NobodyElse
Well-Known Member
In the Primeval World scene, it's obvious that they use the "Pepper's Ghost" effect for those floating green exit signs. Imagineers need to work on improving that technology.
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Rivers of America (plus Railroad & Dioramas) Re-Imagineered 2017
- Thread starter TP2000
- Start date
In the Primeval World scene, it's obvious that they use the "Pepper's Ghost" effect for those floating green exit signs. Imagineers need to work on improving that technology.
Wow. Now that's how to bring back 1955 opening day attractions in style! Well done Disneyland!
Donaldfan1934
Well-Known Member
The narration sounded like a recording to me, but I'll take your word for it. I totally agree with you that we should wait to make our final opinions on it until we see a video of the standard voyage.
George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
They brought back that static panther in Adventureland? Or as it would seem, a new version of the static panther?
The new narration is rather terrible. It's like riding with an obnoxious Disney vlogger. I don't understand why they don't get someone like Jeremy Irons to do it. I could have provided better narration.
Why the heck is the Grand Canyon now being struck by the Hill Valley clock tower lightning bolt? Note that while the scene looks beautifully restored (can't tell if the bullet hole is still there in the glass), projecting animation into an otherwise static scene just looks awkward.
The rotating tin foil lava at the end of the dinosaur scene remains mega charming. Looks like that scene escaped unscathed.
The pitiful: Tomorrowland "Agrifuture" stretch. It's still exactly the way it was in the late 90s, yeah? Ugly station and all. It's disgusting, although they were at least blasting the Tomorrowland loop during this recording. I was hoping they would do something with this part, but I guess it's just stuck until that area of Tomorrowland sees some major change.
The new narration is rather terrible. It's like riding with an obnoxious Disney vlogger. I don't understand why they don't get someone like Jeremy Irons to do it. I could have provided better narration.
Why the heck is the Grand Canyon now being struck by the Hill Valley clock tower lightning bolt? Note that while the scene looks beautifully restored (can't tell if the bullet hole is still there in the glass), projecting animation into an otherwise static scene just looks awkward.
The rotating tin foil lava at the end of the dinosaur scene remains mega charming. Looks like that scene escaped unscathed.
The pitiful: Tomorrowland "Agrifuture" stretch. It's still exactly the way it was in the late 90s, yeah? Ugly station and all. It's disgusting, although they were at least blasting the Tomorrowland loop during this recording. I was hoping they would do something with this part, but I guess it's just stuck until that area of Tomorrowland sees some major change.
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Well, in the end it looks like they cheapened out and decided not to add the sunshine rays.
Actually, they moved the sunshine rays over to the Grand Canyon Diorama. They really did a wonderful job there bringing animated projections to the backdrops. Check out the sunshine rays and soaring hawks as the train enters that diorama in the video below.
Wow. I see the projection effects that @HatboxGhostbuster has been mysteriously alluding to in that video. Very neat effects on display in the Grand Canyon! Especially that lightning bolt that hits a little too close for comfort.
D
Deleted member 107043
I'm really enjoying the photos and the smaller vegetation along the route means nothing is obstructed by overgrown trees. The entire setup along the ROA is quite cinematic, a throwback to when DL was designed by people lifted from the film industry.
That's a wonderful interview with some great info and neat video footage. Lassetter is lucid and professional here, which is really nice to see him pull off.
Donaldfan1934
Well-Known Member
I'm going to need to see more videos to make my final judgements on the back end of the RoA, but aside from that, my only problem is the narration. The voice wasn't anywhere near as folksy as it should be. I know the previous voice, Thurl Ravenscroft paseed away 12 years ago, but there's no excuse since they found a voice just a folksy when they replaced the track on the WDWRR back in 2011. Why couldn't they get that voice actor back to do this? Or if it is the same voice actor, why didn't they make him do the folksy voice again? Kind of disappointing considering the only major change in the dialogue was an acknowledgment of the now visable BTTMR.
