News Tron coaster coming to the Magic Kingdom

[rudyjr13]

It's beyond me why after 60 years in the business Disney suddenly feels like they can build an IKEA warehouse and decorate it on one side and call it done, like they did with TRON in Shanghai, are doing with Guardians in Epcot, and here again with TRON in MK.

You answered this point yourself by saying this:
“I say this all as someone who's still excited to ride. I've been dying to take a trip on a Light Cycle for years. I'm excited for MK to get a new E Ticket Attraction.”

As the consumer, you have the ultimate say by choosing to visit or not. Disney is betting that you will still visit even with the IKEA box in view.

 

[Tay]

This is coming along nicely. To bad the line will be crazy! They really should’ve went big for the 50th an added an e-ticket in all 4 of the major lands. That definitely would’ve help manage the crowds. Hopefully by the 60th they at least redo Tomorrowland completely but I doubt it. 75th seems more realistic.

 

[Incomudro]

Then go to Six Flags if you don’t actually care about design. Or you’re not being honest with yourself and things like design and “details” actually matter to a theme park.

The design of the Tron ride is gorgeous.

 

[lazyboy97o]

The design of the Tron ride is gorgeous.

A warehouse is what qualifies as gorgeous?

 

[MaryJaneP]

Ride is inside and it may be gorgeous. Perhaps the criticism is in the lack of theme-ing on the outside of the building, and if it resembles any dumb box warehouse, should not be described, by anyone with any design sense, as gorgeous. Most buildings have more than one viewable facade and it seems inconsistent with prior efforts to hide buildings to do nothing on the "guest" viewable sides. It also seems foolhardy to argue that critics cannot offer any criticism until the building is complete. If that were the case, then by refusing to install a small panel on the backside of the building, it could be forever under construction like the Winchester house in CA.

 

[Incomudro]

Ride is inside and it may be gorgeous. Perhaps the criticism is in the lack of theme-ing on the outside of the building, and if it resembles any dumb box warehouse, should not be described, by anyone with any design sense, as gorgeous. Most buildings have more than one viewable facade and it seems inconsistent with prior efforts to hide buildings to do nothing on the "guest" viewable sides. It also seems foolhardy to argue that critics cannot offer any criticism until the building is complete. If that were the case, then by refusing to install a small panel on the backside of the building, it could be forever under construction like the Winchester house in CA.

Outside the ride, we see the canopy which is gorgeous and blocks the view of the box from most angles.
We do not know how much the view of the box will be obscured from other angles as of yet until measures like tree planting is done.
In any event, what is wrong with seeing a box - which is a computer (a box) - in a modern setting?

 

[optjay]

but many forum members are acting as though they'd rather have no ride at all.

Me!
Not another coaster, not in that location.

 

[JoeCamel]

Outside the ride, we see the canopy which is gorgeous and blocks the view of the box from most angles.
We do not know how much the view of the box will be obscured from other angles as of yet until measures like tree planting is done.
In any event, what is wrong with seeing a box - which is a computer (a box) - in a modern setting?

They could have done this to the outside of the box as they did at DS to hide the concrete boxes.

Disney Springs News

A 2000 car parking garage will begin construction in 2017, adding to the Disney Springs parking capacity.

www.wdwmagic.com

 

[lazyboy97o]

Outside the ride, we see the canopy which is gorgeous and blocks the view of the box from most angles.
We do not know how much the view of the box will be obscured from other angles as of yet until measures like tree planting is done.
In any event, what is wrong with seeing a box - which is a computer (a box) - in a modern setting?

The canopy only blocks select angles as it only sits on one side. It does not wrap the building, at all. Landscaping would require unpermitted berms or 100’ tall trees that would also look ridiculous, especially looming behind Space Mountain.

The industrial design of computers has advanced quite a lot. Even in the movies, the Grid is accessed inside an old brick building and not a warehouse.

Industrial facilities may have been praised by Modernists for their functionality but they would hardly be identified as Modern. Storage facilities and warehouses are hardly considered exciting places and why theme parks do not work as just a collection of warehouses with cool rides inside.

 

[larryz]

I think you'd have a hard time finding a poster here who's actually said "I'd rather have no ride at all than have them build TRON because the sightlines are bad".

I think most of us who are annoyed with how they're handling the sightlines mostly just wish they'd do a better job handling the sightlines.

