I read someone's post saying (paraphrased) that it's much easier to point out the negatives than to praise the positives. So with that in mind, I'll list the positives first:
I first felt changing the theme from "the history of communication" to "the history of the future" was, in general, a good move. By making the theme "the future", Spaceship Earth thereby becomes the lynchpin attraction of Future World, and therefore, all of Epcot. It offers itself as the singularity of everything you will experience and everything you have experienced at Epcot (the first attraction and the last attraction to experience).
The updating of several scenes such as the "hunting wooly mammoths" video montage and ancient Greece, as well as the new emphasis and scenes with computers was a welcome addition and very needed.
The ride track felt much smoother and was much quieter, allowing for easier listening of the narration.
Sadly, we now come to what I perceive to be negatives.
The screens on the ride vehicles are woefully underused. Throughout the vast majority of the ride, they are not even turned on. It would make sense to use them throughout the ride, offering information about each particular scene (ancient Egypt, the first computers, etc.). Furthermore, what the screens are used for feels underwhelming at best. By selecting a few personal items about yourself (using what will eventually become dated slang like "I like to wing it"), you are treated to what feels like a commerical utilizing very simple animation (I likened it to the various "e-surance pink-haired girl" commercials currently on television).
The music for the attraction was overall quite bland. In many parts the music felt too happy-go-lucky, which gave the feeling of not taking anything too seriously. There is no grand climax at the apex of the sphere as the ride vehicles turn for a view of the distant earth, nor is there any sort of grand finale (as there once was) as you make your descent).
Finally, we come to what I feel is the worst part of the new Spaceship Earth, the narration. While I feel that Judy Dench does her best with what is provided her, I can honestly say that, had this been an essay, the narrative would of earned a solid 'B' from any fourth-grade English teacher. Once again we are treated to rather passe and bland attempts at humor ("[FONT="]Papyrus, in turn, creates better record keeping, plans, designs…and unfortunately taxes.")[/FONT] The previous narration was, with the help of noted science fiction writer Ray Bradbury, a profound piece of writing which didn't simply fill the silence with empty blather about how great the future will be once we get there. Unfortunately I'm getting rather tired and will have to cut this short, but I'll leave you with this excerpt from the old narration:
"Spaceship Earth glows with billions of interactions carrying news and information at the very speed of light. But will these seemingly infinite communications become a flood of electronic babble? Or will we use this power to usher in a new age of understanding and co-operation? Since the dawn of recorded time, communication has revolutionized our lifes and changed our world. We now have the ability - and the responsibility - to build new bridges of acceptance and cooperation between us. To create a better world - for ourselves and our children - as we continue our amazing journey aboard Spaceship Earth."
