Tiana's Bayou Adventure: Disneyland Watch & Discussion

[MoonRakerSCM]

What I can't fathom is, why on earth did they not reuse some of the figures and animatronics from Splash. Could have fleshed out some of that bayou full of musical animals with.... ya know... musical animals... but no, they had to rip out everything in their blind commitment to hatred.

 

[_caleb]

What I can't fathom is, why on earth did they not reuse some of the figures and animatronics from Splash. Could have fleshed out some of that bayou full of musical animals with.... ya know... musical animals... but no, they had to rip out everything in their blind commitment to hatred.

I think they switched from hydraulics to electric. Fully sealed against the elements and no more hoses and leaky oil seals. So the old AAs weren’t an option.


(See 13:56)

 

[TP2000]

As @TP2000 mentioned, most of the AAs from Splash were originally designed to be viewed in the America Sings show, not to be viewed while zooming past in a log flume. As such, they some of those figures were over-engineered for that application. Also, several of the Splash AAs had extremely limited movement, but seemed to use them to good effect.

I apparently never said such a thing. To defend with less than full throated enthusiasm the art direction of Tiana's Bayou Adventure and compare the animatronics of Splash Mountain to America Sings with a first-hand personal account of the audiences perspective in the 1974 show with the cozy theater sections they were actually designed for, is obviously forbidden. That post from me doesn't exist, it was zapped into a memory hole faster than you can say "Two Minutes Hate", and you can't prove I ever said such a naughty and unapproved opinion. No one would believe you anyway, because I only express good opinions! Double plus good opinions, in fact.

Stay on topic, please. The topic is how lucky and blessed we are to have Tiana's Bayou Adventure in our parks.

 

[Ice Gator]

Sure, but how would additional axes of movement help in the storytelling?

well for starters you’d actually be able to incorporate the critters as characters- allowing them to talk and do more than just one limited motion throughout the ride (and the finale). Having other characters besides Tiana and Louis narrate the story would be a big improvement- something the predecessor did through the other rabbits, vultures, and frog characters. It would have felt more impactful to meet the critters as you’re gathering them throughout the ride (they made a big deal about their personalities), and finally see them all playing their instruments together in the finale scene.

 

[mickEblu]

well for starters you’d actually be able to incorporate the critters as characters- allowing them to talk and do more than just one limited motion throughout the ride (and the finale). Having other characters besides Tiana and Louis narrate the story would be a big improvement- something the predecessor did through the other rabbits, vultures, and frog characters. It would have felt more impactful to meet the critters as you’re gathering them throughout the ride (they made a big deal about their personalities), and finally see them all playing their instruments together in the finale scene.

The staging is so awful… here’s Tiana and Louis standing next to a bunch of small critters who happen to already be assembled and are playing the middle of a dark bayou with nothing else around for no damn reason… and here’s Tiana and Louis standing behind some bears who happen to already be assembled and are playing in the middle of a dark bayou with nothing else around for no damn reason. And heres Tiana and Louis… So yay? Tiana and Louis found a bunch of critters who happened to be assembled and playing in the middle of a dark bayou with nothing else around for no damn reason? And they found 4 bands doing this on the same day too! On the evening they needed them! Amazing.

The frogs are the only ones that don’t come across as forced and inorganic. But that scene has other issues as does the final lift hill.

 

[mickEblu]

Another reason it doesn’t work is there is nothing we see in the movie that indicates that this sort of thing would happen. In the movie Louis is a special animal with special abilities. So now he’s just one of many in the bayou who can do the same thing? In the movie you had fireflies, alligators and frogs who operated as animals. Not anthropomorphic animals without clothes. So if they decided to deviate from the source material here why not keep some of the Marc Davis AA’s? Cost cutting probably. So many were fooled into thinking Disney would pull out all the stops because of the stakes.

What really funny is Louis is actually one of the only animals on the attraction NOT playing. In the finale he’s flailing his arms around holding a trumpet but it doesn’t go anywhere near his mouth. Instead of the Mama Odie AA at the end with the beignets they should have had Louis on a loop just jamming out doing a solo. The intro to “When We’re Human” comes to mind. Or imagine how funny it would be if Lottie was “cat calling” male riders right before they got off the log? “No don’t go Hunny! I been waiting for you my whole life!” Too risqué for modern Disney I know.

 

[MoonRakerSCM]

WHOA NOW! Way too much thinking there...

