Disneyland Fantasmic Dragon Engulfed in Flames

[CaptinEO]

This. Judging by video, you are forming an impression based on someone else's impression. There's a huge difference between experiencing something in person and experiencing something through at least two layers of impression.

Opening nights have hiccups, even opening nights put on by billion dollar companies, even opening nights for shows that have run before (similarly, the first few days every seasonal park opens for a new season, even one open for 50 years? Guranteed to have hiccups!) Things happen. Sounds like that was the case here too. Perhaps they'll be better in a week. If they're not, THAT'S when the judgment can start in earnest IMO.

Haven't watched the show in any capacity yet (and won't for awhile), but sounds like a lot of people are running in eager to confirm their preconceived notions of the new show (or Disney in general) based on someone else's video, as usual.

Thank you: I've seen pre GE Fantasmic and 2017 Fantasmic 3 times each. The pyro, colors, and lasers in the 2024 show are a SIGNIFICANT improvement in size, quality, and quantity.

It was a great experience. Live streamed video certainly doesn't show what the event is like. Even simple effects like sparks when Mickey vanishes looked dazzling.

The color searchlights going through the water made the colored water look so vibrant and saturated.

I'm not saying I don't miss the Dragon but this is a really great show. I'm no Disney defender but they really made effort to improve this show in many ways, even in some cases backpedaling to revert to an older version.

Maybe also when nice 4k rendered and edited versions appear online in the next few days that weren't live people can have a somewhat better idea.

Seeing fantasmic on a computer is like watching fireworks on your computer vs being there, it's not even a close comparison.

I'll say this much too, that crowd was the biggest crowd of Fantasmic fans and die hards and they were applauding and cheering at all the new great effects. It was the most enthusiastic audience I've seen for the show.

Do you think if the diehard Fantasmic fans were let down they'd be reacting that way?

 

[TTA94]

Okay, I've watched a couple other videos of tonight's debut now, and made one (1) more French 75, and I now realize...

This isn't good enough. This show does not meet, much less even begin to exceed, longtime Disney standards for major theme park entertainment. It's too sparsely populated. Too much screens, not enough action. Not enough boats and interactivity happening on the river. Not even an attempt to tap into new technology like aerial drones, robotics, laser imaging, etc.

Just because Disney's recent water spectaculars have been mediocre at best, to hilariously awful at worst; KiteTails, Rivers of Light, Harmonious, etc. does NOT mean that they can keep getting away with this crap level of performance and showmanship.

If anything, the recent failures at nighttime entertainment (aside from just abandoning it entirely like MSEP, Paint The Night, etc.) should have guided them to expect more and deliver more for Disneyland's Fantasmic!.

They failed at their jobs here. And it took them over a year to reach that level of failure? This isn't good enough.

I agree the quality of entertainment for both coasts has gotten very poor. Soundtrack wise as well. The quality of Better Together IMO is a joke. Even Paint The Nights quality is questionable, but many seem to love it at least.

 

[TheCoasterNerd]

FYI, the dragon is getting a new AA built right now in London. Expecting it to return for the 70th, but I do know they're building a new one for sure

why do people feel the need to laugh react to serious posts

 

[Mikomike12]

My biggest gripe, is they changed most of the awesome colorful lighting throughout the show, it really sucked the color right out. Lots of segments that were once colorful are just white lights now, or significantly less colorful

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Overall, I think DHS has the better version right now.

After watching last night I’d agree with this, DL has always had the superior version of F! but without Murphy the inferior HS version is currently the better version.

Still a good show and better than nothing though, at the very least it’ll pull people out of queues and make riding rides at night easier.

 

[mickEblu]

This. Judging by video, you are forming an impression based on someone else's impression. There's a huge difference between experiencing something in person and experiencing something through at least two layers of impression.

Opening nights have hiccups, even opening nights put on by billion dollar companies, even opening nights for shows that have run before (similarly, the first few days every seasonal park opens for a new season, even one open for 50 years? Guranteed to have hiccups!) Things happen. Sounds like that was the case here too. Perhaps they'll be better in a week. If they're not, THAT'S when the judgment can start in earnest IMO.

Haven't watched the show in any capacity yet (and won't for awhile), but sounds like a lot of people are running in eager to confirm their preconceived notions of the new show (or Disney in general) based on someone else's video, as usual.

Not to say the show can’t still be enjoyable under the right circumstances but no dragon is automatically B mode Fantasmic. Then factor in some of the downgrades/ upgrades (mostly downgrades) from Fantasmic 1.0 to 2.0 (which I have seen in person) and there is no reason to not come to the conclusion that spending the money to secure a good spot for the family or camping out for hours is not worth it for us. I’ll wait for 70th anniversary Fantasmic to do that.

