Wednesday, September 15, 2010

From Postcards To The Past...


As many of you know, this week prep begins for the hubcap and bathroom tiles to come down...

We have to wait a little while before the alphabet joins it as most construction on the front takes place in the new year, but progress abounds. Once the metallic sun goes down, prep work will begin for the new weenie; the replica of the Carthay Circle Theater. The mosaic tiles will be slowly disappearing behind the California letters. The design, meant to appear as a postcard looking into the wacky world of the Golden State, never really connected with anyone. The artwork looked far better than the actual result, and the result didn't look that good. If you make theming that has to be explained then it's not good theming. A major problem is the fact that the real world the park was to represent, can be gotten outside for free. No need to pay almost $80 bucks for it.

The entire mark of the entrance (and park) were off. When you walk down the entrance, it doesn't take you out of the real world, it just tells you you're in a cheap replacement for it. Contrast this with Main Street U.S.A., which with each step you take, sends you into an idealised version of turn-of-the-century America. By the time you get to the hub, you've left reality and moved on to another world. One created by Walt and his dreams.

It's not the same over experience across the Esplanade. After moving that short distance from the gates to Sunshine Plaza, you're left wandering why you paid for something you can get outside. And usually better themed. That's a major mistake and one that made many a person not go through the turnstiles. I know a lot of people e-mailed me to say that I was saying the new theming is as good as DisneySEA. Anyone who says that hasn't been reading this blog for very long. No theme is as as strong as TDS, save for Disneyland itself. And both of those aren't perfect either. There are cases and places where things have been put that don't belong. That said, I accept the new layout and explanation for Anaheim's Second Gate. It works a great deal better than the original plan ever did. I like how the new plan is a compliment and be a flip on the whole concept of Main Street.

While Main Street U.S.A. is a romantic, idealized version of Marceline, Missouri that Walt saw in is days as a young boy and Disneyland is a reflection of his imagination. Buena Vista Street will be a romantic, idealized version of Los Angeles, California that Walt saw in his first years starting his company and California Adventure will be a reflection of the adventures created by his company. I like that. It's not perfect, but then again, the Arabian Coast in Tokyo DisneySEA is an attempt to wedge something from the desert, where there was no water anywhere to be seen, into an aquatic environment. And it works. You have to suspend your belief and reasoning when looking at it and also forget that the film makes no mention related to the ocean or water. But the Imagineers made it believable. DCA will have a connection to the magic of the Disney Brothers company that started in L.A. so long ago. The entire park will be transformed into the Disney experiences viewed through the times and themes of the state where Walt made it all happen.

And when it's all done in 2012, it won't be really done. There will still be work to be done. There always will be. But a kid coming into that new entrance is going to have a much better experience than the tykes that walked past those letters in February almost a decade ago. As time goes by, the theming and detail will get better and slowly we will forget the mess this park was in the beginning. Let's just make sure we never let the Suits forget.

The second decade of this park is going to shine like Sunshine Plaza never did...

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

"It's not perfect, but then again, the Arabian Coast in Tokyo DisneySEA is an attempt to wedge something from the desert, where there was no water anywhere to be seen, into an aquatic environment."

Uh, ever heard of the Red Sea or Persian Gulf?

Tom said...

I guess I'm the only one liking the tiles and entrance... OK, when you walked under the bridge, the view was not very good, but still, the entrance and the train are/ were very nice in my opinion.

I hope the new entrance won't look too much like Main Street USA. Still I think the concept art looks great and it will add a lot of atmosphere to DCA. Can't wait till they finished!

Anonymous said...

"Uh, ever heard of the Red Sea or Persian Gulf?"

Uh, ever heard of them in the film? Nowhere to be seen. The city of Agrabah is nowhere near an ocean. That was dreamed up to fit it in DisneySEA. That said, it fits quite nicely, but it is a stretch.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...

"Uh, ever heard of them in the film? Nowhere to be seen. The city of Agrabah is nowhere near an ocean. That was dreamed up to fit it in DisneySEA. That said, it fits quite nicely, but it is a stretch. "

DisneySEA isn't based on Aladdin exlusively. Sindbad, which does take place on the water, is the major attraction in Arabian Coast. Hmm, coast, what does that make me think of? That's right water. Like near Saudi ARABIA, which would be between the Perisan Gulf and Red Sea.

Anonymous said...

It is possible to have a desert by the coast. Dubai comes to mind. The Arabian Coast is only a name that allows you to make plenty of changes. How about "Sinbad's Seven Voyages" attraction? This seems to fit in the theme quite appropriately.

DisneySEAman said...