We can't be having none of that there creativity that might stick with guests due to its charm and playfulness.

 

[_caleb]

why not keep some of the Marc Davis AA’s? Cost cutting probably.

The old AAs were hydraulic. The new ones are electric.

 

[mickEblu]

The old AAs were hydraulic. The new ones are electric.

Why can’t both coexist?

 

[Consumer]

Why can’t both coexist?

They would make the new ones look bad.

 

[mickEblu]

They would make the new ones look bad.

Great point. The obvious work around though would have been to scrap the cheapo figures and use the old AAs for the critter bands. In this scenario, the only purpose built AAs for TBA would be the new high end AAs/ characters from PatF. I bet you however that even if this wasn’t a cost cutting move some imagineer was worried about us thinking they would look “cheap” if they reused the America Sings AAs as main characters. That would be a crazy reason to get rid of those beautifully designed and beloved AAs though. Especially when you replace them with crap.

 

[Consumer]

Great point. The obvious work around though would have been to scrap the cheapo figures and use the old AAs for the critter bands. In this scenario, the only purpose built AAs for TBA would be the new high end AAs/ characters from PatF. I bet you however that even if this wasn’t a cost cutting move some imagineer was worried about us thinking they would look “cheap” if they reused the America Sings AAs as main characters. That would be a crazy reason to get rid of those beautifully designed and beloved AAs though. Especially when you replace them with crap.

I guess another problem is how do you add all of these figures to the finale, where they're needed at the party. Of course, the real problem there is the stupid story they've written up.

 

[_caleb]

Why can’t both coexist?

They're completely different systems, and hydraulics are messy, require a lot of maintenance, and are much more limited in their movement. I imagine Disney was happy to rip out all the hoses and be done with oil leaks.

They would make the new ones look bad.

State of the art animatronics are leaps and bounds ahead of those old AAs. I get that the America Sings AAs had charm and a good deal of movement, but those older models are in no way better than the newer electric AAs. In fact, the new ones could be programmed to behave exactly like the old ones, but the old ones could never perform like the new.

 

[mickEblu]

They're completely different systems, and hydraulics are messy, require a lot of maintenance, and are much more limited in their movement. I imagine Disney was happy to rip out all the hoses and be done with oil leaks.

State of the art animatronics are leaps and bounds ahead of those old AAs. I get that the America Sings AAs had charm and a good deal of movement, but those older models are in no way better than the newer electric AAs. In fact, the new ones could be programmed to behave exactly like the old ones, but the old ones could never perform like the new.

Right, so cost cutting. There is no reason that I’m aware of that both can’t be there simultaneously.

The hydraulic AAs might be more limited in movement than the best of the new electrical ones but they re certainly much better than all the limited motion figures they added to the ride.

 

[_caleb]

Right, so cost cutting. There is no reason that I’m aware of that both can’t be there simultaneously.

They may be saving in maintenance, but the new ones were certainly more expensive, so I’m not sure it should be chalked up to “cost-cutting.” I think they probably could have repurposed the old ones, but why would they want to have two separate systems?

The hydraulic AAs might be more limited in movement than the best of the new electrical ones but they re certainly much better than all the limited motion figures they added to the ride.

Some of the hydraulic AAs were really well done- I always thought the gators and the geese, for example, were really great.

But like TBA (and most rides with AAs), some of the figures had very limited and repetitive motion:


Oddly enough, the Brer characters (made specifically for Splash and supposedly the main characters of the ride,) seemed to be of a lower quality and more poorly animated than the critter characters, which were designed with much more fluid movement better animation for the America Sings show.

 

[EagleScout610]

But like TBA (and most rides with AAs), some of the figures had very limited and repetitive motion:


Oddly enough, the Brer characters (made specifically for Splash and supposedly the main characters of the ride,) seemed to be of a lower quality and more poorly animated than the critter characters, which were designed with much more fluid movement better animation for the America Sings show.

That video isn't an accurate representation of the animation a Splash figure had. That video is from 2022/3, when none of the figures on Splash were moving at their best/most fluid. Watch B Roll of Splash (Both coasts) from their opening years (same time frame as we're seeing Tianas now) and you'll see that the Br’ers had just as much animation as the side characters.

 

[_caleb]

That video isn't an accurate representation of the animation a Splash figure had. That video is from 2022/3, when none of the figures on Splash were moving at their best/most fluid. Watch B Roll of Splash (Both coasts) from their opening years (same time frame as we're seeing Tianas now) and you'll see that the Br’ers had just as much animation as the side characters.

