Guardians Tower announcement Saturday in SD ...

A

andre85

Well-Known Member
mmartin046 said:
Of course, any argument that runs counter to a conspiracy becomes part of that conspiracy. :) Honestly--ToT is my favorite ride in WDW. I recently bought a preproduction script of that attraction from ebay, when it was known as "Hollywood Haunted Hotel" and had a different ride system akin to Cedar Point's "Demon Drop."
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Whoa. Can you tell us more about this? This sounds awesome! I would love to know more about the original script and ride system
 
flynnibus

flynnibus

Premium Member
mmartin046 said:
The old Hollywood section of DCA, including Tower of Terror, serves little function and is the only barrier to having Marvel in the notoriously cramped Disneyland resort.
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You mean besides being the setting of one of the most elaborate atmosphere additions like the Trolly Car..
Or being home to probably the most successful theme park broadway-type theater..
DCA is still one of the park's headliner E-Tickets
or housing the animation academy.. a very popular location

The backlot is a trainwreck... The rest of the land is anything but useless. ToT, AA, and Hyperion are all very heavy hitters in the park.
 
TP2000

TP2000

Well-Known Member
RSoxNo1 said:
The sightlines of Tower of Terror are a big issue.

Here's the thing. I buy the story line. Within the context of the movies/comics there are elements of the attraction premise that make total sense. It's not a book report. If that's the storyline for a new Guardians of the Galaxy attraction I buy it and I'm excited about it.

What should also be considered is that Hollywoodland is a thematic mess. You've got Monster's Inc, The Frozen Musical, Turtle Talk with Crush and Tower of Terror all mixed together. Hollywoodland is far from sacred ground.

The Tower of Terror at DCA is also the worst of the three versions I've experienced and it's not even remotely close. Painted on exterior detail as opposed to proper theming looks cheap relative to Tokyo and Florida. For me, this ride isn't sacred either.

Honestly, I don't hate this announcement for California only. It's not the best decision, but I don't think this is anywhere near as big of an issue/thematic break as Frozen Ever After. Of course had they opted to also do this in Florida I would be leading the way with pitchforks and torches.

My objections here are that I'd rather see the Tower demolished for a Guardians ride than retrofitted. It's not that I don't think the drop tower ride system wouldn't effectively tell the story (As I said, I buy the storyline). I just think having a shorter ride for Guardians fixes the glaring sightline issues throughout the park.

The other objection is while most of the changes are facade work and art direction, 6 months seems way too short for Disney's normal time frame. I suspect this will feel cheap, even with Rohde's presence on the project.
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Agree with almost everything you say there, except that the sightlines of Tower of Terror are bad. It sounds to me like you are saying they are bad because Tower is, at times, visible from other lands in DCA (plus some spots in Disneyland).

The bizare looking Pueblo-Deco hotel with half its structure blown off has been visible from the patio of the Golden Vine Winery since 2004, but somehow folks were able to get their Pinot Grigio down without choking.

I find it fascinating when people complain about being able to see a ride they don't approve of (Mission: BREAKOUT! 2017) from other lands, but remain silent when they can see a ride they do approve of in other lands (Matterhorn 1959, Thunder Mountain 1979, Grizzly Peak 2001, etc.). You can see the Matterhorn from Buena Vista Street, but no one has ever said one word about that on message boards.

To hear some fans tell it, suddenly because it's Marvel and not an Eisner-era IP licensed from CBS, it's the downfall of themed entertainment.

RSoxNo1 said:
DCA's version is still a very fun attraction, but the painted detail and inferior ride profile make the gap between DCA and DHS's version of Tower far more substantial than the gap between Disneyland and Magic Kingdom's Pirates, IMO.
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Agreed. But the painted on flat detail of DCA's Tower (thanks Paul Pressler! Hi Cynthia Harriss!) is about to be fixed with real surfaces and design. Seeing this in the distance from the Golden Vine Winery won't ruin my Pinot Grigio any more than seeing Twilight Zone Tower of Terror did.
GOTGExt1280.jpg
 
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TP2000

TP2000

Well-Known Member
CaptainAmerica said:
I am absolutely not an expert on Disneyland, but is it even possible for them to add per se, even if they wanted to? My understanding is that, with a few exceptions, their footprint is fully built and anything new they get in the future will need to replace something old.
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Even before Star Wars construction there were still several expansion pads within Disneyland Park boundaries. Star Wars Land adds 14 acres of previously unused space and adds two E Tickets to Disneyland, but it also opens up two sizable expansion pads to be used in the future. One of those pads is rumored to be the Arendelle village with Frozen E Ticket expansion that Tokyo DisneySea is also getting.

DCA has much more space to expand, with expansion pads within existing lands like Paradise Pier and Hollywood Land, plus about 30 additional acres on surface parking lots or bus loading zones that will soon go away when the new parking structure opens in 2018. There's a lot of space left.
 
