Rumor Figment, well, to be replaced by Figment

[ppete1975]

With the EPCOT overhaul announcement that we got over 2 years ago, I’ve always wondered when Figment will finally get his time to shine once again, with maybe a new original attraction or a upgrade to the original’s concept. Do y’all think Figment will get to return with his faithful companion, Dreamfinder? Or do you think some “emotional” characters may be making a new home out of the pavilion? Let’s talk about it!

First welcome. Second, great choice of a nickname and avatar i enjoy the show too. Imagination is prob not going to see any changes in at least 5 years (unless its closed) and the only change that might happen is another movie next door. Even though Figment has become the festival mascot (sometimes sharing with mickey or another rat) and a pretty successful marvel comic. The upper management seem to have no faith in him or care about dreamfinder, and feel only the die hards give a crap. And that only Ip is what matters to the general populace, not a character with two tiny wings, eyes big and yellow Horn of a steer, but a lovable fellow From head to tail, he's royal purple pigment that is only known by epcot lovers.

 

[FigmentJedi]

Jim Zub tweeted this excerpt from his outline for the canned third Figment comic, which was focused on Spaceship Earth.

 

[Homemade Imagineering]

Jim Zub tweeted this excerpt from his outline for the canned third Figment comic, which was focused on Spaceship Earth.

Wow, makes me sad every time I think back on the comics and how amazing they were, at bringing Dreamfinder and Figment to a brand new audience. I’ve been feeling pretty pessimistic about the future of Imagination lately, probably because it’s best I don’t keep my hopes up for anything, especially anything anytime soon, because who knows what decisions they’ll make, 5 years down the line. I’d like to remain hopeful we’ll eventually get the attraction we really deserve, but I’m just not feeling like the uppers will ever approve anything akin to the original attraction anymore. I know I sound like a broken record at this point, but I guess that’s just how I see the situation at the moment. There are obvious replacements in store for Imagination, some of which I’m sure WDI has conceptualized to an extent, I’m sure it’s the uppers who are so resentful towards those replacements, and thus we haven’t seen anything happen in 20 years.

 

[brb1006]

Jim Zub tweeted this excerpt from his outline for the canned third Figment comic, which was focused on Spaceship Earth.

Spongebob = Longtime fans of Epcot, Journey Into Imagination, and the Figment Comics

The other characters at Rock Bottom = The current people at Disney

Being an Epcot fan is suffering!

 

[brb1006]

Wow, makes me sad every time I think back on the comics and how amazing they were, at bringing Dreamfinder and Figment to a brand new audience. I’ve been feeling pretty pessimistic about the future of Imagination lately, probably because it’s best I don’t keep my hopes up for anything, especially anything anytime soon, because who knows what decisions they’ll make, 5 years down the line. I’d like to remain hopeful we’ll eventually get the attraction we really deserve, but I’m just not feeling like the uppers will ever approve anything akin to the original attraction anymore. I know I sound like a broken record at this point, but I guess that’s just how I see the situation at the moment. There are obvious replacements in store for Imagination, some of which I’m sure WDI has conceptualized to an extent, I’m sure it’s the uppers who are so resentful towards those replacements, and thus we haven’t seen anything happen in 20 years.

Same here, I been obsessed with the Figment Comics for a while now. It's just screaming to become it's own animated series. Disney+ would be the perfect platform for this to become a reality.

 

[Homemade Imagineering]

Here’s something fun! This is officially the second time Figment has been animated using CGI since 2002 in this new commercial!

skip to 1:11

 

[Haymarket2008]

Here’s something fun! This is officially the second time Figment has been animated using CGI since 2002 in this new commercial!

skip to 1:11

And you can hear that it is Billy Barty!

 

[Homemade Imagineering]

And you can hear that it is Billy Barty!

Yep! Even if that's an original sound clip from the original attraction, it makes you wonder whether Disney is really that resentful towards the Goelz version, since the Goelz Figment is associated with the current attraction. To me it's pretty obvious that Disney isn't proud of Imagination's current state. Whatever is to come, considering Figment is going to be involved in a VR project, whatever it may be, it looks a bit promising for the little dragon's future. I mean, if they're really going to leave Figment out of any future redo, they'll be shooting themselves in the foot, and it'll be a repeat of 1999 all over again. Merch sales will tank, and the character will fall into obscurity. It would be a pathetic business decision, and they'd end up facing somewhat of a PR nightmare.

 

[The Rocketeer]

If they ever did do Figment right by throwing us a bone and redoing the original JII with new effects I'd forgive the rest of the changes that have happened in the overhaul.

 

[Giss Neric]

Figment is killing it these days. A cameo in a car commercial and his very own shampoo commercial.

 

[wbostic12]

Disney should have realized by now that with all the positive reaction to EPCOT Center tributes, the people want the classics. If they are going to use Figment as a way to promote the park, they need to make the attraction he is in comparable to the old to continue its nostalgia. I bet the reason most people like Figment isn't because of him and Nigel Channing, it's because of him and Dreamfinder.

 

[HauntedPirate]

Disney should have realized by now that with all the positive reaction to EPCOT Center tributes, the people want the classics. If they are going to use Figment as a way to promote the park, they need to make the attraction he is in comparable to the old to continue its nostalgia. I bet the reason most people like Figment isn't because of him and Nigel Channing, it's because of him and Dreamfinder.

