Disney just had their Destination D23 event at the Walt Disney World Resort. While I figured they wouldn’t have super big announcements I expected more than repaints and overlays.
What was announced at the event?
The repainting of Cinderella Castle
Big news. Disney is going to repaint the castle with basically the original color palette it had for decades.
They claim it was changed for the park’s 50th anniversary, but it looked like Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty Castle, and it was easier to put out generic “Disney castle” merchandise that way.
Now, their big announcement was concept art that looked like the original.
Villains Land Designs and Architectural Influences
If you were expecting a lot of information or updates on the new Villains Land coming to the Magic Kingdom, you will be disappointed.
We got a glimpse of architectural influences and an announcement that Disney Legend Andreas Deja was returning to work on the new land. I admit Deja was a cool move, but there was a lot of fluff and no real news.
Guess what? The style is based on Art Nouveau, and Disney sent designers to Paris, France, and Barcelona, Spain, so they could study the buildings. And……
Tron Lightcycle Run is getting a Tron Ares light overlay with Nine Inch Nails music
Big news, that isn’t at all expected. The Tron ride is going to have red lights and different music to promote the new Tron Ares film. Not really surprising or exciting. Just a temporary overlay.
Even the Disney Parks Blog article was a bit about the overlay and then a big promotion for the film.
Walt Disney animatronic and the Carousel of Progress
Disney has announced they are putting the weird-looking Walt Disney animatronic into the Carousel of Progress.
Honestly, that is the one place I think a Walt Disney animatronic should go. It makes sense given how much Walt loved that attraction.
The Carousel of Progress needs an update to the ending, but I’m concerned they are going to change the ride for “a modern audience” after the Disney Parks Blog posted
“There are still plenty of additional details to be revealed, including what John, Sarah, and the rest of the family are up to. Disney Imagineers love this attraction and the heart of it will stay the same while introducing the Carousel of Progress to an entirely new generation of fans, showing them that a great big, beautiful tomorrow is just a dream away”.
It sounds like they are going to change it significantly.
We need to see what they are up to now? But we already know. It sounds like the ride will all be changed. Given how the ride is loved because it is mostly as it was, this is not a great idea. Adding Walt makes sense. Fixing the ending makes sense. But “the heart of it will stay the same” means they are going to mess with it and likely ruin it.
Other announcements included a new Ursula doll from Mattel, “novelty” items and lounges coming to the Disney Destiny, a new Pirates of the Caribbean bar Cask and Cannon which looks like a repurposed Beak and Barrel, and lots of info on alcohol.
Again, the announcements were sorely lacking and felt like crumbs being thrown to justify the price of admission to the event. Accompanied by commercials for their new cruise ship and movie.
Overall, it was very underwhelming.
But that’s my opinion.
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