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

[Jedi14]

That’s kind of hilarious considering most of the songs are just audio ripped straight from the movie.

I think all the instrumentals are new, but Dig a little deeper is the only one with new vocals.

 

[Trauma]

I love this sort of thing! But rather than constructive criticism from their peers, I'd be more interested in a ridethrough commentary from Charita Carter and Ted Robledo, the Imagineers behind TBA, where they explain the design, and intention, and craft they put into it.

Yeah that would be very interesting. I would love to hear them try to rationalize this.

I would certainly break out the old bowl of popcorn.

 

[Ice Gator]

Something positive I’ll say about the attraction is that they did a really good job with the Critter Co-Op gift shop. They put some nice details into it and I think it’s better than The Briar Patch store.

 

[Trauma]

I can confirm after having many conversations in person at the ride in the last few days. The majority of people I have talked to have genuinely enjoyed it and told me that afterwards.

I would love to see a survey of the same people ( (so they don’t feel pressured to give the answer you’re clearly looking for ) if they think it’s better than Splash.

Only a yes answer to THAT question can justify this project.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Something positive I’ll say about the attraction is that they did a really good job with the Critter Co-Op gift shop. They put some nice details into it and I think it’s better than The Briar Patch store.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

We've heard their thoughr process this whole time. "This is the most realistic New Orleans outside of New Orleans and if you don't think so you can go pound sand"

I must admit that after seeing this ride I am kind of curious what all that research in New Orleans contributed to the final product. People like to mock Joe Rhode and his trips to Nepal, etc., but the results are readily evident in the final product. I am generally in favour of Imagineers taking research trips and the involvement of people from the regions being depicted in the creation of lands and attractions, but I am curious as to what part of this ride through the bayou collecting animal musicians was informed by getting to know New Orleans culture.

 

[ToTBellHop]

I must admit that after seeing this ride I am kind of curious what all that research in New Orleans contributed to the final product. People like to mock Joe Rhode and his trips to Nepal, etc., but the results are readily evident in the final product. I am generally in favour of Imagineers taking research trips and the involvement of people from the regions being depicted in the creation of lands and attractions, but I am curious as to what part of this ride through the bayou collecting animal musicians was informed by getting to know New Orleans culture.

I see it more in the queue.

 

[Ice Gator]

View attachment 789923

Drew’s enthusiasm encouraged me to dig a little deeper for something I liked.

 

[James Alucobond]

I would love to see a survey of the same people ( (so they don’t feel pressured to give the answer you’re clearly looking for ) if they think it’s better than Splash.

Only a yes answer to THAT question can justify this project.

Do you really think casually chatting with people after is that high pressure? The issue is that it’s a super small sample size, not that they’re being coerced or influenced. It’s not Bob or an Imagineer talking to them that they want to flatter.

 

[Trauma]

Drew’s enthusiasm encouraged me to dig a little deeper for something I liked.

I like the fact they removed the cringy sign before the finale.

 

[aladdin2007]

Something positive I’ll say about the attraction is that they did a really good job with the Critter Co-Op gift shop. They put some nice details into it and I think it’s better than The Briar Patch store.

Its better than the ride itself, unfortunately the ride did not receive the same treatment. and should have.

 

[sedati]

I heard the lyrics of How Do You Do as they were intended. Even as a kid. Granted I also grew up with the ride in an era when the speakers were still kept in good condition and were highly audible and clear. In the years that the ride was neglected, the audio was one of the things that went to ****.

I was lucky enough to ride it in its first year. I also distinctly remember one of the frogs in the "How Do You Do?" scene having a tear in one leg that I was shocked wasn't repaired at any point during our trip which spanned over a week.

 

[Ice Gator]

They’ll look at whether or not the satisfaction scores are equivalent. “Better” is subjective and based on a ton of things that different people might weigh differently, like quality and appearance of animatronics, number of animatronics, music, scenery, story, IP used, etc.

It’s funny seeing all the vloggers and influencers on social media justifying the ride by saying “the line is long, so it’s not a failure. The vocal minority online wanted to keep it the same.”

Like no. The vocal minority were the people who demanded TBA to be a thing in the first place. The reason people are lining up for a new ride is because…well…it’s a new ride?

