Spirited News, Observations & Thoughts IV

[KevinYee]

Oh, and I was told to expect some deep budget cuts on the Star Wars (DLR & WDW) and door coaster (DLR) projects.

Not to be a negative ninny, but I heard something two days ago about the WDW budget that sounded similar. I am not pleased if this pans out. Star Wars needs a massive budget if it's to over-impress.

 

[Captain Neo]

Pixar is dying. It's all about that Lucas and Marvel money train now. Iger was smart to jump on when he did.

 

[alissafalco]

Why do I feel like I am playing with myself here?

(not that there is anything wrong with that)

Are all you fanbois finishing your Tuesday night Domino's special so you can watch the dull as paint drying S.H.I.E.L.D.?

No, tonight was parent teacher conferences, I just got in...

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Until we see more artwork about what Hong Kong's Tomorrowland... or whateverland this is going into, it's a bit early to condemn the approach. It wouldn't surprise me if this artwork was ginned up solely for the benefit of the Chinese owners/investors who want to see that something new is in the works for the park. A facade that only obliquely hints at the guest experience inside would be unsuited for this task. When investors are antsy is not the time to come up with some sort of clever "Stark Industries Expo" concept, especially if you're having to work through a language barrier.

As far as I'm concerned, the jury is still out for New Fantasyland until they finish the dwarf hill. Until you can turn around and not see construction walls it's too early to see if they succeeded in the place. From what I've seen already, it looks as though the Beauty and the Beast area is going to interplay quite well with the boundaries of the town square, as will the hill. The Mermaid grotto I'm more concerned about, though taken by itself it's a really nice piece of rockwork.

Storybook circus is excellent, though, as it spans and ties together several different attractions. Trying to fold it in with the rest of Fantasyland, whatever its aesthetic is would probably have been overkill.

My opinion is based on the Ironman artwork. If they change the concept, my opinion changes accordingly. The same goes for FLE, if the dwarf coaster changes FLE, I change my opinion of that.

If I can single out one remark, even if it is not the essence of your post. 'The Mermaid Grotto I'm concerned about, though taken by itself it's a really nice piece of ropckwork'. I think this sums up the problem with FLE, and with much else released by WDI lately. By itself that rockwork is nice. Just like by itself, a playground themed as a model of a concorde plane could be nice too. But not in Fantasyland. And like a 5/8 scale reproduction of four Tutsi huts would be awesome, but not on Main Street.

Lovely individual constituating elements are pointless when they are not in the service of an overarching idea. A one, single, unifying theme. A FL forest that consists of the worlds of Ariel, Rapunzel, Belle, Snow is just a Storybook Canal Boat ride, but without the canal, and the boats, and the ride. FL forest is just not a place. Besides which, all places in the MK are inhabited by people, not cartoons. And it is the combination of human space with non-ordinary human events that creates the magic, but that's almost another subject altogether.

 

[JenniferS]

And I would like to one up you.
I own 2 Dyson animals. One for upstairs and one for downstairs. With a Husky, Great Pyrenees, St. Bernard, and a Newfoundland, it is an awesome vacuum.

But is it a Dyson animal WITH A PURPLE BALL?

 

[Travel Junkie]

So, in other words, most of Tomorrowland will have taken place a long time ago...

Yeah pretty much. I suppose they will need to remove this since it won't fit anymore.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

Seems like a lot of folks (most who will never set foot in HKDL) are about the 'look' of the new Iron Man Experience based on one piece of very preliminary art. Seems weak considering how weak most renderings from WDI are these days.

No, we are in an obscure corner of the web on page 545 of an obscure thread of a cult fan site. Discussing and obsessing about snippets of information is what we do.

It is a whole lot of things, most much worse than weak. What it is not, is unfair judgement of any possible upcoming project. Fandom means that our thoughts will be updated in complete accordance with any new information.

 

[Clever Name]

Yeah pretty much. I suppose they will need to remove this since it won't fit anymore.

All that talk about peace is too political!

 

[misterID]

Not to be a negative ninny, but I heard something two days ago about the WDW budget that sounded similar. I am not pleased if this pans out. Star Wars needs a massive budget if it's to over-impress.

When the people running WDW approach expanding their parks with a "hold your nose and take it" attitude, it shouldn't surprise anyone that they're not out to wow anyone. They just need something to add to the new brochure and planning DVD.

