PDA

View Full Version : Tomorrowland needs a permanent fix!



fjhuerta
06-30-2005, 08:27 AM
I was reading somewhere (don't know where) that Paris Disneyland renamed Tomorrowland to "Discoveryland", as "The Future that Never Was".

I find this approach to be an excellent solution to the Tomorrowland problem. I mean - take a look at Innoventions! Technology catches up so fast to it, almost every display there is now obsolete (at least the PCs and PS2's on display are).

In a way, Tomorrowland IS Discoveryland. We travel through space on convoys that were supposed to be a reality by now, for example. Same thing with Space Mountain.

The PeopleMover was part of the reality that never was. Same with the Monorail... and don't get me started on EPCOT...

Then again, Club Buzz, Buzz Lightyear and Finding Nemo don't fit on either description... they are more like "patches" to fill an empty space.

If Tomorrowland could be given Discoveryland's focus, the area would become as timeless as the rest of the lands, I'm sure.

PragmaticIdealist
06-30-2005, 11:33 AM
I, actually, do not like the fact that Disneyland Paris eschewed the name, "Tomorrowland", in favor of "Discoveryland". But, I do think that timeless fiction (science-fantasy vs. science-fact) is very much in keeping with the nature of The Magic Kingdom.

W.D.I. has been focusing on fiction in Tomorrowland ever since EPCOT Center opened. But, occasionally, as is with the case of Innoventions and The American Space Experience, reality sometimes does intrude.

Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, and even George Lucas are people who have created imaginary works that are timeless even though they use themes of progress and visionary achievement. At Walt Disney World, Imagineering went in a Buck Rogers direction whereas, in Paris, drawings from Leonardo provided a large part of the inspiration. In 1998, Disneyland received a pale imitation of Paris' Discoveryland and combined it with Michael Eisner's horrible "Montana future" concept. The results speak for themselves.

Buzz Lightyear and "Honey, I Shrunk the Audience" do not fit well in Tomorrowland because the settings of their stories are much too contemporary. Club Buzz is especially tacky, non-sensical, and forced.

Innoventions does not fit because the exhibits are about contemporary reality. A "Museum of Innoventions" might be a better way to go. In that way, "innoventions" across time could be presented and Mr. Tom Morrow could serve as fictional curator. Honda's Asimo or the Segway transporter, for example, might be considered historic relics in the same way Edison's incandescent light bulb is viewed. Tom might even show us a few "innoventions" that only exist in Tomorrowland.

Instead, Disneyland gets yet another duplicate of an attraction conceived for another park and forced into a place where the duplicate does not belong. The people responsible for it did not even invest enough imagination in the project to think of an original name.

TENORDRUMMER
06-30-2005, 12:04 PM
I say bring back the original COP to where Innoventions is.

olegc
06-30-2005, 12:42 PM
When the makeover of Tomorrowland was opened to the public many people instantly saw the similarities between Discoveryland and the new Tomorrowland in terms of color and decor. Even the new Atro-Orbiter had a Jules-Verne look and an aged metallic theme across all of the buildings (some on these boards have called it cat poo color).

However, in true Pressler-era fashion, it was only a mild makeover - all facade, no substance. Example - they spent a TON of time and (most likely) dollars incorporating an all-edible plant theme across tomorrowland. All the plants you see throughout the land are edible or povide edible items. this "renewable resource" idea was part of the "way we live" model that I seem to recall the new Tomorrowland was to give. Alas - with Innoventions becoming dated, rides breaking down all the time, and the Atro-Orbiter now blocking the entrance (instead of being the weenie that drew you into the land) the excitement of a New Tomorrowland lasted all of one or two summers...

Going back to the White facades, etc., and keeping it Tomorrowland is the right idea for the overall theme but rides and attractions will always become replaceable. I hope next on the list after Space Mountain reopens and Nemo Subs debut is HISTA but my guess is that the Autopia Cars overlay will take precedence.

lauramaynot
06-30-2005, 12:57 PM
I agree that tomorrowland could use new and different attractions. That said I am excited to see what happens with the opening of space mountain. I think that the opening of the ride will revive that back corner of the land and people will want more...We visited HISTA the last time we were there and I had tons of memories rush back as I stood in the que area looking up at space mountain. I could not wait to share some of those memories with my kids (You should have seen the puzzled look on their faces as I told them about Michael Jackson and Captain EO. I don't think they believed me!)

To me the great attractions in TL are less about the future - afterall SM opened 28 years ago and Starwars is set in another galaxy, at another time - and more about wowing audiences and making people come back for more.
I do think the problem is that "the future" has changed shape for so many people. My kids don't even know what an audio tape is - technology is all around us - thus not as exciting as it may have been to people 30 or 40 years ago. My kids don't get excited about new computers, video game graphics, or communication devices.