I don’t have some agenda here, I think Splash was wonderfully done. You’re right that the AAs lost some movement over time (especially at the end there), but I’m talking about the original designs.

Look at the videos you posted. The Brer characters simply do not have the same degree of movement and animation as the America Sings AAs.

Unlike the America Sings critters, none of the Brer Bear AAs were made with articulated faces. The eyes don’t blink or move and the mouth doesn’t move. Bret Bear with the bees isn’t an animatronic at all.

Most of the Rabbit AAs are only animated at the head and one arm. Rabbit’s and Fox’s eyes are likewise static, and Fox’s mouth does the same rapid flapping open and close as the birds in the Tiki Room. The movement of the America Sings figures are far more fluid and lifelike, in my opinion.

To be clear, I think it’s fine—preferable, even—if some characters are less animated/articulated. I love the turtles or the frog fishing on the gator’s back with only his fishing hand moving.

TBA seems to do this well. Those A-1000 AAs are really amazing, but sometimes an animated figure rocking back and forth does what the scene needs.

 

[Avastindy]

They're completely different systems, and hydraulics are messy, require a lot of maintenance, and are much more limited in their movement. I imagine Disney was happy to rip out all the hoses and be done with oil leaks.

State of the art animatronics are leaps and bounds ahead of those old AAs. I get that the America Sings AAs had charm and a good deal of movement, but those older models are in no way better than the newer electric AAs. In fact, the new ones could be programmed to behave exactly like the old ones, but the old ones could never perform like the new.

If the new critter AAs are so state of the art, and are able to be programmed to be like the old ones, why do they all have 2 movements at most. And not even have blinking eyes. It’s like they are staring into my soul.

 

[_caleb]

If the new critter AAs are so state of the art, and are able to be programmed to be like the old ones, why do they all have 2 movements at most. And not even have blinking eyes. It’s like they are staring into my soul.

TBA uses highly-articulated A-1000 AAs for its main characters, but less-articulated models for the critters, which have limited motion. It seems obvious to me that from a storytelling perspective, you'd want to use highly-animated figures for whatever part of the scene you want to be the focus of attention and less articulated figures for those parts of the scene that are more like support, mood-setting, or background elements of the scene.

I mean, it makes sense that they'd put less detail into scenes that audiences are zooming past vs. scenes the audience has more time to take in. Splash was blessed to have inherited its "supporting" characters from the America Sings show, so they probably had a degree of animation that may have been unnecessary to the storytelling.

Looking back at Splash, I find it odd that the Brer figures were less animated than those in its "supporting" cast. Their eyes didn't move, and their mouths were poorly-synced with the dialog. While TBA's supporting cast do seem to feature less movement, its main characters are pretty lifelike.

 

[Professortango1]

I don’t have some agenda here, I think Splash was wonderfully done. You’re right that the AAs lost some movement over time (especially at the end there), but I’m talking about the original designs.

Look at the videos you posted. The Brer characters simply do not have the same degree of movement and animation as the America Sings AAs.

Unlike the America Sings critters, none of the Brer Bear AAs were made with articulated faces. The eyes don’t blink or move and the mouth doesn’t move. Bret Bear with the bees isn’t an animatronic at all.

Most of the Rabbit AAs are only animated at the head and one arm. Rabbit’s and Fox’s eyes are likewise static, and Fox’s mouth does the same rapid flapping open and close as the birds in the Tiki Room. The movement of the America Sings figures are far more fluid and lifelike, in my opinion.

To be clear, I think it’s fine—preferable, even—if some characters are less animated/articulated. I love the turtles or the frog fishing on the gator’s back with only his fishing hand moving.

TBA seems to do this well. Those A-1000 AAs are really amazing, but sometimes an animated figure rocking back and forth does what the scene needs.

I think the difference is that I can't think of a figure that had such limited movement simply rocking back and forth in a straightforward rhythmic pattern. The Brers might be limited in movement, but they were animated to have the movements they did have appear to be natural and varied. Even the laughing one in DL didn't simply rock back and forth but would do so in shutters as if he was laughing.

The band figures are playing music, but they were animated as if their musical parts were consistent rhythms and notes since the animals never vary their movement. It looks weird because it's unnatural. Even Chuck E Cheese had the band members change rhythms and move their heads side to side to vary it up.