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That's why you go split screen!
Makes things a lot easier no matter what format they use.
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One Little Spark Competition (Sponsored by Stealing Things)
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Makes things a lot easier no matter what format they use.
- In the Parks
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Right! It definitely takes more time than I expected.
NateD1226
Well-Known Member
I humbly present my final project for One Little Spark!
Fantasia: River of Symphonies
Weaving magic and music through the paths, turrets, and trees of Fantasyland, in Shanghai Disneyland, is a brand new inspiring attraction. Fantasia: River of Symphony transmutes the fun of a dark ride and the excitement of river rapids together, celebrating Walt Disney’s often contested magnum opus, Fantasia, the 1940 film that brought classical music to the masses through the magic of animation. Now, in the heart of Fantasyland, this new ride will offer the same sense of wonder, bring magic and music together, but also a thrill, as guests get soaked and soothed by some of the greatest pieces of music in the world
First off, the attraction uses the same ride layout as Voyage of the Crystal Grotto, but the ride is now within a show building, disguised as the extensive, golden-brown bricked walls of Yen Sid’s castle. The layout still goes under the Enchanted Storybook Castle, and guests may briefly glimpse the boats as they go by, from a small viewing point to the right-hand side of the entrance.
Speaking of the entrance, the ride’s Bavarian-style house is reimagined as a large, somewhat crooked tower and medieval fort, complete with a portcullis. The entranceway to Yen Sid’s castle. The architecture and stonework has many musical instruments hidden within. Glimmering lights come from windows up the tower, showing shadows of Yen Sid and Mickey Mouse himself passing by, and occasionally, an animated broomstick hops by. Within the queue line, guests travel through a small room filled with various musical instruments on display, as a nod to Fantasia’s orchestra, with a framed portrait of showing the master of ceremonies, Deems Taylor.
In the next section of the queue line, just before going to the loading area, guests will walk through Yen Sid’s workshop. A mix of orderly and cluttered, the work of a sorcerer of great power and respect, but not the cleanest of them. That is what his servant Mickey is for.
Onwards to the queue line, which resembles an underground waterway, where up to twelve guests board the circular tub boats, shaped to resemble giant wooden buckets. “Toccata and Fugue in B Minor” plays as guests board their buckets and sail off on a bumpy ride through the castle.
Through a dark tunnel we go, into another part of Yen Sid’s workshop. In his blue robes and star-patterned sorcerer’s hat, Yen Sid conjures magic and illusions from a spellbook on a podium. Through a door behind him, Mickey watches in excitement. Yen Sid brings to life a beautiful orange-and-yellow-winged butterfly, made through projections and a mist illusion. We pass by, ignoring a pair of wooden doors to the left, which lead to the boats’ docking station once the park closes.
As we go around a corner, we hear “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” score begins. We see Mickey putting on the hat, and brings a broomstick to life, combining animatronics and a little Pepper’s Ghost. We follow their silhouettes around a right-hand bend, but things soon so wrong, and the water choppier and more rough, as the broomstick starts chucking endless water into the river. Our boats begin to rock back and forth, starting to spin as the current speeds up. We pass by a projection where Mickey chops up the broomstick with an axe, only for the individual pieces to become many brooms and they set off to collect more water.
Around the next wall, is a circular scene (where the Beauty and the Beast piece is from VoCG). Mickey watches in despair as now five broomsticks are dumping water into a vat, the water spilling endlessly out of their buckets. As we leave this section, we go into a slight curve, revealing a line of broomsticks on both sides, dumping more and more water into the current.
Then, before we know it, we fall down a brief drop, and tumble into the basement level of the show building into the next segment.
The second segment is based on “The Nutcracker Suite”. Like the film, there is no nutcracker in the sequence, and the scenes blend various Tchaikovsky pieces together. In the lengthy sequence in the movie, we pass through the four seasons. Here, it’ll be a little more compact, focusing on a beautiful, fairy-esque forest floor, leaving the castle walls behind. “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” reaches out ears, as fairies and animated mushrooms dance together to our right, travelling around the waltz to the left. The walls have projections, creating wondrous illusions of a deep forest, where other moments from “The Nutcracker Suite” like dancing leaves and such can be seen.
To the right and the centrepoint of the scene, which we loop around in a half-circle, high-kicking thistles perform to the “Russian Dance”. In the final stretch of the segment, we go through the “Waltz of the Flowers”, passing by enormous autumn leaves, which spin around, revealing fairies on the other side. And finally, things turn frost as winter sets in, creating giant, magnificent snowflakes, which could easily be mistook for peculiar looking trees.
(Originally I was going to include the “Rite of Spring” segment here, but dinosaurs didn’t really work well with the fantasy element of the ride.)
Next comes the “Dance of the Hours”. We transition from a forest to what resembles a Greek or Roman-inspired dance hall, where Madame Upanova, an ostrich, leads the dance with her fellow ostriches, elephants, hippos, and alligators. We go past the ostriches first as they dance and fight over some grapes. On the right hand side, we see Elephanchine, who blows a bubble with a dancing goldfish in it. Her fellow elephants squirt out harmless blasts of water at the guests as they go by. And finally, we reach the iconic moment where Hyacinth Hippo dances with Ben Ali, spinning together before a line of pillars, where the other animals watch from behind.
Exiting through a Greek temple, we enter the fourth segment, “The Pastoral Symphony”. The area has more open waters and land, allowing for an extended sequence involving cherubs, fauns playing the pan pipes, courting centaurs, and a family of pastel-coloured pegasi frolic and graze in green grass. There are small islands on which the many Greek mythological creatures dance and play. Dionysus, the God of Wine, appears upon his donkey and appears to make the water turn purple and more choppy. Unfortunately, these festivities draw the attention of Zeus, who emerges from overhead on a throne of clouds and strikes the water (with an exaggerated flash of light).
We are suddenly drawn up a disguised conveyor belt towards ground level, through a stormy cloud, covered by a light rainy mist. We see a pair of pegasi fly by. As we reach the top, we see the outline of a dark mountaintop, as thunder rumbles overhead. The boats reach the top, and go into a dark tunnel, now under Enchanted Storybook Castle.
We pass into a large chamber, moving through a dark graveyard at midnight. Looming overhead in Bald Mountain. Before our eyes, the top of the mountain unfolds, revealing to be an impressive and terrifying animatronic of Chernabog. With a wave of his hands, ghosts begin to rise up from the graves on either side of the boat, created by light projectiles from the ceiling which move towards the mountain.
The boats draw nearer to the mountain, passing directly under Chernabog, who stares down menacingly at the guests. Fire suddenly bursts up all around the boats, as the demon plays with ghosts and demons in the flames. Grabbing demonic hands reach for the boats, but we escape, down another brief drop, hearing bells ring as we pass on towards dawn, revealing the silhouette of Yen Sid’s castle. We are returning to see what Mickey is up to since we last saw him.
Turns out, the poor mouse is up to his knees in water. There are now at least thirty broomsticks pouring water into the ride system, as Mickey spins in the middle on the spellbook, trying to end the mayhem. A pair of curtains fly open, Yen Sid appearing, ceasing the water flow as we pass by, heading for the unload section. We pass by an open door, where Mickey anxiously returns the sorcerer’s hat to his master, grinning sheepishly. Yen Sid then shoves a broomstick into his hands.
Guests then disembark from the boats, exiting through Mickey’s closet and out to explore Fantasyland.
I absolutely love this ride! I would ride it forever if it ever came true! The way of making it an indoor rapids ride helps exhilarate guests in the dark!
There is only one little problems for me. The ride vehicles! The way they are circular will have the guests miss out on some of the scenes. For example, if the amazing Chernabog scene was happening, half the guests would be facing backwards to the scene! I would love to see everything happening. But the buckets were a really good idea!
The scenes were very well thought out and connected well! I think some effects would not work out with the show building and the sets. But it is not that huge of a problem. Other than that, the story was very well done and flowed perfectly.
Overall,this was an amazing project and showed off your amazing detail skills. But those bucket boats just need to be switched and everything would be all good. With that being said, amazing job and good luck!
There is only one little problems for me. The ride vehicles! The way they are circular will have the guests miss out on some of the scenes. For example, if the amazing Chernabog scene was happening, half the guests would be facing backwards to the scene! I would love to see everything happening. But the buckets were a really good idea!
The scenes were very well thought out and connected well! I think some effects would not work out with the show building and the sets. But it is not that huge of a problem. Other than that, the story was very well done and flowed perfectly.
Overall,this was an amazing project and showed off your amazing detail skills. But those bucket boats just need to be switched and everything would be all good. With that being said, amazing job and good luck!
D Hulk
Well-Known Member
FANTASY HARBOR
VOYAGE OF THE LITTLE MERMAID
At the center of Shanghai Disneyland’s Fantasyland is a watery oasis known as Fantasy Harbor. This is a central lagoon lined by sandy beaches, coral rocks, and the constant soothing sound of waves. Fantasy Harbor’s centerpiece is Voyage of the Little Mermaid, a trackless E-ticket dark ride on the water. Just as Pooh’s Hunny Hunt is an upgrade to The Many Adventure’s of Winnie the Pooh, so is this to Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. Guests will plunge into Ariel’s song-filled undersea world, as her tale is retold by an old fisherman to his granddaughter.
Ariel’s coastal kingdom is visible the instant guests pass through Enchanted Storybook Castle. The walkway hugs Fantasy Harbor, with Prince Eric’s palace perched against the sea cliffs at the base of the larger castle. Eric’s seaside sanctuary hides a large show building which juts out below in between here and the Alice in Wonderland Maze. Guests only see rolling beach dunes and stucco parapets. From this upper landing, they can also enter Eric’s palace and dine in Sebastian’s overlooking the ride’s exterior.
The waters below teem with magical sailing buckets scampering around the waves and rocks. From outside this simply resembles a Fantasyland version of DisneySea’s Aquatopia. LPS “boats” sailing on a thin film of water. For riders it shall prove far more enchanting…
Ride entry is across from Fairy Godmother's Cupboard in a beached pleasure vessel – the wedding barge from The Little Mermaid. It sits alongside a fisherman’s hut with a moored rowboat. Guests pass a bronze statue of Ariel (inspired by the statue in Copenhagen) and queue within the barge. Paintings and tapestries within tell a tale: This is set after The Little Mermaid, with Ariel and Eric happily married and their kingdoms united.
Guests ride in handmade bucket-shaped boats with masts. These boats glide atop a paved surface painted blue, while a thin layer of water over it creates the illusion of an ocean voyage. Each boat sits two rows of three, and four boats depart every 30 seconds (similar to many trackless rides), allowing for a theoretical hourly capacity of 2,880.
Boats begin outdoors in the shadow of Eric’s palace and the Enchanted Storybook Castle beyond. Dedicated boat speakers play “Fathoms Below” from The Little Mermaid’s soundtrack. The two buildings feel “as one” from the harbor’s surface, unified by towers and organic rock work. The waters surrounding riders are alive, practically enchanted, with arcing sprays, bubbling waves, and swirling whirlpools. Boats glide seemingly at random through this Mediterranean paradise.
Eventually they drift past the fisherman’s hut on the shore (noting the footsteps in the sand), and towards a waterfall magically flowing from Enchanted Storybook Castle. Ariel’s mesmerizing singing voice builds from a cavern within the tumbling waters. The boats spin, overcome, enchanted, and they glide around the waterfall and into a hidden grotto leading underneath Enchanted Storybook Castle.
(Our rival Imagineers working on Team Shanghai have proposed a so-called “Voyage to the Crystal Grotto” boat ride for this same space, which would use this waterfall entrance as its exit.)
Boats drift and spin curiously through the sea-formed grotto, down brief branching paths. Suddenly the barnacled walls give way, opening onto a tranquil breakwater bay at sunset. (This indoors scene is set at dusk to work for both day and night rides.) A tiny model of Eric’s palace sits on a distant peninsula. Ariel's voice still wafts from here. The four boats gather together around the Fisherman and his Granddaughter in a rowboat. She asks (in Cantonese) about how Princess Ariel came to their kingdom.
The Fisherman launches into his narration – very much in the vein of The Princess Bride – as boats glide backwards to face the open ocean. Thus the stage is set for a retelling of The Little Mermaid, with past scenes emerging like distant memories, and with any gaps in story logic excused as the result of the Fisherman’s scatterbrained narration.
“Ariel was originally a mermaid. She lived under the sea, in the great watery kingdom of her father King Triton.”
Ocean waves splash – animated projections against a curved screen – and crash over our boats! The “Main Titles” play. Riders are plunged “underwater,” as the room takes on a submerged feel. (A similar faux-underwater transition graces Shanghai’s Pirates of the Caribbean.) Mists spray riders, fans simulate waves, bubbles blow, even a faint saltwater smell creeps in. Boats travel the undersea currents past swaying seaweed and swimming fish. Just as the on-ride choral soundtrack swells, riders behold a grand view of King Triton’s castle. Grand golden spires gleam in filtered sunbeams.
But boats continue on. The Fisherman’s narration continues like a voiceover, subtly guiding boats and creating the world around them:
“Everyone was happy. But Ariel dreamt of something more. She dreamt of becoming human.”
The boats enter Ariel’s grotto. Shelves everywhere overflow with surface-made bric-a-brac. At the room’s centerpiece is an animatronic Ariel serenading a statue of Prince Eric, singing her lovely song “Part of Your World.” The boats explore curiously, splitting into pairs and gliding down rocky aisles and pausing to admire Ariel’s collection. Wind-up porcelain music boxes spin. Flounder watches on from similarly bulbous teapots. Sebastian spies from behind mounted spyglasses. Sunlight from a shaft illuminates oil paintings of land life. (With trackless ride technology, songs and scenes can be precisely orchestrated to vehicles’ movement.)
Boats drift off into darkness, into a transition space accompanied only by the voices of the Fisherman and his Granddaughter.
“And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula asking to become human...and they all lived happily ever after.”
“Grandpa, you’re telling it wrong!”
“Am I?”
“What about when Sebastian sang to Ariel?”
“Hey, are you telling this story or am I?...As I was saying, Sebastian tried convincing Ariel to stay – WITH SONG!”
Broadway show lights come up on a spectacular “Under the Sea” room! Think of it like the Hunny Hunt Hephalump room – on steroids! Over two dozen boats glide crisscrossing over a spectacular, bioluminescent coral bed. Everywhere, singing animatronic fish perform – over a hundred of them, all fully articulated, in one of the most ambitious setpieces Disney Imagineering has ever created! (A test run for the “Be Our Guest” sequence in Tokyo Disneyland’s upcoming Beauty & the Beast ride.)
Boats split off. At times they "dance" with each other in time with Sebastian's jaunty tune. At times they stop one-by-one at interesting little vignettes. The ENTIRETY of Sebastian’s three-minute, Oscar-winning song plays out. Sights riders see along the way include:
- A blue lobster plays clams like steel drums.
- Projection screens show sad guppies floating in bubbles. The bubbles burst, and air cannons blast riders.
- Tiny seahorses pop out from a glowing, Technicolor anemone bed.
- A newt plays a flute.
- A carp plays a harp.
- A bass plays the bass – plucking “strings” on octopus tentacles.
- A quartet of giant snails pop from their shells and serenade.
- A blowfish blows on a coral tuba; it inflates wildly.
- Sebastian floats in mid-current conducting a complete crustacean orchestra!
- And much, much more!
“But Sebastian’s jaunty calypso showstopper was unconvincing. And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula to become human…”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats sail away from this festive space and past distant shipwrecks (forced perspective models). The seas grow darker and more frightening, the only light coming from the glowing eyes of Flotsam and Jetsam hovering overhead an watching silently, eerily. Boats near Ursula’s distant lair…
“Grandpa, this part is scary! Talk about something happy! What about after Ariel became a human and she tried kissing Prince Eric?”
As the Granddaughter’s narration takes over, boats do a sudden about-face and spin through seaweed curtains. Suddenly, abruptly , riders behold the “Kiss the Girl” scene. Set in a tranquil lagoon, Sebastian croons while Ariel and Eric enjoy a romantic boat ride. With the Granddaughter now telling the tale, the scenery seems to be drawn in crayon. Animatronics move jerkily. It’s like a childhood drawing brought to awkward life.
Suddenly, everything…just…stops…moving. The scene pauses in mid-action.
“We’re passing over a TON of the story here! Look, we gotta address Ursula, so…let me tell the story and we’ll just skip to the part where Ursula got really big and was then defeated. Okay?”
“Ohhh…Okay!”
With just as much abruptness, boats spin back through darkness and onto a stormy nighttime sea. They glide in an arc past a massive projection screen. On it – rains, waves, and a 200-foot-tall Ursula commanding the storm. She bellows with glee. A lightning flash reveals Prince Eric piloting a skipper ship towards her. Its pointed bow draws towards the sea witch. Lights vanish and only return as Ursula’s skeleton flashes in agony! She is defeated. Boats whisk away with utmost haste.
“King Triton saw how much his Ariel loved Eric. Their love had successfully overcome Ursula’s evil. With a fond farewell, Triton changed Ariel into a human.”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats hastily reverse through an enchanted aquatic grotto. Projections bathe the walls in ever-shifting magical auras – for all intents and purposes it’s the psychedelic climax to Crystal Grotto repurposed. Here it’s a transitional space.
“And THEN they all lived happily ever after!”
Boats spin and behold the happy ending finale. Framed by sea cliffs, Triton, Sebastian and Flounder wave farewell to Ariel’s wedding barge on the horizon. There is a great a musical fanfare over boats’ speakers. Fireworks are projected against a golden red ocean horizon.
Boats reverse quickly through a starfield cavern as the fanfare plays out, as the Fisherman’s storytelling trance wears off and riders return to the real world…
(But the music keeps on playing. It plays such an integral part in making Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopefully something more evocative than a simple “book report” ride, and the final notes are allowed to play out as boats return to unload.)
