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

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I’ll never forget it, it was the Mary Poppins attraction announcement at D23 to get me to sign up for an account.

…they’re “getting around to that”…any day now

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

So is the Tianna retheme of the "problematic" Pecos Bill on hold now until things shake out with TBA?

Do they make changes to DLR's version to address the negative reaction to the MK version?

…oh yeah…forgot pecos got cancelled too…

The war on the topping bar

 

[Tha Realest]

Okay so I’ve calmed down a little bit since the initial POV release, and I took some time to watch the others. My opinion remains however, yes the set dressing is very pretty and in a vacuum those are no doubt some very impressive animatronics. I don’t think this is nearly as bad a situation as JII. That will always be the absolute worst decision this company has ever made in it’s 100 year history, and will remain a huge disservice to fans until it is properly rectified.

Anyways, I do have faith this is not a lost cause IF they decide on investing some more capital into this in order to flesh out a good number of those dead spaces. They must also need to include some sort of grander conflict in this, whether that’s Facilier or something else entirely. Also, where the heck is Bruno Campos?? They explicitly said his voice work would be featured and yet he remains absent? I really wished they’d gone with that initial concept art in the boat as they’d initially released, and there was also a standalone Timoléon figure in a different configuration within that scene which never appeared anywhere.

Speaking of which, what was the point of the animation diagram for him showcasing all of those complex facial movements and whatnot? He received a total of 2 identical limited motion figures of which his facial features are stagnant and even seem obscured by his fur. Allowing him to be a complex AA throughout the attraction would’ve made alot more sense, at the end of the day this whole thing just leaves me with so many more questions than answers. It genuinely seems like some of these elements were for some reason cut or simply forgotten about, and I too am baffled at how much they spent on this for it to turn out as this confusing fever dream of what should be.

Also again… no side critters, which they could have at least made into static figures for some attractive vignettes to fill in some of that dead-space, but no… at the end of the day I am not asking for them to bring back SM, I know that ship has long since sailed, but there is so much potential for this to be improved upon. It almost reminds me of the confusion behind the Jurassic World redo of Jurassic Park at USH. The retheme opened with an incomplete finale scene, and several elements missing in the predator cove section. If they indeed are missing some elements that were sacrificed in order to open this thing in time for the summer, then that would answer alot of my questions and qualm my concerns. I actually hope that is the case, but until then I will continue to feel unsatisfied with this project. I hope someone out there in the know can eventually provide some insight into why the final product is so confusing

at the end of the day they took Splash Mountain and the best many can say about this end product is “ not as bad as JII?”

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I don't love the way the story turned out, but obviously it was put in front of a WDI exec, and probably at least Josh D'Amaro, and clearly they said yes, since at least 150M has been spent and the attraction opens in 25 days.

If that is true, I think the “how did this get approved?” ignores various dynamics at play. For instance, given the subtext of the subject matter, the reasons for making the change, it could have been uncomfortable if Josh rejected those views.

The P&R head gets to spend $150,000,000 when pigs fly…

The buck always stops at the same desk.

God…did they really blow this much cash on that?

Of course…took too long and under delivers…the modern WDI hallmarks

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

at the end of the day they took Splash Mountain and the best many can say about this end product is “ not as bad as JII?”

“…it’s no worse than FEA”

 

[bwr827]

Man, imagine being in charge of Disney World- and having Burbank tell you you need to close Splash Mountain, the most popular ride in the most popular park in the most popular vacation spot on the planet.

And spend $100 million in the process. But no worries- WDI's got their best on it.

And then they deliver this.

Most popular ride? Did anyone ever rope drop Splash? Did Splash’s lightning lanes sell out before all the other rides on Genie+?

I hope they’ll update some other woefully outdated attractions next, like Peter Pan and Jungle Cruise (at least give us better speakers so we can better enjoy the humour).

 

[ToTBellHop]

What is most concerning to me here is that this wasn’t done on the cheap, so they had enough money to do a lot. How do so many people get together and decide THIS is the storyline? Further, they’ve lost a lot of talent recently, but many of those departed Imagineers still love the parks and would gladly provide advice. It is DEEPLY concerning to me that current Imagineers have the hubris to have Tony f-in’ Baxter in a room, hear his advice, and say, “thanks, but I think we are gonna go in another direction.”

That’s appalling.

