News Reflections of Earth confirmed to be replaced by Harmonious

MisterPenguin

MisterPenguin

President of Animal Kingdom
Premium Member
Yert3 said:
I don’t like IP in Epcot, but fine, it looks like it’s here to stay. A way better format for this show would’ve been if they represented each country in clockwise order starting at Mexico to have a Disney film representing each country, and as they go down the list, each pavilion lights up. And to have the songs sung entirely in their native language. Here are a few of my ideas

Mexico - three caballeros, Coco
Norway- Frozen
China- Mulan
Germany - Snow White
Italy - Pinocchio
USA - princess and the frog
Morocco - Aladdin
France - Hunchback, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast
UK - Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Mr. Toad, Mary Poppins
Canada - Brother Bear
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Why do you hate the Japanese?!? And Outpostians?!?
 
Ayla

Ayla

Well-Known Member
Amidala said:
Finally got around to seeing it in person last night. Admittedly didn't have the best view (we were on the balcony above Mitsukoshi, so our view of the center ring was obscured but we were able to see both barges) but was definitely disappointed. I will say, I was visiting Epcot with some family members, both casual guests, and both enjoyed Harmonious and had no complaints. So, this very much seems in keeping with the new trend of nighttime spectaculars designed to please the average tourist without digging deep enough on an emotional level to satisfy long-time fans, APs, CMs, etc. I would say the same will probably go for Enchantment, but haven't watched the livestream for that one yet & am once again hoping to hold off until I can see it for myself in person!

The designs on the barges are also SO ugly at times. Certain parts were cool (the stylized Lion King section and the very end of Reflection with the Chinese characters in black and red) but the majority felt cluttered, and sometimes even...kind of cringe-y for lack of a better word? The Merida segment with the hair and the weird close-up of a CGI doll-looking Merida was downright awful.

The frustrating part is, it would be SO easy to fix this show and make it more cohesive and visually appealing:
1) Have a proper introduction and conclusion that tie together the theme (of coming to together to celebrate our different languages and cultures through song) instead of immediately diving into a cover at the beginning.
2) Use one song per country and light up the corresponding country in World Showcase while its native song is playing. Get rid of the excess, especially songs like Out There and How Far I'll Go that were clearly just carried over due to their success in HEA. Here's my ideal arrangement:
- Mexico: Coco
- Norway: Frozen. Vuelie was an inspired pick, but it's barely incorporated
- China: Mulan
- Germany: Snow White. Some Day my Prince Will Come would give the show some more needed downtime between all the upbeat songs, and also some representation for older movies
- Italy: Pinocchio. No Strings on Me? or the Snow White segment could transition into When You Wish Upon a Star for more downtime, similar to the You'll Be in My Heart/Can You Feel the Love mashup in HEA
- Japan: This is a rough one, all I can think of is BH6
- Morocco: Aladdin
- France: Ratatouille. They literally JUST made a brand new ride for it, why would they use anything other than Le Festin here???
- United Kingdom: After HEA's (superior) use of Brave, I think something from Mary Poppins, Alice in Wonderland or Peter Pan would be a refreshing change. You Can Fly would be nice, they could show visuals of the children flying over London on the barges
- Canada: Another head scratcher, but the upcoming Turning Red movie is set there so maybe a 2.0 could include clips from it
- US: PaTF. Dig a Little Deeper was a nice selection, even if the cover wasn't great. Should've been the finale, end with America
3) Play the original cast recordings in the songs' native languages. This is such a no brainer
4) Either rework some of the more garish barge animation or just project clips from the movies, since that's what guests AND fans actually want to see
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You're hired!
 
Ayla

Ayla

Well-Known Member
Anyone remember Lite Brite? That's what the screens remind me of.

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D

dreday3

Well-Known Member
I can't help myself - I watched a different streaming version of it today. Already said what a big fan I am of the music from Illuminations, but...

I love it! God help me I love it! 😂 It's just wondrous for me, all of it. Can't wait to see it in person.

I had to post this because as the years pass on, the world should know at least one person was pleased.... :D
 
W

will_hsv

Member
So a question I have for those who have seen Harm in person now. Does it "play" as flat in person as it does on video? The soundtrack comes through clear, but unfortunately on video we miss the percussion of the fireworks at launch and when they burst and the sound of the water jets as they vary in intensity. Are these items that add more depth to the show? I have always told people that when mixing sound, I can mix for live or I can mix for TV. In my book, live wins.
 
