I did not go to see the 83 version. I've only seen what's in the park as of my first visit in 2012.
That's too bad the duo is gone.
When people buy figment merch is it the same character as the new figment? Or is it supposed to be 83 figment?
Good question! The character design remains the same, so I guess most of the merch can be applied to either, but I’m guessing the diehard Figment fans ALWAYS are thinking of the original ride, where Figment played the role of an awestruck, innocent, eager-to-learn pupil to Dreamfinder, who played the role of wise, jolly mentor. When I first rode the new version a couple of years ago, I was depressed to experience the dull and dumbed-down new version, with Figment now playing the part of an obnoxious, one-note, trouble-making pest to Eric Idle’s officious, high-strung host character.
The original begins with Dreamfinder creating Figment, and ends with Dreamfinder setting the little dragon free into the world to be anything he wants to be. “Obnoxious Brat Who Never Left the Building” was not one of the imagined career paths.
I love that the new picture book unexpectedly turned out to be a tribute-filled retelling of the 1983 ride (including a hidden caricature of Tony Baxter). The final page is an homage to the concept portrait of Dreamfinder and Figment featured in the 1996 book “Walt Disney Imagineering.”
If you have time, check out the recent Youtube video “Journey into Imagination: Revisited” which does a pretty good job a patching together a complete ride-through of the 1983 ride, though some of the technical wonder isn’t immediately apparent; that first big animatronic blimp set-piece, for instance, followed alongside the ride vehicles for about 3 minutes until the song was finished. The second half of the video includes rare footage of the original Image Works activities, with some great cel animation of Figment. Great footage, too, of the Dreamfinder walk-around character with the correctly-scaled Figment puppet.
The ride was a bit divisive even then, as some found it too simplistic and fanciful. Those who loved it, however, found it charming, optimistic, a bit emotional, and a necessary colorful heart for Epcot.
And there was absolutely no skunk spray scene back then.
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