Tiana's Bayou Adventure: Disneyland Watch & Discussion

Ne'er-Do-Well Cad

Well-Known Member
Probably the worst effect in the attraction. It's obvious it's a screen, the CGI is bad, It barely looks like Tiana.

Pixar's animation in 1995 was better.

It's maybe the most bizarre choice in an attraction filled to the brim with bizarre choices.

I actually kind of like it. A few more outrageously bad effects like this and we'd be firmly in camp territory.
 

Disgruntled Walt

Well-Known Member
In the Parks
No
Pretty sure Tiana and her friends are drinking Juicy-Juice in that final scene. In fact, isn't this supposed to be 1927? I'd bet their next stop after the party is some temperance movement rally.
No, obviously Tiana knew Prohibition was a bad idea.

She later campaigned for governor of Louisiana on the repeal Prohibition platform.

She didn't win, because she dropped out to assume her duties as Queen of Maldonia, following the tragic death of the King of Maldonia, Naveen's father, who sadly was not a "seasoned veteran" and fell while working in the Salt Mine at Tiana's Foods.

Why the head of state of a foreign country was working in an Employee-Owned food co-op at the time of his death was a question in the League of Nations inquiry that took place in 1934. Fortunately for Tiana, the US was not a member of the League of Nations and FDR was able to shield her from any responsibility for Naveen's father's death.

A further investigation implicated Mondo the Frog, who had ties to the Maldonian Resistance. I guess we should have left him in the log we found him in.
 

Consumer

Well-Known Member
Finally watched the ride through! What a dud! My bayou adventure was far more exciting and I didn’t even see any alligators. I did, however, stop at the Gator Chateau along the 10 freeway, going from Baton Rouge to Texas, where you can hold a baby alligator - for free!
IMG_2904.jpeg
 

Parteecia

Well-Known Member
No, obviously Tiana knew Prohibition was a bad idea.

She later campaigned for governor of Louisiana on the repeal Prohibition platform.

She didn't win, because she dropped out to assume her duties as Queen of Maldonia, following the tragic death of the King of Maldonia, Naveen's father, who sadly was not a "seasoned veteran" and fell while working in the Salt Mine at Tiana's Foods.

Why the head of state of a foreign country was working in an Employee-Owned food co-op at the time of his death was a question in the League of Nations inquiry that took place in 1934. Fortunately for Tiana, the US was not a member of the League of Nations and FDR was able to shield her from any responsibility for Naveen's father's death.

A further investigation implicated Mondo the Frog, who had ties to the Maldonian Resistance. I guess we should have left him in the log we found him in.
I can see why you are Imagineer97.

Finally gave in and watched. Omg and oof, that is bad, and that is Disney's cut. Why does she shrink us? For shytes and giggles? An homage to ATIS? HISTA?
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
The WDI research trip thing just astounds me more with every new HD video of this ride that comes out.

Here's a clip from a YouTube video bragging about all the "research trips" that Imagineers took to New Orleans over several years to get the feel right for the set design and graphics and architecture and culture in this ride, just for those who don't believe they actually wasted spent tons of money on this kind of stuff for a log ride.



But the ride itself is so bland and basic. There's really no representation of New Orleans on the ride at all until the finale' scene at the Welcome Party. Almost the entire ride is set in a cartoony bayou with extremely happy animal musicians. But in the finale' you finally arrive in New Orleans for about 20 seconds, and it looks like this...

View attachment 789527

What the heck? That's the most generically "New Orleans" looking set design I've ever seen. Almost as if AI did it for them. Or they took an old WDW postcard from Port Orleans Moderate Resort and told their set designers "do this, please".

There was absolutely no reason to ever leave Glendale just to create that. If I were Bob Iger or Josh D'Amaro, after I saw the interiors of Tiana's Bayou Adventure I would be asking the accounting department to pull every single receipt from every single "research trip" that Imagineers took to New Orleans and begin an audit. Then I'd begin either disciplining, or perhaps terminating, those who wasted time and money and jet fuel going to New Orleans repeatedly to create.... that.


Yeah sure. Because we were going to get the amazing authentic weathervane if they didn’t leave Glendale. Cmon TP
 

Ne'er-Do-Well Cad

Well-Known Member
I can see why you are Imagineer97.

