Does anybody actually like Figment?

[Mkebound]

My kids LOVE Figment and his ride!

 

[Dacky619]

I liked the original better and would like it to return; the current one is just ok....good to get out of the hot weather and enjoy some air conditioning. Now that Kodak is out, it would be nice if they utilized the exit area a bit better...hate to see all the wasted space.

This is how we feel about it. The original was better, but it isn't bad now. I like the song they play through the ride.

 

[figment_jii]

As you can probably guess from my Dis Name, I love Figment!!! The original ride was the very first thing I rode on my first visit to Epcot. Because of that, Epcot is my favorite park and purple is my favorite color! Like many others, I miss the original ride, but accept the current version. My family always makes a point of riding several times on each trip.

Just for nostalgia's sake, a few random Figment photos. From his (okay, Figzilla's) meet and greet place:

Figzilla (as he's been called by other Dis posters):

A magazine cover from a long time ago:

The little Figment stuffie that goes on the trips with me:

 

[bdkem91]

Those are some pretty amazing pictures of Figment and his place! I love the positive atitude this little dino/dragon has

 

[jdonat]

The first version of the Figment ride ALWAYS had a line.. it was usually one of the first things we did when we got to EC, and the LAST ride -always... before we left EC. The first re-do was awful. It got TERRIBLE reviews, and the second re-do (the current ride) didn't do much better. At least it had Figment.

Imagination went from a solid D-Ticket to maybe a B-ticket. The Imagineers need to start over -update the ride with new ride tech and new and better stuff for the ride.

 

[ashenbiez]

I love Figment! I even have a mini Figment that hangs out on my desk

I absolutely adored the old ride. I never saw the Figment-less version. The ride now is so short! But it never has much of a wait, so that's a good thing.

The play area after the ride is really lame now, though. I miss the big "peg board" tables with lights under them. And there were computer screens (with TOUCH screens! oh the technology!!) where you could make silly pictures of yourself.

Regardless of how much I don't LOVE the ride or the play area... I will always love Figment

(I'm 28, and yes, I still run around that play area like a kid - giggling and making as much noise as possible)

 

[mollygirl13]

I like Figment- ALOT

 

[ElenaRN]

I love Figment and I love the ride! I think it is really cute. It's a plus that there is never a line and you walk right on.

 

[walkdmc]

I assumed this ride was shut down years ago so imagine my surprise when I saw it from the monorail loop! We went there first, there was no line and the ride was fun. My kids actually liked it a lot. That whole area around Figment and Captain EO seems so dead though. I actually felt bad for the CMs working in those spots, like they were cast offs, not cast members.

 

[BelleChick]

Here's some background-

Kodak, the attraction's corporate sponsor since the opening of Epcot, had an agreement with Disney that stated the attraction must be "updated" for the year 2000.

Little did anyone know that the "creative minds" in WDImagineering would not be nearly as creative in 1998 as they had been in 1980!

The new Imagination ride was one of the biggest disappointments in the history of Disney parks. There was NOTHING left of what had made the original such a huge crowd pleaser (and that also meant that there was no Figment in that version!)

So, they soon re-did the re-do and you now still see the result.
Its "cute," (and Figment is back) but the current ride is nothing but a far too brief, sliver of the amazing original ride.

In the grand scheme of these kind of things, it was a colossal blunder.

There's a saying that goes, "Do you want to trade the devil you KNOW for the devil you DON'T know?"
(Meaning that if you don't like your situation NOW, how do you know that you won't move into a WORSE one by making a change?)

I'll paraphase it in the case of "Imagination" to say to Kodak/Disney...
"Do you want to trade the ANGEL you KNOW for the POSSIBLE devil you DON'T know?"

The original version of this ride is my all-time favorite attraction at Epcot.

It was so RICH in details that I'm sure that I never saw "everything" in it, even after literally dozens of ride-throughs.

The scenes were diverse and always surprising.
The musical arrangements were complex and interesting.
The characters were engaging.

There was even a "ride photo" that displayed as you rode along near the end.
What a tragedy that this was "lost" in an untimely and entirely AVOIDABLE set of missteps.

I'll assume that there was an entire CHAIN of memos and meetings where warnings of
looming problems were ignored (or not spoken strongly enough.)

I have seen so many majorly ill-advised corporate decisions made in all kinds of companies.

So sad that in a "vast bastion of creativity" like Disney, could they make such an unfortunate move
as to lose the original artistic creation that was the first version of Journey Into IMAGINATION.

Exactly how I feel! It's sad that all we have left of the original are memories...

 

[tinker6bells]

I... somewhat agree with the first post. Figment isn't the most exciting in the entire park, but it is (you have to admit) very cute for little kids. It's sort of been a thing for my family, and we used to have a bunch of Figment toys. So, for little kids, he is the coolest! Older kids... not so much.

 

[MrsDuck]

I loved the original Figment.. the new ride doesn't thrill me but I still love him and Dream Finder!

 

[disneykittin]

I love Figment! He's awesome. I also love the new Figment ride.. it's one of my favorites at Epcot! I can't remember the original ride because I was only about 6 yrs old the first time I went to Epcot.

 

[mattsdragon]

my two year old LOVES it, so we do too.

Except for the fart spray that is.

 

[Dr.Girlfriend]

Those of you who love the original, may love this blog post:
http://www.imagineeringdisney.com/blog/2012/2/1/imaaaaaagination.html

 

[mousesf]

We love figment!

 

[Colleen27]

Its funny, but reading about/seeing pictures of the original made me realize that at some point I must have ridden it but the memory is so vague I couldn't place it! Obviously the ride didn't wow me, but what I do remember very clearly is how much better the post-ride area was back in '97 on my first visit, and even in '05 on my first visit as a parent. By that first family trip the upstairs area was gone, but they still had the morph-your-photo kiosks and such, rather than just the three activities and loads of wasted space that are left now.

My 3yo adores the current version, to the point of having One Little Spark on her Innotab's MP3 player and watching the ride video between trips. We rode 7 times in 2 Epcot days, and I still think it is a cute attraction.

 

[Figment56]

We were at WDW in March and did the Nature By Design Tour. We absolutely loved it, although I think it is ending soon. However, one of the CM's from the tour told us that they will be closing Figment! They are not sure what, if anything is going to replace it. Figment has or will be losing it's sponsor. Needless to say, I was devastated! I have ridden on the original, the really lousy one and the current one. I am a 56 year old woman who believes that Figment epitomizes Disney's original thought and theory. Wasn't it Walt's IMAGINATION that started the parks after all? Figment should be more in the front of the park as one of the major attractions, not hidden in a corner. It should be restored to it's original state with even more added on to make it spectacular! Even better if they could incorporate him into Spaceship Earth somehow. How great would that be! Anyway I will be extremely sad to see him go!

 

[BlovesC]

We still love Figment. Even in its current incarnation, it can make me smile. It never feels like a waste of time.

 

[robinbutterfly]

My whole family LOVES Figment! I hope they never take it away! I wonder if we can protest!