Rumor Inside Out to Replace Journey into Imagination with Figment?

[JustInTime]

Conversely, the vast majority of the public would enjoy a well designed and executed ride using the 1982 IP. You know, like they used to have. And I mean vast.

Maybe.

I actually really don't think a vast majority would. I don't think general public even knows the IP anymore. But that doesn't attest to the character at all. Just how Disney has mishandled it.

 

[marni1971]

I actually really don't think a vast majority would. I don't think general public even knows the IP anymore. But that doesn't attest to the character at all. Just how Disney has mishandled it.

I was being slightly sarcastic. Build something good and the IP can become incidental. See Splash Mountain. Build a groundbreaking version of JII and please both the fans and Joe public combined.

 

[Dapper Dan]

Conversely, the vast majority of the public would enjoy a well designed and executed ride using the 1982 IP. You know, like they used to have. And I mean vast.

Maybe.

I still think that if the original ride had been granted "classic" status and received regular refurbs and upgrades like Haunted Mansion and Pirates, it would still be going strong today.

 

[Maeryk]

I still think that if the original ride had been granted "classic" status and received regular refurbs and upgrades like Haunted Mansion and Pirates, it would still be going strong today.

I blame Kodak for failing to foresee digital film.

We got left with a half finished, slapdash last minute reconcept.

The nice thing about sponsorship is container loads of money.

The bad thing about sponsorship is when they pull it, said container loads of money go elsewhere.

 

[JustInTime]

I was being slightly sarcastic. Build something good and the IP can become incidental. See Splash Mountain. Build a groundbreaking version of JII and please both the fans and Joe public combined.

Oh, I apologize! I actually totally agree.

 

[Dapper Dan]

Regardless of what happens with this specific rumor, I think the anti-IP crowd will be in for a rude awakening when attendance grows at Epcot with the addition of Guardians, Ratatouille and the potential for an Inside Out attraction. The harsh reality is that those interested in protecting Epcot's past are the minority. The new attractions will come, people will love them and that's about where that conversation ends. It may be sad or upsetting for some, but it'll be extremely exciting for more.

But the question remains, are the crowds growing because of those IP or just because the park has something new?

 

[tirian]

Hallelujah! I love Inside Out and hate the Imagination ride, possibly the worst and most barren ride in the entire park. Whatever replaces it will be MUCH better (yes I rode the original...that was awful too).

*yawn*
Oh look, a troll.

 

[trainplane3]

I really would like to see the results of the Figment survey. It would give a good idea of what to possibly expect.

 

[Christian Fronckowiak]

Oh gawd..Don't bring up that horrid Idea back from the Eisner-era...It was to go Next to Imagination at one point..

You know that's Great Moments at the Movies, right? Later retooled as The Great Movie Ride? We can't bring it back until after it closes!

 

[Magenta Panther]

I could see both Dreamfinder and Figment meshing well with the Inside Out crew. They're all about the inner workings of the mind, after all. If the attraction script were well-written, this could be lots of fun. I would like to be hopeful about this rumor. But after D23 yesterday....

 

[brb1006]

I imagine if Figment is removed from the ride he will basically become another Orange Bird with a nod here or there in the park few would ever notice and merchandise marketed to the hardcore fans.

I hope Figment doesn't end up in that situation.

 

[Dapper Dan]

*yawn*
Oh look, a troll.

We'll make him disappear. Disappear! Back, back, over the falls!

 

[FigmentJedi]

We need to distinguish our Figments. The original Figment in Imagination 1.0 was inquisitive and full of wonder. Figment in Imagination 3.0 is a menace.

Figment just wants Eric Idle out of his house after the mess he caused in 1999.

 

[FullSailDan]

Pst... Figment is IP.

Agreed.

I imagine if Figment is removed from the ride he will basically become another Orange Bird with a nod here or there in the park few would ever notice and merchandise marketed to the hardcore fans.

I really think this is the future. Die hard fans know it, but casuals don't and they don't seem to 'get it' or want to get it. The last time my family came to stay with me, we took them on it and despite having gone to the parks during the original and the first update of the ride, none of my family remotely remembered it and were totally underwhelmed by it. They did say "wasn't there a thing with honey I shrunk the kids around here?" That's pretty consistent with most visitors I talk to.