Finally gave in and watched. Omg and oof, that is bad, and that is Disney's cut. Why does she shrink us? For shytes and giggles? An homage to ATIS? HISTA?

It’s wild because “shrinking guests!!” is so overdone at this point. And yet this is probably the worst ever execution of it. Just no cleverness or creativity.
 

TP2000

Well-Known Member
A few more outrageously bad effects like this and we'd be firmly in camp territory.

That issue of this being camp also crossed my mind a few times, especially early on when I was still trying to like it.

But I'm afraid this isn't camp. It won't even accidentally age into being high camp a decade or two from now, like things like The Love Boat or Irwin Allen's disaster movies did.

Even harder to pull off is purposeful camp in the moment, which requires you to respect the audience and think of them as smart people who can get it. Like Valley Of The Dolls, or maybe more currently The Bachelor.

This ride thinks we are all a bunch of idiots and is aimed at people who are still two or three inches below the height requirement, and that's not campy in any way. That's just dumb.
 
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Homemade Imagineering

Well-Known Member
Not sure if this specific aspect has been pointed out, but even further proof this was 100% designed for Disneyland is in the laughing place. Ours already had oversized mushrooms and a much more vibrant color scheme overall, I’m holding out hope that the execution here will be greater than WDW’s. Although even if this is the case I’d still feel badly for WDW getting the short end of the stick once again. If so they should really consider taking MK’s offline in the near future to give it some unique elements so it will stand out stronger as both a replacement to Splash and also it’s Californian counterpart
 

CaptinEO

Well-Known Member
The WDI research trip thing just astounds me more with every new HD video of this ride that comes out.

Here's a clip from a YouTube video bragging about all the "research trips" that Imagineers took to New Orleans over several years to get the feel right for the set design and graphics and architecture and culture in this ride, just for those who don't believe they actually wasted spent tons of money on this kind of stuff for a log ride.



But the ride itself is so bland and basic. There's really no representation of New Orleans on the ride at all until the finale' scene at the Welcome Party. Almost the entire ride is set in a cartoony bayou with extremely happy animal musicians. But in the finale' you finally arrive in New Orleans for about 20 seconds, and it looks like this...

View attachment 789527

What the heck? That's the most generically "New Orleans" looking set design I've ever seen. Almost as if AI did it for them. Or they took an old WDW postcard from Port Orleans Moderate Resort and told their set designers "do this, please".

There was absolutely no reason to ever leave Glendale just to create that. If I were Bob Iger or Josh D'Amaro, after I saw the interiors of Tiana's Bayou Adventure I would be asking the accounting department to pull every single receipt from every single "research trip" that Imagineers took to New Orleans and begin an audit. Then I'd begin either disciplining, or perhaps terminating, those who wasted time and money and jet fuel going to New Orleans repeatedly to create.... that.

Could they not be bothered to even just walk around Disneyland's New Orlean's Square? A few hundred feet from the ride's location?

This would've done them much better than whatever they got out of New Orlean's visits, all for the finale and then some bad look faux grass walls that you'd see in an OC bar's patio section.

The only "bayou" type decorations are the splash mountain leftovers.

I guess even WDI thinks their own company is a joke and are just using them for some fun trips.
 

BuzzedPotatoHead89

Well-Known Member
I’ll eat my crow and admit I was wrong based on the POV. I’ll wait and withhold final judgment until I ride it at Disneyland but it appears my faith in
WDI to not blow the budget on an overly convoluted storyline was misguided. Thankfully I had ChatGPT write me a nice alternative version of what could have been in 30 seconds.

“Certainly! Here's a revised storyline for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Walt Disney World, incorporating Dr. Facilier as the antagonist:

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure picks up after the events of Disney’s "The Princess and the Frog." Princess Tiana is planning a grand Mardi Gras celebration and needs a special ingredient to make her famous gumbo extra magical. However, Dr. Facilier, the Shadow Man, has returned from the other side with a plan to sabotage Tiana's festivities and reclaim his power.

