Originally Posted By ChurroMonster I think everyone will be able to identify many of the characters as they are literally under spotlights right next to the flume.
Originally Posted By WorldDisney "Disney parks history is based on their NOT just being 'a theme park with enjoyable rides and attractions'." <<What is it if it isn't a theme park? A spiritual center? An institute for higher learning? A research center furthering the cause of science?>> LOL, I admit, I laughed pretty hard at this and of course you're right. It IS just a theme park. But because its so innovative and famous with heaps of nostalgia, people look at it differently then say, Great America . That said, you have to realize where you are at. You are on a Disney website with hardcore fans who DOES take this seriously and for many of them, Disney is a part of their lives. I personnally love Disney and I grew up with it as well and been to every resort around the world. So I like to see the parks stay in a positive direction and call it out when I dont see that. That said, I never had a HUGE problem with most of the changes as long as its still entertaining and fun. The character stuff bothers me, but only to a small degree. At the end of the day, it IS a theme park and if the overwelming majority out there likes this stuff, then nothing more that can be said. In 5 years no one is going to care about these changes. All the people complaining now will still be riding that ride in that time as well....but its nothing wrong to give an opinion about it either. I personnally never liked this ride much. I ride it when I come home to visit and take my mother because its her favorite ride. In fact, I been to every MK park on the planet and have never been on it at WDW or DLP. Just never bothered. I rode it at HKDL mainly because that park is so dead and a lack of rides, this is actually a top 5 attraction in that park...and yes it was where the characters were first added so I was curious to see it. Overall they were fine. Frankly I dont care eitherway, characters or not, there I said it lol. And I will say after all the moaning, the general public will probably fall in love with this redo afterall. Again, the park is for THEM, not for the small, but VERY vocal ultra fans who cries out anytime they screw up the paint job on a door on Main St.
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt No one seems to be commenting on the new boats. I recall there was a lot of talk about how ugly some people though they were when the images first popped up on the Internet. Wasn't that the whole reason for this change in the first place? The boats and flume had to be changed to accommodate overweight visitors? *chuckle*
Originally Posted By avro_imagineer ^^ No no no don't you know the problem was when the ride was opened people were underweight?
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Yah, that's it! I blame Twiggy... I still think the boats are hideous. I think it's really funny that I saw a press release about it that said that the boats were designed to look like a toy that any child might play with...just a really lame excuse to cover up the fact that they're awful looking.
Originally Posted By Socrates "Socrates, have you been on the ride since it reopened?" I have not been on Disneyland's version. However, I was able to see Hong Kong's shortly after it opened. I thought Hong Kong was well done overall. I rode it twice and didn't quite find the number of characters that were supposed to be there, which I took to mean they blended in pretty well. If I remember right, Cinderella in particular looked very Small Worldish. However, a few of them were a real stretch theme-wise, notably Bambi & Thumper on ice & Donald Duck as a Cabellero. Socrates "I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance."
Originally Posted By oc_dean >>However, I was able to see Hong Kong's shortly after it opened. << If you've done a comparison of the photos I'm sure you've seen of DL's compared to HKDL's ... Anaheim's is actually a toned-down version of what they did to HK. I'll detail what I mean later ... I have an entire discussion I've been working on, since I went on it last Friday. Hopefully I'll have it posted within a few days. I'm almost done.
Originally Posted By WorldDisney <<I have not been on Disneyland's version. However, I was able to see Hong Kong's shortly after it opened. I thought Hong Kong was well done overall. I rode it twice and didn't quite find the number of characters that were supposed to be there, which I took to mean they blended in pretty well. If I remember right, Cinderella in particular looked very Small Worldish. However, a few of them were a real stretch theme-wise, notably Bambi & Thumper on ice & Donald Duck as a Cabellero.>> Yeah, agreed with all of that. For the most part, it was well done and why the DL version doesnt bother me although I obviously havent ridden it yet. But it looks like they pretty much just created a smaller HK version basically. I'm not discounting peoples issue with the ride, but lets be honest, if you are 100% against adding characters on this ride, then nothing they could do will make those like it any more even if the majority of guests actually likes and appreciates it.
Originally Posted By oc_dean But WD, you can give the public a kitchen sink .. so long as it "artistically fits", and the public will say, "Oh, that's just so cute!!!" Do you do change for the sake of change? Going against the "foundation" of the ride?
Originally Posted By oc_dean >>Rsey103 Wed 2/11/2009 3:09p I'll be interested to hear what you have to say, oc_dean. << Thanks. And I DO have quite a bit to say. I've covered the music sequences in the "small world music" topic. I've mentioned my thoughts on the America scene in Westsider's topic .. but I've been saving "the big talk - adding Disney characters" for later.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan >>even if the majority of guests actually likes and appreciates it<< Disneyland's original direction was something very different than the characters-everywhere thing that is going on now. It's creator had a higher goal in mind for the place. It's unfortunate that creatively lazy ideas get wrapped in a misuse of the "Disneyland will never be completed as long as there is imagination left in the world" line, because that line was not about being creatively lazy. It was meant as a challenge to future heads of the company to keep pushing that envelope. it's a small world was already populated with Disney characters. The iconic dolls and the overall graphic design of the attraction was unique to Disney, just as the Pirates of the Caribbean featured Disney characters long before Cap'n Jack was added. Maybe people's attention spans are shorter now, so that they don't have the patience to meet new characters unique to the park. Maybe with money being tighter, you better not surprise guests too much -- the familiar may be more prudent in hard times than something bolder creatively. If that's so, it makes sense to add nothing but characters they already know from film and television. Maybe it's time to put the Monster's Inc. abominable snowman in the Matterhorn, and Simba and friends on the Jungle Cruise. Why not? The kids will love it.
Originally Posted By WorldDisney <<But WD, you can give the public a kitchen sink .. so long as it "artistically fits", and the public will say, "Oh, that's just so cute!!!" Do you do change for the sake of change? Going against the "foundation" of the ride?>> My honest answer to that OC Dean is I dont know. Seriously, thats my best answer. Of course I understand what you and the others are saying and have been saying about this. You think its a slap in the face to change the spirit of the ride is about, although it can be argued if it HAS really changed, and it sort of cheapens the message. In general, agreement there IF thats what it is doing. On the other hand, I can see that adding characters creates an interest for people who simply never cared about the message, and sorry, but many simply dont!! They just like the cute characters, art design and there I say it, the song. For many of them, they just probably enjoy the images and the characters only adds to it. I dont know if change simply for the sake a change is good or bad, but I dont see how it would do any harm as well if people LIKE the change. I guess I always been one of the people in the latter. I just never cared all that much for the ride, but yes I like the spirit of it. I just personnally dont think adding characters destroys it, at least it didnt in HKDL for me, thats all. I think there is a psychological (hear me out lol) emphasis on the characters simply because they ARE new and there is controversy over the whole thing, so they stick out more than ever. I'm guessing though in a few years, they will just be 'there' and the spirit of the ride will become just as emphasized as before. Its just a guess though.
Originally Posted By oc_dean >>but yes I like the spirit of it.<< Thank you so much! You helped to prove one of my primary points which I want to discuss in my topic, a few days from now.
Originally Posted By trekkeruss I don't see how it proves anything since WD added that his viewpoint was not changed with the additions (to HKDL's version).
Originally Posted By TMICHAEL WorldDisney, your words in post 196 is quite possibly the best insight on all of this, THANK YOU!
Originally Posted By Socrates One more thought: I just watched the video and didn't see any characters in the finale. So by keeping characters out of the finale, has the original message of the attraction been preserved? Socrates "The unexamined life is not worth living."