Riders emerge back outdoors near Prince Eric’s palace docks. A mighty galleon is moored here…and so is the Fisherman’s rowboat. He and his Granddaughter wave farewell to riders. Their boat is overloaded with items from Ariel’s grotto collection – salvaged as a delivery to the princess in her new home. Boats return to the docks, and guests continue their enchanting day in Shanghai Disneyland.
*************************************************************
Additional attractions and features round out Fantasy Harbor’s remaining space. Each serves as a “mini-land” extension for nearby attractions.
Sebastian’s, as mentioned above, is a restaurant set in Prince Eric’s palace which looks out onto Voyage of the Little Mermaid. Sebastian the crab has taken over Chef Louis’s castle kitchen, outlawed all seafood, and transformed Eric’s banquet hall into a fish-friendly eatery complete with lovely views and crustacean calypso concerts.
Across from Peter Pan’s Flight is Neverland Isle, perched above the harbor’s rugged waves and accessed by a series of suspension rope bridges (much like Paris's Adventure Isle). Picture it as a Fantasyland version of Tom Sawyer’s Island, an explorable interactive playground set on an island wonderland. Adventurous guests will discover a wide variety of hidden places. They will board Captain Hook’s Jolly Roger. They will find Mermaid Lagoon (overlooking Voyage of the Little Mermaid, naturally). They can crawl through the caverns of Skull Rock, climb the vines in Pixie Hollow, plumb the hideout of the Lost Boys, or simply enjoy a meet ‘n’ greet with Peter Pan or with Tinkerbelle.
Across from Frozen: A Sing-Along Celebration (which resembles Elsa’s ice palace) is a replica of Arendelle palace located across Fantasy Harbor’s waters. This show building houses a clone of Epcot’s Frozen Ever After. Just like with Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, cloning this fan-favorite ride is necessary to preserve budget for more ambitious creations like Voyage of the Little Mermaid. The regal Arendelle setting expands on Epcot's Frozen ambiance, completing it with a Sven’s Supplies merchandise wagon cart, an outdoor stage for performing troubadours, and a meeting spot where Anna and Elsa greet visitors.
As a whole, the Fantasy Harbor provides a nice collection of activities, from rides to walkthroughs to yet another barrier-bursting E-ticket to rival Shanghai’s Pirates or TRON. Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopes to elevate the form of the Fantasyland dark ride. It uses spectacular scenery both indoors and out, while combining animatronics, projections, and every other trick in the book. With the Fisherman, confused though he may be, hopefully we have a narrative device which helps avoid (or at least justify) the storytelling issues often present with dark rides.
Thank you!
VOYAGE OF THE LITTLE MERMAID
At the center of Shanghai Disneyland’s Fantasyland is a watery oasis known as Fantasy Harbor. This is a central lagoon lined by sandy beaches, coral rocks, and the constant soothing sound of waves. Fantasy Harbor’s centerpiece is Voyage of the Little Mermaid, a trackless E-ticket dark ride on the water. Just as Pooh’s Hunny Hunt is an upgrade to The Many Adventure’s of Winnie the Pooh, so is this to Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. Guests will plunge into Ariel’s song-filled undersea world, as her tale is retold by an old fisherman to his granddaughter.
Ariel’s coastal kingdom is visible the instant guests pass through Enchanted Storybook Castle. The walkway hugs Fantasy Harbor, with Prince Eric’s palace perched against the sea cliffs at the base of the larger castle. Eric’s seaside sanctuary hides a large show building which juts out below in between here and the Alice in Wonderland Maze. Guests only see rolling beach dunes and stucco parapets. From this upper landing, they can also enter Eric’s palace and dine in Sebastian’s overlooking the ride’s exterior.
The waters below teem with magical sailing buckets scampering around the waves and rocks. From outside this simply resembles a Fantasyland version of DisneySea’s Aquatopia. LPS “boats” sailing on a thin film of water. For riders it shall prove far more enchanting…
Ride entry is across from Fairy Godmother's Cupboard in a beached pleasure vessel – the wedding barge from The Little Mermaid. It sits alongside a fisherman’s hut with a moored rowboat. Guests pass a bronze statue of Ariel (inspired by the statue in Copenhagen) and queue within the barge. Paintings and tapestries within tell a tale: This is set after The Little Mermaid, with Ariel and Eric happily married and their kingdoms united.
Guests ride in handmade bucket-shaped boats with masts. These boats glide atop a paved surface painted blue, while a thin layer of water over it creates the illusion of an ocean voyage. Each boat sits two rows of three, and four boats depart every 30 seconds (similar to many trackless rides), allowing for a theoretical hourly capacity of 2,880.
Boats begin outdoors in the shadow of Eric’s palace and the Enchanted Storybook Castle beyond. Dedicated boat speakers play “Fathoms Below” from The Little Mermaid’s soundtrack. The two buildings feel “as one” from the harbor’s surface, unified by towers and organic rock work. The waters surrounding riders are alive, practically enchanted, with arcing sprays, bubbling waves, and swirling whirlpools. Boats glide seemingly at random through this Mediterranean paradise.
Eventually they drift past the fisherman’s hut on the shore (noting the footsteps in the sand), and towards a waterfall magically flowing from Enchanted Storybook Castle. Ariel’s mesmerizing singing voice builds from a cavern within the tumbling waters. The boats spin, overcome, enchanted, and they glide around the waterfall and into a hidden grotto leading underneath Enchanted Storybook Castle.
(Our rival Imagineers working on Team Shanghai have proposed a so-called “Voyage to the Crystal Grotto” boat ride for this same space, which would use this waterfall entrance as its exit.)
Boats drift and spin curiously through the sea-formed grotto, down brief branching paths. Suddenly the barnacled walls give way, opening onto a tranquil breakwater bay at sunset. (This indoors scene is set at dusk to work for both day and night rides.) A tiny model of Eric’s palace sits on a distant peninsula. Ariel's voice still wafts from here. The four boats gather together around the Fisherman and his Granddaughter in a rowboat. She asks (in Cantonese) about how Princess Ariel came to their kingdom.
The Fisherman launches into his narration – very much in the vein of The Princess Bride – as boats glide backwards to face the open ocean. Thus the stage is set for a retelling of The Little Mermaid, with past scenes emerging like distant memories, and with any gaps in story logic excused as the result of the Fisherman’s scatterbrained narration.
“Ariel was originally a mermaid. She lived under the sea, in the great watery kingdom of her father King Triton.”
Ocean waves splash – animated projections against a curved screen – and crash over our boats! The “Main Titles” play. Riders are plunged “underwater,” as the room takes on a submerged feel. (A similar faux-underwater transition graces Shanghai’s Pirates of the Caribbean.) Mists spray riders, fans simulate waves, bubbles blow, even a faint saltwater smell creeps in. Boats travel the undersea currents past swaying seaweed and swimming fish. Just as the on-ride choral soundtrack swells, riders behold a grand view of King Triton’s castle. Grand golden spires gleam in filtered sunbeams.
But boats continue on. The Fisherman’s narration continues like a voiceover, subtly guiding boats and creating the world around them:
“Everyone was happy. But Ariel dreamt of something more. She dreamt of becoming human.”
The boats enter Ariel’s grotto. Shelves everywhere overflow with surface-made bric-a-brac. At the room’s centerpiece is an animatronic Ariel serenading a statue of Prince Eric, singing her lovely song “Part of Your World.” The boats explore curiously, splitting into pairs and gliding down rocky aisles and pausing to admire Ariel’s collection. Wind-up porcelain music boxes spin. Flounder watches on from similarly bulbous teapots. Sebastian spies from behind mounted spyglasses. Sunlight from a shaft illuminates oil paintings of land life. (With trackless ride technology, songs and scenes can be precisely orchestrated to vehicles’ movement.)
Boats drift off into darkness, into a transition space accompanied only by the voices of the Fisherman and his Granddaughter.
“And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula asking to become human...and they all lived happily ever after.”
“Grandpa, you’re telling it wrong!”
“Am I?”
“What about when Sebastian sang to Ariel?”
“Hey, are you telling this story or am I?...As I was saying, Sebastian tried convincing Ariel to stay – WITH SONG!”
Broadway show lights come up on a spectacular “Under the Sea” room! Think of it like the Hunny Hunt Hephalump room – on steroids! Over two dozen boats glide crisscrossing over a spectacular, bioluminescent coral bed. Everywhere, singing animatronic fish perform – over a hundred of them, all fully articulated, in one of the most ambitious setpieces Disney Imagineering has ever created! (A test run for the “Be Our Guest” sequence in Tokyo Disneyland’s upcoming Beauty & the Beast ride.)
Boats split off. At times they "dance" with each other in time with Sebastian's jaunty tune. At times they stop one-by-one at interesting little vignettes. The ENTIRETY of Sebastian’s three-minute, Oscar-winning song plays out. Sights riders see along the way include:
- A blue lobster plays clams like steel drums.
- Projection screens show sad guppies floating in bubbles. The bubbles burst, and air cannons blast riders.
- Tiny seahorses pop out from a glowing, Technicolor anemone bed.
- A newt plays a flute.
- A carp plays a harp.
- A bass plays the bass – plucking “strings” on octopus tentacles.
- A quartet of giant snails pop from their shells and serenade.
- A blowfish blows on a coral tuba; it inflates wildly.
- Sebastian floats in mid-current conducting a complete crustacean orchestra!
- And much, much more!
“But Sebastian’s jaunty calypso showstopper was unconvincing. And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula to become human…”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats sail away from this festive space and past distant shipwrecks (forced perspective models). The seas grow darker and more frightening, the only light coming from the glowing eyes of Flotsam and Jetsam hovering overhead an watching silently, eerily. Boats near Ursula’s distant lair…
“Grandpa, this part is scary! Talk about something happy! What about after Ariel became a human and she tried kissing Prince Eric?”
As the Granddaughter’s narration takes over, boats do a sudden about-face and spin through seaweed curtains. Suddenly, abruptly , riders behold the “Kiss the Girl” scene. Set in a tranquil lagoon, Sebastian croons while Ariel and Eric enjoy a romantic boat ride. With the Granddaughter now telling the tale, the scenery seems to be drawn in crayon. Animatronics move jerkily. It’s like a childhood drawing brought to awkward life.
Suddenly, everything…just…stops…moving. The scene pauses in mid-action.
“We’re passing over a TON of the story here! Look, we gotta address Ursula, so…let me tell the story and we’ll just skip to the part where Ursula got really big and was then defeated. Okay?”
“Ohhh…Okay!”
With just as much abruptness, boats spin back through darkness and onto a stormy nighttime sea. They glide in an arc past a massive projection screen. On it – rains, waves, and a 200-foot-tall Ursula commanding the storm. She bellows with glee. A lightning flash reveals Prince Eric piloting a skipper ship towards her. Its pointed bow draws towards the sea witch. Lights vanish and only return as Ursula’s skeleton flashes in agony! She is defeated. Boats whisk away with utmost haste.
“King Triton saw how much his Ariel loved Eric. Their love had successfully overcome Ursula’s evil. With a fond farewell, Triton changed Ariel into a human.”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats hastily reverse through an enchanted aquatic grotto. Projections bathe the walls in ever-shifting magical auras – for all intents and purposes it’s the psychedelic climax to Crystal Grotto repurposed. Here it’s a transitional space.
“And THEN they all lived happily ever after!”
Boats spin and behold the happy ending finale. Framed by sea cliffs, Triton, Sebastian and Flounder wave farewell to Ariel’s wedding barge on the horizon. There is a great a musical fanfare over boats’ speakers. Fireworks are projected against a golden red ocean horizon.
Boats reverse quickly through a starfield cavern as the fanfare plays out, as the Fisherman’s storytelling trance wears off and riders return to the real world…
(But the music keeps on playing. It plays such an integral part in making Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopefully something more evocative than a simple “book report” ride, and the final notes are allowed to play out as boats return to unload.)
Riders emerge back outdoors near Prince Eric’s palace docks. A mighty galleon is moored here…and so is the Fisherman’s rowboat. He and his Granddaughter wave farewell to riders. Their boat is overloaded with items from Ariel’s grotto collection – salvaged as a delivery to the princess in her new home. Boats return to the docks, and guests continue their enchanting day in Shanghai Disneyland.
*************************************************************
Additional attractions and features round out Fantasy Harbor’s remaining space. Each serves as a “mini-land” extension for nearby attractions.
Sebastian’s, as mentioned above, is a restaurant set in Prince Eric’s palace which looks out onto Voyage of the Little Mermaid. Sebastian the crab has taken over Chef Louis’s castle kitchen, outlawed all seafood, and transformed Eric’s banquet hall into a fish-friendly eatery complete with lovely views and crustacean calypso concerts.
Across from Peter Pan’s Flight is Neverland Isle, perched above the harbor’s rugged waves and accessed by a series of suspension rope bridges (much like Paris's Adventure Isle). Picture it as a Fantasyland version of Tom Sawyer’s Island, an explorable interactive playground set on an island wonderland. Adventurous guests will discover a wide variety of hidden places. They will board Captain Hook’s Jolly Roger. They will find Mermaid Lagoon (overlooking Voyage of the Little Mermaid, naturally). They can crawl through the caverns of Skull Rock, climb the vines in Pixie Hollow, plumb the hideout of the Lost Boys, or simply enjoy a meet ‘n’ greet with Peter Pan or with Tinkerbelle.
Across from Frozen: A Sing-Along Celebration (which resembles Elsa’s ice palace) is a replica of Arendelle palace located across Fantasy Harbor’s waters. This show building houses a clone of Epcot’s Frozen Ever After. Just like with Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, cloning this fan-favorite ride is necessary to preserve budget for more ambitious creations like Voyage of the Little Mermaid. The regal Arendelle setting expands on Epcot's Frozen ambiance, completing it with a Sven’s Supplies merchandise wagon cart, an outdoor stage for performing troubadours, and a meeting spot where Anna and Elsa greet visitors.
As a whole, the Fantasy Harbor provides a nice collection of activities, from rides to walkthroughs to yet another barrier-bursting E-ticket to rival Shanghai’s Pirates or TRON. Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopes to elevate the form of the Fantasyland dark ride. It uses spectacular scenery both indoors and out, while combining animatronics, projections, and every other trick in the book. With the Fisherman, confused though he may be, hopefully we have a narrative device which helps avoid (or at least justify) the storytelling issues often present with dark rides.
Thank you!
AceAstro
Well-Known Member
FANTASY HARBOR
VOYAGE OF THE LITTLE MERMAID
At the center of Shanghai Disneyland’s Fantasyland is a watery oasis known as Fantasy Harbor. This is a central lagoon lined by sandy beaches, coral rocks, and the constant soothing sound of waves. Fantasy Harbor’s centerpiece is Voyage of the Little Mermaid, a trackless E-ticket dark ride on the water. Just as Pooh’s Hunny Hunt is an upgrade to The Many Adventure’s of Winnie the Pooh, so is this to Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. Guests will plunge into Ariel’s song-filled undersea world, as her tale is retold by an old fisherman to his granddaughter.
Ariel’s coastal kingdom is visible the instant guests pass through Enchanted Storybook Castle. The walkway hugs Fantasy Harbor, with Prince Eric’s palace perched against the sea cliffs at the base of the larger castle. Eric’s seaside sanctuary hides a large show building which juts out below in between here and the Alice in Wonderland Maze. Guests only see rolling beach dunes and stucco parapets. From this upper landing, they can also enter Eric’s palace and dine in Sebastian’s overlooking the ride’s exterior.
The waters below teem with magical sailing buckets scampering around the waves and rocks. From outside this simply resembles a Fantasyland version of DisneySea’s Aquatopia. LPS “boats” sailing on a thin film of water. For riders it shall prove far more enchanting…
Ride entry is across from Fairy Godmother's Cupboard in a beached pleasure vessel – the wedding barge from The Little Mermaid. It sits alongside a fisherman’s hut with a moored rowboat. Guests pass a bronze statue of Ariel (inspired by the statue in Copenhagen) and queue within the barge. Paintings and tapestries within tell a tale: This is set after The Little Mermaid, with Ariel and Eric happily married and their kingdoms united.
Guests ride in handmade bucket-shaped boats with masts. These boats glide atop a paved surface painted blue, while a thin layer of water over it creates the illusion of an ocean voyage. Each boat sits two rows of three, and four boats depart every 30 seconds (similar to many trackless rides), allowing for a theoretical hourly capacity of 2,880.
Boats begin outdoors in the shadow of Eric’s palace and the Enchanted Storybook Castle beyond. Dedicated boat speakers play “Fathoms Below” from The Little Mermaid’s soundtrack. The two buildings feel “as one” from the harbor’s surface, unified by towers and organic rock work. The waters surrounding riders are alive, practically enchanted, with arcing sprays, bubbling waves, and swirling whirlpools. Boats glide seemingly at random through this Mediterranean paradise.
Eventually they drift past the fisherman’s hut on the shore (noting the footsteps in the sand), and towards a waterfall magically flowing from Enchanted Storybook Castle. Ariel’s mesmerizing singing voice builds from a cavern within the tumbling waters. The boats spin, overcome, enchanted, and they glide around the waterfall and into a hidden grotto leading underneath Enchanted Storybook Castle.
(Our rival Imagineers working on Team Shanghai have proposed a so-called “Voyage to the Crystal Grotto” boat ride for this same space, which would use this waterfall entrance as its exit.)
Boats drift and spin curiously through the sea-formed grotto, down brief branching paths. Suddenly the barnacled walls give way, opening onto a tranquil breakwater bay at sunset. (This indoors scene is set at dusk to work for both day and night rides.) A tiny model of Eric’s palace sits on a distant peninsula. Ariel's voice still wafts from here. The four boats gather together around the Fisherman and his Granddaughter in a rowboat. She asks (in Cantonese) about how Princess Ariel came to their kingdom.
The Fisherman launches into his narration – very much in the vein of The Princess Bride – as boats glide backwards to face the open ocean. Thus the stage is set for a retelling of The Little Mermaid, with past scenes emerging like distant memories, and with any gaps in story logic excused as the result of the Fisherman’s scatterbrained narration.