And it makes me concerned for other projects. Will they ignore Rohde’s advice on Tropical Americas?

You have these members of your creative team that you elevate to god-like status in your fan communities and then toss them aside? It makes no sense. You can’t start every freakin’ DPB article with “Because Walt Disney once said, ‘…’” if you have no intention of upholding the old standard.

 

[DisneyJunkie]

I like to think I stay open-minded when it comes to Disney re-doing some of their attractions. But for me, the first major strike was when they decided to go with a Princess and Frog theme. It certainly isn't one of their most beloved films, and for me, it isn't even one I mildly enjoyed. So then I wait for them to get this far where they can start showing off what they've done with a once much-loved attraction, and as so many others have expressed, I'm extremely disappointed. What I will compliment is something very general - the obvious improvement in animatronics and some visuals. Other than that, the rest is trash. Seriously. The music is terrible compared to what played during Splash Mountain, not the least bit catchy. The overall storyline isn't remotely interesting, and the complete lack of villain inclusion only hurts it that much more. Think about it: some of the favorite and best WDW attractions include the villain in some way - Peter Pan, Buzz Lightyear, Little Mermaid, and so on. The empty sections of this new ride are inexcusable. It's as if they knew fully well that they really had no story and no real idea what they wanted to do here. The whole thing is a huge missed opportunity as far I'm concerned.

 

[wdwmagic]

What is most concerning to me here is that this wasn’t done on the cheap, so they had enough money to do a lot. How do so many people get together and decide THIS is the storyline? Further, they’ve lost a lot of talent recently, but many of those departed Imagineers still love the parks and would gladly provide advice. It is DEEPLY concerning to me that current Imagineers have the hubris to have Tony f-in’ Baxter in a room, hear his advice, and say, “thanks, but I think we are gonna go in another direction.”

That’s appalling.

And it makes me concerned for other projects. Will they ignore Rohde’s advice on Tropical Americas?

From everything we can see this project has been fully financed. In the past there has been valid criticism that certain projects have been underfunded, but not the case here.

 

[ToTBellHop]

From everything we can see this project has been fully financed. In the past there has been valid criticism that certain projects have been underfunded, but not the case here.

Right. And this is what they went with?

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

What is most concerning to me here is that this wasn’t done on the cheap, so they had enough money to do a lot. How do so many people get together and decide THIS is the storyline? Further, they’ve lost a lot of talent recently, but many of those departed Imagineers still love the parks and would gladly provide advice. It is DEEPLY concerning to me that current Imagineers have the hubris to have Tony f-in’ Baxter in a room, hear his advice, and say, “thanks, but I think we are gonna go in another direction.”

That’s appalling.

And it makes me concerned for other projects. Will they ignore Rohde’s advice on Tropical Americas?

You have these members of your creative team that you elevate to god-like status in your fan communities and then toss them aside? It makes no sense. You can’t start every freakin’ DPB article with “Because Walt Disney once said, ‘…’” if you have no intention of upholding the old standard.

TWDC needs to clean house from the corner office down…sweep the decks

It’s been coming for along time

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I like to think I stay open-minded when it comes to Disney re-doing some of their attractions. But for me, the first major strike was when they decided to go with a Princess and Frog theme. It certainly isn't one of their most beloved films, and for me, it isn't even one I mildly enjoyed. So then I wait for them to get this far where they can start showing off what they've done with a once much-loved attraction, and as so many others have expressed, I'm extremely disappointed. What I will compliment is something very general - the obvious improvement in animatronics and some visuals. Other than that, the rest is trash. Seriously. The music is terrible compared to what played during Splash Mountain, not the least bit catchy. The overall storyline isn't remotely interesting, and the complete lack of villain inclusion only hurts it that much more. Think about it: some of the favorite and best WDW attractions include the villain in some way - Peter Pan, Buzz Lightyear, Little Mermaid, and so on. The empty sections of this new ride are inexcusable. It's as if they knew fully well that they really had no story and no real idea what they wanted to do here. The whole thing is a huge missed opportunity as far I'm concerned.

A couple of issues:

1. They touched a classic…which automatically ramps up the stakes. To quote Apollo 13: “failure is not an option”

2.no problem doing PATF adds to the parks. It’s a good property. It is NOT…however…a hugely successful one.

And that’s an issue. They claim they are giving people what they want…but they then don’t do it with any sort of priority.