I think that is why disney brought in buzz. kids like the interactive part of the ride and I don't think they would care if it was buzz or some other character. Nemo doesn't bug me either because the lagoon is both in tomorrowland and fantasyland. We don't have any details of the ride yet either and I wouldn't be surprised if they try to bring in new technology as far as ocean exploration has changed a lot in the years since the original ride opened.

phoenixfire2k5
06-30-2005, 07:36 PM
I was reading somewhere (don't know where) that Paris Disneyland renamed Tomorrowland to "Discoveryland", as "The Future that Never Was".

I find this approach to be an excellent solution to the Tomorrowland problem. I mean - take a look at Innoventions! Technology catches up so fast to it, almost every display there is now obsolete (at least the PCs and PS2's on display are).

In a way, Tomorrowland IS Discoveryland. We travel through space on convoys that were supposed to be a reality by now, for example. Same thing with Space Mountain.

The PeopleMover was part of the reality that never was. Same with the Monorail... and don't get me started on EPCOT...

Then again, Club Buzz, Buzz Lightyear and Finding Nemo don't fit on either description... they are more like "patches" to fill an empty space.

If Tomorrowland could be given Discoveryland's focus, the area would become as timeless as the rest of the lands, I'm sure.

When Disneyland, and in this case Tomorrowland, opened in 1955, Tomorrowland was supposed to represent the future circa 1986. I believe I read this in Mousetales. And I think it received one minor update before 1998. Here comes 1986, and Tomorrowland needs a major update. When the refurb happened in 1998, the land being outdated was taken into consideration. So Imagineers and the powers that be decided to try a different theme. They went for more of a Jules Verne theme, so it still looked futuristic, but wouldn't be in danger of being outdated by the changing times. And since then, they've tried to keep with this. As far as Club Buzz and the Buzz ride, they wanted to fill in the demand for a Buzz/Toy Story themed ride. And Tomorrowland Terrace has lost a lot of it's "flavor" that it used to have back when Tomorrowland was one of the coolest places to go. Take a look at one of those old Disneyland books, and remember when the rocket jets were above the peoplemover. When America Sings was a red white & blue rotating building. When there was an outdoor theater below Space Mountain, or when Michael Jackson fans could see him as Captain EO. I don't know, maybe it's because of the lack of the greatest Tomorrowland ride being open. But I think T-land has been pretty dismal since then and is in need of a pickme up. Well, FIFTEEN DAYS AND COUNTING!!!! Every 50th poster on the bus stations around Orange County have been replaced by "Space Mountain - It's Back!" Maybe with the return of this fan favorite, along with the nemo ride will make T-land the best land in the park again. And will make it the home of the Disneyland Night life once again. Ahhh, yes. Bands, Buzz, Pizza, Star Tours, and Space Mountain!!!v And hopefully all in one amazing weekend!

fjhuerta
06-30-2005, 09:19 PM
When the makeover of Tomorrowland was opened to the public many people instantly saw the similarities between Discoveryland and the new Tomorrowland in terms of color and decor. Even the new Atro-Orbiter had a Jules-Verne look and an aged metallic theme across all of the buildings (some on these boards have called it cat poo color).


I can't agree more with your post. I actually visited the New Tomorrowland the year it was open. I liked it, to be honest. It was an interesting experiment.

Later on, I realized there wasn't anything to the New Tomorrowland. The RocketRods fiasco (at least I got to ride them), and the complete absence of anything new or interesting made me think of TL as the most boring land of the Kingdom. I still think it is.

I guess I'd have loved to see Buzz Lightyear and Nemo show up on CA, along with Monsters, Inc., and something like Discovery Mountain or the COP back at Tomorrowland... we can still dream for the next major renovation, though :)

phoenixfire2k5
07-01-2005, 10:09 AM
I can't agree more with your post. I actually visited the New Tomorrowland the year it was open. I liked it, to be honest. It was an interesting experiment.

Later on, I realized there wasn't anything to the New Tomorrowland. The RocketRods fiasco (at least I got to ride them), and the complete absence of anything new or interesting made me think of TL as the most boring land of the Kingdom. I still think it is.

I guess I'd have loved to see Buzz Lightyear and Nemo show up on CA, along with Monsters, Inc., and something like Discovery Mountain or the COP back at Tomorrowland... we can still dream for the next major renovation, though :)

We also have to remember that when Disneyland first opened, it was another year before anything big was really done for T-land. It wasn't completely finished come July 17th. Fifty years later, it looks like its gonna be the same way.