Suspirian

Suspirian

Well-Known Member
TP2000 said:
Agreed. But the painted on flat detail of DCA's Tower (thanks Paul Pressler! Hi Cynthia Harriss!) is about to be fixed with real surfaces and design. Seeing this in the distance from the Golden Vine Winery won't ruin my Pinot Grigio any more than seeing Twilight Zone Tower of Terror did.
GOTGExt1280.jpg
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Agreed, I'm not really worried about the sight lines, but I'd at least like for the all that design to be a bit better looking? While the current tower is just as intrusive it at least looks like it belongs in Hollywoodland/ the park to an extent. This tower looks like it should be in tomorrowland across the berm.
 
CaptainAmerica

CaptainAmerica

Premium Member
Nothsa said:
Agreed, I'm not really worried about the sight lines, but I'd at least like for the all that design to be a bit better looking? While the current tower is just as intrusive it at least looks like it belongs in Hollywoodland/ the park to an extent.
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But it won't be Hollywoodland anymore, right? It'll be Marvel Land or whatever it'll be called.

Nothsa said:
This tower looks like it should be in tomorrowland across the berm.
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How so? The Guardians Kiln aesthetic is closer to steampunk than anything futuristic.
 
TP2000

TP2000

Well-Known Member
ScottKC said:
ToT at DCA peeks out from behind various places but is not the majestic anchor(or "Weenie"...if you prefer) like it is at DHS where it is the terminus of the incredible Sunset Blvd.
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Bingo.

Now that we've seen official artwork, I'm very glad this isn't going in to DHS. It would ruin a big chunk of that park that only has five (5) rides to work with. It would be a MAJOR thematic impact for DHS.

But at DCA it will be mostly unseen until you turn the corner because you are either going to see Frozen Musical or you want to ride Mission: BREAKOUT. It will not change the sightlines or theme of any big sections of DCA, which is a park that has twenty one (21) rides to work with.
 
Suspirian

Suspirian

Well-Known Member
CaptainAmerica said:
But it won't be Hollywoodland anymore, right? It'll be Marvel Land or whatever it'll be called.


How so? The Guardians Kiln aesthetic is closer to steampunk than anything futuristic.
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Doesn't seem as though all of Hollywoodland will go considering they just finished up the Frozen musical which is located right next to TOT. If the Marvel attractions go behind Tower of Terror then that might make a bit more sense. If its in the Hollywood Backlot area, which is all the way across from TOT, it doesn't seem like it will be connected in any way. Either way there should be some consideration for the surrounding area of the park. Doesn't matter if its steampunk or futuristic it really doesn't look like it belongs in that area
 
MagicHappens1971

MagicHappens1971

Well-Known Member
Nothsa said:
Doesn't seem as though all of Hollywoodland will go considering they just finished up the Frozen musical which is located right next to TOT. If the Marvel attractions go behind Tower of Terror then that might make a bit more sense. If its in the Hollywood Backlot area, which is all the way across from TOT, it doesn't seem like it will be connected in any way. Either way there should be some consideration for the surrounding area of the park. Doesn't matter if its steampunk or futuristic it really doesn't look like it belongs in that area
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This is Disney's comment, "The new attraction will anchor a broader universe of Super Heroes that will grow over time at Disney California Adventure park". Kind of insinuates that most of the land surrounding ToT will be replaced by Marvel Land. I believe @WDW1974 stated several weeks back when he stated Guardians was coming to ToT that a Marvel rollercoaster, I believe Captain America? Would also be coming to DCA.
 
M

mmartin046

New Member
flynnibus said:
You mean besides being the setting of one of the most elaborate atmosphere additions like the Trolly Car..
Or being home to probably the most successful theme park broadway-type theater..
DCA is still one of the park's headliner E-Tickets
or housing the animation academy.. a very popular location

The backlot is a trainwreck... The rest of the land is anything but useless. ToT, AA, and Hyperion are all very heavy hitters in the park.
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No doubt, the Trolly Car is wonderful and charming. In a way, though, it represents the central flaw in DCA's original premise, which is: if I am in Disneyland, that also means I am in California. If I want Disneyland, I go to Disneyland. If I want California, I leave Disneyland.

marni1971 said:
What about the vacant parking lot behind it?

Or the Pumba lot?

One was on the cards to be Marvel Land. One partly still is.
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From a real estate perspective, I do not know why Marvel land couldn't occupy the Pumbaa lot, and perhaps it will. But you will need to walk through a relatively desolate Hollywood pastiche to get there. I guess the Hollywood theme signifies "movies," but neither Pixar nor Marvel came up in the Hollywood of the 30s and 40s. As one of many lands in the park, Hollywood is not a Buena Vista Street, essential for setting up expectations, informing the guest's experience, or serving as a mission statement. There is a lot of potential for improvement here. Whether you find these potential developments exciting or not is a matter of perspective.
 
Californian Elitist

Californian Elitist

Well-Known Member
mmartin046 said:
In a way, though, it represents the central flaw in DCA's original premise, which is: if I am in Disneyland, that also means I am in California. If I want Disneyland, I go to Disneyland. If I want California, I leave Disneyland.
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This doesn't quite work. Disneyland is its own being, completely separate from that of the state of California.
 

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