For whatever reason they had this guy dressed up like a steamboat captain do a live narration with the band for this first media trip.
Colglazier also did a good job of reading his script and saying some nice words about Marty Sklar.
George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
Just glad they didn't mess with the Agrifuture sign.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
Great to see the trains and boats running again. So the northern portion of the ROA.... yeah as of right now I prefer the old wall of trees. Sorry @TP2000. Lol. Can you blame me? I used to feel like I was somewhere in the wilderness. Now I can clearly see Mickey and friends parking structure. Talk to me in 10 years when those trees grow in and I may change my mind. I was expecting the waterfalls and trestles to be a bit more majestic but they work with Disneylands scale. They re just not very impressive when you compare the rock work to Grizzly Peak across the way. The most effective area in the new ROA to me are not the waterfalls at all, it's the area where the Native American is located on the cliff right before that birds nest. Over all it looks good but from an aesthetic and even thematic perspective this is a downgrade until those trees grow in.
And below is my tribute to them. A Haunted Mansion Tombstone in their honor.
RIP Wall of Trees
(1954- 2016)
Majestic you once stood
Chopped down only to become
Some Jedi Firewood
And below is my tribute to them. A Haunted Mansion Tombstone in their honor.
RIP Wall of Trees
(1954- 2016)
Majestic you once stood
Chopped down only to become
Some Jedi Firewood
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George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
It was definitely super charming before the alterations. The little Indiana dog house detail (is that gone?) was better than the Indiana Jones ride. The new section looks less like you're in the wilderness and more like you're in Disneyland. Not a bad thing, but certainly debatable whether this is all really an improvement.
The areas around Toontown and Tomorrowland still look bootleg. At least we got a static panther in Adventureland. And at least employees made sure to not be caught smoking or making phone calls on that stairwell before NOS station.
The areas around Toontown and Tomorrowland still look bootleg. At least we got a static panther in Adventureland. And at least employees made sure to not be caught smoking or making phone calls on that stairwell before NOS station.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
I dislike the new narrator's voice... A LOT. Other than that, I really like the new effects for the dioramas.
I need to get back to the park, stat.
I need to get back to the park, stat.
Donaldfan1934
Well-Known Member
Wow, that guy has a really great voice. Everything that came out of his mouth sounded so perfect, I could've sworn it was a recording. Does anyone know if this guy did the recorded narration or not because he's certainly good enough to do so.
Californian Elitist
Well-Known Member
They should've gotten this guy to record the narration, and should've hired whoever they got to record the narration to host the media event.
George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
I vote Jeremy Irons.
The Thurl narration stopped being used around 2002. The narration before the closure was provided by Earl Hindman, of Home Improvement fame.
The brand new voice of the Railroad is Bob Joles, who is best known at Disneyland for his I-Didn't-Realize-That-Wasn't-Actually-Him take on John Rhys-Davies' Sallah at the Temple of the Forbidden Eye.
Here's the new narration, which sounds like James Earl Jones doing a PBS documentary. But I like it.
They've changed it quite a bit, but it's funny how some of the lines are still very similar.
He makes a point of calling out that we are on the "Columbia River", which never used to happen, but then says...
"Off to the side is an Indian Chief, and I do believe he's giving us the sign of peace" an old line since at least the 1960's.
Then he tells us we are on the "Missouri River" and points out the "Plains Indians" and mentions "the Lakota people", whereas before I think they used to just call it an "Indian Village" without trying to pin down a specific tribe or region. I have an amateur interest in various Indian tribes, and I know for certain Disneyland never identified them as any particular tribe before, where now we know they are Lakota.
But the Indian Chief and his scouts are smack dab in the middle of the Columbia River section, which would make them a Salish speaking tribe like the Tillamook or Chinook and very different from the Lakota (and unable to understand each other's language), but now I'm just nitpicking.
Very interesting how they are really going all in to that "four rivers" concept that Tony Baxter kind of did back in 2010. This has really sharpened that story and made it quite distinct with different trees and rockwork and cultures.
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