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

[LittleBuford]

As I alluded to (although my main focus was on that people did make the comment you thought I was suggesting you were making), the queue does not build tension more than the conflict of finding a band. You are correct there.

But the language of story and "narrative deficiencies" sounds more like the story itself is missing or lacking, as opposed to the tone of the story. It's all just a misunderstanding.

I have tried to be as clear and specific in my criticisms as possible, though I apologise if I left any room for misunderstanding.

 

[tiger04]

Just throwing my two cents in as I was able to ride several times yesterday. It seems I got lucky because even though TBA was down in the morning when my preview was supposed to start, it reopened before 11:30 am and I had no glitches on my rides.

Overall, I thought it was pretty but pointless. The random spaces between character scenes in the bayou were strange as it was just dead space and there was a bit of an uncanny valley element when you saw the Tiana and Louie figures just standing in the distance waiting to animate as you got closer. And each time the lift caught me off guard that we were already there so for some reason it feels shorter than Splash.

I rode with someone who has not paid any attention to the online discourse, nor any of the blog posts about animal musicians or weather vanes, and at the end of the first ride she said “I like it but it’s not Splash”. It just felt like a downgrade and oddly lifeless in comparison. Which is unfortunate.

That said I enjoyed the animatronics when they finally talked to you, and the last party scene was pretty, and I think people will enjoy it. Weirdly I got completely soaked in the front row so that was fun if you want to cool down!

But I just wish TBA had something to make it pop as opposed to just being okay, as I think the bones of Splash Mountain and a new Tiana-themed attraction deserved better.

 

[lightningtap347]

Just throwing my two cents in as I was able to ride several times yesterday. It seems I got lucky because even though TBA was down in the morning when my preview was supposed to start, it reopened before 11:30 am and I had no glitches on my rides.

Overall, I thought it was pretty but pointless. The random spaces between character scenes in the bayou were strange as it was just dead space and there was a bit of an uncanny valley element when you saw the Tiana and Louie figures just standing in the distance waiting to animate as you got closer. And each time the lift caught me off guard that we were already there so for some reason it feels shorter than Splash.

I rode with someone who has not paid any attention to the online discourse, nor any of the blog posts about animal musicians or weather vanes, and at the end of the first ride she said “I like it but it’s not Splash”. It just felt like a downgrade and oddly lifeless in comparison. Which is unfortunate.

That said I enjoyed the animatronics when they finally talked to you, and the last party scene was pretty, and I think people will enjoy it. Weirdly I got completely soaked in the front row so that was fun if you want to cool down!

But I just wish TBA had something to make it pop as opposed to just being okay, as I think the bones of Splash Mountain and a new Tiana-themed attraction deserved better.

How did you ride multiple times?

 

[SilentWindODoom]

I have tried to be as clear and specific in my criticisms as possible, though I apologise if I left any room for misunderstanding.

It's no problem. It's nobody's fault. It's an easy thing to happen. We're all from wildly different places with wildly different life experiences shaping our vocabularies.

 

[flynnibus]

The ride absolutely set up the characters. First lift hill, Brer Frog is telling stories about Brer Rabbit, saying he’s looking for adventure, but Brer Frog thinks he’s heading for trouble.

Second lift hill, you’re introduce to the world of the critters. Brer Rabbit and Brer Bear’s houses are labeled. Brer Rabbit is singing the song energetically. Brer Bear is snoozing. Paints the type of characters they are before you even see it.

Putting names on buildings is not explaining the story - it is introducing labels.

The first scene with the Brers, you have Fox scheming about trying to catch the rabbit. He has a book labelled “How to catch a Rabbit” right next to him. Why is he trying to catch a rabbit? He’s a fox. You aren’t going to ask why a cat would chase a mouse.

Except the real story is more than 'fox hunting for food' - it's about revenge for being outwitted. It's just not told in this exposition in the ride... because the ride is more a brief vignette of several of the brer rabbit stories.

Yeah it’s simple and relies on preconceived constructs, but there still is setup. It’s told through dialogue, visual cues, musical lyrics, scene composition, etc. I had no pre-existing knowledge of the characters and stories, yet I still got the gist of it and fell in love with the attraction because of its theming on my first ride.

I'm sure you enjoyed it - but that's different from understanding the story or even catching the significance of things.. especially on a first or limited # ride throughs. The ride relies heavily on single key audio lines connecting the scenes.. lines many don't even hear, let alone key off of. The story details are there, but hard to pick out in the ride for the casual observer - not just 'those who chose to ignore it'.