As a design, Figment and Dreamfinder fit very solidly in the late 70's and 80's of cartoon style. Visually the characters can be updated but it may not be worth the investment just for a ride. I think the company is weighing how much recognition is really there for the character vers how easily they could transform this attraction into something today's audiences are already/or will be soon familiar with. (yes I'm admitting marketability plays a role in choosing attractions.)

 

[DAR1974]

Yeah.. but if you look at the limited edition Epcot merch that comes out every year for F&G, F&W, and FotA, it's not Duffy or Elsa on it.. it's Figment. Right up to dooney and burke bags.

If "nobody knows who he is", a lot of people are dropping coin on high end logo merch unaware of the character.

I've said all along the hardcore fans know who he is. Not sure about many in the general public these days

 

[Epcot82Guy]

What I don't understand - and will never understand - is why we have to choose between the two. I agree that the use of the IP characters has a draw. But, why they can't be used in the vein of the original idea of EPCOT Center is beyond me. There are TONS of examples of Disney tweaking storytelling within their own parks to make attractions fit in some manner - historically and more recently.
--DL vs. WDW Pirates main queue
--Soarin US vs. the new TDL Soarin
--TDL Tower vs. Studios Tower

I totally get that it costs money to do redevelopment. But, they are paying story artists regardless. And, very few of the Epcot IP-based attractions would truly be clonable. So, why we can't put a base ride under a legitimate layer of something that calls to the real world is beyond me.

For this attraction, put Inside Out into the highly underutilized theater. Revive Cranium Command - where the emotions are training a new set of emotions to work. But, place it NEXT TO Journey Into Imagination with Figment.

 

[Haymarket2008]

I imagine if Figment is removed from the ride he will basically become another Orange Bird with a nod here or there in the park few would ever notice and merchandise marketed to the hardcore fans.

And to that point, Orange Bird ACTUALLY returned to the park in a bigger way than he was originally. The figure in the Sunshine Tree Terrace, enormous amounts of merchandise, etc. All they need to do is bring his walk around character back But he's a great example of what effect original, park specific characters can be like when treated with care.

 

[PizzaPlanet]

I was being slightly sarcastic. Build something good and the IP can become incidental. See Splash Mountain. Build a groundbreaking version of JII and please both the fans and Joe public combined.

Haven't you mentioned that plans already exist for a proper JII overhaul with Dreamfinder and Figment? Or am I just imagining things?

 

[Timothy_Q]

In my opinion this is no more than Walt Disney using Peter Pan, Snow White, and mr. Toad, in original Fantasyland.

If you can't tell the difference between Epcot and Fantasyland, you should go do some reading

 

[larryz]

The ride is literally always empty when I go on it, so I'm not the only one who dislikes it.

So, if you dislike it so much...

 

[habuma]

What I don't understand - and will never understand - is why we have to choose between the two.

Agreed. I'll confess to enjoying an occasional visit to an attraction whose story is based on (or even an explicit retelling of) a story that has already been told in movie form (see most Fantasyland dark rides). But I also have a craving for attractions that tell their own unique story (see Haunted Mansion, Mystic Manor, Jungle Cruise, and the parts of Pirates that don't have Jack Sparrow). And then there's a mixed win when the characters we know from established stories are placed in an attraction to tell a new story (see Frozen Ever After). I enjoy any of these options so long as they are done well.

Figment 3.0 isn't done well. And as Frozen-weary as I've become, I'll say that Frozen Ever After was done well (ride-length and appropriateness to the Norway Pavilion notwithstanding).

So I won't be sad if Inside Out takes over the Imagination Pavilion, as long as it is done well and (gasp) actually shows imagination (and not simply a tour through the senses). If it's done well, I'll ride it, enjoy it, and probably ride it again--which is more than I can say for the current resident of that pavilion. Even so, it'd also be amazing if we got Figment 4.0 with all new ride tech and an amazing story of imagination be told. I'll take either. I'll even accept some weird combo of Inside Out and Figment (Bing Bong meets Figment?), but again only so long as it's done well.

The current incarnation of the ride has set the bar pretty low, so I look forward to being impressed.