The ride isn't done, but, like Guardians of the Galaxy, the building is up and large enough that it's not going away short of a cloaking device the likes of which we've never seen. The building is getting some paneling - okay, so now it's a big box with some paneling. If you're gonna be visible from all over (like Space Mountain) at least give us a beautiful building that's an asset if not a liability (like Space Mountain).

I don't understand why we have to wait for ALL the panels to be up to say something when we know what all the panels are going to look like. We get it, and the criticism is valid. Come on. There's no secret applique forthcoming that will suddenly hide this building.

It's beyond me why after 60 years in the business Disney suddenly feels like they can build an IKEA warehouse and decorate it on one side and call it done, like they did with TRON in Shanghai, are doing with Guardians in Epcot, and here again with TRON in MK. The level of re-landscaping they would have to do outside of Storybook Circus to hide TRON is tremendous and we've been given no indication they're going to try to do it - and the Guardians building suggests the standards have dropped enough that they don't feel this is an issue. So why wait to say something? All that does is let them get away with it.

Remember Walt's original vision for "sightlines"?

Spoiler

Block out the outside world.

Well, this gravity building will certainly achieve that goal.

 

[rle4lunch]

Pics today of the multi shade go away grey install.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Remember Walt's original vision for "sightlines"?

Spoiler

Block out the outside world.

Well, this gravity building will certainly achieve that goal.

Let's not forget that part of the function of purchasing so much land in Florida was to push the outside world far beyond the Magic Kingdom horizon - there is no "outside world" that has needed to be blocked by a building in the entire time the Magic Kingdom has been operating.

The problem here is that now Disney has become the one that has brought the outside world into the sightline by creating a building that is an eyesore from every angle that isn't dead-on behind the Canopy. The whole purpose of buying so much land was to be able to control everything the guests see. Now they're at the point where they don't mind if they build a building that looms like this over Fantasyland:

(Photo from 1/22/20)

EDITED To Add: The photo above shows the perspective of the TRON building that is relative to the view from this arrow in Shanghai - so it's clear that the Canopy will not obscure the building from this angle

 

[Rich Brownn]

Disney bought all that land to build hotels. Keeping the world away was a bonus. Walt was upset about the glitter, but he was really upset when he found out tourists spent twice as much outside of Disneyland (for hotel, food etc) then inside.

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Disney bought all that land to build hotels. Keeping the world away was a bonus. Walt was upset about the glitter, but he was really upset when he found out tourists spent twice as much outside of Disneyland (for hotel, food etc) then inside.

Sure, I'll give you that was part of it, but think about the lengths Walt had them go to in ensuring that the enormous warehouse showbuildings for Small World, Pirates, and the Haunted Mansion were never visible from within the park. Concealing the unattractive industrial structures in the park in the name of maintaining an illusion was clearly also a priority to some expensive extent, and it was one that the Magic Kingdom also did reasonably well for nearly 50 years. Now they're doing the bare minimum in that regard with TRON.

 

[Incomudro]

Sure, I'll give you that was part of it, but think about the lengths Walt had them go to in ensuring that the enormous warehouse showbuildings for Small World, Pirates, and the Haunted Mansion were never visible from within the park. Concealing the unattractive industrial structures in the park in the name of maintaining an illusion was clearly also a priority to some expensive extent, and it was one that the Magic Kingdom also did reasonably well for nearly 50 years. Now they're doing the bare minimum in that regard with TRON.

Yes, but this is an industrial structure in an industrial ride.
What is wrong with seeing the box that the cycles go into?

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Yes, but this is an industrial structure in an industrial ride.
What is wrong with seeing the box that the cycles go into?

In what way is TRON an industrial ride?

It takes place in the Game Grid of TRON, which is itself inside computer software. The Grid is a virtual reality. It could fit on a thumbdrive. Shouldn't this be the kind of attraction where the warehouse is extra well hidden to complete the illusion that we've been sucked into a computer instead of a large, hangar-like building? Similarly, it's never really made sense with the world of TRON that the light cycles take a loop outside before heading back into the Grid, but I get that that's part of the fun of this ride and was also important in Shanghai for communicating visually what sort of experience the ride offered.