The key was riders didn't need the story line to enjoy the attraction given it's cute scenes, recognizable prototypes, family-oriented thrill aspects, and overall breadth of presentation. Basically the ride can sustain itself without the audience even fully connecting with the context or continuity. Relying on simple constructs like humor and established prototypes helps that. It's why most people get off saying they love Splash Mountain, but had a hard time communicating anything about it except for referencing the visual scenes and drops. They get the basics of the rabbit being chased, and escaping.. notable characters.. and that's about it.

Regardless... it's gone now. But let's not take fandom and spin new recollections of what was prior. The story continuity in Splash prior was subtle... and generally not understood by most... but it's excellence was in it's ability to entertain, even without the audience getting a full buy-in to the reasoning or tale being told. HM is another version of that.. where there isn't a heavy need for a 'plot' because its more of a lead through than a traditional story arc. Splash has a defined line of the stories, it's just not 'mandatory learning'... nor is missing the story creating conflict for the audience.

Tiana's has a story.. but unlike Splash.. it creates conflict in the audience because the story itself is kinda aloof.

IMO they would have been better off to lean more heavily into the Mardi Gras lead up and purpose to setup the party.. and introduce the conflict about party being at risk... the audience is kinda left hanging about significance or how there is a gap that needs filling and is thrown right into 'we need to fix this'... but the why and even 'fixes' themselves are kinda conflicting. When you need to key off a single audio line.. you really set yourself up problems where so many won't get that line.

 

[_caleb]

All which was corrected with OTHER videos released within days. So why do we keep harping back to the first Disney video as why everyone hates everything and pointing out it's flaws? It's not the data point everyone is limited too.. so it's limitations have been passed.

The reason I keep bringing it up is because that POV video is what led to a flurry of comments here. People were forming opinions based on it BEFORE other/better videos were available, and there was something of a snowball effect. For many, it seemed that the initial negative impression, combined with previous biases (based on marketing, ideology, expectations, nostalgia, etc.) colored their impressions even of later POVs. This isn't true of everyone, but enough people that I noticed and thought it worth discussing.

Sorry this is just making excuses - give your audience more credit - they are capable of forming new opinions with new information.

I'm not sure what I'd be excusing... I try to give people credit. I'm just commenting on what I saw in the thread.

Your argument could be 'first impressions...' but instead you take it to the level to believe no one could get past those and everything is flawed because they can't get past that. That's you trying to spin... instead of giving people credit for taking in all the other information.. not just the day 0 video.

I'm not trying to spin anything. I'm interested in the response of the fandom, so I'm just describing what I'm seeing.

 

[flynnibus]

The reason I keep bringing it up is because that POV video is what led to a flurry of comments here. People were forming opinions based on it BEFORE other/better videos were available, and there was something of a snowball effect. For many, it seemed that the initial negative impression, combined with previous biases (based on marketing, ideology, expectations, nostalgia, etc.) colored their impressions even of later POVs. This isn't true of everyone, but enough people that I noticed and thought it worth discussing.

Yet you claim to be giving people 'credit' - yet here you outline how you ASSUME their actions SINCE must be 'previous biases' and keep pointing at old data while you don't even know what information they have or have not consumed.

You're going backwards where everyone else has moved on... you should try it to. The Disney POV video is ancient history at this point - it's not binding anyone.

 

[_caleb]

Yet you claim to be giving people 'credit' - yet here you outline how you ASSUME their actions SINCE must be 'previous biases' and keep pointing at old data while you don't even know what information they have or have not consumed.

You're going backwards where everyone else has moved on... you should try it to. The Disney POV video is ancient history at this point - it's not binding anyone.

You just posted a really great post showing how the details in the queue set up the story of the ride. Why did you feel the need to make that post? Why didn't you give people credit that they knew what was in the queue and just disagreed that it had any connection to the ride?

(To answer my own question I assume it's because you thought, as I did, that some folks had formed their opinions without being informed by that information.

I think the POV was a major blunder on Disney's part, as it presented the ride poorly by amplifying some of its weaknesses and hiding some of its strengths. You're free to disagree that the POV was that significant.

It may be true that everyone has moved on, but I'm still getting texts from non-Disney parks nerds who are sharing that POV and saying, "Have you seen this yet?" So I think it's still influencing people's first impressions.

 

[Ayla]

In the early days of RotR there would be a literal wall of CMs blocking the entrance and doing crowd control every time it went down.

Never ridden it, so that could explain why I've never seen that particular line of CM's.

 

[The Mom]

3. Be courteous and respect your fellow members. To be clear, personal attacks, aggressive messages, and passive-aggressive behavior is unacceptable. If you take particular issue with another user and are unable to reply in a civilised and constructive way to their posts, you should ignore the user.

Just a reminder.

