DisneyDodo
Well-Known Member
My main issue w/ TSL is that "Andy's backyard" isn't the kind of movie setting guests want to immerse themselves in. I can understand seeing Monsters Inc. and thinking "I wish I could walk through Monstropolis" or seeing Inside Out and thinking "I wish I could explore the inside of Riley's brain" because these are the kinds of locations that can only be found in their respective Pixar movies. Anyone in suburban Middle America can look out the window and see exactly what Andy would see in Toy Story. Not saying TSL is inherently a failure, just that there are more distinctive & unique "worlds" in Pixar that would really have lent themselves to immersive theming. For me, the point of an IP-based land is to transport guests somewhere they could never visit elsewhere, and Andy's backyard is the exact opposite of that.
I love Toy Story, but I think it's the characters and premise that makes these movies stand out, not the setting. As much as I enjoy TMM, it could be rethemed easily enough–there's already the Buzz ride in Tomorrowland, so this would actually make TMM feel less redundant, and guests would still flock to it due to the interactive ride mechanics.
The fact that you are in Andy's backyard is not what makes this land unique. Rather, it's the being shrunken down to the size of a toy that makes you feel like you are being immersed in a whole new setting.