“Ariel was originally a mermaid. She lived under the sea, in the great watery kingdom of her father King Triton.”
Ocean waves splash – animated projections against a curved screen – and crash over our boats! The “Main Titles” play. Riders are plunged “underwater,” as the room takes on a submerged feel. (A similar faux-underwater transition graces Shanghai’s Pirates of the Caribbean.) Mists spray riders, fans simulate waves, bubbles blow, even a faint saltwater smell creeps in. Boats travel the undersea currents past swaying seaweed and swimming fish. Just as the on-ride choral soundtrack swells, riders behold a grand view of King Triton’s castle. Grand golden spires gleam in filtered sunbeams.
But boats continue on. The Fisherman’s narration continues like a voiceover, subtly guiding boats and creating the world around them:
“Everyone was happy. But Ariel dreamt of something more. She dreamt of becoming human.”
The boats enter Ariel’s grotto. Shelves everywhere overflow with surface-made bric-a-brac. At the room’s centerpiece is an animatronic Ariel serenading a statue of Prince Eric, singing her lovely song “Part of Your World.” The boats explore curiously, splitting into pairs and gliding down rocky aisles and pausing to admire Ariel’s collection. Wind-up porcelain music boxes spin. Flounder watches on from similarly bulbous teapots. Sebastian spies from behind mounted spyglasses. Sunlight from a shaft illuminates oil paintings of land life. (With trackless ride technology, songs and scenes can be precisely orchestrated to vehicles’ movement.)
Boats drift off into darkness, into a transition space accompanied only by the voices of the Fisherman and his Granddaughter.
“And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula asking to become human...and they all lived happily ever after.”
“Grandpa, you’re telling it wrong!”
“Am I?”
“What about when Sebastian sang to Ariel?”
“Hey, are you telling this story or am I?...As I was saying, Sebastian tried convincing Ariel to stay – WITH SONG!”
Broadway show lights come up on a spectacular “Under the Sea” room! Think of it like the Hunny Hunt Hephalump room – on steroids! Over two dozen boats glide crisscrossing over a spectacular, bioluminescent coral bed. Everywhere, singing animatronic fish perform – over a hundred of them, all fully articulated, in one of the most ambitious setpieces Disney Imagineering has ever created! (A test run for the “Be Our Guest” sequence in Tokyo Disneyland’s upcoming Beauty & the Beast ride.)
Boats split off. At times they "dance" with each other in time with Sebastian's jaunty tune. At times they stop one-by-one at interesting little vignettes. The ENTIRETY of Sebastian’s three-minute, Oscar-winning song plays out. Sights riders see along the way include:
- A blue lobster plays clams like steel drums.
- Projection screens show sad guppies floating in bubbles. The bubbles burst, and air cannons blast riders.
- Tiny seahorses pop out from a glowing, Technicolor anemone bed.
- A newt plays a flute.
- A carp plays a harp.
- A bass plays the bass – plucking “strings” on octopus tentacles.
- A quartet of giant snails pop from their shells and serenade.
- A blowfish blows on a coral tuba; it inflates wildly.
- Sebastian floats in mid-current conducting a complete crustacean orchestra!
- And much, much more!
“But Sebastian’s jaunty calypso showstopper was unconvincing. And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula to become human…”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats sail away from this festive space and past distant shipwrecks (forced perspective models). The seas grow darker and more frightening, the only light coming from the glowing eyes of Flotsam and Jetsam hovering overhead an watching silently, eerily. Boats near Ursula’s distant lair…
“Grandpa, this part is scary! Talk about something happy! What about after Ariel became a human and she tried kissing Prince Eric?”
As the Granddaughter’s narration takes over, boats do a sudden about-face and spin through seaweed curtains. Suddenly, abruptly , riders behold the “Kiss the Girl” scene. Set in a tranquil lagoon, Sebastian croons while Ariel and Eric enjoy a romantic boat ride. With the Granddaughter now telling the tale, the scenery seems to be drawn in crayon. Animatronics move jerkily. It’s like a childhood drawing brought to awkward life.
Suddenly, everything…just…stops…moving. The scene pauses in mid-action.
“We’re passing over a TON of the story here! Look, we gotta address Ursula, so…let me tell the story and we’ll just skip to the part where Ursula got really big and was then defeated. Okay?”
“Ohhh…Okay!”
With just as much abruptness, boats spin back through darkness and onto a stormy nighttime sea. They glide in an arc past a massive projection screen. On it – rains, waves, and a 200-foot-tall Ursula commanding the storm. She bellows with glee. A lightning flash reveals Prince Eric piloting a skipper ship towards her. Its pointed bow draws towards the sea witch. Lights vanish and only return as Ursula’s skeleton flashes in agony! She is defeated. Boats whisk away with utmost haste.
“King Triton saw how much his Ariel loved Eric. Their love had successfully overcome Ursula’s evil. With a fond farewell, Triton changed Ariel into a human.”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats hastily reverse through an enchanted aquatic grotto. Projections bathe the walls in ever-shifting magical auras – for all intents and purposes it’s the psychedelic climax to Crystal Grotto repurposed. Here it’s a transitional space.
“And THEN they all lived happily ever after!”
Boats spin and behold the happy ending finale. Framed by sea cliffs, Triton, Sebastian and Flounder wave farewell to Ariel’s wedding barge on the horizon. There is a great a musical fanfare over boats’ speakers. Fireworks are projected against a golden red ocean horizon.
Boats reverse quickly through a starfield cavern as the fanfare plays out, as the Fisherman’s storytelling trance wears off and riders return to the real world…
(But the music keeps on playing. It plays such an integral part in making Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopefully something more evocative than a simple “book report” ride, and the final notes are allowed to play out as boats return to unload.)
Riders emerge back outdoors near Prince Eric’s palace docks. A mighty galleon is moored here…and so is the Fisherman’s rowboat. He and his Granddaughter wave farewell to riders. Their boat is overloaded with items from Ariel’s grotto collection – salvaged as a delivery to the princess in her new home. Boats return to the docks, and guests continue their enchanting day in Shanghai Disneyland.
*************************************************************
Additional attractions and features round out Fantasy Harbor’s remaining space. Each serves as a “mini-land” extension for nearby attractions.
Sebastian’s, as mentioned above, is a restaurant set in Prince Eric’s palace which looks out onto Voyage of the Little Mermaid. Sebastian the crab has taken over Chef Louis’s castle kitchen, outlawed all seafood, and transformed Eric’s banquet hall into a fish-friendly eatery complete with lovely views and crustacean calypso concerts.
Across from Peter Pan’s Flight is Neverland Isle, perched above the harbor’s rugged waves and accessed by a series of suspension rope bridges (much like Paris's Adventure Isle). Picture it as a Fantasyland version of Tom Sawyer’s Island, an explorable interactive playground set on an island wonderland. Adventurous guests will discover a wide variety of hidden places. They will board Captain Hook’s Jolly Roger. They will find Mermaid Lagoon (overlooking Voyage of the Little Mermaid, naturally). They can crawl through the caverns of Skull Rock, climb the vines in Pixie Hollow, plumb the hideout of the Lost Boys, or simply enjoy a meet ‘n’ greet with Peter Pan or with Tinkerbelle.
Across from Frozen: A Sing-Along Celebration (which resembles Elsa’s ice palace) is a replica of Arendelle palace located across Fantasy Harbor’s waters. This show building houses a clone of Epcot’s Frozen Ever After. Just like with Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, cloning this fan-favorite ride is necessary to preserve budget for more ambitious creations like Voyage of the Little Mermaid. The regal Arendelle setting expands on Epcot's Frozen ambiance, completing it with a Sven’s Supplies merchandise wagon cart, an outdoor stage for performing troubadours, and a meeting spot where Anna and Elsa greet visitors.
As a whole, the Fantasy Harbor provides a nice collection of activities, from rides to walkthroughs to yet another barrier-bursting E-ticket to rival Shanghai’s Pirates or TRON. Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopes to elevate the form of the Fantasyland dark ride. It uses spectacular scenery both indoors and out, while combining animatronics, projections, and every other trick in the book. With the Fisherman, confused though he may be, hopefully we have a narrative device which helps avoid (or at least justify) the storytelling issues often present with dark rides.
Thank you!
Disneylover152
Well-Known Member
@Disneylover152 Presents:
FANTASYLAND
Come Explore This
World of Fantasy
(UPDATE: LINK SHOULD WORK NOW)
FANTASYLAND
Come Explore This
World of Fantasy
(UPDATE: LINK SHOULD WORK NOW)
Last edited:
TheOriginalTiki
Well-Known Member
TheOriginalTikiPresents...A Final Proposal for the "One Little Spark" Competition...
To replace Voyage to the Crystal Grotto on the timeline, I went with an idea that I’ve had in the back of my mind for a long time, a good part of it’s life in my head existing as a potential Beastly Kingdom expansion. Alas, the time has finally come now that I’ve reached the end of this game to fully explore this germ of an idea ten plus years in the making.
The attraction is called “Dragons”. A nice, simple title in the style of the Jungle Cruise and the Haunted Mansion. If you go on the Jungle Cruise, you're going to see animals. If you're going to the Haunted Mansion, you'll see some ghosts, and god knows if you're going on a ride that's called "Dragons" you are expecting some serious Dragon action.
before we go any further, I'd like to lay out the "types" of creatures that will be going into this ride. I don't want to just have the classic Medieval Malificent/Smaug style dragon. In total there will be three different types of dragons featured.
Medieval Dragons
There are dragons all over the bible, from the serpent who gives Eve the apple in the garden of Eden to the Leviathan, but perhaps our classic view of dragons comes from the medieval version. These dragons typically have very long, snake like necks, Big bodies. They stand on four legs typically. They have a sheep like mouth with thousands of teeth. The classic trait is their ability to breath fire.
Chinese Dragons
If you've ever been to a Chinese New Year Parade, you know what Chinese dragons are like. They are actually quite a bit like serpents, except with great, highly detailed heads. The Chinese take dragons really seriously which is a big part of why I chose this concept for Shanghai Disneyland. In fact, on the Chinese New Year calendar the dragon is the first animal represents, and it repeats every 12 years. So 2000, 2012, 2024, 2036 etc.
Far East Dragons
The dragons of the far east can be essentially summed up as a mix of medieval and Chinese dragons. Unlike the Chinese, the Far Eastern dragons do in fact have trademark long necks of the medieval dragons, however, it has more of the face of a Chinese variety, with a beard, giant spiked head, etc. The neck is also quite fat unlike the Medieval dragons.
A Note on the Storytelling
Piles of armor just before the entrance to the lair, Chinese dragons guarding hatching eggs, two medieval dragons dueling, a very hungry Far Eastern dragon starring you down. Bones of a beast so ancient they have become part of the landscape. It’s all part of the great experience of non-linear storytelling. We don’t know that’s the captain of the ship that’s firing at the fort in Pirates. For all we know the original captain is tied up in the galley. Who's to say the figure hanging in the attic is male? Is that raven who keeps showing up everywhere the puppet master in this whole mess?
Of course we know without a shadow of a doubt that the ghosts in the Hollywood Tower are victims of a tragic Halloween night accident. It’s obvious that the golden face staring at us as we start our Indiana Jones Adventure is that of ancient temple deity Mara. These examples trace back to a form of storytelling that’s becoming more and more prominent in Disney parks with established pre-shows and queues that almost tell more of the story than the attraction itself.
While this type of mythology is relatively cool, I’ll be the first to admit that I prefer when you are not completely aware of the overall mythology of the adventure. Every time I go to the Mansion, I imagine a new storyline. That right there is the point I want to make with Dragons. Every time you go on this ride, I want you to get something more out of it. It’s this kind of storytelling that will make Dragons an endearing classic.
First things first, Dragons will be a sight to behold in Fantasyland. That being said, I want to make this perfectly clear that the exterior of the ride is NOT a giant, Everest style Gothic mountain. Instead, I’m designing the exterior to fit almost perfectly into the landscape already established. I think of the exterior as a really, REALLY beefed up version of the rolling hills set-up next to the castle in Disneyland Paris. I want it to look like the scenery has been there forever.
The rides exterior is essentially an old, decrypted temple on a small hill. The temple is 15 feet high and crumbling. Forced perspective makes it seem relatively higher. What we are really interested in, however, is the hill that rises above the temple. Several things catch our eye, and draw us to make this adventure. We see some ruins up on the plains, but as our eyes adjust we actually see ruins of the temple built into the hill.
If we really listen hard we can actually hear growling, and if we look closely, we can actually see bones in these caves. Every so often, a blast of hot air is sprayed into the rides entrance courtyard. Sharp eyed guests will notice a few flames coming from the hill as well as some smoke emitting from it. The Dragons exterior is designed to be a “weenie” meaning the entrance is designed to draw you to it from afar, and you can’t help but want to experience this adventure. And without further ado, let’s do it!
Attraction Specifics
First off, it’s worth noting that beings as though Dragons is a boat ride, it will have a relatively high capacity. For this reason, Fastpass will not be needed. The sign will be relatively modest, because what your eyes are being drawn to is the hill itself. I don’t want the sign to be overwhelming and take away from the impact of seeing this immersive and detailed exterior. The sign will just be arched over the entrance.
Now, for the queue itself, which admittedly won’t be very elaborate. This is going back to my linear experience lecture. On attractions like Indy, the queue is so excessively detailed that you feel almost exhausted by the theme before you even get in your vehicle. The queue basically takes place on two levels. Both levels will be virtually the same size. The general layout will be just a lot of switchbacks. I know this might sound repetitive, but there will be some stuff to look at, and as I’ve said before, the line will be moving at virtually walking speed, thus making the feeling of repetitiveness somewhat unnoticeable.
As I’ve mentioned before, there will be tiny details hidden throughout the two levels of the queue. You can get more hints of the storytelling by looking at the markings carved onto the pillars. At this point a note should be made that the entire queue is open air. On the pillars holding up the temple, as I’ve said, you can get hints of the attractions mythology. Not only are there markings of some of the dragons, you can also notice an obvious level of decay on the pillars. Vines are also draped all down the sides of the temple, adding to the theme that this ancient temple is slowly becoming part of the landscape.
The two levels of the queue will be identical to the naked eye, but every single pillar in the entire queue will be different in some way or another. Now, once you climb down the stairs to the bottom portion of the queue, you’re basically in the boarding area. The boarding process acts in much the same way as Pirates. The entire right edge of the temple is used to board. Two boats are loaded and dispatched at once, essentially doubling the capacity at every operations cycle.
As we pull away from the dock, we leave the human world behind. As we round our first corner we see the extent of the temple's damage. There are piles of rocks and ruins. One rock in particular catches our eye more than the others. It has a drawing of the North Eastern dragon you will encounter later on.
Soon our eyes wander away from the ruins and onto the sight ahead. The first real sign of ancient beasts we see is on the lift hill. More importantly, we see rib bones, giant rib bones, sticking out from the hill. As you climb the 30 ft. lift hill, with these giant bones hovering over you, you have to wonder, how long has this hill and these bones been here?
Perhaps this beast died slouched on a slope possibly thousands of years ago. Over time, the skeleton just grew into the earth, becoming part of it. It’s just one of many stories your mind can create as you take this voyage time and time again. As we crest the hill, we see the dragon's skull, our speculation has been confirmed. These are indeed the bones of a dragon
As we near the entrance to the lair, the first thing we see is a good sized pile of armor. The bodies are nowhere to be found, but obviously something’s up. We turn our eyes away from the armor on the left side of the bank to a cave on the right. This set is designed to pay homage to the original Beastly Kingdom concept. You see a skeleton at the edge of the cave.
Smoke is emitting from the opening, when all of a sudden, you hear a growl and see a pair of red eyes staring back at you. That mess is quickly avoided, however, we see we are not out of harm's way yet; in fact our adventure is only just beginning as we head towards a modest opening in the hill. We are about to enter the Belly of the Beast, both physically and metaphorically.
Before we even enter the lair of the beast, however, we must encounter the guardians. This is a relatively small room. As we plummet into the darkness and our eyes adjust we see the water shimmering below us, and our eyes fix up a gate. The gate is open, and we get a glimpse of the next scene, but not before the two trolls guarding this gate notice us and roar. Clearly we are unwelcome. But we continue along anyways, hoping we don’t come in contact with anymore trolls.
The egg room is of the utmost importance, at least in terms of the non-existent storyline. Trolls are guarding the entrance to it, as we have just witnessed. As we enter this room, we are almost blinded by the amount of light there is compared to the gates. We see two Chinese dragons flying around (On wires) guarding the place, they are roughly half the size of what a dragon in a Chinese New Year parade would be.
But we are not fixed on these dragons; our eyes are actually fixed on all the eggs in this room. Some of the eggs have already started to hatch and you see the shell pushing outward. Other eggs are pretty much hatched, and you see the head of a little baby dragon peeping out from the top of it.
Some are cracking, some are wiggling around, but one thing's for sure, this room is filled with life. As we sail through this room we come to a hole and stop. All of a sudden a Chinese dragon pops out from that hole. At first we are startled by his sudden appearance, but at a second glance the dragon is actually lively and friendly. We leave the room feeling good at the humorous scene that has just taken place.
Continuing on, the bright lights of the previous scene keep glowing as we enter the treasure chamber. Here we see two dragons of the medival variety having a duel. In this room pyro effects fly above guests heads (a safe distance away of course) and fire hits small pools of water on fire Fantasmic style. The two AA dragons are far more intimidating than the Chinese ones we encountered in the last scene, but luckily for us they’re far too distracted by the fight to notice the guests floating by.
As you exit out of the treasure room, you are plunged into darkness, much like the darkness from which you began your voyage. This time, however, you can literally feel the heat. You travel down a pitch black corridor. Suddenly, the walls turn bright red, and alas, the Far Eastern dragon appears before your eyes. Now, in order to pull off the fire effect, some pretty advanced tricks will have to be placed. First off, There will be a scrim between you and the dragon, so even though you see the dragon, he is actually not in the same room, you are seeing him through a see through wall.
