News Splash Mountain retheme to Princess and the Frog - Tiana's Bayou Adventure

[Anteater]

I've gone over this in other parts of this thread and I am not retreading on it. This conversation is honestly exhausting, especially since people can just turn around and "choose" to "disagree" with it.

I'm going back to mocking the fact that 75% of the lights are out on the WDW version of the attraction.

If you don't allow for disagreement, isn't it a siloque rather than a conversation?

 

[RSoxNo1]

The unbuilt Beastly Kingdom really had nothing educational about it:

Beastly Kingdom

Beastly Kingdom was a section that was to be built in Disney's Animal Kingdom. The section was never built and the land that was to be used for this area was turned into Camp Minnie-Mickey and later Pandora: The World of Avatar. The Animal Kingdom park focuses on three types of animals: today's...

disney.fandom.com

In terms of how the park currently exists, I do see your point, though I personally think the educational value of Pandora is minimal at best.

I, too, wish Beastly Kingdom had come to fruition. But I have to be honest and admit that I'd prefer a (well-done) Zootopia miniland to what currently constitutes DinoLAND USA (as long as they leave Dinosaur alone).

My understanding on the primary Dragon Tower attraction was that the story conceit was "Evil Dragon is Evil" and we are recruited by bats to get a treasure that the Dragon is protecting. Then the unicorn maze didn't have much other than the Unicorn grotto at the end.

I imagine Dragon Tower would have been a very fun attraction, but I'd be very surprised if there ever was a version of this park's evolution that would include both Dragon Tower and Expedition Everest or even Dragon Tower and the Excavator.

As to the actual fit in the park, @LittleBuford is probably correct. It probably didn't hit any of the core themes of DAK, other than maybe transformation through adventure which admittedly is amongst the more generic of those themes. I highly doubt the intrinsic and superior power of nature concept or personal call to action were ever in play in Beastly Kingdom. Both of those concepts are in play as part of Pandora.

 

[Haymarket2008]

I’m not quite sure why the “Avatar doesn’t fit” narrative keeps coming up. This was effectively a spiritual successor to Beastly Kingdom. It achieves what that proposed land was supposed to do but even better: mythical culture and their relationship to the animals and nature around them.

Zootopia doesn’t fit at all. It’s a world inhabited by animals where humans don’t exist and there is no environmentalism whatsoever in the film. Environmentalism is a core tenant of Avatar. Nowhere in the film Zootopia. Also….the aesthetics of Zootopia would be glaringly misplaced in the realism of DAK.

 

[Neaunderhill]

Even putting aside what we discussed above regarding thematic fit, I'm concerned that putting Zootopia in that area would feel incongruous with the rest of the park from a visual standpoint.

That's assuming they clone what they're building in Shanghai, of course, but I think we can basically all agree that's likely what they would do based on their recent track record. Considering they're just cloning FEA in other parks instead of building something new and impressive for Frozen, I can't imagine they'd want to design something new for Zootopia instead of using what already exists.

That means there would essentially be a modern city in that location, which would be a drastic departure from everything else at Animal Kingdom.

Regarding thematic fit, if this happens.
I hope they put it into rafikis planet watch. They could even Retheme the train to be more of a hogwarts express style to get you over there. Then at least the city aspect wouldn't clash.

 

[UNCgolf]

Regarding thematic fit, if this happens.
I hope they put it into rafikis planet watch. They could even Retheme the train to be more of a hogwarts express style to get you over there. Then at least the city aspect wouldn't clash.

That train doesn't move nearly enough people for that to work -- you could end up with people queued for an hour just to be able to ride the train there or back.

They also have all the veterinary facilities up there, and I think it may be too close to the savanna/offstage animal areas to build something that would potentially be disruptive with a huge influx of people. That latter part is just speculation on my end, though.

 

[PizzaPlanet]

Zootopia works as a Splash replacement due to the money they would save on fox and rabbit AAs.

 

[doctornick]

Regarding thematic fit, if this happens.
I hope they put it into rafikis planet watch. They could even Retheme the train to be more of a hogwarts express style to get you over there. Then at least the city aspect wouldn't clash.

