News Paradise Pier Becoming Pixar Pier

[mickEblu]

Eh feels like frontierland lite for me, but I respect your opinion. Besides soarin I do like that plane themed restaurant quite a bit (though I do not remember the name, I remember it being called taste pilot's grill once, but I think they changed they name. It's basically the same restaurant tho).

Fair enough. I say it has the best place making because there are times when I’m walking from Soarin to GRR and you can fool yourself into thinking you re in Yosemite. I’m not sure I can say that about any other lands at the resort. That I actually feel like I’ve been taken somewhere.

 

[dweezil78]

Eh feels like frontierland lite for me, but I respect your opinion. Besides soarin I do like that plane themed restaurant quite a bit (though I do not remember the name, I remember it being called taste pilot's grill once, but I think they changed they name. It's basically the same restaurant tho).

It's more of Wildnerness Land, but I hear where you're coming from. I think that's why I like it so much -- it's probably the most DL feeling land in all of DCA. All the big trees are great and I love the re-do Condor Flats got a few years back to the airfield. The restaurant you're thinking of is Smokejumpers Grill. That whole area is going to be even better years from now when all of those new'ish trees have finally grown in.

 

[Disney Irish]

Well sure but I don't think THIS is the place that's going to do it. Pixar Pier seems more like a place designed for kids outside of the roller coaster. But OK we'll agree to disagree. You may be right but I don't see a lot of college kids hanging around here anymore than before it was Pixar Pier. I guess we'll see.

And in all honesty, if they seriously wanted a local hang out that will attract younger people, then just bring back the dance parties in HWL. Now THAT kept people busy all night if you didn't have kids.

And they may do just that. I have a feeling there will be some offerings like that just for the AP crowd that gets locked out of DL.

 

[TP2000]

Maybe... but I also think they see DCA as the park where they can maybe play around a bit more, take themselves less seriously, and break the 4th wall a bit. They don’t do this kind of stuff across the esplanade.

They are two parks with different personalities and different playbooks.

That's exactly how I see it too. DCA 1.0 was the cheap park that was "hip and edgy" by using punny titles, because words are a lot cheaper than actual quality attractions. Now that they've launched DCA 2.0 and they've spent some decent money on attractions and placemaking, they can evolve that attitude into a poking fun at themselves kind of thing. On Mission: BREAKOUT I thought it worked brilliantly.

I haven't seen Pixar Pier yet, so not sure how it translates for that new thing. But I get what they are doing, and I appreciate the willingness to poke fun at themselves a bit and not treat Disneyland so reverently and borderline religiously once you leave the Disneyland turnstiles.

 

[dweezil78]

That's exactly how I see it too. DCA 1.0 was the cheap park that was "hip and edgy" by using punny titles, because words are a lot cheaper than actual quality attractions. Now that they've launched DCA 2.0 and they've spent some decent money on attractions and placemaking, they can evolve that attitude into a poking fun at themselves kind of thing. On Mission: BREAKOUT I thought it worked brilliantly.

I haven't seen Pixar Pier yet, so not sure how it translates for that new thing. But I get what they are doing, and I appreciate the willingness to poke fun at themselves a bit and not treat Disneyland so reverently and borderline religiously once you leave the Disneyland turnstiles.

Amen. Kind of baffles me to see some people viewing DCA as some kind of sacred ground that has to abide by some mysterious holy book of theme park rules and having aneurysms while they experiment over there, but hey, to each his/her own.

 

[TROR]

I want DCA to be as good as Disneyland. Or at least try to be. What's wrong with that?

 

[dweezil78]

I want DCA to be as good as Disneyland. Or at least try to be. What's wrong with that?

Nothing is wrong with that -- however -- no matter what, DCA is never going to offer the tone/style/subject matter that you seem to enjoy in a theme park -- so you are going to be perpetually disappointed with just about anything you see in that park.

 

[TwilightZone]

Nothing is wrong with that -- however -- no matter what, DCA is never going to offer the tone/style/subject matter that you seem to enjoy in a theme park -- so you are going to be perpetually disappointed with just about anything you see in that park.

I think dca turned out to be a better choice than port disney and westcot could have turned out to be tbh.
Epcot's degrade is the main reason for this opinion, but there's a few others for me as well.

 

[Kram Sacul]

I want DCA to be as good as Disneyland. Or at least try to be. What's wrong with that?

I would settle for as good as DHS. They seemed to be on the right track when they built Carsland and Buena Vista Street. Before their sudden “let’s shove Marvel and Pixar into everything” plan.

 

[dweezil78]

I think dca turned out to be a better choice than port disney and westcot could have turned out to be tbh.
Epcot's degrade is the main reason for this opinion, but there's a few others for me as well.

I still have a better time at Epcot than DCA, generally speaking, but that may be due to my childhood connection with it -- and also, now as an adult, I really do enjoy walking around and spending evenings in World Showcase. But yeah, agree - the EPCOT Center 'Future World' concept was way too challenging to keep up with and would have required a ridiculous amount of $$$ and planning to keep up with. And even then, it'd still be lagging behind.

 

[FerretAfros]

People paid $300 to wait in line for the Cove Bar. I can't imagine a way that the corporate-types see this as anything other than a smashing success.

 

[fctiger]

I think dca turned out to be a better choice than port disney and westcot could have turned out to be tbh.
Epcot's degrade is the main reason for this opinion, but there's a few others for me as well.

I have to agree with this a bit. I went from hating the park to really enjoying it. And its a more 'relaxed' park to something you get at Epcot. Its still not my favorite second gate, that will always be TDS but its past a few of the WDW ones.