 

[flynnibus]

You just posted a really great post showing how the details in the queue set up the story of the ride. Why did you feel the need to make that post? Why didn't you give people credit that they knew what was in the queue and just disagreed that it had any connection to the ride?

Because I answered a direct question asking for basically a citation? So I provided it.

(To answer my own question I assume it's because you thought, as I did, that some folks had formed their opinions without being informed by that information.

No, because I know the information is easily missed, or because someone may have simply not known the information is there. It's not a topic of doubting someone's opinion - it's an example of citing material to support your assertion. These two posts are nothing alike.. so not sure why you are trying to connect them.

It may be true that everyone has moved on, but I'm still getting texts from non-Disney parks nerds who are sharing that POV and saying, "Have you seen this yet?" So I think it's still influencing people's first impressions.

So take it up with them? Why are you addressing people here and their actions based on people not even here?

I don't address you based on what someone completely unrelated to our conversation is doing - have the same courtesy to everyone else here. We don't speak for those people... nor do they speak for us... so stop using your interaction with them to assume what someone unrelated is doing. That's not 'giving credit' - that's the opposite... assuming because you saw something over there, everyone over here must be the same.

 

[Professortango1]

I find this quite a confusing point to make... because the VAST VAST majority of riders had no clue about the characters in Splash... Most people under 40 probably never heard of brer rabbit before getting on the ride.. and certainly didn't know the tales the ride takes an abbreviated version of.

The story isn't setup.. or even laid out.. it's just more the story relies on constructs and notions that people can pickup on without explicit exposition.

They could just digest the very simple construct of a rabbit.. being a smaller less aggressive animal... being pursued by a fox and a bear... animals known to be predators.. and there are caricatures of those prenotions that play out... the rabbit is setup to be witty and outsmart the dumb clumsy bear and stubborn fox.

The characters presented traits and prototypes people are familiar with.. so it's not difficult for them to pick up and follow them with a few rides.. even if they don't know the actual source material and don't need a real setup.

The ride never sets up why the fox wants to catch brer rabbit... or that the rabbit keeps outwitting the fox and bear.. you just see the outcomes usually of these adventures.. except when it comes to the final outtwitting of the briar patch.

I mean.. the very notion the story ISN'T very explicit is the mask the ride was able to use to it's advantage to avoid scrutiny for so long. The fact the basic constructs of the critters and their conflict can be illustrated and be cute... without getting into their larger batch of stories.

The challenge with Tiana's story is... it's so trivial it's what you tell a baby to excite a smile... "lets goto the party!" over and over while smiling and clapping your hands.

Let's not forget that Disney also did their part in the 90's to help folks become accustomed to the characters. I grew up not knowing the film due to the ban, but I LOVED the characters because Disney put out a wide variety of books telling many of the Joel Chandler Harris stories as well as integrating the animated segments into the Disney Sing A-Long VHS series. Splash introduced me to the characters and Disney's ancillary products opened my eyes to the stories and literature they derive from.

I think late 80's Disney knew they had to do some leg work because these stories were not known to new generations and likely wouldn't be. Current Disney got lazy and thought "everyone knows PatF and can watch it on Disney+, so let's just give them something cute to do rather than give park guests a reason to be endeared to them and their adventure.

 

[_caleb]

Because I answered a direct question asking for basically a citation? So I provided it.

No, because I know the information is easily missed, or because someone may have simply not known the information is there. It's not a topic of doubting someone's opinion - it's an example of citing material to support your assertion. These two posts are nothing alike.. so not sure why you are trying to connect them.

So take it up with them? Why are you addressing people here and their actions based on people not even here?

I'm trying to engage in discussion about the general reaction to TBA, and how the POV may have affected that. I'm not "addressing people here and their actions" beyond just saying I've noticed some trends. You take my observations as an attack or something?

I don't address you based on what someone completely unrelated to our conversation is doing - have the same courtesy to everyone else here.

I try to be courteous. I'm genuinely confused by this exchange. My comments have been based on what I've seen in this thread (I've read every post!), and I'm just trying to share my thoughts on the impact that video had (and continues to have).

We don't speak for those people... nor do they speak for us... so stop using your interaction with them to assume what someone unrelated is doing. That's not 'giving credit' - that's the opposite... assuming because you saw something over there, everyone over here must be the same.

Huh? Of course others don't speak for you... again, I've seen the pattern of response here and I've just been trying to talk about the ripple effect out into the general public.

I'm really confused by your replies to me here. Maybe someone else can help explain to me what I'm missing, or what I said that seems to have frustrated you.

Or, I'm happy to just let it go.

