challer
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2008
- Messages
- 1,264
I was in DL the same time as Pete. I appreciate his opinion on it, but I have a different angle for my disapproval.
I am generally a purist/traditionalist when it comes to these things. I hate how Imagineering changed Future World into what it is now, but Jack Sparrow in POTC was well done, and the HM refurb was awesome.
The character dolls and toys in the ride were not overly offensive. They meshed fairly well, and weren't sticking out much like sore thumbs (ok, maybe stitch, and peter pan/tinkerbell was weak). But I felt something was off. Then I watched my kids (6 & 3 yo).
Last Jan we were in WDW in IASW, and my kids absolutely loved it. They seemed to get the "we're all in this place together" and "children of the world" theme. They were totally interested in the various dress and dances of other countries.
This ride, my kids kept looking for the characters. "Dad, look! It's Alice in Wonderland!" "Hey, Dad, I see Nemo!" "Hey, Dad, it's Ariel." These characters were such a distraction! When you end up looking for these characters, you miss the children from Italy, Spain, Africa, Ireland, etc! You miss the whole point! Go back and listen to clips of Walt Disney talking about IASW at the World's Fair. Or the opening of it at DL. Or listen to Richard Sherman talk about his thoughts about writing the song. These characters are such a distraction for the whole point of the attraction - an important point given what we are doing to each other in the world today.
I don't know about other kids, but my kids didn't need that extra stimulation to be drawn into the ride or to enjoy it. Did Imagineering really feel that the ride was losing touch with today's kids that it needed a new connection? What is different with today's kids as opposed to the kids of the last 4 decades? Like the dumbing down of Future World, I think either todays youth are circling the drain and I'm missing it or that WDI really thinks very little of children today that they need extra stimulation. Kids can't like World of Motion? Put them in a fast car! Kids won't appreciate Horizons? Spin 'em in space! The mystery of the Seas too uninteresting? Put Nemo in it! Spaceship Earth too mature? Dumb down the script and add an interactive component!
I know it's the age of kids with ipods, iphones, nintendo DS, etc, but are kids really that much more jaded and difficult to inspire than kids when I was growing up in the 80's? I hope not. I hope Imagineering is wrong, but in the meantime, it seems that changes like these mean WDI is catering to the lowest common demoniator - trying to get to that kid who never takes his earphones out and never takes his eyes off the Madden 09 on the DS.
That's the reason why I give it a thumbs down. I know DL/WDW is not a museum - it shouldn't be. But to push the main theme of an important attraction to the background to wow the kids a bit more is a grave mistake.
I am generally a purist/traditionalist when it comes to these things. I hate how Imagineering changed Future World into what it is now, but Jack Sparrow in POTC was well done, and the HM refurb was awesome.
The character dolls and toys in the ride were not overly offensive. They meshed fairly well, and weren't sticking out much like sore thumbs (ok, maybe stitch, and peter pan/tinkerbell was weak). But I felt something was off. Then I watched my kids (6 & 3 yo).
Last Jan we were in WDW in IASW, and my kids absolutely loved it. They seemed to get the "we're all in this place together" and "children of the world" theme. They were totally interested in the various dress and dances of other countries.
This ride, my kids kept looking for the characters. "Dad, look! It's Alice in Wonderland!" "Hey, Dad, I see Nemo!" "Hey, Dad, it's Ariel." These characters were such a distraction! When you end up looking for these characters, you miss the children from Italy, Spain, Africa, Ireland, etc! You miss the whole point! Go back and listen to clips of Walt Disney talking about IASW at the World's Fair. Or the opening of it at DL. Or listen to Richard Sherman talk about his thoughts about writing the song. These characters are such a distraction for the whole point of the attraction - an important point given what we are doing to each other in the world today.
I don't know about other kids, but my kids didn't need that extra stimulation to be drawn into the ride or to enjoy it. Did Imagineering really feel that the ride was losing touch with today's kids that it needed a new connection? What is different with today's kids as opposed to the kids of the last 4 decades? Like the dumbing down of Future World, I think either todays youth are circling the drain and I'm missing it or that WDI really thinks very little of children today that they need extra stimulation. Kids can't like World of Motion? Put them in a fast car! Kids won't appreciate Horizons? Spin 'em in space! The mystery of the Seas too uninteresting? Put Nemo in it! Spaceship Earth too mature? Dumb down the script and add an interactive component!
I know it's the age of kids with ipods, iphones, nintendo DS, etc, but are kids really that much more jaded and difficult to inspire than kids when I was growing up in the 80's? I hope not. I hope Imagineering is wrong, but in the meantime, it seems that changes like these mean WDI is catering to the lowest common demoniator - trying to get to that kid who never takes his earphones out and never takes his eyes off the Madden 09 on the DS.
That's the reason why I give it a thumbs down. I know DL/WDW is not a museum - it shouldn't be. But to push the main theme of an important attraction to the background to wow the kids a bit more is a grave mistake.