 

[PiratesMansion]

Not to say the show can’t still be enjoyable under the right circumstances but no dragon is automatically B mode Fantasmic. Then factor in some of the downgrades/ upgrades (mostly downgrades) from Fantasmic 1.0 to 2.0 (which I have seen in person) and there is no reason to not come to the conclusion that the spending the money to secure a good spot for the family or camping out for hours is not worth it for us. I’ll wait for 70th anniversary Fantasmic to do that.

Fine, but everything about the dragon not coming back was known information.

I'm speaking in reference to whatever version of Fantasmic the community ends up deciding this will be (2.5?), not 2.0.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Update on this.

According to Reddit, CMs were stuck on the Columbia and hence couldn't transfer to their roles on the Mark Twain for the finale, thus reducing the number of characters on the boat.

Hope these issues are resolved tomorrow and future shows!
View attachment 787478

Good news! It looks like the stunts even had to be modified due to the situation.

All eyes on it tonight!

I did see the second show had Mickeys hand pyro working, and the missing comets behind him.

 

[Epcot81Fan]

why do people feel the need to laugh react to serious posts

Because the concept of repairing a broken piece of a 30 year old show as something “for the 70th” is ridiculous and deserving of open mockery.

It is hilarious that the company has fallen to this impossibly low standard.

 

[Nland316]

I don't understand why they re-orchestrated peter pan but didn't make the music transition good. I understand there's no dragon, but the musical build up to the fire is just gone. I'm sure it'll be fixed when the dragon returns but tight now it doesn't look great.

“Technically” speaking the transition music is timed for the dragon set piece to rise up from the stage pit. I guess for this version, it makes sense why it would be unnecessary, and be cut.

I do agree it feels awkward, but I feel pretty confident that it will be brought back the way it exactly was whenever we get a new dragon.

 

[SuddenStorm]

What's baffling about this current version of the show is that it's as if Disney is trying to ignore the fact they have a near perfect version of Fantasmic! that ran successfully from '92-'15.

Then they decided to mess with the Soundtrack and show scenes and debuted a version that while flashy lacked the substance and soul of the original. I mean the original went without any changes to the core show for decades- 2017 had changes to the soundtrack within months of opening. And I think they knew that the new one is a mess- so when they revised it here they decided to bring some of the elements back from the '92 version, creating this weird iteration that doesn't please die hard fans but also doesn't make sense to casual viewers. I mean everything good about this version is a holdout from the original- and the new stuff is a mess of bad transitions and messy show scenes that kill the pacing of the show.

Bring back the '92 soundtrack and scenes, complete with the head on a stick dragon until the time they decide to invest in a proper animatronic again. Utilize the new pyro/laser/projection/lighting effects that were installed for '17.

 

[TTA94]

Is there a reason why they cut the opening island projections and colored lighting before Mickey appears? Also the colored lighting during Steamboat as well, though I can see why white lighting might be better.

I agree with others they need to go back to original soundtrack and scenes. Keep the updated lighting and projections and use the old dragon on a stick till they fix the other dragon.

 

[SuddenStorm]

Is there a reason why they cut the opening island projections and colored lighting before Mickey appears? Also the colored lighting during Steamboat as well, though I can see why white lighting might be better.

Just guessing- but in my opinion those new effects took away from the focus of those scenes. Mickey's reveal from 'nothing' was incredible- having the extra projections and early reveal sort of took away from that.

For the Mark Twain segment- the colored lighting distracted from Steamboat Willie and the character reveal. In the original, the Twain coming around the corner with the spinners than 'exploding' to life with the characters was an incredible moment, and the 2017 lighting detracted from it.

At some point, just because you can do all the effects all the time, doesn't mean you should. It's good to show restraint and pay attention to what the focus of each scene needs to be.

 

[Disney Analyst]

Is there a reason why they cut the opening island projections and colored lighting before Mickey appears? Also the colored lighting during Steamboat as well, though I can see why white lighting might be better.

I agree with others they need to go back to original soundtrack and scenes. Keep the updated lighting and projections and use the old dragon on a stick till they fix the other dragon.

Likely as they reverted more to the original lighting, which was always white bright light. In the version before, Mickey appeared right away, and brought the color with him.

 

[Starship824]

What's baffling about this current version of the show is that it's as if Disney is trying to ignore the fact they have a near perfect version of Fantasmic! that ran successfully from '92-'15.

Then they decided to mess with the Soundtrack and show scenes and debuted a version that while flashy lacked the substance and soul of the original. I mean the original went without any changes to the core show for decades- 2017 had changes to the soundtrack within months of opening. And I think they knew that the new one is a mess- so when they revised it here they decided to bring some of the elements back from the '92 version, creating this weird iteration that doesn't please die hard fans but also doesn't make sense to casual viewers. I mean everything good about this version is a holdout from the original- and the new stuff is a mess of bad transitions and messy show scenes that kill the pacing of the show.