My belief all along was that Star Warsland was going to include 1. An incredible Giftshop. 2. A well-themed restaurant. 3. A new M&G and new Jedi league home (which will be pegged as an attraction). 4. A simple launch coaster clone. Exactly in that order.

 

[nytimez]

Yeah pretty much. I suppose they will need to remove this since it won't fit anymore.

Atomic age? Fukushima that!
Outer space? Sorry, budget cuts. We barely have a space program anymore.
And a peaceful and unified world (let alone a peaceful and unified nation)? That's not Tomorrowland... that's Fantasyland.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Yeah pretty much. I suppose they will need to remove this since it won't fit anymore.

The future has been canceled because of the lack of creative vision at Imagineering.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

WDW fans at TWDC announcements:

TDL: "I got a new full Carsland"
HKDL: "I got a new Ironman E-Ticket"
DL: "I got a full blown Star Wars Land WITH a Millennium Falcon."
WDW: "I got a rock."

And DLP!

DLP: "I got a new Ratatouille Land".

My money's on DLP sitting on the greatest addition since Cars Land. If the ride is as good as the looks of that land, Rat Land will be terrific. Forget anything mouse, Paris will turn all rat.

 

[kittybubbles]

That's going to kill all the companies that sell the "one share" certificates. I still have one of my Pixar shares in a frame.

Well, in the short term anyway (if they have the supply or can get more this week) they will be able to make a bigger premium as I am sure the price just shot up.

I do not blame Disney as it is an unneeded cost, but it is a shame to see another tribute to Walt disappear.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

back to Iron Man at HKDL ...when it opens, it will be the third E-Ticket (all unique in one park) in five years time.

The last three E-Tickets to open at WDW would be EE (2006), Soarin (2005) and MS (2003) prior to that you'd have go go waaay back to the 20tu century and KRR and RnRC in 1999.

It is about to be 2014 ... Four terribly stale parks, last major attraction opened eight years ago.

But HK was terribly underbuild when it opened. It WOULD add several major new rides by now, at pain of irrelevance.

A beter comparison would be the MK in its infancy, which also opened E-ticket after E-ticket the first few years. (Pirates last year! Space Mountain next year!)

 

[Captain Neo]

Yeah pretty much. I suppose they will need to remove this since it won't fit anymore.

the atomic age is over
the challenge of outer space is funding
and the hope for a peaceful and unified world belongs in fantasyland (which is the home of It's a small world)

Besides doesn't the opening of Epcot Center basically render tomorrowland obsolete. TL needs to reinvent itself for the pop culture fueled modern era and leave the real world science in Future World.

 

[FigmentJedi]

Besides which, all places in the MK are inhabited by people, not cartoons. .

Are you saying Cartoons can't be people? That's almost as bad as Kingdom Keepers saying that Theme Park Characters like the Country Bears aren't real Disney characters and making them into robotic mooks for their magic hologram villains.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Atomic age? Fukushima that!
Outer space? Sorry, budget cuts. We barely have a space program anymore.
And a peaceful and unified world (let alone a peaceful and unified nation)? That's not Tomorrowland... that's Fantasyland.

Walt wrote that post Hiroshima during the Cold War. Walt was a man of Hope and Vision. A little more of that would really help right now.

 

[JenniferS]

When the people running WDW approach expanding their parks with a "hold your nose and take it" attitude, it shouldn't surprise anyone that they're not out to wow anyone. They just need something to add to the new brochure and planning DVD.

My belief all along was that Star Warsland was going to include 1. An incredible Giftshop. 2. A well-themed restaurant. 3. A new M&G and new Jedi league home (which will be pegged as an attraction). 4. A simple launch coaster clone. Exactly in that order.

That's underwhelming.

 

[misterID]

He wears cardigans, he's so humble like Walt.

I love Lucas's expression. He's staring at everyone with a kind of a defeated, "Yeah, I know."

 

[bhg469]

And I would like to one up you.
I own 2 Dyson animals. One for upstairs and one for downstairs. With a Husky, Great Pyrenees, St. Bernard, and a Newfoundland, it is an awesome vacuum.

My wife wants to come over and play with and brush them all. We have a Newf, that's too much hair by itself.