News Tiana's Bayou Adventure - latest details and construction progress

[Stupido]

Drag me, but that water tower is growing on me.

 

[aladdin2007]

the tower looks bigger and taller than the mud hill itself, think that wasn't on purpose? this just reeks of words that cant be used here.

 

[MisterPenguin]

the tower looks bigger and taller than the mud hill itself, think that wasn't on purpose? this just reeks of words that cant be used here.

Maybe to disabuse people that that hill isn't a "mountain" (as if it ever actually was except as a marketing ploy)?

 

[MagicHappens1971]

the tower looks bigger and taller than the mud hill itself, think that wasn't on purpose? this just reeks of words that cant be used here.

This notion has been discussed again and again, the running theory/“confirmation” is that they want the “mountain” to look smaller, since this retheme will bring more of a focus to younger children.

 

[Brer Oswald]

Maybe to disabuse people that that hill isn't a "mountain" (as if it ever actually was except as a marketing ploy)?

By all definitions, it was a “mountain”. Especially in comparison to the other two.

When one of the major selling points of a ride is its big drop, it feels counterproductive to make it appear smaller. For sure a symptom of them not being able to pick a target audience for this retheme (besides Disfluencers).

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

since this retheme will bring more of a focus to younger children

But the drop will physically remain the same (not aesthetically), so it almost seems deceptive to market “the same attraction” (as many of you have described it) to a different demographic. Unless they figure out a way to go down the drop in slow-motion.

 

[Disgruntled Walt]

By all definitions, it was a “mountain”. Especially in comparison to the other two.

Maybe they should have rethemed Space Mountain to Tiana since it makes the least sense as a mountain! This connects back to @Bocabear ’s idea about Tiana in space!

 

[MagicHappens1971]

But the drop will physically remain the same (not aesthetically), so it almost seems deceptive to market “the same attraction” (as many of you have described it) to a different demographic. Unless they figure out a way to go down the drop in slow-motion.

I don’t think “deceptive” is a good choice of words. If you think about attractions like Rock N Rollercoaster or Guardians, one could say those are “deceptive” because from the outside you would never know how “intense” those attractions are.

It’s just about the “optics” of the attraction, as for drawing kids in.

 

[Brer Oswald]

I don’t think “deceptive” is a good choice of words. If you think about attractions like Rock N Rollercoaster or Guardians, one could say those are “deceptive” because from the outside you would never know how “intense” those attractions are.

It’s just about the “optics” of the attraction, as for drawing kids in.

Rock N Rollercoaster is hardly deceptive. It’s marketed as a thrilling coaster in name and visuals. The marquee of the attraction features a limo driving upside down.

 

[MisterPenguin]

By all definitions, it was a “mountain”.

lol

 

[Incomudro]

I don’t think “deceptive” is a good choice of words. If you think about attractions like Rock N Rollercoaster or Guardians, one could say those are “deceptive” because from the outside you would never know how “intense” those attractions are.

It’s just about the “optics” of the attraction, as for drawing kids in.

When you approach RnR there is an actual ride car that you walk under which is mounted upside down on a spiral track.

 

[Bocabear]

Maybe they should have rethemed Space Mountain to Tiana since it makes the least sense as a mountain! This connects back to @Bocabear ’s idea about Tiana in space!

Maybe that will be announced at D23 since there doesn't seem to be anything else to talk about...lol
"Join Tiana and her Employee-Owned Foods Factory staff in a tiara-topped rocket...
for a rollicking musical trip to the stars! Help Tiana as she journeys into the deepest reaches of space to find new ingredients for her Evangeline Hot Sauce!
*not suitable for toddlers.
Visit Tiana's Company Store to purchase your own special souvenir bottle!"

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

This notion has been discussed again and again, the running theory/“confirmation” is that they want the “mountain” to look smaller, since this retheme will bring more of a focus to younger children.

No, they want the mountain to look smaller because it's being rethemed from a mountain to a salt dome, and salt domes aren't as tall as mountains. None of Louisiana is known for excessive elevation, so they're downplaying the height to fit that new story.

The idea that they're trying to appeal to a younger audience than before just doesn't actually make any sense.

 

[MagicHappens1971]

No, they want the mountain to look smaller because it's being rethemed from a mountain to a salt dome, and salt domes aren't as tall as mountains.

There's probably nothing as tall as Splash Mountain in Louisiana anyway...

The idea that they're trying to appeal to a younger audience than before just doesn't actually make any sense.

This doesn't really make sense to me. They're taking a "thrill" attraction and retheming it to center around a "Disney Princess", who's target audience is younger children.

I think it could be said that they are trying to shorten the mountain for thematic purposes, but on the other hand they were planning on making it taller with Mama Odie's tree. Whether that was cut for budgetary or story reasons is to be told. On the topic of thematic purpose, this "Salt Dome" doesn't fit in Fronteirland anyway.