It’s fun, has some cool moments, but I’m not going to sit here and pretend it’s not a failure from an Imagineering perspective. It’s just not on par with Disney standards and I’m inclined to believe the company is well aware of that but just let it roll anyways.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

I was lucky enough to ride it in its first year. I also distinctly remember one of the frogs in the "How Do You Do?" scene having a tear in one leg that I was shocked wasn't repaired at any point during our trip which spanned over a week.

Yes, I first rode it in Disneyland in 1992 I still heard the lyrics as "pretty good, show us your bum"!

In the attraction's defence, I am from Australia where "sure as you're born" isn't a phrase. That said, for better or worse I have also never heard anyone say "show us your bum".

 

[_caleb]

Yeah that would be very interesting. I would love to hear them try to rationalize this.

I would certainly break out the old bowl of popcorn.

Did you watch the Splash ridethrough w/Imagineer commentary that @EagleScout610 posted above?

You know what would be fun? A video by Don Carson or Tony Baxter giving their feedback on WDW and DL's Bayou Adventures, respectively. Not to tear them apart, but give constructive criticism.

I think it's so interesting to hear what factored into the decisions they made along the way--the limitations of space, the cost management, and the storytelling intent. I noticed he mentions:

• Using dark and "dead" space to create story beats
• Minimally-themed areas to reduce costs
• Visual tricks to draw the guests' eye toward certain scenes (and away from other things)
• Flat scenes due to tight spaces
• Lighting

I believe the Imagineers put just as much thought into TBA as they did into the WDW version of Splash. I know some are not satisfied with the results, but I find it interesting to hear their rationale for every element in the attraction.

I must admit that after seeing this ride I am kind of curious what all that research in New Orleans contributed to the final product. People like to mock Joe Rhode and his trips to Nepal, etc., but the results are readily evident in the final product. I am generally in favour of Imagineers taking research trips and the involvement of people from the regions being depicted in the creation of lands and attractions, but I am curious as to what part of this ride through the bayou collecting animal musicians was informed by getting to know New Orleans culture.

Did you see @Bill Cipher 's lovely analysis of the music/jazz theme of TBA?

A couple notes and addendums to my initial review after viewing some POVs and further rumination:

I was originally displeased with the lull section between the 2nd critter band scene and the scene before the dip drop for being too empty compared to Splash, but I'm beginning to realize this is supposed to be an intentional "low moment" in the narrative before the shrinking scene. The primary thing that suggests this is the lower-tempo audio loop next to the wooden shack. I think this actually a good spot to put a short atmospheric section (Splash did this as well) but I'm not sure it's the best execution. In this spot, my eye was instinctively drawn to the Tiana animatronic further down the flume as it's delivering dialogue to the boat ahead. The audio bleed from that dialogue stole my attention and I missed the ambient audio cue. Something more than the wooden shack to draw the eye to the left side of the track would do greatly for this scene. Just after the segment of Tiana sitting on the stump and Louis looking in the log, we see some stationary figures of the frogs before the Mama Odie screen and dip drop. I know the frogs are there to kind of foreshadow the next scene, but I think they would be better utilized just after the wooden shack in the ambient section. I overlooked the static figures there on my first ride because they were competing for attention with Mama Odie, but putting them just after the shack would allow the Tiana and Louis figures to move further back into their scene and create a better flowing sightline in my opinion. This is all sounding very nitpicky though.

The section between the first and second bands is meant to be a small "scene" where we follow the line of fireflies. There is an effect of fireflies flowing in a line depicted on the leafy canopy ceiling with fiber-optic lights. This is a really great effect, but the scene also suffers in execution because it competes with the screen at the far wall; which is more likely to grab your attention and leave the sides of the boat feeling rather empty. It would have been nice to see this fiber-optic effect on the sides of the flume, and maybe even have it weave around some additional critters. Again, a bit nitpicky.

Regarding audio, I'm now aware that several characters have variations on their dialogue to make audio bleed issues less awkward. This isn't something I picked up on during my first ride, but it's a nice touch nonetheless.

I do not understand the criticism from many that the plot of the ride is complicated or hard to understand. I understand why some might find the queue backstory hard to grasp (while I personally disagree) but the on-ride plot is incredibly simple and easy to follow. The first lift hill Tiana blatantly states she is looking for musicians to play at her party, and Louis in the garden does the same. Before the former slippin' falls drop an audio cue of Mama Odie states we can find the musicians in the bayou. Then, each following appearance of Tiana and Louis reiterate that the musicians they find will be joining them at the party. I can see why the shrinking dialogue from Mama Odie might be hard to hear and understand, but this is immediately followed by visuals of a giant bottle, key, and frog to suggest we shrunk. Then Mama Odie explains she will grow us again so we can make it to the party, all while the vehicle is stopped at the bottom of the main lift hill. Her animatronic at the top of the lift reiterates we're going to the party, and then after the drop we actually go there, completing the plot. If anything, I think the dialogue is heavy-handed and feels somewhat childish, but that doesn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it would. Clearly the dialogue wasn't dumbed down enough for some!