Bring back the '92 soundtrack and scenes, complete with the head on a stick dragon until the time they decide to invest in a proper animatronic again. Utilize the new pyro/laser/projection/lighting effects that were installed for '17.

This. All of this, keep the original scenes and music with updated technology. Although I do think they should keep a lot of the new animation, it's one of the things that was an easy win for the DHS version that they didn't do that I think they should have.

 

[TP2000]

Have you read Jack Lindquist's In Service to the Mouse? If you haven't, it's full of great stories that any modern exec would never share.

There's a chapter where the talks about the original Fantasmic!. And what an incredible accomplishment it was. It's insane the impact the original show had on the park, and that seems all but forgotten now but the current entertainment team.

Yes, I have his book and it's fantastic! It should be mandatory reading for any Disneyland fan.

That this show was created in the early 90's as a stopgap measure to boost attendance during a Recession and before Indy could open a few years later is truly impressive. That's the Disneyland of yore that we all know and love, when the entire organization put Showmanship and Hospitality ahead of bureaucracy and short-sighted budget cuts.

When I lived in OC, Jack and his wife lived not far from me in the same town, and I knew folks who knew the Lindquists and socialized with them. If I could go back in time I should have tried to wrangle a specific invite to a dinner party that the Lindquist's were invited to, if only to slyly ask after dessert (and a few drinks) if he would sign my copy of his book.

 

[TP2000]

Fine, but everything about the dragon not coming back was known information.

I didn't know that until yesterday. Granted, I hadn't really been following this thread that closely, and the few times I did check in I was skimming mostly. But I did know Fantasmic! was returning this summer, and I had assumed that after being closed for 13 months they spent that time installing a new dragon. Why wouldn't they?!?

I wonder if you polled the 50,000 people paying to be at Disneyland on an average Saturday, how many of them would know that;

Fantasmic! was closed for a year, but is now performing again
Fantasmic! no longer has a dragon in the finale'
Fantasmic! is a water show on the Rivers of America at 9:00pm and 10:30pm

My bet is that a small minority would know the current status of the dragon element in the show. I would wager to bet that at least a third, perhaps upwards of half during heavy tourism seasons, aren't even sure what Fantasmic! is exactly.

It's a water laser show? At 9 o'clock? With Mickey Mouse in it? How do we get to the lake from here to see it?

 

[TP2000]

Opening nights have hiccups, even opening nights put on by billion dollar companies, even opening nights for shows that have run before (similarly, the first few days every seasonal park opens for a new season, even one open for 50 years? Guranteed to have hiccups!) Things happen. Sounds like that was the case here too. Perhaps they'll be better in a week. If they're not, THAT'S when the judgment can start in earnest IMO.

That is a valid point. It now seems like last night's debut was a rocky one. The Columbia broke down, the show timing was off, they had to go into B Mode from the already approved B Mode show. (What's B Mode for a show that is already in B Mode? Do we call it BB Mode? C Minus Mode?) I bet a bunch of folks who worked hard on getting Fantasmic! back went home last night and poured themselves a glass of bourbon and went straight to bed.

Update on this.

According to Reddit, CMs were stuck on the Columbia and hence couldn't transfer to their roles on the Mark Twain for the finale, thus reducing the number of characters on the boat.

Hope these issues are resolved tomorrow and future shows!
View attachment 787478

Thank you for sharing that. It makes more sense now why the Mark Twain was missing so many Characters, and why the reborn Peter Pan segment looked lackluster.

The Columbia has been integral into making this show happen for 32 years. They can't make sure it's ready to run on opening night? They had over a year to plan for this, so I'm slightly less inclined to cut them slack on this one.

 

[TP2000]

That said, although I can cut them some slack for having a crummy opening night based on that info above...

Overall, I'm still unimpressed with this show, and what it means for how the Parks are being led and operated today.

It was closed for over a year. The Company that owns this water show and the theme park facility it plays in wastes hundreds of millions of dollars on bomb movies and bad business decisions every year. Previous closures and remounts to this 32 year old show in the 2000's and 2010's were generally to add and plus up the original; adding new and upgraded stagecraft tech, adding new floats, new action, new effects, new Characters, etc.

But this time, all they did was cut back or remove stuff they used to have, and not add a single new thing to make up for it.

That isn't good enough. Sorry TDA, you can't downsize and take 3 steps back and expect praise and adulation for it.

 

[SuddenStorm]

That isn't good enough. Sorry TDA, you can't downsize and take 3 steps back and expect praise and adulation for it.

Yet praise and adulation is what they're getting. Many seem thrilled with this.

I will admit, as a die hard fan of the original I prefer this iteration to the awful 2017 version- but this is not something I would go out of my way to see. It still misses the mark.