EPCOT Journey of Water featuring Moana coming to Epcot

[Casper Gutman]

Please, it's a park called Epcot , it was never that acronym. Its evolving past the failed edutainment concept.

What failed was a succession of executives who chased trends and assumed their audience was very, very stupid.

 

[donnylambb]

I will give it a chance does not look to invasive.

 

[Bocabear]

I will give it a chance does not look to invasive.

They are tearing down a building to put it in and completely re-routing how you walk into the park...I think that is pretty invasive!

 

[networkpro]

What failed was a succession of executives who chased trends and assumed their audience was very, very stupid.

Don't confuse your hopes and dreams with what was constructed as Epcot... It was nowhere near Progress City in scope or composition.

 

[Casper Gutman]

Don't confuse your hopes and dreams with what was constructed as Epcot... It was nowhere near Progress City in scope or composition.

No, it wasn’t Progress City, but it WAS successful edutainment. And unsuccessful management.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

This could feasibly be done nicely, but I really have to comment on the notion that Moana IP is parallel to the types of IP that were used early on in the parks. Most of what was included in the MK and particularly Epcot was based on public domain/classic works. MK included centuries-old fairy tales and classic children's literature, and Epcot included major themes relating to the future, the earth, etc. No matter how good a new movie is, it's not going to have the same timeless resonance as themes based in oral traditions and the public imagination.

This is why it really rankles when Disney (indirectly) calls stuff like Moana timeless. I thought it was a good movie, but call me again in 200 years. That's (at least) how old Snow White is.

It would be quite something if the CEO of Disney was asked when hit films like Lion King, Frozen, or Moana would be featured in the parks and responded that the company had to wait a few hundred years to see if they had staying power.

 

[Steph15251]

If this is more like a walk through like the ones they have at AK ,with plants and waterfalls I am fine with this ,since I really like the AK walk throughs.

 

[Steph15251]

I could understand a Pocahontas Meet and Greet being the Nature section, but not a Moana splash area. She belongs in Adventureland with a real attraction (like Fire Mountain).

Looking at the concept art this does not look like a splash area

 

[networkpro]

No, it wasn’t Progress City, but it WAS successful edutainment. And unsuccessful management.

Nope, it was unsuccessful in retaining those sponsors that were paying the bills for Future World. Industries change including those who sponsor venues.

 

[RSoxNo1]

Nope, it actually has elements of education. Moana's new attraction is just random fountains.

I don't think we know that. I'm envisioning something like The Oasis exhibits with some interactive fountains. If that's the case I'm 100% on board. I'd also argue that the themes of Epcot and Animal Kingdom are getting a bit more blurred.

 

[FigmentJedi]

This could feasibly be done nicely, but I really have to comment on the notion that Moana IP is parallel to the types of IP that were used early on in the parks. Most of what was included in the MK and particularly Epcot was based on public domain/classic works. MK included centuries-old fairy tales and classic children's literature, and Epcot included major themes relating to the future, the earth, etc. No matter how good a new movie is, it's not going to have the same timeless resonance as themes based in oral traditions and the public imagination.

This is why it really rankles when Disney (indirectly) calls stuff like Moana timeless. I thought it was a good movie, but call me again in 200 years. That's (at least) how old Snow White is.

Maui is well over 2000 years old. All of his exploits on his skin and in his song are generally drawn from actual ancient myths (no giant crab though). The film's quest is a very loose family friendly adaptation/extension of Maui's failed quest for immortality, with Te Fiti as a stand-in for Hine-nui-te-po, with her Te Ka form even being called Te Po in early script drafts.

Yeah, there's a dumb Twitter joke in there, but Moana's just as much a part of Disney's tradition of adapting/remixing human folklore as the classics.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Nope, it was unsuccessful in retaining those sponsors that were paying the bills for Future World. Industries change including those who sponsor venues.

By that measure the Magic Kingdom also failed as it once had more sponsors.

Epcot failed, not EPCOT Center, and Disney’s big new idea is Universal Studios.

 

[Jenny72]

Moana's just as much a part of Disney's tradition of adapting/remixing human folklore as the classics.

Fair enough and a reasonable point! So I'll give Moana a pass. But let's just say that much of the IP that is getting shoved around does not meet this standard. (Unless someone knows of a 2000 year old story involving Peter Quill or Wreck it Ralph?)

 

[mickeyfan5534]

Moana's just as much a part of Disney's tradition of adapting/remixing human folklore as the classics.

Fair enough and a reasonable point! So I'll give Moana a pass. But let's just say that much of the IP that is getting shoved around does not meet this standard. (Unless someone knows of a 2000 year old story involving Peter Quill or Wreck it Ralph?)

While not Peter Quill, superheroes have often been cited as a modern mythology akin that of the Greek heroes like Perseus, Jason and the Argonauts, and Hercules by folklorists and video games in general have been a defining art form for the late 20th and early 21st century. I can make an argument that both actually do end up fitting in Epcot for those reasons.

 

[Jenny72]

Well....I meant I would give Moana a pass for being an old story, not for being an ideal fit into Epcot, which deals with other issues (innovation, future, etc.). And while I take your point about video games and superheroes, if we're going to that level of abstraction, we could probably make an argument that nearly anything would fit into Epcot, which then becomes meaningless. And that's kind of the current problem.

I don't think the Moana story itself fits in Epcot thematically. That having been said, if this is anything like the concept art, it doesn't look bad (partially because I can barely tell it's Moana themed).

 

[networkpro]

Well....I meant I would give Moana a pass for being an old story, not for being an ideal fit into Epcot, which deals with other issues (innovation, future, etc.). And while I take your point about video games and superheroes, if we're going to that level of abstraction, we could probably make an argument that nearly anything would fit into Epcot, which then becomes meaningless. And that's kind of the current problem.

I don't think the Moana story itself fits in Epcot thematically. That having been said, if this is anything like the concept art, it doesn't look bad (partially because I can barely tell it's Moana themed).

Forget Future world theming, that's DOA as of D23.

 

[MisterPenguin]

but not a Moana splash area.

Good news!... It isn't a Moana splash area!

 

[FigmentJedi]

While not Peter Quill, superheroes have often been cited as a modern mythology akin that of the Greek heroes like Perseus, Jason and the Argonauts, and Hercules by folklorists and video games in general have been a defining art form for the late 20th and early 21st century. I can make an argument that both actually do end up fitting in Epcot for those reasons.

Nah, Peter Quill's clearly being treated as the park's new Captain EO.

 

[mickeyfan5534]

Nah, Peter Quill's clearly being treated as the park's new Captain EO.

And how exactly did Captain EO fit into Epcot Center?

 

[sedati]

From Bioreconstruct, what views could be...

Why they never put anything at the sides flanking Spaceship Earth baffles me. At the clearings above you can see what I think is prime-prime real estate in Epcot that has never been anything but backstage and trees. Opening it up for sightlines would be wonderful, but the monorail beam would still be an obstruction. Still, this would be impressive all the way to The Land. If not, imagine a Starbucks or another food service that had a patio looking out at the the full-reveal of Spaceship Earth- a view currently restricted solely to the main entrance.