 

[Centauri Space Station]

The ride absolutely set up the characters. First lift hill, Brer Frog is telling stories about Brer Rabbit, saying he’s looking for adventure, but Brer Frog thinks he’s heading for trouble.

Second lift hill, you’re introduce to the world of the critters. Brer Rabbit and Brer Bear’s houses are labeled. Brer Rabbit is singing the song energetically. Brer Bear is snoozing. Paints the type of characters they are before you even see it.

The first scene with the Brers, you have Fox scheming about trying to catch the rabbit. He has a book labelled “How to catch a Rabbit” right next to him. Why is he trying to catch a rabbit? He’s a fox. You aren’t going to ask why a cat would chase a mouse.

Yeah it’s simple and relies on preconceived constructs, but there still is setup. It’s told through dialogue, visual cues, musical lyrics, scene composition, etc. I had no pre-existing knowledge of the characters and stories, yet I still got the gist of it and fell in love with the attraction because of its theming on my first ride. And here’s the kicker… I COULDN’T EVEN SEE PROPERLY . I rode without my glasses. Most things were blurry.

I’ll be honest i barely could understand half the dialogue on splash. The most i knew was that the bear and fox were trying to kill the rabbit.

 

[Sectorkeeper71]

I’ll be honest i barely could understand half the dialogue on splash. The most i knew was that the bear and fox were trying to kill the rabbit.

I just learned from this forum a couple weeks ago that the point of the drop was brer rabbit escaping from brer fox. I always just assumed Fox just chucked him off out of spite and he somehow lived.

I do think part of both of our issues is the speakers started going over the years so it came out a bit of a garbled mess

 

[Dranth]

I just learned from this forum a couple weeks ago that the point of the drop was brer rabbit escaping from brer fox. I always just assumed Fox just chucked him off out of spite and he somehow lived.

I do think part of both of our issues is the speakers started going over the years so it came out a bit of a garbled mess

I’ve been riding it since day one and it isn’t just the speakers.

 

[Brer Oswald]

I just learned from this forum a couple weeks ago that the point of the drop was brer rabbit escaping from brer fox. I always just assumed Fox just chucked him off out of spite and he somehow lived.

I do think part of both of our issues is the speakers started going over the years so it came out a bit of a garbled mess

I understood it just fine when I was 11. To make it even more clear, the drop led into the briar patch. His home at the start was the briar patch.

 

[gerarar]

Recap on the first operational day for the public (technically APs..):

• 7am drop lasted for a couple hours, so everyone/APs who had a MK park reservation would and should of been able to get a BG.
• But due to the delayed opening and extended downtime in the morning, the afternoon 1pm drop allotment was most likely reduced (in combination with APs with a non-MK reservation), hence it only lasting for about 2 secs.

Now for the downtimes:

• It failed to open with the official park open at 9am. Took until 11:40am, ~3 hours downtime.
• Then at around 1:30pm, it closed again for another ~3 hours.
• Around 5pm and 6pm, it also broke down for about an hour.

So in total, 427 mins, or ~7 hours 7 mins of total downtime today.
Magic Kingdom was open for 13 hours today, so it was closed for ~54% of the day.

Basically, not good. Hopefully things improve in the next week during these previews before it officially opens to the general public.

Day 1 Stats Recap in TBA VQ thread:

Final Day 1 Stats (6/13) [Day 1/6 AP previews]:
7am: 7341.4 secs, or ~2 hours 2 mins
1pm: 2.5 secs*
*the morning 7am drop lasted longer than afternoon 1pm drop

BG 100 is the last BG called for the day at 8pm.

Notable stoppages:
9:00 - 11:40am
1:28 - 4:15pm
5:04 - 6:15pm
6:21 - 6:50pm

Average pace: 5mins/BG until 5pm, 2mins/BG from 7pm to close.

VQ Drop Mean/Average:
7am: 2hr 2m -> 2hr 2m (+0)
1pm: 2.5s -> 2.5s (+0)

That does it for Day 1 of Tiana's Bayou Adventure!
View attachment 791611

 

[V_L_Raptor]

I have never seen a line of CM's at a closed attraction. Three to four, sure.

It’s been a thing for a while at Test Track whenever it’s 101.

 

[Professortango1]

I understood it just fine when I was 11. To make it even more clear, the drop led into the briar patch. His home at the start was the briar patch.

I understood it when I was much younger. Brer Rabbit says not to throw him that briar patch. Fox says "that's just where you're going!" and we are tossed into the briar patch. Then at the end the new refrains sing about Brer Rabbit tricking them and he signs "its where I'm born and bred in, the Briar Patch is where I'm heading!"

There was plenty of information to pick up on.