Even though on the whole I prefer Splash Mountain as an attraction, I think it's disingenuous and in bad-faith to call Tiana's Bayou Adventure "soulless" as many have jumped to claim. While the direct plot of the ride is very simple to appeal to younger demographics, there is a surprising amount of subtext here. The attraction feels like a love letter to New Orleans and Louisiana as a whole. The different critter bands playing different styles of music pioneered by African-American artists represents bringing different people in a community together to create something no single person could have created themselves. This parallels the inception of jazz music, which many consider to be the heart and soul of New Orleans. The original song Special Spice also draws this as a parallel to New Orleans cuisine (also considered the city's heart and soul) which uses an eclectic array of ingredients to create its unique flavor. The ride is showing the creative intersection between the culinary and musical arts in a city prolific for both. It drives home that creating something alongside others will result in something none of the parties involved would have ever created on their own. Many are quick to say this ride feels like it was designed by committee, but it seems clear to me that was deliberately the intention. Whether or not one prefers that approach is entirely subject to opinion, but it's not devoid of character or clever design.

I think the use of the music is a product of their research and visits to NOLA.

I also see that inspiration in the foliage, the color palette, and the food references, but in my opinion, they could have gotten that inspiration by visiting the Port Orleans Riverside and French Quarter resorts. I think those capture a Disneyfied Bayou/New Orleans really well.

 

[James Alucobond]

Ok sure.

Clearly in order to justify this project we have to muddy the waters.

It’s a simple question I can answer about any two Disney rides regardless of when I last rode them.

If you ask me “ Is Haunted Mansion or Space Mountain the better ride “ it will take my brain .02 seconds to generate the response Mansion.

I don’t even need a survey to figure it out !

Cool story. A lot of people visit maybe once every 3-5 years and don’t even ride everything when they do. If you ask this question, it may have been a decade or more since they last rode Splash. Comparing satisfaction scores allows you to compare everyone’s perception regardless of individual experience or memory. You’d have to add in a ton of qualifiers before even serving someone the question you propose.

 

[bwr827]

Ok sure.

Clearly in order to justify this project we have to muddy the waters.

It’s a simple question I can answer about any two Disney rides regardless of when I last rode them.

If you ask me “ Is Haunted Mansion or Space Mountain the better ride “ it will take my brain .02 seconds to generate the response Mansion.

I don’t even need a survey to figure it out !

And many others would say hmmm… let me think about that. They’re so different. Can you at least let my try the ride first? …No? I need to answer without riding it?

 

[Sir_Cliff]

To add a positive note to the discussion, I feel like I am one of the few people who actually quite likes the new song for the finale. It really has become stuck in my head and I have to admit that I find myself singing "it's a joyful celebration, you don't need an invitation..." almost involuntarily after watching all those ride through videos!

In general, I do think the music is a strong point of this version of the attraction. It has actually made me appreciate the music of Princess and the Frog more than I had previously.

 

[EagleScout610]

To be positive, I figured I'd add what I like about TBA after being negative on it for so long and actually seeing the full ride:
My pros for Bayou Adventure:

- Louis is the best AA on the ride. Especially his Hallelujah movement.
- The version of "Going Down the Bayou" from dollar a minute to the dip drop is catchy.
- The darker part of the upper level certainly gives off a very "night in the forest" vibe.
- M o n d o
- It's very pretty at night with the Fireflies
- Special Spice is certainly catchy. It's no Zip but at least they did one new song for the attraction.

 

[aladdin2007]

regarding the music, yes the new finale song is at least catchy. the float through after the first lift hill past tiana should have been different, all they did was rip the soundtrack and put it on there. It should have been an instrumental that was zippy and not the singing. The version of Almost There on the Craig Duncan Bare Necessities album would have been so much more fitting, but they went the cheap easy boring route. And in that area would a bird house some critter home or something hanging from the tree or along that area been too much? Why did they bother leaving the big tree stump at all,,,all we got was tacky signs.