Yeah. We are way off topic here, but if Zootopia does indeed get added to DAK then I hope it ad least is added in a new area and isn’t simply a replacement for Dinoland (or even just the Dinorama subsection)

 

[Professor_Jason]

Just got back from WDW last week where I got to ride Splash twice in one day (once at day and once at night) and I was surprised by how much they've stopped caring about maintaining it since they know they'll be changing it in the near future, Broken AA's and effects with spotlights on them, missing audio, peeling paint on the walls inside the attraction, only the final show scene with the riverboat looked good

 

[Dear Prudence]

Just got back from WDW last week where I got to ride Splash twice in one day (once at day and once at night) and I was surprised by how much they've stopped caring about maintaining it since they know they'll be changing it in the near future, Broken AA's and effects with spotlights on them, missing audio, peeling paint on the walls inside the attraction, only the final show scene with the riverboat looked good

that.... that made me uncomfortable to read. yikes on bikes.

 

[Midwest Elitist]

I think if it's to the point where paint is peeling, this is going much further than "the ride is getting axed around the corner". I think this it's more that WDW maintenance either or both:

A: doesn't care about maintaining their attractions, judging by Everest
B: Is reaaally hurting for maintenance hires.

This company deserves all of the garbage that is happening to them.

 

[kalel8145]

One thing I will miss if it does get re‐themed, it was quite a few years ago, I think on these boards I read it. A family mentioned their 2 little boys thought " pretty good, sure as you're born" was "pretty good show us your ️️" . I mentioned that to my son and that was the words from then on. He laughed so hard. Probably better it gets re-themed.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Just got back from WDW last week where I got to ride Splash twice in one day (once at day and once at night) and I was surprised by how much they've stopped caring about maintaining it since they know they'll be changing it in the near future, Broken AA's and effects with spotlights on them, missing audio, peeling paint on the walls inside the attraction, only the final show scene with the riverboat looked good

that.... that made me uncomfortable to read. yikes on bikes.

Here's something that might make you more uncomfortable . . . Ellen's Energy Adventure had its carpeting replaced about a month or so before its already-announced, permanent closure. Maintenance has less to do with when an attraction is set to close and more to do with what the company is willing to accept.

Splash Mountain has no announced closure date - it may be fully operating for another year before any closure of the attraction. There have even been rumors it may not close. They aren't refusing maintenance because it's on death's door. They're refusing maintenance because it's a tricky attraction to maintain and they've discovered they can get away with letting it languish.

 

[MisterPenguin]

I think the issue at Animal Kingdom is that it would be a long walk past a lot of empty land. At EPCOT you're walking through Future World (I know that's not the name anymore but it's an easier way to describe the whole area) and then past World Showcase countries. At AK you'd have about a half mile walk through nothing to get all the way up to where Rafiki's is now.

Of course they could develop the land north of the Jungle Trek/Kali and east of the Safari, but I'm not sure what kind of restrictions they'd have in that area due to its location near animal facilities.

Yes, replacing the train with a walk presumes developing the North of Kali land so that you're walking through a themed environment.

 

[UNCgolf]

Yes, replacing the train with a walk presumes developing the North of Kali land so that you're walking through a themed environment.

I'd love to see them eventually build something representing South America or Australia there with corresponding animals, but I don't think that will happen.

 

[MisterPenguin]

I'd love to see them eventually build something representing South America or Australia there with corresponding animals, but I don't think that will happen.

Thanks to Antonio's door (from Encanto)... that *could* be an opening.

 

[UNCgolf]

Thanks to Antonio's door (from Encanto)... that *could* be an opening.

I could definitely see them putting something Encanto there -- I just wonder if they have any interest in bringing in new animal species with all the additional cost that requires.

 

[Haymarket2008]

I would argue that Avatar is a better thematic fit for DAK than Beastly Kingdom or Mysterious Island

Your argument would be correct. Fully agree.

 

[Brer Oswald]

Agree to disagree, as Zootopia isn't about animals, its about animals acting as people facing people problems.

I was kidding

 

[EagleScout610]

Heard from insiders tonight: Splash remake is off due to Space being remade in Tokyo and the upcoming Tommorowland remake in California.

 

[Tha Realest]

Heard from insiders tonight: It's off due to Space being remade in Tokyo and the upcoming Tommorowland remake in California.