So if we choose forgive the loop, it still doesn't make design sense for the light cycles to head straight on into a big warehouse that has nothing to do with TRON in a story or conceptual sense - it's merely the place where most of the ride takes place. But in the "story" of the ride we're meant to be inside a computer. The showbuilding doesn't communicate "computer" any more than the backside of my local Walmart does. Even with all that gray paneling.

Never mind that an "industrial structure" sounds like the last thing a "magical kingdom" would need added to its landscape. It doesn't fit the IP, it doesn't fit the story of the ride, it doesn't fit the look of the park, and the fun of the Canopy doesn't do enough to cover these other sins (while we're at it, what "is" the Canopy?

Maybe the MK should have gotten a different version of a TRON ride designed just for that park. Shanghai's version has some oddities that are even more odd when transplanted to this park. Remember the days when Splash Mountain was redesigned between DL and WDW (and then again at TDL!) just because they didn't think Disneyland's version would make enough aesthetic sense in Magic Kingdom's Frontierland?

 

[larryz]

...but think about the lengths Walt had them go to in ensuring that the enormous warehouse showbuildings for Small World, Pirates, and the Haunted Mansion were never visible from within the park.

Except from the Skyway...

 

[yensidtlaw1969]

Except from the Skyway...

I mean, Mansion, Pirates, and Small World weren't visible from the skyway . . . but regardless of that, that is why I said it was a priority "to some expensive extent". They went well out of their way to hide or theme showbuildings from every walking guest perspective, but I suppose there's only so much they were able to do at the time when it came to rooftops from the Skyway.

And to be fair, if the Skyway was still gliding through the Magic Kingdom I would probably excuse a rooftop view of TRON from it because, again, there is a line in terms of what can reasonably be expected. But then again, a building like Space Mountain that's designed from every angle never had to worry about the view from the Skyway or from walking guest areas because it's design is an asset no matter where you're looking from.

It's not like it's impossible to theme a coaster building in 360, as Imagineers with far less money and far fewer resources proved next door to TRON 45 years ago.

EDITED To Fix: Accidentally referring to the Skyway as the Skyliner the second time I mentioned it - meanwhile I still say Downtown Disney and MGM regularly!

 

[larryz]

I mean, Mansion, Pirates, and Small World weren't visible from the skyway . . .

Mansion and Pirates were definitely harder to see, but you were practically right over IaSW. The roof was very easy to see... and it looked like the roof of a big warehouse.

 

[Incomudro]

In what way is TRON an industrial ride?

It takes place in the Game Grid of TRON, which is itself inside computer software. The Grid is a virtual reality. It could fit on a thumbdrive. Shouldn't this be the kind of attraction where the warehouse is extra well hidden to complete the illusion that we've been sucked into a computer instead of a large, hangar-like building? Similarly, it's never really made sense with the world of TRON that the light cycles take a loop outside before heading back into the Grid, but I get that that's part of the fun of this ride and was also important in Shanghai for communicating visually what sort of experience the ride offered.

So if we choose forgive the loop, it still doesn't make design sense for the light cycles to head straight on into a big warehouse that has nothing to do with TRON in a story or conceptual sense - it's merely the place where most of the ride takes place. But in the "story" of the ride we're meant to be inside a computer. The showbuilding doesn't communicate "computer" any more than the backside of my local Walmart does. Even with all that gray paneling.

Never mind that an "industrial structure" sounds like the last thing a "magical kingdom" would need added to its landscape. It doesn't fit the IP, it doesn't fit the story of the ride, it doesn't fit the look of the park, and the fun of the Canopy doesn't do enough to cover these other sins (while we're at it, what "is" the Canopy?

Maybe the MK should have gotten a different version of a TRON ride designed just for that park. Shanghai's version has some oddities that are even more odd when transplanted to this park. Remember the days when Splash Mountain was redesigned between DL and WDW (and then again at TDL!) just because they didn't think Disneyland's version would make enough aesthetic sense in Magic Kingdom's Frontierland?

It's not a natural structure like Splash, Big Thunder, Flights of Passage etc., where a box needs to be hidden by natural elements.
It's not located in Fantasyland where the box needs to be hidden by storybook elements.
It's premise is a manmade theme - a computer as sterile as sterile gets - and it is located in Tomorrowland where it is amongst other manmade looking structures.
I don't find some views of a square structure to be out of place at all.
Not only does it fit Tomorrowland - it greatly enhances it.