together. It's about conservation.

Harambe and Anandapur are both about how "Man's creations" work together with nature

And "No magic is required to bring Elephants to life"? Are you serious?
Serka Zong is entirely built around the concept of a legendary animal, a human creation.
And Beaslty Kingdom, part of AK's original message, is about Imaginary animals.

So, if a unicorn can fit in AK, so can Mystic Manor.

 

[matt9112]

Good lord some people are just miserable.

i think we just want to hold the company that invented the "theme park" to those same high standards......

 

[matt9112]

ToT does not have aircraft avoidance lights as it is under 200'. I would imagine the same is true for the floating mountains as Disney actively designs to avoid having the add them.

To date, I think the only in park structure to ever have one was the wand at Epcot.

as an aside since the airspace is so regulated to begin with it amazes me they cant get waivers....an attraction is never going to move so it can be marked on maps and aircraft are so heavily monitored to begin with i doubt somebody would accidentally slam into a ride...

 

[Daveeeeed]

i think we just want to hold the company that invented the "theme park" to those same high standards......

A shame really as you'd think they would want their largest and by far most visited resort to be the best. With four parks it still somehow seems to be worse than Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland, and comparing just MK to Disneyland Parc Paris.
I think the main issue is their treatment of Walt Disney World, as the additions to Disneyland, Hong Kong, (although not theirs) Tokyo, the new Shanghai, and to a lesser degree DLP actually have added updates to their parks.

Disneyland Parc Paris has the unique situation of the park underperforming, so they couldn't really afford to add a big headliner to the castle park this decade.

Meanwhile WDW is breaking records practically everyday yet the last major ride added to The Magic Kingdom was Splash Mountain. At Disneyland Paris, the park itself was only open for 3 months before they made the last E-ticket added to MK which was Splash Mountain and on top of that we lost 20k Leagues Under The Sea. And the only major ride update MK has received was the Haunted Mansion, but Disneyland still found a way to upgrade it. In the time MK has topped 20 million in a year's attendance (thus the guest experience going down with higher prices) Disneyland has overhauled Space Mountain, The Haunted Mansion, Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, Matterhorn, Big Thunder, Star Tours among others... added Indiana Jones Adventure, added a great Toontown -- may I go on?

Partly to blame for this was EuroDisneyland's unfortunate failure which caused the already underfunded 2nd, 3rd, and 4th WDW parks to cancel, shrink, or delay expansions to the second parks at Disney World which is chasing them to expand now. But today the problem for the MK is that too many people go so there's no reason to add a spectacular new attraction, even for capacity. Which is actually quite sad as we are still in a deficit of attractions from the last century for the MK.

Thankfully they are fixing the non-castle WDW parks now, but as much as I love Disney and if you have been many times, the MK is really only worth more than one visit per trip if you can go super early or late in the day, or off-season times. I mean you can't even get on Winnie the Pooh without waiting over half an hour.

 

[MisterPenguin]

as an aside since the airspace is so regulated to begin with it amazes me they cant get waivers....an attraction is never going to move so it can be marked on maps and aircraft are so heavily monitored to begin with i doubt somebody would accidentally slam into a ride...

By that same logic, then famous buildings, such as the Empire State Building doesn't need lights.

 

[matt9112]

By that same logic, then famous buildings, such as the Empire State Building doesn't need lights.

Far more air traffic there....WDW is a bit different.