Similar effects are used for the Carousel of Progress (When you see the family members in the different rooms) and the Haunted Mansion (When you see through the ceiling in the elevator) as well as countless other Disney attractions. The scrim will keep the fires heat from becoming dangerous. There will also be a layer of fireproof glass between the dragon and the scrim to keep the scrim from burning as he unleashes his fiery breath.
Don’t worry, you won’t be the victim for long.
Now, for the climatic escape, I am employing another new bit of tech. A launched boat ride. Well, the way I see it, if you get enough water jets streaming in this part of the flume, you can actually cause a successful “launch”...not a Rock N’ Roller Coaster style launch mind you, but enough to get you to exit your boat with your fists pumping. This would successfully employ the “water coaster” concept seen in water parks into a trial run on a more advanced theme park flume ride.Following the launch, your boat blasts to about 20 MPH and drops down a 30 foot drop in pitch black.
You emerge from the darkness to the peaceful sights of the castle moat. You circle around the temple for a few moments until you get to one final cave, where you see another medieval dragon taking a nap, right on top of a pile of treasure. You also see three skeletons with their hands on a sword sticking out from the treasure.
This is one final mystery of Dragons, one final thing to form your own opinion around. One final piece of the storytelling puzzle the ride in its very structure is asking you to put together in your own mind...how you see fit.
To replace Voyage to the Crystal Grotto on the timeline, I went with an idea that I’ve had in the back of my mind for a long time, a good part of it’s life in my head existing as a potential Beastly Kingdom expansion. Alas, the time has finally come now that I’ve reached the end of this game to fully explore this germ of an idea ten plus years in the making.
The attraction is called “Dragons”. A nice, simple title in the style of the Jungle Cruise and the Haunted Mansion. If you go on the Jungle Cruise, you're going to see animals. If you're going to the Haunted Mansion, you'll see some ghosts, and god knows if you're going on a ride that's called "Dragons" you are expecting some serious Dragon action.
before we go any further, I'd like to lay out the "types" of creatures that will be going into this ride. I don't want to just have the classic Medieval Malificent/Smaug style dragon. In total there will be three different types of dragons featured.
Medieval Dragons
There are dragons all over the bible, from the serpent who gives Eve the apple in the garden of Eden to the Leviathan, but perhaps our classic view of dragons comes from the medieval version. These dragons typically have very long, snake like necks, Big bodies. They stand on four legs typically. They have a sheep like mouth with thousands of teeth. The classic trait is their ability to breath fire.
Chinese Dragons
If you've ever been to a Chinese New Year Parade, you know what Chinese dragons are like. They are actually quite a bit like serpents, except with great, highly detailed heads. The Chinese take dragons really seriously which is a big part of why I chose this concept for Shanghai Disneyland. In fact, on the Chinese New Year calendar the dragon is the first animal represents, and it repeats every 12 years. So 2000, 2012, 2024, 2036 etc.
Far East Dragons
The dragons of the far east can be essentially summed up as a mix of medieval and Chinese dragons. Unlike the Chinese, the Far Eastern dragons do in fact have trademark long necks of the medieval dragons, however, it has more of the face of a Chinese variety, with a beard, giant spiked head, etc. The neck is also quite fat unlike the Medieval dragons.
A Note on the Storytelling
Piles of armor just before the entrance to the lair, Chinese dragons guarding hatching eggs, two medieval dragons dueling, a very hungry Far Eastern dragon starring you down. Bones of a beast so ancient they have become part of the landscape. It’s all part of the great experience of non-linear storytelling. We don’t know that’s the captain of the ship that’s firing at the fort in Pirates. For all we know the original captain is tied up in the galley. Who's to say the figure hanging in the attic is male? Is that raven who keeps showing up everywhere the puppet master in this whole mess?
Of course we know without a shadow of a doubt that the ghosts in the Hollywood Tower are victims of a tragic Halloween night accident. It’s obvious that the golden face staring at us as we start our Indiana Jones Adventure is that of ancient temple deity Mara. These examples trace back to a form of storytelling that’s becoming more and more prominent in Disney parks with established pre-shows and queues that almost tell more of the story than the attraction itself.
While this type of mythology is relatively cool, I’ll be the first to admit that I prefer when you are not completely aware of the overall mythology of the adventure. Every time I go to the Mansion, I imagine a new storyline. That right there is the point I want to make with Dragons. Every time you go on this ride, I want you to get something more out of it. It’s this kind of storytelling that will make Dragons an endearing classic.
First things first, Dragons will be a sight to behold in Fantasyland. That being said, I want to make this perfectly clear that the exterior of the ride is NOT a giant, Everest style Gothic mountain. Instead, I’m designing the exterior to fit almost perfectly into the landscape already established. I think of the exterior as a really, REALLY beefed up version of the rolling hills set-up next to the castle in Disneyland Paris. I want it to look like the scenery has been there forever.
The rides exterior is essentially an old, decrypted temple on a small hill. The temple is 15 feet high and crumbling. Forced perspective makes it seem relatively higher. What we are really interested in, however, is the hill that rises above the temple. Several things catch our eye, and draw us to make this adventure. We see some ruins up on the plains, but as our eyes adjust we actually see ruins of the temple built into the hill.
If we really listen hard we can actually hear growling, and if we look closely, we can actually see bones in these caves. Every so often, a blast of hot air is sprayed into the rides entrance courtyard. Sharp eyed guests will notice a few flames coming from the hill as well as some smoke emitting from it. The Dragons exterior is designed to be a “weenie” meaning the entrance is designed to draw you to it from afar, and you can’t help but want to experience this adventure. And without further ado, let’s do it!
Attraction Specifics
First off, it’s worth noting that beings as though Dragons is a boat ride, it will have a relatively high capacity. For this reason, Fastpass will not be needed. The sign will be relatively modest, because what your eyes are being drawn to is the hill itself. I don’t want the sign to be overwhelming and take away from the impact of seeing this immersive and detailed exterior. The sign will just be arched over the entrance.
Now, for the queue itself, which admittedly won’t be very elaborate. This is going back to my linear experience lecture. On attractions like Indy, the queue is so excessively detailed that you feel almost exhausted by the theme before you even get in your vehicle. The queue basically takes place on two levels. Both levels will be virtually the same size. The general layout will be just a lot of switchbacks. I know this might sound repetitive, but there will be some stuff to look at, and as I’ve said before, the line will be moving at virtually walking speed, thus making the feeling of repetitiveness somewhat unnoticeable.
As I’ve mentioned before, there will be tiny details hidden throughout the two levels of the queue. You can get more hints of the storytelling by looking at the markings carved onto the pillars. At this point a note should be made that the entire queue is open air. On the pillars holding up the temple, as I’ve said, you can get hints of the attractions mythology. Not only are there markings of some of the dragons, you can also notice an obvious level of decay on the pillars. Vines are also draped all down the sides of the temple, adding to the theme that this ancient temple is slowly becoming part of the landscape.
The two levels of the queue will be identical to the naked eye, but every single pillar in the entire queue will be different in some way or another. Now, once you climb down the stairs to the bottom portion of the queue, you’re basically in the boarding area. The boarding process acts in much the same way as Pirates. The entire right edge of the temple is used to board. Two boats are loaded and dispatched at once, essentially doubling the capacity at every operations cycle.
As we pull away from the dock, we leave the human world behind. As we round our first corner we see the extent of the temple's damage. There are piles of rocks and ruins. One rock in particular catches our eye more than the others. It has a drawing of the North Eastern dragon you will encounter later on.
Soon our eyes wander away from the ruins and onto the sight ahead. The first real sign of ancient beasts we see is on the lift hill. More importantly, we see rib bones, giant rib bones, sticking out from the hill. As you climb the 30 ft. lift hill, with these giant bones hovering over you, you have to wonder, how long has this hill and these bones been here?
Perhaps this beast died slouched on a slope possibly thousands of years ago. Over time, the skeleton just grew into the earth, becoming part of it. It’s just one of many stories your mind can create as you take this voyage time and time again. As we crest the hill, we see the dragon's skull, our speculation has been confirmed. These are indeed the bones of a dragon
As we near the entrance to the lair, the first thing we see is a good sized pile of armor. The bodies are nowhere to be found, but obviously something’s up. We turn our eyes away from the armor on the left side of the bank to a cave on the right. This set is designed to pay homage to the original Beastly Kingdom concept. You see a skeleton at the edge of the cave.
Smoke is emitting from the opening, when all of a sudden, you hear a growl and see a pair of red eyes staring back at you. That mess is quickly avoided, however, we see we are not out of harm's way yet; in fact our adventure is only just beginning as we head towards a modest opening in the hill. We are about to enter the Belly of the Beast, both physically and metaphorically.
Before we even enter the lair of the beast, however, we must encounter the guardians. This is a relatively small room. As we plummet into the darkness and our eyes adjust we see the water shimmering below us, and our eyes fix up a gate. The gate is open, and we get a glimpse of the next scene, but not before the two trolls guarding this gate notice us and roar. Clearly we are unwelcome. But we continue along anyways, hoping we don’t come in contact with anymore trolls.
The egg room is of the utmost importance, at least in terms of the non-existent storyline. Trolls are guarding the entrance to it, as we have just witnessed. As we enter this room, we are almost blinded by the amount of light there is compared to the gates. We see two Chinese dragons flying around (On wires) guarding the place, they are roughly half the size of what a dragon in a Chinese New Year parade would be.
But we are not fixed on these dragons; our eyes are actually fixed on all the eggs in this room. Some of the eggs have already started to hatch and you see the shell pushing outward. Other eggs are pretty much hatched, and you see the head of a little baby dragon peeping out from the top of it.
Some are cracking, some are wiggling around, but one thing's for sure, this room is filled with life. As we sail through this room we come to a hole and stop. All of a sudden a Chinese dragon pops out from that hole. At first we are startled by his sudden appearance, but at a second glance the dragon is actually lively and friendly. We leave the room feeling good at the humorous scene that has just taken place.
Continuing on, the bright lights of the previous scene keep glowing as we enter the treasure chamber. Here we see two dragons of the medival variety having a duel. In this room pyro effects fly above guests heads (a safe distance away of course) and fire hits small pools of water on fire Fantasmic style. The two AA dragons are far more intimidating than the Chinese ones we encountered in the last scene, but luckily for us they’re far too distracted by the fight to notice the guests floating by.
As you exit out of the treasure room, you are plunged into darkness, much like the darkness from which you began your voyage. This time, however, you can literally feel the heat. You travel down a pitch black corridor. Suddenly, the walls turn bright red, and alas, the Far Eastern dragon appears before your eyes. Now, in order to pull off the fire effect, some pretty advanced tricks will have to be placed. First off, There will be a scrim between you and the dragon, so even though you see the dragon, he is actually not in the same room, you are seeing him through a see through wall.
Similar effects are used for the Carousel of Progress (When you see the family members in the different rooms) and the Haunted Mansion (When you see through the ceiling in the elevator) as well as countless other Disney attractions. The scrim will keep the fires heat from becoming dangerous. There will also be a layer of fireproof glass between the dragon and the scrim to keep the scrim from burning as he unleashes his fiery breath.
Don’t worry, you won’t be the victim for long.
Now, for the climatic escape, I am employing another new bit of tech. A launched boat ride. Well, the way I see it, if you get enough water jets streaming in this part of the flume, you can actually cause a successful “launch”...not a Rock N’ Roller Coaster style launch mind you, but enough to get you to exit your boat with your fists pumping. This would successfully employ the “water coaster” concept seen in water parks into a trial run on a more advanced theme park flume ride.Following the launch, your boat blasts to about 20 MPH and drops down a 30 foot drop in pitch black.
You emerge from the darkness to the peaceful sights of the castle moat. You circle around the temple for a few moments until you get to one final cave, where you see another medieval dragon taking a nap, right on top of a pile of treasure. You also see three skeletons with their hands on a sword sticking out from the treasure.
This is one final mystery of Dragons, one final thing to form your own opinion around. One final piece of the storytelling puzzle the ride in its very structure is asking you to put together in your own mind...how you see fit.
spacemt354
Chili's
Eh my eyes strain too much with split screen on my laptop - I try to avoid it at all costs.
Reviews coming up within the hour
- In the Parks
- Yes
@PerGronStudio did submit on time! But his post got flagged waiting for moderator approval for some reason. So, he emailed me the link to it so I can share it for him.
spacemt354
Chili's
The OLS Finale - Reviews (Part 1)
Voyage of the Little Mermaid - @D Hindley
As always, you come up big in the clutch, the Kobe of imagineering comps, turning it on when it counts. Your concept art just adds another excellent addition to your archives, and one that sets the stage well for what is to come. Aside from the obvious of it being a water-based attraction we are revitalizing, why Mermaid? A similar style attraction would have been added to New Fantasyland in the MK in 2012, and Voyage of the Little Mermaid is the name of the mermaid show in DHS? Does China prefer this IP? Just curious -- it makes sense but if it's a popular IP or something, or a reasoning behind it was elaborate, it would get brownie points from me.
The map aptly shows where everything is located so even a novice Shanghai reader can get their boundaries. Moreover, the small touches like knowing where the waterfall exit was adds small points here and there using your experience from Shanghai to your advantage.
Overall, the attraction itself sounds great, and I'm sure that phrase will be overused tonight in my reviews - so let me elaborate, what makes this stand out from other incarnations of The Little Mermaid dark rides other than it being trackless and a bit more high-tech? To me there wasn't much to see. The stock photo concept art was from previous Mermaid attraction incarnations (with the clamshell visible) so it begs the question to me of how it would be different. That being said, Shanghai Pirates, on paper, sounds very similar to other Pirate attractions (maybe with a bit more emphasis on the films) however in person it's a whole other beast. Perhaps a bit more distinctive visuals would have made this stand out to me rather than read something that reminded me of attractions I had already been on.
Furthermore, I think Neverland and Frozen are practically perfect complements to Mermaid and add not only more water based IPs, but add a naturalistic center to the land and give it a stronger identity for opening day.
Dragons - @TheOriginalTiki
The style of this presentation is what sticks out the most to me, mostly the diction and lexicon where it feels like I'm reading a personal journal entry constantly switching to first person and then back to third. Bit of a risk narrative-wise, and sometimes it does kinda run on into unnecessary information like...okay, we get it, get to the point
but it was actually a bit refreshing to see, imo.
Continuing with the things I likely obviously the RCT"2" was a huge throwback and ties in nicely with the throwback Beastly Kingdomme context that this attraction was based on. All the concept art is noted as well for its effort and ability to make the project stand out as personal and a visceral read.
For the attraction itself, while the components and the ride-through flow very well, its placement has me a bit perplexed because it really seems like an entirely different land compared to the Fantasyland that surrounds it. It's almost like this could be its own land or subland of Fantasyland, but having it be in the middle of the land to me it needs to at least provide a central purpose for the land. With this as the center, I would have liked to have seen some explanation as to how and why this fits bets into the area. With those explanations, I think this would be on a shelf unto itself, but still a very solid proposal.
Voyage of the Little Mermaid - @D Hindley
As always, you come up big in the clutch, the Kobe of imagineering comps, turning it on when it counts. Your concept art just adds another excellent addition to your archives, and one that sets the stage well for what is to come. Aside from the obvious of it being a water-based attraction we are revitalizing, why Mermaid? A similar style attraction would have been added to New Fantasyland in the MK in 2012, and Voyage of the Little Mermaid is the name of the mermaid show in DHS? Does China prefer this IP? Just curious -- it makes sense but if it's a popular IP or something, or a reasoning behind it was elaborate, it would get brownie points from me.
The map aptly shows where everything is located so even a novice Shanghai reader can get their boundaries. Moreover, the small touches like knowing where the waterfall exit was adds small points here and there using your experience from Shanghai to your advantage.
Overall, the attraction itself sounds great, and I'm sure that phrase will be overused tonight in my reviews - so let me elaborate, what makes this stand out from other incarnations of The Little Mermaid dark rides other than it being trackless and a bit more high-tech? To me there wasn't much to see. The stock photo concept art was from previous Mermaid attraction incarnations (with the clamshell visible) so it begs the question to me of how it would be different. That being said, Shanghai Pirates, on paper, sounds very similar to other Pirate attractions (maybe with a bit more emphasis on the films) however in person it's a whole other beast. Perhaps a bit more distinctive visuals would have made this stand out to me rather than read something that reminded me of attractions I had already been on.
Furthermore, I think Neverland and Frozen are practically perfect complements to Mermaid and add not only more water based IPs, but add a naturalistic center to the land and give it a stronger identity for opening day.
Dragons - @TheOriginalTiki
The style of this presentation is what sticks out the most to me, mostly the diction and lexicon where it feels like I'm reading a personal journal entry constantly switching to first person and then back to third. Bit of a risk narrative-wise, and sometimes it does kinda run on into unnecessary information like...okay, we get it, get to the point
but it was actually a bit refreshing to see, imo.Continuing with the things I likely obviously the RCT"2" was a huge throwback and ties in nicely with the throwback Beastly Kingdomme context that this attraction was based on. All the concept art is noted as well for its effort and ability to make the project stand out as personal and a visceral read.
For the attraction itself, while the components and the ride-through flow very well, its placement has me a bit perplexed because it really seems like an entirely different land compared to the Fantasyland that surrounds it. It's almost like this could be its own land or subland of Fantasyland, but having it be in the middle of the land to me it needs to at least provide a central purpose for the land. With this as the center, I would have liked to have seen some explanation as to how and why this fits bets into the area. With those explanations, I think this would be on a shelf unto itself, but still a very solid proposal.
spacemt354
Chili's
Fantasyland - @Disneylover152
As with everyone I'm sure (but saying it here because you made it known) the effort to try and get something in for this comp despite all the distractions does not go unnoticed. One could only imagine what you could do if you were at full strength. This proposal has some strong points, that being the excellent map and well-written descriptions for the content of the additions. With that, there didn't seem to be a tie to anything, I almost would have liked to see just the fairies, see how far you can explore with that, especially with Peter Pan's Flight, it would have been a nice tie in there to completely expand, almost like a Tom Sawyer Island for Fantasyland - idk about you but to me that sounds amazing and original! Adding in Mary Poppins to me just felt disconnected and while never actually in the park has been done over and over in imagineering comps, almost to the point it needs to be retired after kap91's version.
