How Do You Explain Tomorrowland?

Kman

Kman

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Being a frequent visitor to WDW I have grown up with Tomorrowland in its various stages of development. I love it there. That being said, I have often wondered how you could "explain" Tomorrowland to someone who has never visited Disney or, worse, is skeptical? When I look around it seems somewhat "hokey" to me if I was really being critical however I am thinking there is something behind this. Things like the People Mover, some of the posters/art you see, the Astro Orbiter seem so "yesterday" and yet for those of us who love Disney- they are just part of the scene and we love them. Are we blind to everything and are simply trapped by the sentimentality of the place or is there something more?

What do you guys think? How would you explain it?
 
Bairstow

Bairstow

Well-Known Member
It's a PG-rated remake of Terminator: Judgment Day.

...Oh, you mean the land!
There's really no good thematic explanation for it right now. Like @The Battletoad said, it's meant to be "the future that never was," taking most of its influences from Jules Verne and Buck Rodgers, but with a healthy dose of '90s chaos a-la Fifth Element and Sonic the Hedgehog. Unfortunately, whatever partially-threatening teenage aesthetic they were going for has been utterly nullified by replacing all the attractions with ones based on cartoons.
Still, it's leaps and bounds better than the hot mess they have in California.
 
Goofyernmost

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
Kman said:
Being a frequent visitor to WDW I have grown up with Tomorrowland in its various stages of development. I love it there. That being said, I have often wondered how you could "explain" Tomorrowland to someone who has never visited Disney or, worse, is skeptical? When I look around it seems somewhat "hokey" to me if I was really being critical however I am thinking there is something behind this. Things like the People Mover, some of the posters/art you see, the Astro Orbiter seem so "yesterday" and yet for those of us who love Disney- they are just part of the scene and we love them. Are we blind to everything and are simply trapped by the sentimentality of the place or is there something more?

What do you guys think? How would you explain it?
Click to expand...
Why does one need to explain it. Just go to it and enjoy it. It's just a name. In WDW especially it was always "iffy" when it came to tomorrowland. People movers already existed, Space Mountain wasn't even there when WDW opened, Delta's and Eastern shows was about the present, CoP was mostly about the past, the 360 movie wasn't about the future, flying to the moon had already happened and the speedway only identified the future to children. So, it has always been questionable, but, what difference does it make. Like I said, there is plenty there to enjoy so forget the name and just experience the attractions. That's one of the reasons that humans have the ability to think out what is happening. We can make it a good experience or we can screw it up for ourselves and over think it.
 
Nick Wilde

Nick Wilde

Well-Known Member
Kman said:
Being a frequent visitor to WDW I have grown up with Tomorrowland in its various stages of development. I love it there. That being said, I have often wondered how you could "explain" Tomorrowland to someone who has never visited Disney or, worse, is skeptical? When I look around it seems somewhat "hokey" to me if I was really being critical however I am thinking there is something behind this. Things like the People Mover, some of the posters/art you see, the Astro Orbiter seem so "yesterday" and yet for those of us who love Disney- they are just part of the scene and we love them. Are we blind to everything and are simply trapped by the sentimentality of the place or is there something more?

What do you guys think? How would you explain it?
Click to expand...
It's not supposed to be futuristic. It's supposed to represent what sci-fi writers and others think/thought the world will/would look like in 50 years. It's more retro then actually futuristic.
 
JIMINYCR

JIMINYCR

Well-Known Member
It WAS supposed to be an area of the park that would portray a view into the future and what was to come in the future BUUTT Disney couldnt keep that concept going and evolving so it went awry. Now its a mish mash of attractions that just kind of fit the premise of a Tomorrowland. I'd explain it as a land that once was a dream that lost its way and never lived up to its potential.
 
lazyboy97o

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
Fantasy futurism and science fiction are not justifications to do anything. Despite all the excuses of multiverses and whatnot, nobody was describing Monsters Inc. as a science fiction film. Sentient toys that exist in the present aren't very futuristic either. Nor are retro-contemporary superheroes. Aliens are, but Lilo & Stitch was more about family and acceptance than its aliens, with the attraction being dismissive of the heart of the film.
 
WondersOfLife

WondersOfLife

Blink, blink. Breathe, breathe. Day in, day out.
Mickey5150 said:
Basically it's called Tomorrowland because if you get in line for Space Mountain without a fastpass, it will be Tomorrow by the time you ride it.
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WondersOfLife

WondersOfLife

Blink, blink. Breathe, breathe. Day in, day out.
lazyboy97o said:
Aliens are, but Lilo & Stitch was more about family and acceptance than its aliens, with the attraction being dismissive of the heart of the film.
Click to expand...

I believe it was more likely based off of the TV show rather than the film... In fact, considering there's so many plot holes in the attraction compared to the movie.. I'm pretty sure they forgot that the TV Show was actually based off of a movie in the first place after that very first pre-show and really just completely based it off of the TV Show. Which could explain how Stitch knows his own name and how all the other experiments in the pre-show and on the posters at the end are recognizable if you watch the show.

The TV Show while still being solely based on family and acceptance.. The whole concept was really explaining that ALL of jumbaa's experiments are loose on Earth, so I guess this is the back-story for Captain Gantu... You know what. Screw this. This isn't working either.. Because.. Just. No. No no no too many plot holes. Dang it I thought I was on to something. It's impossible to defend this attraction!
 
Walt Disney1955

Walt Disney1955

Well-Known Member
I don't know, how do you explain any land? How do you even explain Main Street to make it sound appealing?

"Well, there is a barber shop, uh, a candy store, oh and a trolley and a horse..........trust me just see it."

Or even Fantasyland. How do you explain Small World being an appealing ride? It doesn't sound like one to me. Or Tom Sawyer Island. Or Splash Mountain, that's a hard one too. You can say it is a log ride and it won't sound all that great.
 
Sage of Time

Sage of Time

Well-Known Member
I explain it as a thematic mess that Disney does not care to address as long as it makes money.

It USED to be a vision of the future as seen from the 30s and 50s, but hey.
 
DisneyFanaticUK

DisneyFanaticUK

Active Member
I'm a self-professed nerd, so Tomorrowland is naturally my favourite part of the Magic Kingdom. I love the retro 1950's feel and all the lighting looks really nice at night! If you haven't done so already, ride the Peoplemover at night!
 
bethymouse

bethymouse

Well-Known Member
Space... the new frontier...
I guess by now Walt thought we may have more "people movers" in use.
Why Monsters Inc. is in Tomorrowland, I don't know except for the references to conserving electricity ( oops that's AK).
Why Stitch is there, except for being an "alien", who knows?
COP shows what our "future" is right now really.
Buzz... well again.... space invaders!
I like the music/loop in Tomorrowland. It sure would have been nice to have a themed table service restaurant in Tomorrowland!:)
Why Disney hasn't done anything to update those cars, I'll never know.:(
Astro Orbiter... fun ride in a space rocket.

So... it should be given another name... Spaceland. I don't know. It is what it is. Maybe Disney will update Tomorrowland some day to really reflect "space" in the future ( beyond 2001).:)
 

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