@WDW1974 once described the then massive expanse of land that would become Star Wars Land and the new Rivers of America as a "tumor" growing on the back of the park. There can be no more succinct description of this new "port."
But before I talk about my feelings about this project, I want to talk about Tokyo Disney Sea...
By the early 1990s EPCOT Center had launched and been built out to its fullest. It was a success and paved the way for thousands of hotel rooms, new gated attractions, and putting Orlando on the map.
But it wasn't perfect.
In its development, it radically departed from its predecessors Disneyland and Magic Kingdom. It was a complete rethink of what a theme park could be. Like any radical rethink of an existing entity or product, sometimes there will be misses. But for the most part, EPCOT Center was a triumph. But Imagineering wasn't finished yet. Many of the younger stars of the EPCOT Center project were wanting their own shot at new parks. Ultimately, 4 radical new parks were proposed. Disney's Wild Animal Kingdom, Disney Sea, Disney's America, and Westcot. These parks were going to be the merging of the Magic Kingdom and EPCOT Center concepts. Taking the edutainment ideas and blending them with much more immersive environments and stories. Instead of a pavilion celebrating a country, they would simply take you straight into the country. It would be more about feelings and story, and little less about straight science and history, but they would still carry the purposeful education mission at their cores.
Only one of those parks made it out of the development inferno; the newly renamed Disney's Animal Kingdom opened in 1998 (though that park would suffer for nearly 20 years because of the chronic lack of investment at its beginning). Luckily something magical happened. The Oriental Land Company decided to trade in their lackluster "Studio Park," for a more ambitious concept. Off they went with Tokyo Disney Sea. An undisputed hit from day one, it carried the same educational boldness as EPCOT Center with more of a story conscious Magic Kingdom style delivery to major success. Up until a few years ago, things had been smooth sailing (hah), but recently it has become apparent that expansion is necessary. Tokyo Disney SEA was built with Expansion in mind. With two ride spots in the New York section of the park (one for Tower of Terror and another for a dark ride taking you into a high speed chase between gangsters and the police [think Mr Toad's Wild Ride Sans the the Toad]), a plot between Lost River Delta (which would become Raging Spirits and Jasmine's Flying Carpets), a spot in Mediterranean Harbor (Soarin'- Coming Soon!), and a spot for a whole new Port between Port Discovery and Lost River Delta (Scandinavia!).
But now with many of the Expansion Pads already utilized, Disney is pushing outward:
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Behold the "tumor!"
Tokyo Disney Sea has core themes. Themes are not decorations. For example, you cannot theme a place to Toy Story. You cannot theme something to the jungle. You cannot theme a land to Tangled, Frozen, and Peter Pan. Themes are the core messages that an artistic expression is trying to convey. A theme of Toy Story the movie is the power of friendship. The toys are not a theme, but instead a story device to get the theme across to the audience. A theme of the Jurassic Movie Franchise (hahahahaha) is nature's ability to overcome hurdles and overpower the plans of man. Isla Nublar is not a theme, but a setting. A place where the characters have a chance to communicate that theme to the audience.
Themes of Tokyo Disney Sea are not New York, Italy, Mysterious Island, or Arabian Coast. Here's a few:
1) Man's Curiosity and Drive to Explore the Seas- Fortress Explorations, Submarines, Sinbad, and the Little Mermaid areas capture this theme.
2) The Seas connect people for good and for bad- The beautiful transition from Mediterranean Harbor to American Waterfront encapsulates this perfectly. You can feel the DNA of Italy seeping into the City, and see the natural progression of things. One of my favorite details is a billboard for Zamboni Brother's Products in America, a nod to the restaurant just a short distance away. This underscores the fact that they likely immigrated to America and have started a new life! What a small but genius detail. Once again Sinbad reminds us of this truth. Oh, and let us not forget Tower of Terror and Indiana Jones's conflicts. In each case American Explorers seek out objects of great importance to native cultures, and in turn are punished. Sometimes it might be best to leave things be!
3) The Seas are a way of life and development for many cultures- American Waterfront, Mediterranean Harbor, Arabian Coast.
4) Man's attempts to explore and tame nature will almost always end up poorly...- Journey to the Center of the Earth, Submarines, Storm Rider
5) Talking Toys... That travesty.
We'll stick with the first four. Those themes are powerful and educational. They empower the guest to think and learn. They also opened the door for some of the most unique and exciting attractions ever to exist.
But this Port isn't about any of those themes. Instead we have a magical spring popping up out of the ground and causing a whole bunch of random Disney Franchises to come into existence (you can learn more about this magical story in the ground floor gift shop of the Hotel!). Let's get this out of the way. The story is terrible. They should have owned the fact they were doing this, instead of trying to make some convoluted backstory. Very ham handed of them, and it frankly just sounds stupid. It also doesn't match any of the themes of the park. The closest might be the Peter Pan Attraction and land. It also doesn't match the more serious and educational tone of the park. More than powerful themes, painstaking recreations of actual places in the past were brought to the park so guests could really know what it was like to go to a Spanish Fortress. Really learn about New York life. Go to Italy. Etc. It might sound idealistic, but that's what the park creators were doing! This is the next EPCOT Center, and 20 years later OLC is watering it down. What a shame.
Can we also talk about this Hotel...
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Welcome to Las Vegas! Or perhaps more suitably Macao. Everyone who though Coronado Springs was bad... Ha, that's nothing. Welcome to the ugly hotel that doesn't tell any story next to one of the best executed theme parks in the world. It's a horror. This is the same park with MiraCosta for crying out loud! The visual intrusion into the various parts of the lands will cheapen the experience of the average park goer. It's unfair to the 99% of guests not staying inside the hotel. Also, did I mention it's UGLY?
Now it's not all bad. I'm sure the lands will be well executed and the rides amazing. OLC knows what DISNEY is (hint, it ain't Star Wars and Marvel or any flashy acquisition Bob is looking at next). They happened to pick three of my favorite Disney Animated Movies (I know I know, Frozen is over rated blah blah blah). Seeing a land without budget compromises is going to be awesome!
But imagine what the Imagineers could have done without the constraints of existing franchises. Imagine the Sinbads, Journey to the Center of the Earths, and Tower of Terrors we just lost for movie recap rides. What a terrible shame. This park is crumbling.
I'm looking forward to visiting, but I wish this didn't have to be soulless and themeless. Also, I'm not staying at that hotel anytime soon...