But I don't want to get down on it too much, you had a good proposal that could be enhanced obviously with more time but also a more centralized focus (don't worry you're not the only one I've been saying that to!)
Mickey's Magical Kingdom - @PerGronStudio
Off the bat this feels like the name of another park - I'd personally leave the 'kingdom' titles of lands or sublands to the theme parks, that said I appreciate the language translation, nice touch!
One Mouse's Journey is definitely an out of the box take - something I wouldn't have expected, and I do like how you gave some background to the context of the attraction, Disney's ties with China, etc. The attraction really stands out as a creative endeavor! Perhaps not to the level of your ToT - but still an excellent example of your skills as an imagineer being able to derive innovative stories to tell!
I think the Toontown style aspect of it might not have even been needed, I think One Mouse's Journey tying in as a subland to the Enchanted Storybook Castle would have been an interesting dichotomy unto itself, and the Fantasmic addition I think is too narrow of a placement for it to make sense there. In the end though, regardless of the standings, this being really the first comp I've followed you in....
As with everyone I'm sure (but saying it here because you made it known) the effort to try and get something in for this comp despite all the distractions does not go unnoticed. One could only imagine what you could do if you were at full strength. This proposal has some strong points, that being the excellent map and well-written descriptions for the content of the additions. With that, there didn't seem to be a tie to anything, I almost would have liked to see just the fairies, see how far you can explore with that, especially with Peter Pan's Flight, it would have been a nice tie in there to completely expand, almost like a Tom Sawyer Island for Fantasyland - idk about you but to me that sounds amazing and original! Adding in Mary Poppins to me just felt disconnected and while never actually in the park has been done over and over in imagineering comps, almost to the point it needs to be retired after kap91's version.
But I don't want to get down on it too much, you had a good proposal that could be enhanced obviously with more time but also a more centralized focus (don't worry you're not the only one I've been saying that to!)
Mickey's Magical Kingdom - @PerGronStudio
Off the bat this feels like the name of another park - I'd personally leave the 'kingdom' titles of lands or sublands to the theme parks, that said I appreciate the language translation, nice touch!
One Mouse's Journey is definitely an out of the box take - something I wouldn't have expected, and I do like how you gave some background to the context of the attraction, Disney's ties with China, etc. The attraction really stands out as a creative endeavor! Perhaps not to the level of your ToT - but still an excellent example of your skills as an imagineer being able to derive innovative stories to tell!
I think the Toontown style aspect of it might not have even been needed, I think One Mouse's Journey tying in as a subland to the Enchanted Storybook Castle would have been an interesting dichotomy unto itself, and the Fantasmic addition I think is too narrow of a placement for it to make sense there. In the end though, regardless of the standings, this being really the first comp I've followed you in....
spacemt354
Chili's
Fantasyland - @AceAstro
The overall structure and premise of this replacement goes well with what realistically would be done. That said, akin to other finalists so you're not the only one, I felt like there was a spark missing, something that pushed it over the top and made it stand out. It felt all well and good, concept art very solid, map good, and well-written descriptions....but descriptions of content that we've seen before presented in a similar fashion. The suspended Little Mermaid was cool but wasn't that the original intention of the dark ride? Gaston's and other amentities around the area all compliment Mermaid well - and that's mainly because they already complement each other in New Fantasyland in the MK. So if the project was to look for the most realistic of options or what Disney would probably have done if they were on their cloning binge circa 2012, then a Mermaid/BatB adaptation would probably in the cards, with Frozen added into the mix after its success at the box office in 2013. But hey, making the finale round in 2 major comps this year, that's something to hold onto and be proud of. That doesn't happen often.
Fantasia: River of Symphonies - @Evilgidgit
Might be saving one of the best for last, while Fantasia has been done before in imagineering competitions, I have yet to see it enclose a previous attraction layout and take on a whole life of its own behind the Castle. It took me a while to wrap my head around it - but by observing your custom map, details, and descriptions, I really like this idea. And especially creating another indoor attraction, as air quality and all, I would suspect that would be preferable, and if inclement weather or smog, the attraction is safe from the elements. Also safe from the elements are all the components of the attraction that don't suffer the fate of attractions like Jurassic Park or things like that over time upon constant exposure to the elements. My one gripe is that it does just follow the beats of Fantasia a bit, akin to other feedback I have had to your fellow finalists, some of these attractions felt like they were going through the motions of either previous renditions of the attractions or more book-reporting of the films.
With that though, one can't deny your passion of writing which shines through as well as your continued dedication to artwork week after week, project after project, culminating in a finals appearance which is pretty cool to see such a progression over the season!
The overall structure and premise of this replacement goes well with what realistically would be done. That said, akin to other finalists so you're not the only one, I felt like there was a spark missing, something that pushed it over the top and made it stand out. It felt all well and good, concept art very solid, map good, and well-written descriptions....but descriptions of content that we've seen before presented in a similar fashion. The suspended Little Mermaid was cool but wasn't that the original intention of the dark ride? Gaston's and other amentities around the area all compliment Mermaid well - and that's mainly because they already complement each other in New Fantasyland in the MK. So if the project was to look for the most realistic of options or what Disney would probably have done if they were on their cloning binge circa 2012, then a Mermaid/BatB adaptation would probably in the cards, with Frozen added into the mix after its success at the box office in 2013. But hey, making the finale round in 2 major comps this year, that's something to hold onto and be proud of. That doesn't happen often.
Fantasia: River of Symphonies - @Evilgidgit
Might be saving one of the best for last, while Fantasia has been done before in imagineering competitions, I have yet to see it enclose a previous attraction layout and take on a whole life of its own behind the Castle. It took me a while to wrap my head around it - but by observing your custom map, details, and descriptions, I really like this idea. And especially creating another indoor attraction, as air quality and all, I would suspect that would be preferable, and if inclement weather or smog, the attraction is safe from the elements. Also safe from the elements are all the components of the attraction that don't suffer the fate of attractions like Jurassic Park or things like that over time upon constant exposure to the elements. My one gripe is that it does just follow the beats of Fantasia a bit, akin to other feedback I have had to your fellow finalists, some of these attractions felt like they were going through the motions of either previous renditions of the attractions or more book-reporting of the films.
With that though, one can't deny your passion of writing which shines through as well as your continued dedication to artwork week after week, project after project, culminating in a finals appearance which is pretty cool to see such a progression over the season!
- In the Parks
- Yes
FANTASY HARBOR
VOYAGE OF THE LITTLE MERMAID
At the center of Shanghai Disneyland’s Fantasyland is a watery oasis known as Fantasy Harbor. This is a central lagoon lined by sandy beaches, coral rocks, and the constant soothing sound of waves. Fantasy Harbor’s centerpiece is Voyage of the Little Mermaid, a trackless E-ticket dark ride on the water. Just as Pooh’s Hunny Hunt is an upgrade to The Many Adventure’s of Winnie the Pooh, so is this to Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. Guests will plunge into Ariel’s song-filled undersea world, as her tale is retold by an old fisherman to his granddaughter.
Ariel’s coastal kingdom is visible the instant guests pass through Enchanted Storybook Castle. The walkway hugs Fantasy Harbor, with Prince Eric’s palace perched against the sea cliffs at the base of the larger castle. Eric’s seaside sanctuary hides a large show building which juts out below in between here and the Alice in Wonderland Maze. Guests only see rolling beach dunes and stucco parapets. From this upper landing, they can also enter Eric’s palace and dine in Sebastian’s overlooking the ride’s exterior.
The waters below teem with magical sailing buckets scampering around the waves and rocks. From outside this simply resembles a Fantasyland version of DisneySea’s Aquatopia. LPS “boats” sailing on a thin film of water. For riders it shall prove far more enchanting…
Ride entry is across from Fairy Godmother's Cupboard in a beached pleasure vessel – the wedding barge from The Little Mermaid. It sits alongside a fisherman’s hut with a moored rowboat. Guests pass a bronze statue of Ariel (inspired by the statue in Copenhagen) and queue within the barge. Paintings and tapestries within tell a tale: This is set after The Little Mermaid, with Ariel and Eric happily married and their kingdoms united.
Guests ride in handmade bucket-shaped boats with masts. These boats glide atop a paved surface painted blue, while a thin layer of water over it creates the illusion of an ocean voyage. Each boat sits two rows of three, and four boats depart every 30 seconds (similar to many trackless rides), allowing for a theoretical hourly capacity of 2,880.
Boats begin outdoors in the shadow of Eric’s palace and the Enchanted Storybook Castle beyond. Dedicated boat speakers play “Fathoms Below” from The Little Mermaid’s soundtrack. The two buildings feel “as one” from the harbor’s surface, unified by towers and organic rock work. The waters surrounding riders are alive, practically enchanted, with arcing sprays, bubbling waves, and swirling whirlpools. Boats glide seemingly at random through this Mediterranean paradise.
Eventually they drift past the fisherman’s hut on the shore (noting the footsteps in the sand), and towards a waterfall magically flowing from Enchanted Storybook Castle. Ariel’s mesmerizing singing voice builds from a cavern within the tumbling waters. The boats spin, overcome, enchanted, and they glide around the waterfall and into a hidden grotto leading underneath Enchanted Storybook Castle.
(Our rival Imagineers working on Team Shanghai have proposed a so-called “Voyage to the Crystal Grotto” boat ride for this same space, which would use this waterfall entrance as its exit.)
Boats drift and spin curiously through the sea-formed grotto, down brief branching paths. Suddenly the barnacled walls give way, opening onto a tranquil breakwater bay at sunset. (This indoors scene is set at dusk to work for both day and night rides.) A tiny model of Eric’s palace sits on a distant peninsula. Ariel's voice still wafts from here. The four boats gather together around the Fisherman and his Granddaughter in a rowboat. She asks (in Cantonese) about how Princess Ariel came to their kingdom.
The Fisherman launches into his narration – very much in the vein of The Princess Bride – as boats glide backwards to face the open ocean. Thus the stage is set for a retelling of The Little Mermaid, with past scenes emerging like distant memories, and with any gaps in story logic excused as the result of the Fisherman’s scatterbrained narration.
“Ariel was originally a mermaid. She lived under the sea, in the great watery kingdom of her father King Triton.”
Ocean waves splash – animated projections against a curved screen – and crash over our boats! The “Main Titles” play. Riders are plunged “underwater,” as the room takes on a submerged feel. (A similar faux-underwater transition graces Shanghai’s Pirates of the Caribbean.) Mists spray riders, fans simulate waves, bubbles blow, even a faint saltwater smell creeps in. Boats travel the undersea currents past swaying seaweed and swimming fish. Just as the on-ride choral soundtrack swells, riders behold a grand view of King Triton’s castle. Grand golden spires gleam in filtered sunbeams.
But boats continue on. The Fisherman’s narration continues like a voiceover, subtly guiding boats and creating the world around them:
“Everyone was happy. But Ariel dreamt of something more. She dreamt of becoming human.”
The boats enter Ariel’s grotto. Shelves everywhere overflow with surface-made bric-a-brac. At the room’s centerpiece is an animatronic Ariel serenading a statue of Prince Eric, singing her lovely song “Part of Your World.” The boats explore curiously, splitting into pairs and gliding down rocky aisles and pausing to admire Ariel’s collection. Wind-up porcelain music boxes spin. Flounder watches on from similarly bulbous teapots. Sebastian spies from behind mounted spyglasses. Sunlight from a shaft illuminates oil paintings of land life. (With trackless ride technology, songs and scenes can be precisely orchestrated to vehicles’ movement.)
Boats drift off into darkness, into a transition space accompanied only by the voices of the Fisherman and his Granddaughter.
“And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula asking to become human...and they all lived happily ever after.”
“Grandpa, you’re telling it wrong!”
“Am I?”
“What about when Sebastian sang to Ariel?”
“Hey, are you telling this story or am I?...As I was saying, Sebastian tried convincing Ariel to stay – WITH SONG!”
Broadway show lights come up on a spectacular “Under the Sea” room! Think of it like the Hunny Hunt Hephalump room – on steroids! Over two dozen boats glide crisscrossing over a spectacular, bioluminescent coral bed. Everywhere, singing animatronic fish perform – over a hundred of them, all fully articulated, in one of the most ambitious setpieces Disney Imagineering has ever created! (A test run for the “Be Our Guest” sequence in Tokyo Disneyland’s upcoming Beauty & the Beast ride.)
Boats split off. At times they "dance" with each other in time with Sebastian's jaunty tune. At times they stop one-by-one at interesting little vignettes. The ENTIRETY of Sebastian’s three-minute, Oscar-winning song plays out. Sights riders see along the way include:
- A blue lobster plays clams like steel drums.
- Projection screens show sad guppies floating in bubbles. The bubbles burst, and air cannons blast riders.
- Tiny seahorses pop out from a glowing, Technicolor anemone bed.
- A newt plays a flute.
- A carp plays a harp.
- A bass plays the bass – plucking “strings” on octopus tentacles.
- A quartet of giant snails pop from their shells and serenade.
- A blowfish blows on a coral tuba; it inflates wildly.
- Sebastian floats in mid-current conducting a complete crustacean orchestra!
- And much, much more!
“But Sebastian’s jaunty calypso showstopper was unconvincing. And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula to become human…”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats sail away from this festive space and past distant shipwrecks (forced perspective models). The seas grow darker and more frightening, the only light coming from the glowing eyes of Flotsam and Jetsam hovering overhead an watching silently, eerily. Boats near Ursula’s distant lair…
“Grandpa, this part is scary! Talk about something happy! What about after Ariel became a human and she tried kissing Prince Eric?”
As the Granddaughter’s narration takes over, boats do a sudden about-face and spin through seaweed curtains. Suddenly, abruptly , riders behold the “Kiss the Girl” scene. Set in a tranquil lagoon, Sebastian croons while Ariel and Eric enjoy a romantic boat ride. With the Granddaughter now telling the tale, the scenery seems to be drawn in crayon. Animatronics move jerkily. It’s like a childhood drawing brought to awkward life.
Suddenly, everything…just…stops…moving. The scene pauses in mid-action.
“We’re passing over a TON of the story here! Look, we gotta address Ursula, so…let me tell the story and we’ll just skip to the part where Ursula got really big and was then defeated. Okay?”
“Ohhh…Okay!”
With just as much abruptness, boats spin back through darkness and onto a stormy nighttime sea. They glide in an arc past a massive projection screen. On it – rains, waves, and a 200-foot-tall Ursula commanding the storm. She bellows with glee. A lightning flash reveals Prince Eric piloting a skipper ship towards her. Its pointed bow draws towards the sea witch. Lights vanish and only return as Ursula’s skeleton flashes in agony! She is defeated. Boats whisk away with utmost haste.
“King Triton saw how much his Ariel loved Eric. Their love had successfully overcome Ursula’s evil. With a fond farewell, Triton changed Ariel into a human.”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats hastily reverse through an enchanted aquatic grotto. Projections bathe the walls in ever-shifting magical auras – for all intents and purposes it’s the psychedelic climax to Crystal Grotto repurposed. Here it’s a transitional space.
“And THEN they all lived happily ever after!”
Boats spin and behold the happy ending finale. Framed by sea cliffs, Triton, Sebastian and Flounder wave farewell to Ariel’s wedding barge on the horizon. There is a great a musical fanfare over boats’ speakers. Fireworks are projected against a golden red ocean horizon.
Boats reverse quickly through a starfield cavern as the fanfare plays out, as the Fisherman’s storytelling trance wears off and riders return to the real world…
(But the music keeps on playing. It plays such an integral part in making Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopefully something more evocative than a simple “book report” ride, and the final notes are allowed to play out as boats return to unload.)
Riders emerge back outdoors near Prince Eric’s palace docks. A mighty galleon is moored here…and so is the Fisherman’s rowboat. He and his Granddaughter wave farewell to riders. Their boat is overloaded with items from Ariel’s grotto collection – salvaged as a delivery to the princess in her new home. Boats return to the docks, and guests continue their enchanting day in Shanghai Disneyland.
*************************************************************
Additional attractions and features round out Fantasy Harbor’s remaining space. Each serves as a “mini-land” extension for nearby attractions.
Sebastian’s, as mentioned above, is a restaurant set in Prince Eric’s palace which looks out onto Voyage of the Little Mermaid. Sebastian the crab has taken over Chef Louis’s castle kitchen, outlawed all seafood, and transformed Eric’s banquet hall into a fish-friendly eatery complete with lovely views and crustacean calypso concerts.
Across from Peter Pan’s Flight is Neverland Isle, perched above the harbor’s rugged waves and accessed by a series of suspension rope bridges (much like Paris's Adventure Isle). Picture it as a Fantasyland version of Tom Sawyer’s Island, an explorable interactive playground set on an island wonderland. Adventurous guests will discover a wide variety of hidden places. They will board Captain Hook’s Jolly Roger. They will find Mermaid Lagoon (overlooking Voyage of the Little Mermaid, naturally). They can crawl through the caverns of Skull Rock, climb the vines in Pixie Hollow, plumb the hideout of the Lost Boys, or simply enjoy a meet ‘n’ greet with Peter Pan or with Tinkerbelle.
Across from Frozen: A Sing-Along Celebration (which resembles Elsa’s ice palace) is a replica of Arendelle palace located across Fantasy Harbor’s waters. This show building houses a clone of Epcot’s Frozen Ever After. Just like with Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, cloning this fan-favorite ride is necessary to preserve budget for more ambitious creations like Voyage of the Little Mermaid. The regal Arendelle setting expands on Epcot's Frozen ambiance, completing it with a Sven’s Supplies merchandise wagon cart, an outdoor stage for performing troubadours, and a meeting spot where Anna and Elsa greet visitors.