 

[DanielBB8]

I want DCA to be as good as Disneyland. Or at least try to be. What's wrong with that?

I am not aware of you liking anything new in DCA including Carsland. Pixar Pier is a theming upgrade and the equivalent of Toy Story Land. It is just as good as Disneyland. Liking the old Paradise Pier is inconsistent.

 

[yeti]

I'm of two minds on this one. Mind A: I think the new coaster is cheap but charming, and I like the 60s pop look of the new queue structures. Basically the ride has been enhanced simply but elegantly, even if the Jack Jack kebabs give Everestbird a run for its money as just the dumbest thing ever. Not a fan of the self-awareness of this new "theme" but on the other hand, it's DCA we're talking about here - a park that in the heyday of its thematic integrity tried to pass off Monument Valley as "Californian enough". As long as we're having fun who really cares if we take this stuff seriously? Save that for the park across the street, so DCA can be the resort's Universal Studios surrogate.

Mind B: "they just slapped our name on an old coaster"......or "is that Disneyland? that's thematically inconsistent". Not only are these lines tediously unfunny, they also demonstrate the paradoxical failure of these attractions. The truth is DCA doesn't need to be the cynical smarta$$ cousin of Disneyland. They could make it an actual effective theme park instead of an amusement park, then watch as people lap it up, because quality always works. Of course that would only be a solution if they were suffering some kind of attendance problem - God knows what the park really needs now is hamfisted non-theming, overlays, and upcharge events

 

[tirian]

That's true, though

Off topic:
I disagree. The fact is, WDWMagic has some of the most knowledgeable members online. Many are in the theme park industry or related industries; some former and current Imagineers lurk and occasionally post too (never anything that crosses an NDA). These members freely praise the good and critique the bad, and immature fans can’t accept that it’s possible to have a balanced outlook on the creative industry, especially when you’re already part of it and don’t think you have to worship Disney to enjoy it.

It mirrors any other online forum about any other topic: any positive opinion is labeled “fanboy,” any negative opinion is labeled “hater,” and the truth is somewhere in the middle. Once again, the internet contributes to society’s decline into juvenile arguments.

Knowledgeable does not equal snobby, just like an opinion does not equal fact. Believing something is true — or really wanting an opinion to be true — doesn’t make it true.

Luckily, WDWMagic has enough legitimate insiders to counterbalance the other two extremes (pixie dusters and doom-and-gloomers).

//back to the topic at hand

 

[Daannzzz]

Off topic:
Technically, it’s not true. The fact is, WDWMagic has some of the most knowledgeable members online. Many are in the theme park industry or related industries; some former and current Imagineers lurk and occasionally post too (never anything that crosses an NDA). These members freely praise the good and critique the bad, and immature fans can’t accept that it’s possible to have a balanced outlook on the creative industry, especially when you’re already part of it and don’t think you have to worship Disney to enjoy it.

It mirrors any other online forum about any other topic: any positive opinion is labeled “fanboy,” any negative opinion is labeled “hater,” and the truth is somewhere in the middle. Once again, the internet contributes to society’s decline into juvenile arguments.

Knowledgeable does not equal snobby, just like an opinion does not equal fact. Believing something is true — or really wanting an opinion to be true — doesn’t make it true.

Luckily, WDWMagic has enough legitimate insiders to counterbalance the other two extremes (pixie dusters and doom-and-gloomers).

//back to the topic at hand

This is one of the most simple and best posts here.

 

[Rich T]

Then how do you explain this new but very basic Dumbo ride at WDW circa 1971?

Cutting corners at Disney Parks is nothing new.

Fair enough, but Magic Kingdom's creation was a risky, problematic and unique situation. Also, this is WDW we're talking about in this case, so we could go into a big discussion about the odd choices made: cheap-o outdoor Fantasyland with nevertheless improved dark rides, short PoC but longer JC, etc.

 

[SuperStretccch]

The sad thing about this whole project is that it wasn't even necessary in the first place. DCA was already near-perfect after the giant overhaul that finished in 2012. Almost everything tied in with the park's new theme as a timeless ode to California. Now, they're making mistakes again, just like they did 17 years ago. We have these unneeded overlays of existing attractions that already fit the park better in their previous incarnations, and as a result, the consistency is falling apart again. It's becoming another showcase for Iger's hottest IPs with not enough of the expected Disney thought or care put into it. First with Mission Breakout, and now this. What's next, they're going to build a Marvel land? Oh wait...

 

[Rich T]

To add to this it’s apples n oranges. One kiddie ride in the dead end back corner of the park compared to an an E ticket/ anchor Of the land. And tbh I don’t think Gadgets screams cutting corners. Certainly better themed than static figures and babies on sticks. The props on gadgets aren’t supposed to be living people with blood running through their veins. They re gadgets. And when the first opened Some of the props had movement and were charming.

Totally agree the theming at Gadget's is top-notch and thorough. I'm just referring to the coaster itself bring a specific off-the-shelf model any park could buy.

 

[Disney Lover Addie]

I want DCA to be as good as Disneyland. Or at least try to be. What's wrong with that?

Nothing. I want the same.

I think that DCA is still struggling to find it’s meaning. One second you’re singing about how you want to go to the state of California and the next you’re in space with the guardians and the next you’re a car in radiator springs and next you’re in a pier themed for Pixar and next you’re soaring through California.

Is DCA just a park for all IPs that wouldn’t make sense in Disneyland?