As you embark on your journey through the bayou, Tiana and her alligator friend, Louis, enlist your help to find the elusive ingredient before Dr. Facilier does. Along the way, you’ll encounter familiar characters like Ray and Mama Odie, who offer their guidance and support.

Dr. Facilier, using his dark magic, conjures up all sorts of obstacles and illusions to thwart your progress. You’ll navigate through eerie swamps, shadowy forests, and vibrant bayou scenes, all while being pursued by Facilier's shadowy minions. The ride features lively New Orleans music and a vibrant, magical atmosphere.

In the thrilling climax, you’ll face off against Dr. Facilier in a dazzling showdown of light and dark. With bravery and teamwork, you'll help Tiana overcome the Shadow Man's tricks, secure the special ingredient, and ensure the Mardi Gras celebration is a success.

As you return to the starting point, you'll be welcomed by a jubilant Tiana, Louis, and friends, celebrating your victory and the joyous Mardi Gras festival, highlighting themes of resilience, community, and the magic of friendship.”

Thanks, ChatGPT! It’s a great, big, beautiful (and comparatively more competent) tomorrow with you at the helm. 😉👍
 

MoonRakerSCM

Well-Known Member
I watched a couple of the 'better' ride throughs today and tried to have a level head.

I do honestly think that the bayou trees in the front of the attraction look nice. Certainly better than the arguably sparse cartoonish brambles of the briar patch. I will say though, the new bayou decor in the front pond takes away from the big drop... as in you used to drop into the brambles... but now just kind of... go into moss. The bayou trees do look pretty though.

Looks like some of the lighting and added vegetation looks nice.

I still can't get behind the music though... just movie music most of the ride with random generic new song at the end with no build up nor relevance. I actually do like how after the big drop... there are birds tweeting along to Almost There (though ridiculous they're playing Almost There 'again'). Why is Going Down the Bayou featuring Ray's voice if he's dead?

This though-
It's asinine.

"Let's join Louis up ahead and find some musicians for our party."

"Tiana wasn't kidding, y'all. This zydeco band can play. Hallelujah!"

"They can play! No doubt. We'll ask them to join the party for sure."

"My my, this band can jam!"

"They sure can play! But we gotta keep searching high and low."

Preschoolers will love it.

This is standing out to me more and more... Tiana's speech is just... slow? Dumbed down? There's something off and downright boring about it. Every word she says is soulless and even takes away every scene she's in (which she's in practically ALL of them).

Her speech is lackadaisical as is the arm flailing of the cutting edge AAs.
 

Consumer

Well-Known Member
Why is nobody talking about how horrific the fox animatronic is? I wish this image was clearer just to show how janky that thing looks. It is easily the worst character design I’ve ever seen in a Disney park. Especially when compared to the foxes on Splash Mountain.
IMG_2921.png


Once again, the real loss of Splash Mountain was the brilliant character designs of Marc Davis. Current Disney just doesn’t have artists like him anymore. Honestly, I’m doubting if they even have artists with how bad some of these characters look.
 

CaptinEO

Well-Known Member

"The merchandise journey began with Walt Disney Imagineering in 2021, when a team of Imagineers weaved together the story of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure with breathtaking concept art and inspiration from immersion trips to New Orleans. Through connecting with the people, culture, food, and of course, music of New Orleans, the team was able to guide the merchandise creative designers to develop authentic products that bring the story of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure to life for all guests."

Beyond the seasonings how is this different from any other themepark merch, it's just normal themepark shirt and backpack designs. Are you immersed in New Orleans culture? Did this necessitate a business trip?

@TP2000 can appreciate this one
 

mickEblu

Well-Known Member

"The merchandise journey began with Walt Disney Imagineering in 2021, when a team of Imagineers weaved together the story of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure with breathtaking concept art and inspiration from immersion trips to New Orleans. Through connecting with the people, culture, food, and of course, music of New Orleans, the team was able to guide the merchandise creative designers to develop authentic products that bring the story of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure to life for all guests."

Beyond the seasonings how is this different from any other themepark merch, it's just normal themepark shirt and backpack designs. Are you immersed in New Orleans culture? Did this necessitate a business trip?

@TP2000 can appreciate this one

Can they just shut tf up already?
 

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