"DisneySEA isn't based on Aladdin exlusively. Sindbad, which does take place on the water, is the major attraction in Arabian Coast. Hmm, coast, what does that make me think of? That's right water. Like near Saudi ARABIA, which would be between the Perisan Gulf and Red Sea."

Now YOU'RE stretching.

The land was started as an "Aladdin Land" but the other characters were added and the name was given the more generic "Arabian Coast" so as to accommodate the other characters. It's lovely place, but let's not go overboard trying to explain away the Aladdin influences.

And there are other parts of TDS that have to be explained away as well. Tower of Terror? Yeah, that's aquatic. Sure, it's great looking, but it has nothing to do with the sea. As does Midway Mania and several other attractions. All good, but not not fitting well with the theme. DisneySEA is great, but it's not the perfect park everyone makes it out to be.

I will say it if the prettiest though.

I agree with Honor that when the makeover is done there will be a lot of worthy Disney attractions and an experience worth going into.

Tom said...

Does anyone know what the Japanese people think of Disney's California Adventure? :)

ForgettaboutIt said...

DisneySEAman: Does DisneySea have to be underwater? Not sure how any of the lands in DisneySea cannot be considered stretching from the way you're explaining it. Tower of Terror is not aquatic, but so what? It has to fit into the theme of the land that it is on, which is an American city by the water. The typical American city in this case seems to be New York.

Look at the rest of the lands. They are all by the coast. The only land that is underwater is the Mermaid Lagoon. Its a mistake to take the argument that DisneySea is a representation of an "aquatic environment".

On the other hand, DCA is only merely a representation of California. It is not really that specific. It has carnival rides that suggests it represents Long Beach or Santa Monica pier. Very weak. It could be mistaken for Atlantic City or Coney Island. ETC, ETC.

J said...

soo.. anyways California Adventure is shaping up to look like a half way decent Disney Park. I'm excited.

Anonymous said...

I agree with J.

And you are right Honor, DCA's entrance never really worked well at all.
Very few people knew that the the entrance was supposed to be like walking into a postcard.
To me its just an uncomfortable mix of contemporary stores.

Every other Disney park to date has an entrance that transports its guests to a different time and place, and Buena Vista Street will do just that.

This new entrance will be a very good thing indeed.

I'm also very glad that Paradise Pier has been getting better.
On opening day, Paradise Pier had so many hideous sights.
Slowly but surely all of Paradise Pier's hideous aspects are being removed.

I'm still thankful that the original ugly shack that covered the Screamin' maintenance hatch has been replaced by that part of the Dom Tomas shack that protrudes out.


I'm looking forward to the new dining area in Paradise Pier. It will really be a lot more elegant and detailed, but best of all, the S.S. Rustworthy will finally be gone forever!!

This may sound funny, but in the past whenever I've see pictures of DCA's ugly aspects getting removed, I get a feeling of euphoria and I feel like celebrating!
I can't wait to see pictures of the Sun Icon, Maliboomer, and the Rustwothy getting dismantled!

Also, I'm really excited for The Little Mermaid ride and Cars Land!

(And of course, I'm excited Star Tours II for Disneyland!)

Anonymous said...

<>

Tokyo DisneySea's main theme, surprisingly, is NOT the sea (or waters) itself. As proven through the park's dedication and capitalization of the SEA in DisneySEA amongst other references, the park's central theme is that of exploration and adventure. The ports themselves have a nautical setting to fit the image of travelling by the seas, but exploration and a sense of journeying is what represents the park as a whole.

PirateGuy 815 said...

The murals themselves are really nice and the creators really did a nice job. However, they are not suitable as an entrance to DCA.

I will slightly miss the CALIFORNIA letters. But seeing as my name begins with an "S", I never had my picture taken with any of the letters.

Hrundi V. Bakshi said...

Still, as expensive and laborious as the tiles were to design and create, I wouldn't mind seeing them re-purposed slapped onto the entrance of Michael Eisner's hideous parking structure.

yup said...

"It's not perfect, but then again, the Arabian Coast in Tokyo DisneySEA is an attempt to wedge something from the desert, where there was no water anywhere to be seen, into an aquatic environment. And it works. You have to suspend your belief and reasoning when looking at it and also forget that the film makes no mention related to the ocean or water."

I think you guys need to rewatch Aladdin again especially when Aladdin is tossed into the ocean to drown by the palace guards and is saved by Genie via an assumed second wish.

DisneySEAman said...