As a whole, the Fantasy Harbor provides a nice collection of activities, from rides to walkthroughs to yet another barrier-bursting E-ticket to rival Shanghai’s Pirates or TRON. Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopes to elevate the form of the Fantasyland dark ride. It uses spectacular scenery both indoors and out, while combining animatronics, projections, and every other trick in the book. With the Fisherman, confused though he may be, hopefully we have a narrative device which helps avoid (or at least justify) the storytelling issues often present with dark rides.
Thank you!
@D Hindley - Fantasy Harbor - Review
First off, that is some of your most stunning artwork I have seen yet.
Second off, this is perhaps the toughest project to review. It is such an interesting blend of blue sky and outside the box while still using the bones of some of Disney’s most well established attractions and IPs. This is such a creative project, but it raises the question at times… Is it too creative? Is it too clever for its own good? I adore it. Absolutely adore it. It feels like something made by a creative person for a creative person. But is it almost too much?
Voyage of the Little Mermaid iis such a clever attraction and evolution of the ideas behind the original version. I have mixed feelings on having a castle in the shadow of another castle. It would have been less of a grand visual for the attraction itself, but a simple rockwork or waterfall may have fit better and clashed less with the surrounding Fantasyland. Especially with how distinct the architecture is on Prince Eric’s Castle compared to everything else. With how much space shanghai has, putting the two castles so close with so little seperation seems weird. That being said, while the logical side of my brain has some issues with the castle in the shadow of the other castle, as a fellow creative type person, I look at your art and picture it and it creates such a strange, yet beautiful and unique visual. The type of grandness one doesn’t see in real life even in Disney parks.
The map is incredible btw. Simple, yet very effective. The simplified blocky look of the surrounding attractions puts the emphasis on the stuff you created in a clever, subtle way.
I adore the set up of the grandpa telling a story used as a framing device. Doing something so narration heavy in an international park may run into issues with language barriers, but the story of the Little Mermaid is so well known that the ride’s plot should still be able to be followed even if you don’t speak the language.
The detail about “Team Shanghai” was delightful.
You do something that, in my opinion, few trackless dark ride projects do… You build your scenes around being trackless rather than making a traditional dark ride and saying it uses LPS. Everything from Ariel’s Grotto to the final used the tech consistently and in clever ways. Especially with the Under the Seas scene which feels like an amazing use of the tech that would be an iconic scene easily.
Here’s where things get to be a bit too creative and out there though.
The scene where the grand daughter is telling the story and everything is done with crayon and all sounds amazing and clever and unique. I worry that idea would be very tough to convey though. Especially in an international park where languages are an issue. It is a bit too clever of an idea I think. Then following it up with the abrupt stop as the narration switched over steps even further over the line.
I think that on paper this ride and scenes like that sound amazing and perfect. Trying to picture this actually operating in a Disney park and I think it would just be too out there. Though you did address the main issues with the original and found ways to fix them
Though the writing, art, music, fonts, reference photos, etc. all work together beautifully to present this attraction n a perfect way.
Neverland is a very solid addition. Not the most original idea, but very solid. I do worry that it would clash with the visuals of the surrounding areas a bit, but the bridges help a lot.
More castles! I like how the Ice Castle, Arrendelle Castle, Eric’s Castle, and Storybook Castle are roughly all in a row in order of, presumably, descending height. I like to imagine a spot you can stand backstage where all the top spires of the four castles line up perfectly.
Jokes aside, I think you overuse castles a bit and more varied facades might have been stronger, but I also want to see all of the castles. So, I’m torn.
Overall, your ride is an incredibly creative and clever evolution of the regular version of the attraction it is based on, but maybe a bit too out there in its ideas. Though with all of your additions, Fantasyland in shanghai would be an amazing place.
First off, that is some of your most stunning artwork I have seen yet.
Second off, this is perhaps the toughest project to review. It is such an interesting blend of blue sky and outside the box while still using the bones of some of Disney’s most well established attractions and IPs. This is such a creative project, but it raises the question at times… Is it too creative? Is it too clever for its own good? I adore it. Absolutely adore it. It feels like something made by a creative person for a creative person. But is it almost too much?
Voyage of the Little Mermaid iis such a clever attraction and evolution of the ideas behind the original version. I have mixed feelings on having a castle in the shadow of another castle. It would have been less of a grand visual for the attraction itself, but a simple rockwork or waterfall may have fit better and clashed less with the surrounding Fantasyland. Especially with how distinct the architecture is on Prince Eric’s Castle compared to everything else. With how much space shanghai has, putting the two castles so close with so little seperation seems weird. That being said, while the logical side of my brain has some issues with the castle in the shadow of the other castle, as a fellow creative type person, I look at your art and picture it and it creates such a strange, yet beautiful and unique visual. The type of grandness one doesn’t see in real life even in Disney parks.
The map is incredible btw. Simple, yet very effective. The simplified blocky look of the surrounding attractions puts the emphasis on the stuff you created in a clever, subtle way.
I adore the set up of the grandpa telling a story used as a framing device. Doing something so narration heavy in an international park may run into issues with language barriers, but the story of the Little Mermaid is so well known that the ride’s plot should still be able to be followed even if you don’t speak the language.
The detail about “Team Shanghai” was delightful.
You do something that, in my opinion, few trackless dark ride projects do… You build your scenes around being trackless rather than making a traditional dark ride and saying it uses LPS. Everything from Ariel’s Grotto to the final used the tech consistently and in clever ways. Especially with the Under the Seas scene which feels like an amazing use of the tech that would be an iconic scene easily.
Here’s where things get to be a bit too creative and out there though.
The scene where the grand daughter is telling the story and everything is done with crayon and all sounds amazing and clever and unique. I worry that idea would be very tough to convey though. Especially in an international park where languages are an issue. It is a bit too clever of an idea I think. Then following it up with the abrupt stop as the narration switched over steps even further over the line.
I think that on paper this ride and scenes like that sound amazing and perfect. Trying to picture this actually operating in a Disney park and I think it would just be too out there. Though you did address the main issues with the original and found ways to fix them
Though the writing, art, music, fonts, reference photos, etc. all work together beautifully to present this attraction n a perfect way.
Neverland is a very solid addition. Not the most original idea, but very solid. I do worry that it would clash with the visuals of the surrounding areas a bit, but the bridges help a lot.
More castles! I like how the Ice Castle, Arrendelle Castle, Eric’s Castle, and Storybook Castle are roughly all in a row in order of, presumably, descending height. I like to imagine a spot you can stand backstage where all the top spires of the four castles line up perfectly.
Jokes aside, I think you overuse castles a bit and more varied facades might have been stronger, but I also want to see all of the castles. So, I’m torn.
Overall, your ride is an incredibly creative and clever evolution of the regular version of the attraction it is based on, but maybe a bit too out there in its ideas. Though with all of your additions, Fantasyland in shanghai would be an amazing place.
- In the Parks
- Yes
@Disneylover152 - Fantasyland - Review
First off, love the map. Everyone so far this round has really been doing amazingly with their maps.
This project has a lot of very strong parts, but it seems like just that. Parts.
The Tinkerbell stuff is great. I love the walkthrough island and the E-Ticket. A bit more of an island to explore would have been nice. Maybe expand it and put the ride on the island too. But what is there is good.
I question a bit basing such an expensive and large scale dark ride on the direct to DVD Tinkerbell series that has already ended. It feels a bit like basing a major attraction on Phineas and Ferb. That being said, Tinkerbell is such a classic character that I think it can work as a stand alone attraction even if the DVD movies are most likely going to quickly fade away from relevance. Sort of like how I feel a ducktales ride can work since Scrooge is such a classic character seperate from the TV Show.
That being said, the ride seems very very cute and fun. As someone who didn’t particularly enjoy the Tinkerbell movies, I think I’d still love this ride. Your scenes are well thought out and clever and well written/presented. It is a very well done attraction.
Mickofly seems really cool. I was confused a bit at first since it doesn’t seem to blend with the Tinkerbell fairies. Yet it also seems like it is meant to.
That being said, the ride seems really cool! Like really cool! Not too much details, but enough for a basic pitch of the concept and the concept is strong. I just don’t fully get a sense of how this connects to anything around it. If it meant to tie to the fairies next door? Is it meant to be in a dark forest at the base of the castle? Is it a seperate thing? If it is seperate, why have two completely disconnected attractions about fairies right next to eachother with no thematic, plot, or visual connections between them? Even reusing iconic imagery such as a magic tree on fairy island and having a magic tree in Mickofly.
Mary poppins is another great ride. A great part of a project. It ties loosely to Peter Pan nearby with them both being English. It isn’t a perfect connection since Peter Pan has a more medieval style Fantasyland facade and that wouldn’t really fit too well for Mary poppins. I also don’t see it connecting to the fairies though. So it feels a bit disconnected.
Plus, this is your third D/E Ticket dark ride using LPS tech in this project. All three use it well enough, but it feels redundant to use it three times in a row here. It further adds to the feeling of disconnect in this project where each part seems developed in a vacuum and then just pieced together.
A good rule of thumb for expansions or new lands is A-C-E. A-Ticket, C-Ticket, E-Ticket. It ensures you have a variety of experiences in your land. It also makes it easy to focus your project. The E-Ticket takes the most focus. The C-Ticket supports the E in your project. The A-Ticket supports your C and E.
Overall, everything you did was absolutely great! They just weren’t super great together as a whole. You needed more focus for the project and a theme that ties it all together. As well as more variety in attraction type.
First off, love the map. Everyone so far this round has really been doing amazingly with their maps.
This project has a lot of very strong parts, but it seems like just that. Parts.
The Tinkerbell stuff is great. I love the walkthrough island and the E-Ticket. A bit more of an island to explore would have been nice. Maybe expand it and put the ride on the island too. But what is there is good.
I question a bit basing such an expensive and large scale dark ride on the direct to DVD Tinkerbell series that has already ended. It feels a bit like basing a major attraction on Phineas and Ferb. That being said, Tinkerbell is such a classic character that I think it can work as a stand alone attraction even if the DVD movies are most likely going to quickly fade away from relevance. Sort of like how I feel a ducktales ride can work since Scrooge is such a classic character seperate from the TV Show.
That being said, the ride seems very very cute and fun. As someone who didn’t particularly enjoy the Tinkerbell movies, I think I’d still love this ride. Your scenes are well thought out and clever and well written/presented. It is a very well done attraction.
Mickofly seems really cool. I was confused a bit at first since it doesn’t seem to blend with the Tinkerbell fairies. Yet it also seems like it is meant to.
That being said, the ride seems really cool! Like really cool! Not too much details, but enough for a basic pitch of the concept and the concept is strong. I just don’t fully get a sense of how this connects to anything around it. If it meant to tie to the fairies next door? Is it meant to be in a dark forest at the base of the castle? Is it a seperate thing? If it is seperate, why have two completely disconnected attractions about fairies right next to eachother with no thematic, plot, or visual connections between them? Even reusing iconic imagery such as a magic tree on fairy island and having a magic tree in Mickofly.
Mary poppins is another great ride. A great part of a project. It ties loosely to Peter Pan nearby with them both being English. It isn’t a perfect connection since Peter Pan has a more medieval style Fantasyland facade and that wouldn’t really fit too well for Mary poppins. I also don’t see it connecting to the fairies though. So it feels a bit disconnected.
Plus, this is your third D/E Ticket dark ride using LPS tech in this project. All three use it well enough, but it feels redundant to use it three times in a row here. It further adds to the feeling of disconnect in this project where each part seems developed in a vacuum and then just pieced together.
A good rule of thumb for expansions or new lands is A-C-E. A-Ticket, C-Ticket, E-Ticket. It ensures you have a variety of experiences in your land. It also makes it easy to focus your project. The E-Ticket takes the most focus. The C-Ticket supports the E in your project. The A-Ticket supports your C and E.
Overall, everything you did was absolutely great! They just weren’t super great together as a whole. You needed more focus for the project and a theme that ties it all together. As well as more variety in attraction type.
- In the Parks
- Yes
TheOriginalTikiPresents...A Final Proposal for the "One Little Spark" Competition...
To replace Voyage to the Crystal Grotto on the timeline, I went with an idea that I’ve had in the back of my mind for a long time, a good part of it’s life in my head existing as a potential Beastly Kingdom expansion. Alas, the time has finally come now that I’ve reached the end of this game to fully explore this germ of an idea ten plus years in the making.
The attraction is called “Dragons”. A nice, simple title in the style of the Jungle Cruise and the Haunted Mansion. If you go on the Jungle Cruise, you're going to see animals. If you're going to the Haunted Mansion, you'll see some ghosts, and god knows if you're going on a ride that's called "Dragons" you are expecting some serious Dragon action.
before we go any further, I'd like to lay out the "types" of creatures that will be going into this ride. I don't want to just have the classic Medieval Malificent/Smaug style dragon. In total there will be three different types of dragons featured.
Medieval Dragons
There are dragons all over the bible, from the serpent who gives Eve the apple in the garden of Eden to the Leviathan, but perhaps our classic view of dragons comes from the medieval version. These dragons typically have very long, snake like necks, Big bodies. They stand on four legs typically. They have a sheep like mouth with thousands of teeth. The classic trait is their ability to breath fire.
Chinese Dragons
If you've ever been to a Chinese New Year Parade, you know what Chinese dragons are like. They are actually quite a bit like serpents, except with great, highly detailed heads. The Chinese take dragons really seriously which is a big part of why I chose this concept for Shanghai Disneyland. In fact, on the Chinese New Year calendar the dragon is the first animal represents, and it repeats every 12 years. So 2000, 2012, 2024, 2036 etc.
Far East Dragons
The dragons of the far east can be essentially summed up as a mix of medieval and Chinese dragons. Unlike the Chinese, the Far Eastern dragons do in fact have trademark long necks of the medieval dragons, however, it has more of the face of a Chinese variety, with a beard, giant spiked head, etc. The neck is also quite fat unlike the Medieval dragons.
A Note on the Storytelling
Piles of armor just before the entrance to the lair, Chinese dragons guarding hatching eggs, two medieval dragons dueling, a very hungry Far Eastern dragon starring you down. Bones of a beast so ancient they have become part of the landscape. It’s all part of the great experience of non-linear storytelling. We don’t know that’s the captain of the ship that’s firing at the fort in Pirates. For all we know the original captain is tied up in the galley. Who's to say the figure hanging in the attic is male? Is that raven who keeps showing up everywhere the puppet master in this whole mess?
Of course we know without a shadow of a doubt that the ghosts in the Hollywood Tower are victims of a tragic Halloween night accident. It’s obvious that the golden face staring at us as we start our Indiana Jones Adventure is that of ancient temple deity Mara. These examples trace back to a form of storytelling that’s becoming more and more prominent in Disney parks with established pre-shows and queues that almost tell more of the story than the attraction itself.
While this type of mythology is relatively cool, I’ll be the first to admit that I prefer when you are not completely aware of the overall mythology of the adventure. Every time I go to the Mansion, I imagine a new storyline. That right there is the point I want to make with Dragons. Every time you go on this ride, I want you to get something more out of it. It’s this kind of storytelling that will make Dragons an endearing classic.
First things first, Dragons will be a sight to behold in Fantasyland. That being said, I want to make this perfectly clear that the exterior of the ride is NOT a giant, Everest style Gothic mountain. Instead, I’m designing the exterior to fit almost perfectly into the landscape already established. I think of the exterior as a really, REALLY beefed up version of the rolling hills set-up next to the castle in Disneyland Paris. I want it to look like the scenery has been there forever.
The rides exterior is essentially an old, decrypted temple on a small hill. The temple is 15 feet high and crumbling. Forced perspective makes it seem relatively higher. What we are really interested in, however, is the hill that rises above the temple. Several things catch our eye, and draw us to make this adventure. We see some ruins up on the plains, but as our eyes adjust we actually see ruins of the temple built into the hill.
If we really listen hard we can actually hear growling, and if we look closely, we can actually see bones in these caves. Every so often, a blast of hot air is sprayed into the rides entrance courtyard. Sharp eyed guests will notice a few flames coming from the hill as well as some smoke emitting from it. The Dragons exterior is designed to be a “weenie” meaning the entrance is designed to draw you to it from afar, and you can’t help but want to experience this adventure. And without further ado, let’s do it!
Attraction Specifics
First off, it’s worth noting that beings as though Dragons is a boat ride, it will have a relatively high capacity. For this reason, Fastpass will not be needed. The sign will be relatively modest, because what your eyes are being drawn to is the hill itself. I don’t want the sign to be overwhelming and take away from the impact of seeing this immersive and detailed exterior. The sign will just be arched over the entrance.
Now, for the queue itself, which admittedly won’t be very elaborate. This is going back to my linear experience lecture. On attractions like Indy, the queue is so excessively detailed that you feel almost exhausted by the theme before you even get in your vehicle. The queue basically takes place on two levels. Both levels will be virtually the same size. The general layout will be just a lot of switchbacks. I know this might sound repetitive, but there will be some stuff to look at, and as I’ve said before, the line will be moving at virtually walking speed, thus making the feeling of repetitiveness somewhat unnoticeable.
As I’ve mentioned before, there will be tiny details hidden throughout the two levels of the queue. You can get more hints of the storytelling by looking at the markings carved onto the pillars. At this point a note should be made that the entire queue is open air. On the pillars holding up the temple, as I’ve said, you can get hints of the attractions mythology. Not only are there markings of some of the dragons, you can also notice an obvious level of decay on the pillars. Vines are also draped all down the sides of the temple, adding to the theme that this ancient temple is slowly becoming part of the landscape.
The two levels of the queue will be identical to the naked eye, but every single pillar in the entire queue will be different in some way or another. Now, once you climb down the stairs to the bottom portion of the queue, you’re basically in the boarding area. The boarding process acts in much the same way as Pirates. The entire right edge of the temple is used to board. Two boats are loaded and dispatched at once, essentially doubling the capacity at every operations cycle.
As we pull away from the dock, we leave the human world behind. As we round our first corner we see the extent of the temple's damage. There are piles of rocks and ruins. One rock in particular catches our eye more than the others. It has a drawing of the North Eastern dragon you will encounter later on.
