Fantasyland Expansion

[disneylizzy]

Did anybody see the Sentinal article today?

http://thedailydisney.com/blog/2010/08/ ... g-redrawn/

Apparently Disney is changing direction with some of the Fantasyland plans - particularly the princess stuff. So, maybe those photos of the expansion concepts will be taken down.

Interesting. Smart move on their part since it did seem heavily skewed toward young girls. Even if they aren't admitting it I'm sure they are keeping an eye on Universal and the Harry Potter world...

Yeah, I think that's the thing. They are looking at this new area and thinking about how they could make it more like other parts of wdw - appealing to both sexes and not limited to a certain age group.

Critics of the expansion were right on target - even Disney is saying that it' wasn't a broad enough vision.

I wish they would re-theme tomorrowland speedway to Cars and also re-theme Tom Sawyers Island as part of the expansion. These things would be geared more towards boys so it would balance some of the princess stuff.

[NaCler]

Maybe they'll create a dark ride for the Black Cauldron??? That would rival HP land and be anti-girlie.

[disneylizzy]

I can guarantee you that the only way HP is kicking Disney's butt is in sales of its merchandise (a Hogwarts student robe and outfit is well over $150 and a wand is close, if not over $30 and guests are paying it) and butterbeer. WDW has been packed all summer since HP opened in mid/late June. If anything, most of the people who do HP see how small the area is and how Universal is a 1 (2 tops) day destination and head over to Disney and maybe even Sea World.

I've noticed in the various videos how small the area seems. And the Harry Potter ride seems to be the only ride there. I certainly wouldn't take much time in the rest of that part of the park, but I've never really gotten into the HP mania either.

Actually I read that Universal had a 2% rise in attendance (due to HP obviously) where wdw had 2% less in a similar time frame so that is significant. I wouldn't say that wdw is getting their butt kicked, but if wdw is losing while Universal is gaining, that's still not good.

I think the beauty of HP is that it appeals to both sexes and also to people of all ages. Girls, boys, kids, grownups all read the books. Disney is usually good at appealing to all kinds of people too, but maybe they saw that lots of the Fantasyland plans don't exactly do that.

What is the black cauldron??

[momeja]

I get the feeling this is Disney double talk for "Harry Potter is kicking our A*$ and we need to do something"! I don't think Disney can address Harry Potter in fantasyland!

I've been feeling that way for a while now. They have to do something. At some point, people are going to realize that TSMM is more hype than ride.

Disneylizzy, the Black Cauldron is a movie Disney put out in the late 1970s. It's usually considered the very bottom of the black period in the studio after Walt died and before Katzenburg revived Disney animation.

[NaCler]

Disneylizzy, the Black Cauldron is a movie Disney put out in the late 1970s. It's usually considered the very bottom of the black period in the studio after Walt died and before Katzenburg revived Disney animation.

It's a very dark, evil movie. Would make a great dark ride and would give the thrills they were talking about in the article.

[mindflipper]

Disneylizzy, the Black Cauldron is a movie Disney put out in the late 1970s. It's usually considered the very bottom of the black period in the studio after Walt died and before Katzenburg revived Disney animation.

It's a very dark, evil movie. Would make a great dark ride and would give the thrills they were talking about in the article.

Only problem is that NO ONE saw the film! I don't think they sold many VHS copies when it was released on video. And is it even out on DVD? It wasn't well done and made a mash of the original books. IMHO I don't think they would build a ride on a film that nobody cared about...

I've always wondered what it would be like if they replaced the speedway with Mr. Toad's Wild Ride? Make it half-outdoors half-dark ride? Never thought the speedway fit in Fantasyland any way....

[NaCler]

Good point mindflipper, but it should be coming up on 30th anniversary soon. What a way to introduce the movie to today's youngsters. Bring it out on Blue-Ray and hype it with a new ride. I didn't care for the movie much when I was younger but it's something different that hasn't been over-done yet.

[Debbiedeb]

I was there last week and they were excavating piles of dirt higher than the partitions they put up. Not much going on in Fantasyland with a great deal of it boarded off.

[mindflipper]

Sounds like the same when Len90 was there. He got some good pics of what was going on (clearing the ground) in his trip report.

[disneylizzy]

Disneylizzy, the Black Cauldron is a movie Disney put out in the late 1970s. It's usually considered the very bottom of the black period in the studio after Walt died and before Katzenburg revived Disney animation.

It's a very dark, evil movie. Would make a great dark ride and would give the thrills they were talking about in the article.

Only problem is that NO ONE saw the film! I don't think they sold many VHS copies when it was released on video. And is it even out on DVD? It wasn't well done and made a mash of the original books. IMHO I don't think they would build a ride on a film that nobody cared about...

Yes, this is a great point. That is the problem w/ Tom Sawyer Island and Swiss Family Robinson not to mention Honey I Shrunk the Kids - they were great movies when they came out (and Sawyer was still in school curriculum when I was a kid) but they are not very relevant to todays children b/c these kids have never seen the movies, read the books, etc.

But (arguing with myself now here) then you look at the success of Splash Mountain when children do not read the Uncle Remus stories and Song of the South has been unaccessible to today's youth....

[theBIGyowski]

Yes, this is a great point. That is the problem w/ Tom Sawyer Island and Swiss Family Robinson not to mention Honey I Shrunk the Kids - they were great movies when they came out (and Sawyer was still in school curriculum when I was a kid) but they are not very relevant to todays children b/c these kids have never seen the movies, read the books, etc.

But (arguing with myself now here) then you look at the success of Splash Mountain when children do not read the Uncle Remus stories and Song of the South has been unaccessible to today's youth....

The beauty of Tom Sawyer Island was that it was about a child's imagination. It's not full of special effects and technology...because that's not what children want. They want a stick that turns into a sword...or couch cushions that become a fort. Walt wanted us all to use our imaginations...with a little nudge from him to get us started.

[Jacca5660]

Yes, this is a great point. That is the problem w/ Tom Sawyer Island and Swiss Family Robinson not to mention Honey I Shrunk the Kids - they were great movies when they came out (and Sawyer was still in school curriculum when I was a kid) but they are not very relevant to todays children b/c these kids have never seen the movies, read the books, etc.

But (arguing with myself now here) then you look at the success of Splash Mountain when children do not read the Uncle Remus stories and Song of the South has been unaccessible to today's youth....

The beauty of Tom Sawyer Island was that it was about a child's imagination. It's not full of special effects and technology...because that's not what children want. They want a stick that turns into a sword...or couch cushions that become a fort. Walt wanted us all to use our imaginations...with a little nudge from him to get us started.

Perfectly said!!

[Amy]

I would agree with theBIGyowski ~ every attraction doesn't have to be themed to a point where no one has to use their imagination anymore. And disneylizzy has a great point about Splash Mountain ~ although it does make me want to see Song of the South in a bad way! (not bad enough to sit in front of my computer for as long as it would take to watch it on-line though...sigh)
I would miss the smelly Speedway cars but would welcome some sort of awesome attraction in it's place...

[jlpeaches255]

I would be interested to see the park attendence numbers for the next couple of years. Will HP be a big one year boost? Will the numbers even out over the next year or two?

I love Tom Sawyer Island and I really don't want to see it changed. My son doesn't know a thing about Tom Sawyer but he had a blast on the Island!!
The tree house however, I think you could make a case for changing it. Most people don't want to do a walking tour of anything much less a tree house that is not relevent to them. That being said, I would be very sad if they got rid of it.

[mindflipper]

Actually, I'm surprised Disney has not redone the Swiss Family Robinson into a new film for the theatres...