Yeah, and think how far they had to travel to dump him into that ocean? Being as the city and everything around it was in the desert, I'd say quite far. Remember the name is Arabian Coast. No where near it, and to say it is is about as big a stretch as that distance. I love the place and the Caravan Carousel, but to say that Imagineers don't stretch to put things in places is a little disingenuous. DisneySEA is my favorite park after Disneyland, but just like every park, they struggle to put things in and make them fit. They've done a great job on it, but the park is far from perfect that everyone makes it out to be. I've been at least once a year for the last five year and truly enjoy it, but please keep in perspective that the Japanese make mistakes too. I don't want to blame the current Disney managements for the mistakes of the 90's management.

ForgettaboutIt said...

"I'd say quite far" Not exactly. Is it really that hard to lookup the geography of the Middle East. There's desert all around and near the coast. It is absolutely hot around that area.

Use California as an example. Without water, Southern California will revert back to a desert. No rain means no plants and greenery.

"please keep in perspective that the Japanese make mistakes too"

You mean Imagineering. Disney USA designed the park so they should take full responsibility.

The fact that the Arabian Coast takes advantage of the Aladdin characters is not a flaw. It is necessary since this is a Disney theme park.

Lovin Colorado said...

Sometimes I feel like I am the only person who likes DCA. Ya walking into the park is not overly exciting but we always have a really good time while we are there. Maybe I just don't care too much? I hope it does not turn into a Disney Hollywood Studios on the CA coast.

Anonymous said...

"You mean Imagineering. Disney USA designed the park so they should take full responsibility."

No, I mean the Japanese as in the Oriental Land Company. My ex-girlfriend worked for them and they made as many, if not more mistakes as Disney. And if you think the quality is a direct result of the OLC, the quality control is not up to them. Contractually, the Walt Disney Company has the right to overrule their Japanese partners if they don't think something is up to Disney show standards. And there have been times that that very thing has happened. The sad thing is that Disney doesn't uphold some of those standards in their own parks. It's always easier when you are using someone elses money to uphold your values.

Tokyo DisneySEAman said...

Sorry, that last comment was mine. I didn't realize that I hadn't put my screen name in yet.

Anonymous said...

I just wish they'd change the entrance, and not recreate the Pan Pacific Auditorium.

It doesn't really match the rest of the makeover, and it's too similar to Disney Hollywood Studios in Florida. It also feels like it belongs in the Hollywoodland section. There are tons of much more interesting L.A. icons than this.

It's still far better than what's there now.

Mig said...

While I do think the tiled murals are nice looking and it would be nice to salvage them for installation elsewhere, NO WAY do they do an adequate job of being the main entrance to a major Disney theme park, let alone the one that eventually found itself constructed next to original Disneyland. So I for one won't shed a tear if those glazed pieces of fired clay all get ground up into road base. Same with the large CALIFORNIA letters. I don't care how many souvenir family photos were taken with loved ones posing next to one or more of those letters - RIP 'EM OUT and grind 'em up and turn them into road base.

It's just so amazing how amateurishly original DCA was designed and implemented. The new Buena Vista Street will be a vast improvement. Maybe not on par with Tokyo Disney Sea (nothing is, really), but it will help to bring DCA on par with every other park Disney has built in North America, at least.

My only complaint about the new entrance, and this will bother me for as long as the new turnstiles exist or the day I die, whichever comes first, is that WDI is re-hashing the Pan Pacific style entrance feature from Disney/MGM Studios (now known as Disney's Hollywood Studios) for DCA. Why, why, WHY are they spending so much money and creative capital on building the unique Buena Vista Street themed corridor and then taking the extremely lazy way out and replicating Disney/MGM's old turnstile structure?? Don't they want DCA to be UNIQUE and have its own IDENTITY?? Isn't the FIRST thing the visitor sees a big part of that? Why invite comparisons to the Disney/MGM park before the guest even walks through the damn gates?

Anonymous said...

After months/years of being told otherwise, Honor finally admits that DCA will not be up to par with DisneySea after saying so.

Glad you finally saw the light for what it is.

Honor Hunter said...

You've not been reading this blog very long Anonymous or you've been hitting up on the mushrooms a little too much lately...

I've NEVER said that DCA would ever be as good as DisneySEA. Not ONCE. What I have said, is that it will finally be a worthy Disney Park, which it will be. In fact, it'll be better than most of the other parks, especially as it matures towards it's 15th anniversary. There'll be a lot of TLC between now and then though.

But in my opinion, no park is as good as TDS except for the original Disneyland. Of course, I've said this time and time again, but I don't think you were paying attention...

Anonymous said...

I've been reading it for many many years, and have been telling you in comments about it all those years.

So, yeah...