I stumbled upon a blog today which when added to all the many other things I've been reading lately in regards to Disney's Quality and the complete homogenization of the theme parks has really had me thinking long and hard. Trying to identify factors such as when these things happened, trying to understand the "How" and the ever more elusive "Why" question. Wondering why I didn't spot these things before and speak up when perhaps my voice could have been heard in some form other then that of a blog. I suspect some parts of me knew what was happening but simply didn't believe it or didn't want to believe it. I fully admit I still have some form of nievity left even after being so very jaded. Somehow in my own head all I can think is "They are not possibly that stupid, I'm just being pessimistic" which normally leads into some form of a face-palm moment later because "Yes Carrie, they are that stupid".
Now let's begin what my dear and long suffering husband has entitled "And.. there she goes again, shes gone...".
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Why is Disney feeding us this Cheap, Canned and Brainless Entertainment?
Dear Gods, it's enough to make me search for a good wall with which to bang my head upon. I'm sure on occasion the screech of my soul being ripped from my body has been heard when I've brought myself to walk the painful journey Imagination has become. In fact it's probably still echoing over Epcot with the other several hundred thousand still screaming in confusion and anger.
See? I can get off the Horizons bandwagon on occasion!
Dr. Nigel Channing and WDI have Murdered the Dreamfinder. They stole our Figment, turned him into an obnoxious pestilence upon our beloved park and destroyed one of the most beautiful, creative rides ever given to us. Then they have the gall to slap a new coat of paint on like a band-aid on a festering cancer then act completely surprised when we're pondering which end of the stick we'd like to beat them with? Yes, it is THEIR park to do what they like with but it's no surprise when we expect the high standards that THEY gave to us.
Imagination gave us standards. Horizons gave us standards. Spaceship Earth gave us standards. World of Motion gave us standards.
A standard which is so far above the bar that's exactly what we expect and demand now. Living up to the reputation can't be easy but let's be honest, they haven't even tried lately. The magic seems to have gone the way of the Dodo bird, extinct in the face of bad ideas and budget cuts when in reality the show should be getting better then our once dazzled minds could ever dream.
It makes part of me cringe, to see the complete decimation which was gone rampant. To watch things become gutted in the pursuit of mindless entertainment thinking that's just what people want.
It isn't.
You can make things educational, fun and enjoyable with a show and even if one single person in each ride gets an idea or learns something, isn't that better then a cheap fart joke? You don't need to make it pushy or crude just to get a simple message across, in fact leave the pushy agenda crap completely out of it. People will enjoy it more, won't feel pressured to conform to some random idea your stuffing into their minds and will probably have a better time while *gasp* possibly learning something!
Let the people decide what their going to take away from an attraction, stop trying to force it and just let the facts get out there.
And do it with style!
For heavens sakes, Please! Who do I have to grovel too? I could round up a posse of people just like myself who would drop to their knees in a moment to have even a single attraction put back together into what it should be.
You know how to put on a show Disney! I've seen you do it, I've got pictures and video to back this up! You know how to build and create complete worlds out of nothing but Florida sand. Their has to be some genius floating out there still, someone who can do things right with the vision so desperately lacking in the current offerings. Give them some paper and just get out of the damn way, see what happens, I'm sure you'd be surprised!
Stop with the budget cuts, the corporate bullshit decisions of people who simply don't have a clue what their talking about much less the imagination to see anything beyond dollar signs and quarterly profits. Anyone can easily tell you that it's far easier to spend the time doing something right the first time then it is to just keep going back and fixing a job which was done half-assed and on the fly. Then when it is finally done right, step back and leave it to the people who's job it is to care for it as your job is now done.
Yes, I know all things have to change and I'm perfectly okay with this. I want change but I expect it to be done properly and what we're being given barely seems like an afterthought, the leftovers if you will. It almost seems like something starts as a good idea then gets sifted down like flour to the barest possible cheap piece someone feels they can get away with before a label is slapped onto it and deconstruction begins.
Yes, get your groans out now because you know exactly what's coming.
The single best example I can give is "Stitch Great Escape" as the devolution of an attraction.
(These are my personal reactions from childhood to current day)
Mission to Mars: Mom! Dad! This is so cool!
Alien Encounters: Simply Amazing! This has got to be the greatest thing Magic Kingdom has ever made!
Stitch's Great Escape: What the hell just happened here?!
That's not how a person should react and I think I can safely say that's pretty much how everyone reacted to "Stitch's Great Escape". Yet I can't understand how this attraction has been around since Alien Encounters closed. I listen and watch people while I'm at theme parks, to me that's half the fun. I've yet to really hear someone who has honestly enjoyed that attraction, most of the time it's groans from adults and the occasional snicker from kids. You never hear anyone commenting about the story or the show its-self. You certainly never hear compliments or comments on the technology used to create it, I've heard more people impressed with S.I.R and Skippy in the pre-show area then anyone impressed with Stitch no matter how complex the animatronic really is. It's slapped into a poorly written script which is riding on the flare of it's previous occupants coat-tails and we're expected to be impressed.
We're Not.
The standards have to come back. Not just for the sake of the paying guests but for the basic integrity of the parks attractions themselves.
The cuts and disintegration have to stop before this dark, downward spiral can no longer be controlled. Before people forget those once amazing standards and just accept the pathetic version being offered to us.
If not, you may as well accept a future of poor level entertainment for highest level prices that would make even the most notorious amusement parks in the business blush in embarrassment to present it.
For those of you who made it this far, the piece below is what really got me thinking on this topic.
This has to be the simple, most eloquent piece I've read in a long time with an amazing incite and point of view.
Figment
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