Soon our eyes wander away from the ruins and onto the sight ahead. The first real sign of ancient beasts we see is on the lift hill. More importantly, we see rib bones, giant rib bones, sticking out from the hill. As you climb the 30 ft. lift hill, with these giant bones hovering over you, you have to wonder, how long has this hill and these bones been here?
Perhaps this beast died slouched on a slope possibly thousands of years ago. Over time, the skeleton just grew into the earth, becoming part of it. It’s just one of many stories your mind can create as you take this voyage time and time again. As we crest the hill, we see the dragon's skull, our speculation has been confirmed. These are indeed the bones of a dragon
As we near the entrance to the lair, the first thing we see is a good sized pile of armor. The bodies are nowhere to be found, but obviously something’s up. We turn our eyes away from the armor on the left side of the bank to a cave on the right. This set is designed to pay homage to the original Beastly Kingdom concept. You see a skeleton at the edge of the cave.
Smoke is emitting from the opening, when all of a sudden, you hear a growl and see a pair of red eyes staring back at you. That mess is quickly avoided, however, we see we are not out of harm's way yet; in fact our adventure is only just beginning as we head towards a modest opening in the hill. We are about to enter the Belly of the Beast, both physically and metaphorically.
Before we even enter the lair of the beast, however, we must encounter the guardians. This is a relatively small room. As we plummet into the darkness and our eyes adjust we see the water shimmering below us, and our eyes fix up a gate. The gate is open, and we get a glimpse of the next scene, but not before the two trolls guarding this gate notice us and roar. Clearly we are unwelcome. But we continue along anyways, hoping we don’t come in contact with anymore trolls.
The egg room is of the utmost importance, at least in terms of the non-existent storyline. Trolls are guarding the entrance to it, as we have just witnessed. As we enter this room, we are almost blinded by the amount of light there is compared to the gates. We see two Chinese dragons flying around (On wires) guarding the place, they are roughly half the size of what a dragon in a Chinese New Year parade would be.
But we are not fixed on these dragons; our eyes are actually fixed on all the eggs in this room. Some of the eggs have already started to hatch and you see the shell pushing outward. Other eggs are pretty much hatched, and you see the head of a little baby dragon peeping out from the top of it.
Some are cracking, some are wiggling around, but one thing's for sure, this room is filled with life. As we sail through this room we come to a hole and stop. All of a sudden a Chinese dragon pops out from that hole. At first we are startled by his sudden appearance, but at a second glance the dragon is actually lively and friendly. We leave the room feeling good at the humorous scene that has just taken place.
Continuing on, the bright lights of the previous scene keep glowing as we enter the treasure chamber. Here we see two dragons of the medival variety having a duel. In this room pyro effects fly above guests heads (a safe distance away of course) and fire hits small pools of water on fire Fantasmic style. The two AA dragons are far more intimidating than the Chinese ones we encountered in the last scene, but luckily for us they’re far too distracted by the fight to notice the guests floating by.
As you exit out of the treasure room, you are plunged into darkness, much like the darkness from which you began your voyage. This time, however, you can literally feel the heat. You travel down a pitch black corridor. Suddenly, the walls turn bright red, and alas, the Far Eastern dragon appears before your eyes. Now, in order to pull off the fire effect, some pretty advanced tricks will have to be placed. First off, There will be a scrim between you and the dragon, so even though you see the dragon, he is actually not in the same room, you are seeing him through a see through wall.
Similar effects are used for the Carousel of Progress (When you see the family members in the different rooms) and the Haunted Mansion (When you see through the ceiling in the elevator) as well as countless other Disney attractions. The scrim will keep the fires heat from becoming dangerous. There will also be a layer of fireproof glass between the dragon and the scrim to keep the scrim from burning as he unleashes his fiery breath.
Don’t worry, you won’t be the victim for long.
Now, for the climatic escape, I am employing another new bit of tech. A launched boat ride. Well, the way I see it, if you get enough water jets streaming in this part of the flume, you can actually cause a successful “launch”...not a Rock N’ Roller Coaster style launch mind you, but enough to get you to exit your boat with your fists pumping. This would successfully employ the “water coaster” concept seen in water parks into a trial run on a more advanced theme park flume ride.Following the launch, your boat blasts to about 20 MPH and drops down a 30 foot drop in pitch black.
You emerge from the darkness to the peaceful sights of the castle moat. You circle around the temple for a few moments until you get to one final cave, where you see another medieval dragon taking a nap, right on top of a pile of treasure. You also see three skeletons with their hands on a sword sticking out from the treasure.
This is one final mystery of Dragons, one final thing to form your own opinion around. One final piece of the storytelling puzzle the ride in its very structure is asking you to put together in your own mind...how you see fit.
@TheOriginalTiki - Dragons - Review
I like the name. Nice, simple, direct.
The intro describing the origins of the ideas and the types of dragons. It is clear this is an idea you are really passionate about!
The passage on the storytelling method of the attraction is beautifully written and sets this project up with a purpose. You build a great atmosphere and it makes me excited to continue reading. The mood has been thoroughly established and set up and you got me invested.
Throughout, the writing is the strongest part of this. It felt very personal and came to life in a unique way. It is really well written and emotionally evocative.
The visuals is another strong point. RCT 2 being the best in the series is the hill I am more than willing to die on, so seeing that used here was very nice an nostalgic. RCT does have alot of limitations visually though and doesn’t really add too much to this project. But it is still nice to see. While it doesn’t add too much to the project, it does add to the very personal feel of this project. The other art is all very great at complementing your write up. It has a very stylistic visual flair that, like the write up, focuses more on communicating a “feeling” more than communicating what it would literally look like.
That being said, the ride does have a few problems. As much as I love the vague storytelling approach and your reasoning for it, Pirates and Mansion do have a story. Even if it is a simple one. Our boats wander through a town as pirates ransack it. We are trapped in a mansion and the ghostly host whisks us away for a tour through it. Some little bit of a framing narrative to latch on to with the deeper narrative just being hinted at throughout.
Also, the ride tonally feels disconnected from Fantasyland. It is really dark and a real grounded take on fantasy. Less fairytales more mythology. Feels a lot more fitting in Beastly Kingdom than it does literally surround by Peter Pan, Frozen, Tangled, Winnie the Pooh, and Snow White.
That being said, the ride is fantastic and your presentation/writing/art is great. I just would have liked to see more about how it fits in with the existing Fantasyland and a bit more of a framing device to hang your (lack of a) plot around.
I like the name. Nice, simple, direct.
The intro describing the origins of the ideas and the types of dragons. It is clear this is an idea you are really passionate about!
The passage on the storytelling method of the attraction is beautifully written and sets this project up with a purpose. You build a great atmosphere and it makes me excited to continue reading. The mood has been thoroughly established and set up and you got me invested.
Throughout, the writing is the strongest part of this. It felt very personal and came to life in a unique way. It is really well written and emotionally evocative.
The visuals is another strong point. RCT 2 being the best in the series is the hill I am more than willing to die on, so seeing that used here was very nice an nostalgic. RCT does have alot of limitations visually though and doesn’t really add too much to this project. But it is still nice to see. While it doesn’t add too much to the project, it does add to the very personal feel of this project. The other art is all very great at complementing your write up. It has a very stylistic visual flair that, like the write up, focuses more on communicating a “feeling” more than communicating what it would literally look like.
That being said, the ride does have a few problems. As much as I love the vague storytelling approach and your reasoning for it, Pirates and Mansion do have a story. Even if it is a simple one. Our boats wander through a town as pirates ransack it. We are trapped in a mansion and the ghostly host whisks us away for a tour through it. Some little bit of a framing narrative to latch on to with the deeper narrative just being hinted at throughout.
Also, the ride tonally feels disconnected from Fantasyland. It is really dark and a real grounded take on fantasy. Less fairytales more mythology. Feels a lot more fitting in Beastly Kingdom than it does literally surround by Peter Pan, Frozen, Tangled, Winnie the Pooh, and Snow White.
That being said, the ride is fantastic and your presentation/writing/art is great. I just would have liked to see more about how it fits in with the existing Fantasyland and a bit more of a framing device to hang your (lack of a) plot around.
- In the Parks
- Yes
@PerGronStudio - Mickey’s Magical Kingdom - Review
Let me start by saying that I absolutely love how you explained the thought process behind basing your expansion around Mickey tying it into chinese culture. It grounded the idea in an amazing way that doesn’t stop you from being blue sky.
The map is nice. Simple, but nice. With how talented you have been with art in the past, I would have expected a bit more from the map. But that doesn’t mean this is bad. It definitely gets the job done.
One Mouse’s Journey. I have literally wanted an attraction like this all my life. Your ride is such a unique mix of small scale and grand scale. It’s like a simple Fantasyland dark ride except the sceness are so grand and the ride is longer than a simple dark ride. This balance that you have achieved between C and E-Ticket styles is great. It is a balance I see people try for often, but it usually just feels like a bloated C-Ticket. You find a way to make it work though.
It is maybe not your best ride this season (as you have had some true stand outs), but it is definitely a strong one.
The Toon Town like area sounds like a very solid Toon town type land. I especially love the Goofy flume. That sounds fantastic!
Like many projects this round, it kinda starts to fall apart in terms of how it fits into Fantasyland. With this being right in the middle of the land, in the shadow of the castle, it really stands out. Perhaps if you seperated this fully from Fantasyland and made it a distinct land with a berm visually dividing it from Fantasyland it would have worked. Or if you reworked the attractions and shops to fit better into the fairytale world.
Plus, Mickey Avenue is already a mix of Toon Town and Main Street. So, a Toon Town type area in Fantasyland feels redundant when you could just put these attractions on Mickey Avenue. I’m not taking off too many points for not knowing much about Shanghai, but I gotta take a few points away for this with both your land and the real land going as far as to both have “Mickey” in the name.
Your Fantasmic is fantastic. Not too much to say about it aside from being a great update. It is kind of interesting how many ideas showed up in multiple projects. Fantasmic, Frozen, Mermaid have been major recurring themes this round.
Something that also applies to Ace’s Fantasmic, I don’t personally have an issue with the fantasmic theater being empty during the day at Studios as it is way out of the way. But having a theater in the middle of Fantasyland be empty all day feels like a missed opportunity.
Overall, I loved what you created! It was fantastic! More work into integrating it into the park/land was needed though.
Let me start by saying that I absolutely love how you explained the thought process behind basing your expansion around Mickey tying it into chinese culture. It grounded the idea in an amazing way that doesn’t stop you from being blue sky.
The map is nice. Simple, but nice. With how talented you have been with art in the past, I would have expected a bit more from the map. But that doesn’t mean this is bad. It definitely gets the job done.
One Mouse’s Journey. I have literally wanted an attraction like this all my life. Your ride is such a unique mix of small scale and grand scale. It’s like a simple Fantasyland dark ride except the sceness are so grand and the ride is longer than a simple dark ride. This balance that you have achieved between C and E-Ticket styles is great. It is a balance I see people try for often, but it usually just feels like a bloated C-Ticket. You find a way to make it work though.
It is maybe not your best ride this season (as you have had some true stand outs), but it is definitely a strong one.
The Toon Town like area sounds like a very solid Toon town type land. I especially love the Goofy flume. That sounds fantastic!
Like many projects this round, it kinda starts to fall apart in terms of how it fits into Fantasyland. With this being right in the middle of the land, in the shadow of the castle, it really stands out. Perhaps if you seperated this fully from Fantasyland and made it a distinct land with a berm visually dividing it from Fantasyland it would have worked. Or if you reworked the attractions and shops to fit better into the fairytale world.
Plus, Mickey Avenue is already a mix of Toon Town and Main Street. So, a Toon Town type area in Fantasyland feels redundant when you could just put these attractions on Mickey Avenue. I’m not taking off too many points for not knowing much about Shanghai, but I gotta take a few points away for this with both your land and the real land going as far as to both have “Mickey” in the name.
Your Fantasmic is fantastic. Not too much to say about it aside from being a great update. It is kind of interesting how many ideas showed up in multiple projects. Fantasmic, Frozen, Mermaid have been major recurring themes this round.
Something that also applies to Ace’s Fantasmic, I don’t personally have an issue with the fantasmic theater being empty during the day at Studios as it is way out of the way. But having a theater in the middle of Fantasyland be empty all day feels like a missed opportunity.
Overall, I loved what you created! It was fantastic! More work into integrating it into the park/land was needed though.
mickeyfan5534
Well-Known Member
@AceAstro - Fantasyland
You know I love me a Fantasyland and this is the Fantasyland that Shanghai deserved. Princess Fantasy Faire sounds like a lovely little spot and far better than the outdoor Royal Court at the castle. I kind of wish you wrote out a new Fantasmic that would have matched the Fantasyland rather than just cloning Disneyland's. You could have really leaned into a very interesting look and feel for a Fantasyland set Fantasmic, although personally I've always thought that a Shanghai Fantasmic should be an Ignite the Dream replacement.
I'm loving that Little Mermaid ride. It adds a much needed C-ticket to a park in desperate need of them. Frozen brings in a decent D-ticket as well. An outstanding beginning to the end.
@Evilgidgit - Fantasia: River of Symphonies
So let me start with one thing, I've always loved the idea of a Fantasia boat ride. I think I've done two or three in my own career. It's hard to pace it as a cohesive whole and you did it marvelously. You hit all the iconic bits that would impress the guests who might not be familiar with Fantasia. It's a nice mix of practical effects with SCREENZ as they are so often called and everything is just incorporated really well.
@D Hindley - Fantasy Harbor
I saw the art in the brainstorm thread and I was very excited and I was not disappointed. Fantasy Harbor is an odd trend I've been seeing pop up. I don't know if it's from the DisneySea announcement but here alone, I think we've seen 3 or 4 pop up. That's not to knock you, it's just a trend I've noticed. Now onto the meat of the project!
Voyage of the Little Mermaid is how you do a Little Mermaid ride. I love the Princess Bride reference there too with the Grandfather telling the story and the occasional interruptions. I really like the use of trackless in water technology for something totally different. It's where Shanghai excels and this ride finds a place because of it.
Sebastian's adds a restaurant which is nice, but what I really need is if it adds a much needed table service or if it's another quick serve to the park. A small detail but a major one in a park longing for some sit down restaurants.
Neverland Isle is also a nice addition, however I feel like with Adventure Isle right there it might be superfluous. Frozen Ever After as well. I feel like this chunk of space could have been differently used. It's a lot of boat ride in a single area and Frozen Ever After as a ride could be easily turned from a boat to a classic busbar dark ride.
@TheOriginalTiki - Dragons
Hello my Roller Coaster Tycoon! I enjoy this concept but I'm not sure how well it'd work in the otherwise IP filled Fantasyland. It is hard to get the feeling of a cohesive whole there. I also think it's a risk to show dragons, culturally one of the most important creatures to the Chinese, as something frightening and possibly threatening to your guests. If it's just me, let me know. I'm just not sure how well it works in this park.
@PerGronStudio - Mickey's Magical Kingdom
I'm gonna give you slack on the name. A name can change in the snap of a finger. However, this makes two Mickey areas in one park. Think about what that means.
One Mouse's Journey is everything. I love that you tell Mickey's story. It's what he deserves. Seriously. However, why couldn't it fit in Mickey Avenue? It would fit in perfectly there. Same with Goofy Falls. These could have framed Mickey Avenue lovely and expanded an underwhelming area. Really that's my biggest criticism here. Almost everything could have gone to Mickey Avenue. The one that doesn't? Fantasmic. I'm echoing my critique with Ace that I think a Shanghai Fantasmic should replace Ignite the Dream but expanding on that, if I wanted an original take from Ace, I wanted to know more about this take. How do World of Color and Fantasmic combine like this? I can't see how those shows would really work together. Overall, this is a good project who's elements just don't match.
You know I love me a Fantasyland and this is the Fantasyland that Shanghai deserved. Princess Fantasy Faire sounds like a lovely little spot and far better than the outdoor Royal Court at the castle. I kind of wish you wrote out a new Fantasmic that would have matched the Fantasyland rather than just cloning Disneyland's. You could have really leaned into a very interesting look and feel for a Fantasyland set Fantasmic, although personally I've always thought that a Shanghai Fantasmic should be an Ignite the Dream replacement.
I'm loving that Little Mermaid ride. It adds a much needed C-ticket to a park in desperate need of them. Frozen brings in a decent D-ticket as well. An outstanding beginning to the end.
@Evilgidgit - Fantasia: River of Symphonies
So let me start with one thing, I've always loved the idea of a Fantasia boat ride. I think I've done two or three in my own career. It's hard to pace it as a cohesive whole and you did it marvelously. You hit all the iconic bits that would impress the guests who might not be familiar with Fantasia. It's a nice mix of practical effects with SCREENZ as they are so often called and everything is just incorporated really well.
@D Hindley - Fantasy Harbor
I saw the art in the brainstorm thread and I was very excited and I was not disappointed. Fantasy Harbor is an odd trend I've been seeing pop up. I don't know if it's from the DisneySea announcement but here alone, I think we've seen 3 or 4 pop up. That's not to knock you, it's just a trend I've noticed. Now onto the meat of the project!
Voyage of the Little Mermaid is how you do a Little Mermaid ride. I love the Princess Bride reference there too with the Grandfather telling the story and the occasional interruptions. I really like the use of trackless in water technology for something totally different. It's where Shanghai excels and this ride finds a place because of it.
Sebastian's adds a restaurant which is nice, but what I really need is if it adds a much needed table service or if it's another quick serve to the park. A small detail but a major one in a park longing for some sit down restaurants.
Neverland Isle is also a nice addition, however I feel like with Adventure Isle right there it might be superfluous. Frozen Ever After as well. I feel like this chunk of space could have been differently used. It's a lot of boat ride in a single area and Frozen Ever After as a ride could be easily turned from a boat to a classic busbar dark ride.