TDO is giving EPCOT Center fans the classics! Retro t-shirts, retro hats, retro-inspired posters with the new EPCOT logo on them... It's retro merchandise galore! They get it!!

Wait... that isn't what you were referring to?

 

[wbostic12]

TDO is giving EPCOT Center fans the classics! Retro t-shirts, retro hats, retro-inspired posters with the new EPCOT logo on them... It's retro merchandise galore! They get it!!

Wait... that isn't what you were referring to?

I was trying to say that the merch for the old attractions and old events are proof that if they would build them back, they would be beloved. I know that Disney tearing down Mission:SPACE for a new Horizons attraction is unlikely, but for Imagination, they didn't put tons of money into the current ride like Test Track or Mission:SPACE, so there should be no reason that a ride that is not currently a crowd pleaser shouldn't be replaced by a updated version of one that was on top of the guest satisfaction list (and I believe still would be).

Sorry I phrased that last post so ambiguously.

 

[HauntedPirate]

I was trying to say that the merch for the old attractions and old events are proof that if they would build them back, they would be beloved. I know that Disney tearing down Mission:SPACE for a new Horizons attraction is unlikely, but for Imagination, they didn't put tons of money into the current ride like Test Track or Mission:SPACE, so there should be no reason that a ride that is not currently a crowd pleaser shouldn't be replaced by a updated version of one that was on top of the guest satisfaction list (and I believe still would be).

Sorry I phrased that last post so ambiguously.

It wasn't ambiguous at all, actually. They'll never go back to those old, boring, antiquated rides that "no one ever rode", just ask some of the posters around here. People only want cheap thrills these days and are willing to pay $150/day or more for them... at least according to the guest surveys they tend to focus on.

 

[Inspired Figment]

It wasn't ambiguous at all, actually. They'll never go back to those old, boring, antiquated rides that "no one ever rode", just ask some of the posters around here. People only want cheap thrills these days and are willing to pay $150/day or more for them... at least according to the guest surveys they tend to focus on.

Perhaps that may have been the case like 15 or so years ago. But with the Guardians coaster coming.. to me it’d seem like a better plan to have a healthy mix of both classic well themed darkrides along with themed thrill rides. I’m no analyst but I feel like lately, people have been craving those classic darkrides, even competing parks that have mainly focused on thrill in the last decade like Knott’s & Universal have realized this.

 

[wbostic12]

It wasn't ambiguous at all, actually. They'll never go back to those old, boring, antiquated rides that "no one ever rode", just ask some of the posters around here. People only want cheap thrills these days and are willing to pay $150/day or more for them... at least according to the guest surveys they tend to focus on.

I understand why they wouldn't redo any other pavilions, but Imagination has needed a facelift since JIYI and Imageworks-lite opened. They can finish up on their project of turning the entire Innoventions plaza into a field, and then work on Figment.

 

[Inspired Figment]

I was trying to say that the merch for the old attractions and old events are proof that if they would build them back, they would be beloved. I know that Disney tearing down Mission:SPACE for a new Horizons attraction is unlikely, but for Imagination, they didn't put tons of money into the current ride like Test Track or Mission:SPACE, so there should be no reason that a ride that is not currently a crowd pleaser shouldn't be replaced by a updated version of one that was on top of the guest satisfaction list (and I believe still would be).

Sorry I phrased that last post so ambiguously.

You know something... in a what-if scenario... if a Imagination comeback was successful enough... you never know. A Horizons comeback could possibly be very likely depending on the overall guest satisfaction rating on Mission: Space. Mission: Space was fairly impressive at the time, I’ll admit. But again, with so many classic elements of the parks being drastically overhauled. I think it’d certainly be a refresher to see atleast a couple fan favorites make a return with some modern day enhancements. Particularly since those 2 are the most missed/beloved it seems, atleast from my observations. Adding that along with Spaceship Earth, Living with the Land, American Adventure, and Impressions de France. That I think would give a fairly perfect balance of classics & new

 

[Inspired Figment]

But for now, taking Disney’s financial situation into account. Imagination would certainly be the most feasible since the original building still exists in essence, it just needs parts of it restored.. and whatever things it needed upgraded back in 83-98 could be easily done today for a decent budget I’d think.

 

[wbostic12]

But for now, taking Disney’s financial situation into account. Imagination would certainly be the most feasible since the original building still exists in essence, it just needs parts of it restored.. and whatever things it needed upgraded back in 83-98 could be easily done today for a decent budget I’d think.

If it hadn't been for Kodak...

 

[Inspired Figment]

If it hadn't been for Kodak...

The drastic theme change (an IP no less.. the Honey, I Shrunk franchise) & fault of not providing whatever Kodak was able to fund at that time to properly upgrade the ride (simple tech enhancements along with some minor scenic changes & possible ride elements originally planned but cut due to budget at the time of it’s original build) was ‘completely’ on Disney. Don’t kid yourself. It also didn’t help matters in that they intentionally suppressed marketing on the ride & changed signage & queue ropes around ‘94-95 or so when Honey, I Shrunk the Audience opened in order to lower attendance numbers and prove to Kodak & other higher ups that it somehow needed a theme change...