Tom Morrow

Tom Morrow

Well-Known Member
will_hsv said:
So a question I have for those who have seen Harm in person now. Does it "play" as flat in person as it does on video? The soundtrack comes through clear, but unfortunately on video we miss the percussion of the fireworks at launch and when they burst and the sound of the water jets as they vary in intensity. Are these items that add more depth to the show? I have always told people that when mixing sound, I can mix for live or I can mix for TV. In my book, live wins.
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If you're talking about what I think you are, the sound mixing seemed very flat to me. Like all layers/channels were pushed to 10 at all times. It felt like overkill to me and I wanted it to be over halfway through.
 
Disney Analyst

Disney Analyst

Well-Known Member
dreday3 said:
I can't help myself - I watched a different streaming version of it today. Already said what a big fan I am of the music from Illuminations, but...

I love it! God help me I love it! 😂 It's just wondrous for me, all of it. Can't wait to see it in person.

I had to post this because as the years pass on, the world should know at least one person was pleased.... :D
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Welcome to our little crew! We meet on Sunday's.
 
Communicora

Communicora

Premium Member
dreday3 said:
I can't help myself - I watched a different streaming version of it today. Already said what a big fan I am of the music from Illuminations, but...

I love it! God help me I love it! 😂 It's just wondrous for me, all of it. Can't wait to see it in person.

I had to post this because as the years pass on, the world should know at least one person was pleased.... :D
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I'm really glad you love it! Hope you are able to see it in person very soon.
 
Sir_Cliff

Sir_Cliff

Well-Known Member
Disney Analyst said:
18:29 Steve Davison goes very in depth on the show, and it’s flow. It’s actually interesting to hear from him. I’ve always admired his passion and thought that goes into what he creates.




Discusses they actually created two different finales, and Someday is the one they kept.
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Interesting. I was wondering whether this was a Steve Davison project.

I don't like to personalise these things as you never know what goes on behind the scenes and I do think he has put together some great shows in the past. Honestly, though, I felt his style of show began to feel repetitive. I kind of wonder whether he needs to hand over to some newer talent, particularly with productions like this that are supposed to be trying something new and ambitious. I must say that almost nothing he describes about the intention of the show and its acts really comes across.
 
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brb1006

brb1006

Well-Known Member
Yert3 said:
I don’t like IP in Epcot, but fine, it looks like it’s here to stay. A way better format for this show would’ve been if they represented each country in clockwise order starting at Mexico to have a Disney film representing each country, and as they go down the list, each pavilion lights up. And to have the songs sung entirely in their native language. Here are a few of my ideas

Mexico - three caballeros, Coco
Norway- Frozen
China- Mulan
Germany - Snow White
Italy - Pinocchio
USA - princess and the frog
Morocco - Aladdin
France - Hunchback, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast
UK - Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Mr. Toad, Mary Poppins
Canada - Brother Bear
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You forgot The Aristocats for France
 
denyuntilcaught

denyuntilcaught

Well-Known Member
Disney Analyst said:
I know we all want to live in the echo chamber... but this video from last night... it sounds like the crowd is into it.





And quite frankly, this video made me emotional during the ending. The finale is stunning. I actually really love this show and can't wait to make it down from Canada to see it live.
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I do agree - the finale is absolutely stunning and reminds me of the same choreography of the impressive Disney Dreams finale from DLP.
 
J

James Alucobond

Well-Known Member
On rewatching it, I would still obviously prefer the show be different, but it could be much better as is if they just didn't let practically every song in the middle wear out its welcome. The opening, the French medley, Touch the Sky, Remember Me, and Someday are the only songs that are the proper length. The World es mi familia is about one verse too long as are several of the others, and both Reflections and Dig a Little Deeper are just painfully drawn out. Dig a Little Deeper also literally goes off the deep end both musically and visually, which ends up having a dulling effect on Someday.

There also absolutely needs to be narration between Dig and Someday that expresses a hope that the multitude will someday sing with one voice. Narration between the opening and Arabian Nights might be nice too, but isn't absolutely essential. And clean up the weird "good night" narration at the end.
 

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