I know what you're saying.
And it's unfortunate because EPCOT was amazing from the mid 80's to early 2000's.
Funny thing is, I would hazard to bet that EPCOT is still a huge moneymaker: food, alcohol and events like F&W.
In some ways, World Showcase has become their de facto Pleasure Island - Only with an earlier opening, an earlier closing, and a much higher ticket price - making it more profitable and more manageable.
I mean, they've had no probs quickly adding the La Cava's and Tutto Gusto's. Not complaining - I love both.
Perhaps that's why the other side of the lake has languished for so long - revenue has been flowing just fine as is. Still doesn't make it any less painful - especially remembering the way it used to be....
It's why the rumors of the "Freezing" of Maelstrom and Norway have been a head scratcher - why risk breaking up that gravy train?
The thing is, there is so much that they could do with Epcot but, for whatever reason, it really seems to be neglected.
Future World hardly lives up to its name, but that could be changed easily. I'd focus on Future World East first since I think it is in the most need of attention. I'd shorten Ellen's Energy Adventure. It's great for an air conditioned nap, but a 45 minute ride is just too long, in my opinion. I'd shorten it and make it only about 15 minutes, and then have an interactive pavilion at the end. In it, they could have areas all about various forms of power. There could be a place where you had to ride a bicycle or power and hand bike until a light bulb lit up. You could do a computer quiz over the forms of renewable power that would have questions about things such as how many hours of direct sunlight you would need to run an oven to bake a batch of cookies, or how many hours and what speed of wind is needed to power a hair dryer. You could have a version of Sum of All Thrills where you design your own coaster and decide what power it is going to run on. Then you try to think of how much of that specific power it needs. Then, when you get on the ride, you are either able to ride the whole way through because you were correct, you stop part way through because you needed more power, or you go shooting off the rails because you had too much power (and you know kids will do that on purpose just for the fun of it, but who cares?). It can be worked by college students who are getting their degrees (preferably graduate degrees) in mechanical engineering or related fields who are really studying up on it. To tie it into World Showcase, you can have students from Norway who know about the off-shore drilling that they are doing there and students from Japan talking about the new technology they are developing for wind power. These kids can actually be doing their college program there and be doing research at Epcot. They can be on stage one or two days a week and working in the lab three or four days a week. It'd be like Walt had (I think) originally intended with people working and living there discovering new technology and ideas.
You can do something similar at Test Track where engineers getting graduate degrees and working closely with Chevy, Ford, Toyota, etc. can talk about new technology ideas. You can design various cars here. You can have things like those racer games at arcades where you race family and friends after designing your own car. This would be similar to what Test Track does, but since it is on a computer screen, it can more accurately show you what would happen with your design.
Horizons needs to come back. Wonders of Life is just sitting there empty and I think that is a travesty. I'd reopen Odyssey and give it a planetarium-like feel with planets, stars, and galaxies moving above your head. Sporadically a voice would come over head and point out Andromeda or Cassiopeia. Kids could have a moon bounce if they are waiting for a reservation or have finished eating but the parents are still dining. The food could all have space themes like "rings of Saturn" rather than plain onion rings.
I'd put some skywalks up and some moving sidewalks, as well. A skywalk between Horizons and Mission Space seems like a no-brainer. Same for one between The Land Pavilion and The Seas Pavilion.
Captain EO clearly needs to go, and Imagination needs to get away from the 5 senses and go back to the areas of imagination like it used to be. For the 3D show, you can do something with Frozen and all that Elsa is able to create using just her imagination. Or, you could have Merlin taking us through history and all that was created through imagination. We could visit Rembrandt and get "sprayed" with paint (naturally the disappearing stuff that won't ruin clothes or just water to be safe), Alexander Gram Bell as he invents the telephone, Mark Twain as he comes up with ideas for Tom and Huck, etc. At least then it would tie in to the Imagination Pavilion.
As for World Showcase, I do agree that it could stand some updates, but I don't think getting rid of Maelstrom is really the solution. It always seems to have some sort of line if the park is ever any kind of busy, so why fix what isn't broken? Instead, let's update the ride and bring in new things to other pavilions! A Rhine River ride was once intended to be in Germany. As the only pavilion without a ride, street show, or movie, maybe it's time to bring in something. Why not finally see the ride happen? Japan could have a coaster style ride based on the bullet train. An underground/water train between England and France themed after the channel tunnel could be a lot of fun, as well. Many have talked about changing Soarin' to be about all of the US. Sounds great to me, but why not do that in The American Adventure? More rides means the crowds get spread out a bit and the ride would be different from the one in The Land.
Oh, and speaking of The Land, how about being able to keep the magic going after you leave WDW by checking up on something you have planted there? In the pavilion, you can select what you want to grow (strawberries, rosemary, tomatoes, etc.) as well as the type of soil. Then you decide how many hours of sunlight to give it and how much water. You can track it at home from your computer for a year. You can decide that it needs more water and less sun or whatever you think will improve it. You can look at photos of the plant weekly to see how it is growing. I think kids would be interested in that and some adults would, as well. College Program participants could email suggestions, if necessary, so that people don't feel like they are doing all of this on their own. I like the idea of knowing that even when I leave WDW, my little strawberry plant is still there and I am helping it grow. I'm still a part of the park. I don't know. Maybe that's just me, though.
In any case, I do know that there is much that can be done at Epcot and they wouldn't have to make too many drastic changes. Just take advantage of the college program already in place, add in some interactive areas, and let's get back to educating people on what is current and what is being worked on for the future.
This is what should be happening at Epcot, not a Frozen ride in Norway