I also wasn't saying that they're "trying to appeal", I'm saying that the IP they have chosen for this attraction DOES appeal to a younger audience and they don't want it to seem as daunting to the little girl in her Tiana dress.

 

[WorldExplorer]

I really, really hope making the mountain look shorter is for the salt dome concept and potentially making the drop look less intimidating is just an unfortunate side effect no one thought of.

Trying to convince kids to get on the ride by pushing it as not as intense as it actually is is just mean. Needlessly mean.

If they didn't want to scare off kids that like Tiana/princesses, well, we're far past the stage where that should've been considered. Now the Tiana ride has a forty foot drop. Some kids won't want to get on. Those kids should go to Princess Fairytale Hall, not be lulled into a false sense of security.

I hope it's just terrible planning and not thinking things through, and not "well, we want a family friendly ride, so we'll PRETEND the thrill ride is one!".

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Going to go out on a limb and say if people wouldn't like a generic water tower and wouldn't like a water tower with a tacky crown on the top then the solution would be to not make a water tower.

I find it a weird combination, why would a company go through the expense of adding a Tiara to the top of a water tower and then leave the tower wood and just slap a generic name on it?

I think they should have dolled it up, why bother with the expense of a Tiara but not paint the rest to match?

 

[Bocabear]

There's probably nothing as tall as Splash Mountain in Louisiana anyway...

This doesn't really make sense to me. They're taking a "thrill" attraction and retheming it to center around a "Disney Princess", who's target audience is younger children.

I think it could be said that they are trying to shorten the mountain for thematic purposes, but on the other hand they were planning on making it taller with Mama Odie's tree. Whether that was cut for budgetary or story reasons is to be told. On the topic of thematic purpose, this "Salt Dome" doesn't fit in Fronteirland anyway.

I also wasn't saying that they're "trying to appeal", I'm saying that the IP they have chosen for this attraction DOES appeal to a younger audience and they don't want it to seem as daunting to the little girl in her Tiana dress.

But is Tiana's target audience younger children? I mean I know lots of toddlers like to imagine they are running an employee owned foods factory and co-op... I think the whole storyline is aimed at an older, not younger audience with the new storyline and entrepreneurial Community-leader/ manufactured Foods producer Tiana... seriously....

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

There's probably nothing as tall as Splash Mountain in Louisiana anyway...

This doesn't really make sense to me. They're taking a "thrill" attraction and retheming it to center around a "Disney Princess", who's target audience is younger children.

I think it could be said that they are trying to shorten the mountain for thematic purposes, but on the other hand they were planning on making it taller with Mama Odie's tree. Whether that was cut for budgetary or story reasons is to be told. On the topic of thematic purpose, this "Salt Dome" doesn't fit in Fronteirland anyway.

I also wasn't saying that they're "trying to appeal", I'm saying that the IP they have chosen for this attraction DOES appeal to a younger audience and they don't want it to seem as daunting to the little girl in her Tiana dress.

There are 5 mountains in Louisiana that are each taller than 450 feet.

Think about it - all of these points apply just as readily to Splash Mountain as well.

Splash was a "thrill" attraction about a hopping bunny, from a movie whose target audience was families, same target audience as Princess and the Frog.

The 52 Foot Drop isn't changing, nor is it being obscured. The height requirement isn't changing. Those elements will be just as limiting as they ever were to smaller guests. The human scale will not be changing - seeing people plunge down a steep drop will look just as daunting as before, whether or not the mountain around it cheats its height upwards a bit or not. I just don't think it's realistic that children who couldn't or wouldn't ride before are suddenly gonna change their mind because of the Water Tower - be real, the forced perspective on the Splash exterior was never that extreme. The drop looks big because it is, and it still is.

Mama Odie's tree was cut for structural reasons. It was discovered the existing mountain couldn't support it safely. Or so I've heard. But a Louisiana Salt Dome makes just as much (or as little) sense in Frontierland as the Red Hills of Georgia did.

 

[Incomudro]

No, they want the mountain to look smaller because it's being rethemed from a mountain to a salt dome, and salt domes aren't as tall as mountains. None of Louisiana is known for excessive elevation, so they're downplaying the height to fit that new story.

The idea that they're trying to appeal to a younger audience than before just doesn't actually make any sense.

What portion of park goers know what a salt dome is?
Is geological accuracy of that level really necessary for this ride?
Why not have it still actually appear tall for the sake of the external visual impact of the ride over some accuracy that's completely unnecessary.

 

[Incomudro]

I find it a weird combination, why would a company go through the expense of adding a Tiara to the top of a water tower and then leave the tower wood and just slap a generic name on it?

I think they should have dolled it up, why bother with the expense of a Tiara but not paint the rest to match?

I actually get the reason they would do it this way.
The tower would already exist, and Tiana and company would hire someone they know to fabricate the tiara out of metal which they would affix to the tower.
While I'm no fan of the tower per se, I support their approach to it.