Here’s what should have gotten the treatment first based on appeal and longevity:

TANGLED. !!!

Moana

then maybe patf

 

[doctornick]

No, I believe that after watching GENERATIONS of kids fall in love with it.. and actually communicating with them why. None of them ever said they went on it for heat relief. The splashes and drop fun? Of course... was a splash down unique that drew them in? Absolutely not. Never did they say "man, I wish they would just cut out all that other stuff and just have those fun drops!"

No one ever walked around repeating the screams of the drop... but they seemed to learn a song from a movie they never got to see or understood and would repeat those chorus lines...

It’s funny that my kids would constantly ask to ride Splash while at Disney but never really cared about riding Kali. It’s almost like there’s something more entertaining about the former that wasn’t there in the latter.

Sticking to flume rides, they largely dislike Dudley Do Right.

 

[LittleBuford]

Right. And this is what they went with?

I don’t think how they spent the budget was the (main) issue. I can see where the money went—the attraction doesn’t look cheap to me, the screens notwithstanding. The biggest problem is the dull storyline, and that wouldn’t have taken a big budget to get right.

 

[TalkToEthan]

It is DEEPLY concerning to me that current Imagineers have the hubris to have Tony f-in’ Baxter in a room, hear his advice, and say, “thanks, but ……..

……….and then toss them aside?

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

Most popular ride? Did anyone ever rope drop Splash? Did Splash’s lightning lanes sell out before all the other rides on Genie+?

I hope they’ll update some other woefully outdated attractions next, like Peter Pan and Jungle Cruise (at least give us better speakers so we can better enjoy the humour).

Splash is one of the greatest rides ever built by WDI…top 5 at a minimum. It’s been incredibly popular with long lines for 30+ years.

Frankly…you don’t seem to get what you’re talking about here…
Asking about lightning lanes and genie ? A mongrel system that’s 2 years old?

Let me fill this one in for you:
Yes…people ran to splash
Yes…the fastpasses were always gone
Yes…there were 2+ hour waits for that sucker for years (in medieval times before apps that post inaccurate wait times to create upsells)

Glad I could help fill in the gaps here.

Also…you want them to hack up more older rides for this kinda nonsense? That gonna make those $200 tickets more worthwhile?

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I don’t think how they spent the budget was the (main) issue. I can see where the money went—the attraction doesn’t look cheap to me, the screens notwithstanding. The biggest problem is the dull storyline, and that wouldn’t have taken a big budget to get right.

Budgets go down the hole everytime they try to shoehorn something into a retrofit. We saw it with guardians notoriously.

All that to say “new” while not adding anything.

Bob is brilliant

 

[Sirwalterraleigh]

It’s funny that my kids would constantly ask to ride Splash while at Disney but never really cared about riding Kali. It’s almost like there’s something more entertaining about the former that wasn’t there in the latter.

Sticking to flume rides, they largely dislike Dudley Do Right.

Because splash is one of the greatest rides ever built

Now in the past tense

 

[LittleBuford]

Budgets go down the hole everytime they try to shoehorn something into a retrofit. We saw it with guardians notoriously.

All that to say “new” while not adding anything.

Bob is brilliant

But they did add a lot of new and expensive things to this attraction. Even those of us who don’t like the end result can acknowledge as much. Whatever else is wrong with it, it is not a cheap (or cheap-looking) overlay.

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

From everything we can see this project has been fully financed. In the past there has been valid criticism that certain projects have been underfunded, but not the case here.

Right. And this is what they went with?

I'm curious to know the exact budget myself, but even moreso what funds went where exactly. I assume those A1000's were pricey, not sure how much they cost precisely. That's the only thing I could see significantly eating up even a large budget. There's a lot of foliage used for the ride, but much of it looks very store bought and not the hand-sculpted stylized sort seen in Splash. Then again, perhaps going with that kind of scenery actually cost more money than something more handmade in-house by Disney artists.

But it just seems like the people who worked on this ride have to be both wasteful and incompetent. There is indeed a great deal of obscene stupidity behind bringing Tony Baxter on (presumably paying him a sizable figure in the process) only to immediately anger him by telling him they don't want his ideas. Especially given the fact that he's not afraid to go around and tell everyone that he dislikes something. Sometimes on stage right to your face in a large audience.