@TheOriginalTiki - Dragons
Hello my Roller Coaster Tycoon! I enjoy this concept but I'm not sure how well it'd work in the otherwise IP filled Fantasyland. It is hard to get the feeling of a cohesive whole there. I also think it's a risk to show dragons, culturally one of the most important creatures to the Chinese, as something frightening and possibly threatening to your guests. If it's just me, let me know. I'm just not sure how well it works in this park.
@PerGronStudio - Mickey's Magical Kingdom
I'm gonna give you slack on the name. A name can change in the snap of a finger. However, this makes two Mickey areas in one park. Think about what that means.
One Mouse's Journey is everything. I love that you tell Mickey's story. It's what he deserves. Seriously. However, why couldn't it fit in Mickey Avenue? It would fit in perfectly there. Same with Goofy Falls. These could have framed Mickey Avenue lovely and expanded an underwhelming area. Really that's my biggest criticism here. Almost everything could have gone to Mickey Avenue. The one that doesn't? Fantasmic. I'm echoing my critique with Ace that I think a Shanghai Fantasmic should replace Ignite the Dream but expanding on that, if I wanted an original take from Ace, I wanted to know more about this take. How do World of Color and Fantasmic combine like this? I can't see how those shows would really work together. Overall, this is a good project who's elements just don't match.
NateD1226
Well-Known Member
FANTASY HARBOR
VOYAGE OF THE LITTLE MERMAID
At the center of Shanghai Disneyland’s Fantasyland is a watery oasis known as Fantasy Harbor. This is a central lagoon lined by sandy beaches, coral rocks, and the constant soothing sound of waves. Fantasy Harbor’s centerpiece is Voyage of the Little Mermaid, a trackless E-ticket dark ride on the water. Just as Pooh’s Hunny Hunt is an upgrade to The Many Adventure’s of Winnie the Pooh, so is this to Ariel’s Undersea Adventure. Guests will plunge into Ariel’s song-filled undersea world, as her tale is retold by an old fisherman to his granddaughter.
Ariel’s coastal kingdom is visible the instant guests pass through Enchanted Storybook Castle. The walkway hugs Fantasy Harbor, with Prince Eric’s palace perched against the sea cliffs at the base of the larger castle. Eric’s seaside sanctuary hides a large show building which juts out below in between here and the Alice in Wonderland Maze. Guests only see rolling beach dunes and stucco parapets. From this upper landing, they can also enter Eric’s palace and dine in Sebastian’s overlooking the ride’s exterior.
The waters below teem with magical sailing buckets scampering around the waves and rocks. From outside this simply resembles a Fantasyland version of DisneySea’s Aquatopia. LPS “boats” sailing on a thin film of water. For riders it shall prove far more enchanting…
Ride entry is across from Fairy Godmother's Cupboard in a beached pleasure vessel – the wedding barge from The Little Mermaid. It sits alongside a fisherman’s hut with a moored rowboat. Guests pass a bronze statue of Ariel (inspired by the statue in Copenhagen) and queue within the barge. Paintings and tapestries within tell a tale: This is set after The Little Mermaid, with Ariel and Eric happily married and their kingdoms united.
Guests ride in handmade bucket-shaped boats with masts. These boats glide atop a paved surface painted blue, while a thin layer of water over it creates the illusion of an ocean voyage. Each boat sits two rows of three, and four boats depart every 30 seconds (similar to many trackless rides), allowing for a theoretical hourly capacity of 2,880.
Boats begin outdoors in the shadow of Eric’s palace and the Enchanted Storybook Castle beyond. Dedicated boat speakers play “Fathoms Below” from The Little Mermaid’s soundtrack. The two buildings feel “as one” from the harbor’s surface, unified by towers and organic rock work. The waters surrounding riders are alive, practically enchanted, with arcing sprays, bubbling waves, and swirling whirlpools. Boats glide seemingly at random through this Mediterranean paradise.
Eventually they drift past the fisherman’s hut on the shore (noting the footsteps in the sand), and towards a waterfall magically flowing from Enchanted Storybook Castle. Ariel’s mesmerizing singing voice builds from a cavern within the tumbling waters. The boats spin, overcome, enchanted, and they glide around the waterfall and into a hidden grotto leading underneath Enchanted Storybook Castle.
(Our rival Imagineers working on Team Shanghai have proposed a so-called “Voyage to the Crystal Grotto” boat ride for this same space, which would use this waterfall entrance as its exit.)
Boats drift and spin curiously through the sea-formed grotto, down brief branching paths. Suddenly the barnacled walls give way, opening onto a tranquil breakwater bay at sunset. (This indoors scene is set at dusk to work for both day and night rides.) A tiny model of Eric’s palace sits on a distant peninsula. Ariel's voice still wafts from here. The four boats gather together around the Fisherman and his Granddaughter in a rowboat. She asks (in Cantonese) about how Princess Ariel came to their kingdom.
The Fisherman launches into his narration – very much in the vein of The Princess Bride – as boats glide backwards to face the open ocean. Thus the stage is set for a retelling of The Little Mermaid, with past scenes emerging like distant memories, and with any gaps in story logic excused as the result of the Fisherman’s scatterbrained narration.
“Ariel was originally a mermaid. She lived under the sea, in the great watery kingdom of her father King Triton.”
Ocean waves splash – animated projections against a curved screen – and crash over our boats! The “Main Titles” play. Riders are plunged “underwater,” as the room takes on a submerged feel. (A similar faux-underwater transition graces Shanghai’s Pirates of the Caribbean.) Mists spray riders, fans simulate waves, bubbles blow, even a faint saltwater smell creeps in. Boats travel the undersea currents past swaying seaweed and swimming fish. Just as the on-ride choral soundtrack swells, riders behold a grand view of King Triton’s castle. Grand golden spires gleam in filtered sunbeams.
But boats continue on. The Fisherman’s narration continues like a voiceover, subtly guiding boats and creating the world around them:
“Everyone was happy. But Ariel dreamt of something more. She dreamt of becoming human.”
The boats enter Ariel’s grotto. Shelves everywhere overflow with surface-made bric-a-brac. At the room’s centerpiece is an animatronic Ariel serenading a statue of Prince Eric, singing her lovely song “Part of Your World.” The boats explore curiously, splitting into pairs and gliding down rocky aisles and pausing to admire Ariel’s collection. Wind-up porcelain music boxes spin. Flounder watches on from similarly bulbous teapots. Sebastian spies from behind mounted spyglasses. Sunlight from a shaft illuminates oil paintings of land life. (With trackless ride technology, songs and scenes can be precisely orchestrated to vehicles’ movement.)
Boats drift off into darkness, into a transition space accompanied only by the voices of the Fisherman and his Granddaughter.
“And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula asking to become human...and they all lived happily ever after.”
“Grandpa, you’re telling it wrong!”
“Am I?”
“What about when Sebastian sang to Ariel?”
“Hey, are you telling this story or am I?...As I was saying, Sebastian tried convincing Ariel to stay – WITH SONG!”
Broadway show lights come up on a spectacular “Under the Sea” room! Think of it like the Hunny Hunt Hephalump room – on steroids! Over two dozen boats glide crisscrossing over a spectacular, bioluminescent coral bed. Everywhere, singing animatronic fish perform – over a hundred of them, all fully articulated, in one of the most ambitious setpieces Disney Imagineering has ever created! (A test run for the “Be Our Guest” sequence in Tokyo Disneyland’s upcoming Beauty & the Beast ride.)
Boats split off. At times they "dance" with each other in time with Sebastian's jaunty tune. At times they stop one-by-one at interesting little vignettes. The ENTIRETY of Sebastian’s three-minute, Oscar-winning song plays out. Sights riders see along the way include:
- A blue lobster plays clams like steel drums.
- Projection screens show sad guppies floating in bubbles. The bubbles burst, and air cannons blast riders.
- Tiny seahorses pop out from a glowing, Technicolor anemone bed.
- A newt plays a flute.
- A carp plays a harp.
- A bass plays the bass – plucking “strings” on octopus tentacles.
- A quartet of giant snails pop from their shells and serenade.
- A blowfish blows on a coral tuba; it inflates wildly.
- Sebastian floats in mid-current conducting a complete crustacean orchestra!
- And much, much more!
“But Sebastian’s jaunty calypso showstopper was unconvincing. And so Ariel visited the sea witch Ursula to become human…”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats sail away from this festive space and past distant shipwrecks (forced perspective models). The seas grow darker and more frightening, the only light coming from the glowing eyes of Flotsam and Jetsam hovering overhead an watching silently, eerily. Boats near Ursula’s distant lair…
“Grandpa, this part is scary! Talk about something happy! What about after Ariel became a human and she tried kissing Prince Eric?”
As the Granddaughter’s narration takes over, boats do a sudden about-face and spin through seaweed curtains. Suddenly, abruptly , riders behold the “Kiss the Girl” scene. Set in a tranquil lagoon, Sebastian croons while Ariel and Eric enjoy a romantic boat ride. With the Granddaughter now telling the tale, the scenery seems to be drawn in crayon. Animatronics move jerkily. It’s like a childhood drawing brought to awkward life.
Suddenly, everything…just…stops…moving. The scene pauses in mid-action.
“We’re passing over a TON of the story here! Look, we gotta address Ursula, so…let me tell the story and we’ll just skip to the part where Ursula got really big and was then defeated. Okay?”
“Ohhh…Okay!”
With just as much abruptness, boats spin back through darkness and onto a stormy nighttime sea. They glide in an arc past a massive projection screen. On it – rains, waves, and a 200-foot-tall Ursula commanding the storm. She bellows with glee. A lightning flash reveals Prince Eric piloting a skipper ship towards her. Its pointed bow draws towards the sea witch. Lights vanish and only return as Ursula’s skeleton flashes in agony! She is defeated. Boats whisk away with utmost haste.
“King Triton saw how much his Ariel loved Eric. Their love had successfully overcome Ursula’s evil. With a fond farewell, Triton changed Ariel into a human.”
As the Fisherman narrates, boats hastily reverse through an enchanted aquatic grotto. Projections bathe the walls in ever-shifting magical auras – for all intents and purposes it’s the psychedelic climax to Crystal Grotto repurposed. Here it’s a transitional space.
“And THEN they all lived happily ever after!”
Boats spin and behold the happy ending finale. Framed by sea cliffs, Triton, Sebastian and Flounder wave farewell to Ariel’s wedding barge on the horizon. There is a great a musical fanfare over boats’ speakers. Fireworks are projected against a golden red ocean horizon.
Boats reverse quickly through a starfield cavern as the fanfare plays out, as the Fisherman’s storytelling trance wears off and riders return to the real world…
(But the music keeps on playing. It plays such an integral part in making Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopefully something more evocative than a simple “book report” ride, and the final notes are allowed to play out as boats return to unload.)
Riders emerge back outdoors near Prince Eric’s palace docks. A mighty galleon is moored here…and so is the Fisherman’s rowboat. He and his Granddaughter wave farewell to riders. Their boat is overloaded with items from Ariel’s grotto collection – salvaged as a delivery to the princess in her new home. Boats return to the docks, and guests continue their enchanting day in Shanghai Disneyland.
*************************************************************
Additional attractions and features round out Fantasy Harbor’s remaining space. Each serves as a “mini-land” extension for nearby attractions.
Sebastian’s, as mentioned above, is a restaurant set in Prince Eric’s palace which looks out onto Voyage of the Little Mermaid. Sebastian the crab has taken over Chef Louis’s castle kitchen, outlawed all seafood, and transformed Eric’s banquet hall into a fish-friendly eatery complete with lovely views and crustacean calypso concerts.
Across from Peter Pan’s Flight is Neverland Isle, perched above the harbor’s rugged waves and accessed by a series of suspension rope bridges (much like Paris's Adventure Isle). Picture it as a Fantasyland version of Tom Sawyer’s Island, an explorable interactive playground set on an island wonderland. Adventurous guests will discover a wide variety of hidden places. They will board Captain Hook’s Jolly Roger. They will find Mermaid Lagoon (overlooking Voyage of the Little Mermaid, naturally). They can crawl through the caverns of Skull Rock, climb the vines in Pixie Hollow, plumb the hideout of the Lost Boys, or simply enjoy a meet ‘n’ greet with Peter Pan or with Tinkerbelle.
Across from Frozen: A Sing-Along Celebration (which resembles Elsa’s ice palace) is a replica of Arendelle palace located across Fantasy Harbor’s waters. This show building houses a clone of Epcot’s Frozen Ever After. Just like with Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, cloning this fan-favorite ride is necessary to preserve budget for more ambitious creations like Voyage of the Little Mermaid. The regal Arendelle setting expands on Epcot's Frozen ambiance, completing it with a Sven’s Supplies merchandise wagon cart, an outdoor stage for performing troubadours, and a meeting spot where Anna and Elsa greet visitors.
As a whole, the Fantasy Harbor provides a nice collection of activities, from rides to walkthroughs to yet another barrier-bursting E-ticket to rival Shanghai’s Pirates or TRON. Voyage of the Little Mermaid hopes to elevate the form of the Fantasyland dark ride. It uses spectacular scenery both indoors and out, while combining animatronics, projections, and every other trick in the book. With the Fisherman, confused though he may be, hopefully we have a narrative device which helps avoid (or at least justify) the storytelling issues often present with dark rides.
Thank you!
First, your artwork is AMAZING! I loved all the detail and bright colors.
The Little Mermaid ride is great and I like how it inst an exact replica of the one in DCA and Magic Kingdom. I think the Granddaughter and Fisherman storytelling is very sweet addition, but I think it can be a little much at times. The Granddaughters artwork scene seems hard to create and I would have loved to hear how you would present it in the ride! Other than that, the ride was great!
The Frozen ride and the show seem like great additions. I love the idea of Sven's Supplies.
But I do think there is a lot of castles in that area. Even though that area is big, I think that having the Arendelle Castle, Elsa's Castle, Prince Eric's Castle, and the Storybrook Caste seems like it would clash!
Overall, your writeup was amazing but it seems that things were overpowering each other at sometimes. With that being said, amazing job and good luck!
The Little Mermaid ride is great and I like how it inst an exact replica of the one in DCA and Magic Kingdom. I think the Granddaughter and Fisherman storytelling is very sweet addition, but I think it can be a little much at times. The Granddaughters artwork scene seems hard to create and I would have loved to hear how you would present it in the ride! Other than that, the ride was great!
The Frozen ride and the show seem like great additions. I love the idea of Sven's Supplies.
But I do think there is a lot of castles in that area. Even though that area is big, I think that having the Arendelle Castle, Elsa's Castle, Prince Eric's Castle, and the Storybrook Caste seems like it would clash!
Overall, your writeup was amazing but it seems that things were overpowering each other at sometimes. With that being said, amazing job and good luck!
mickeyfan5534
Well-Known Member
Idk how I missed this one!
@Disneylover152 - Fantasyland
I don't know how to feel about this. The Disney Fairies was always a flash in the pan franchise that was limping along towards the end before totally disappearing. Pixie Hollow is a really cool world with some surprisingly deep lore though and I think it'd work well in Shanghai, just maybe on the outskirts of Fantasyland instead of the area directly behind the castle. It would have made for a very nice little subland between the dark ride and the walkthrough.
Mickofly Cruisers, I have to echo my problems with Tiki's project. It's hard to picture how an original IP fits into the cohesive whole of Fantasyland. And Mary Poppins as well. When I was working on Enchanted Empire, one of my top needs was how to fit a Mary Poppins attraction in. Mary Poppins unfortunately does not fit into a Fantasyland and it kills me to say that. That said, I love how you did this ride.
@Disneylover152 - Fantasyland
I don't know how to feel about this. The Disney Fairies was always a flash in the pan franchise that was limping along towards the end before totally disappearing. Pixie Hollow is a really cool world with some surprisingly deep lore though and I think it'd work well in Shanghai, just maybe on the outskirts of Fantasyland instead of the area directly behind the castle. It would have made for a very nice little subland between the dark ride and the walkthrough.
Mickofly Cruisers, I have to echo my problems with Tiki's project. It's hard to picture how an original IP fits into the cohesive whole of Fantasyland. And Mary Poppins as well. When I was working on Enchanted Empire, one of my top needs was how to fit a Mary Poppins attraction in. Mary Poppins unfortunately does not fit into a Fantasyland and it kills me to say that. That said, I love how you did this ride.
NateD1226
Well-Known Member
First off, your map is perfect and helps guide us through the large area being used. As for your text, I found it hard to read with the light color being used.
As for the A- Ticket ride, it sounds really fun for kids and toddlers to meet their favorite fairies. The Pixie Dust Tree lighting sounds amazing and beautiful.
The E-ticket sounds really sweet and fun. I would love to see what the ride vehicles were like. The story seemed a bit loose with little description of what conflict would occur. I think using the DVD movies for your ride could confuse some of your guests about who is who.
Mickoflys sounds so fun and calming. I love that the ride would have a huge dragon AA. But, just like the E-Ticket, the story seems very loose with no huge plot for it. I think you just had to connect some ideas together to help the story flow better.
Mary Poppins sounds very fun, but I think that it wouldn't connect with the fairy portion of your land. You would have to make some type of transition to help the story flow better.
Overall, your ride ideas were great but I think you could have explained the stories better. With that being said, great job and good luck!
As for the A- Ticket ride, it sounds really fun for kids and toddlers to meet their favorite fairies. The Pixie Dust Tree lighting sounds amazing and beautiful.
The E-ticket sounds really sweet and fun. I would love to see what the ride vehicles were like. The story seemed a bit loose with little description of what conflict would occur. I think using the DVD movies for your ride could confuse some of your guests about who is who.
Mickoflys sounds so fun and calming. I love that the ride would have a huge dragon AA. But, just like the E-Ticket, the story seems very loose with no huge plot for it. I think you just had to connect some ideas together to help the story flow better.
Mary Poppins sounds very fun, but I think that it wouldn't connect with the fairy portion of your land. You would have to make some type of transition to help the story flow better.
Overall, your ride ideas were great but I think you could have explained the stories better. With that being said, great job and good luck!