EPCOT Evolution

    What a time it is to talk a little bit about EPCOT. With D23 about to kick off I just wanted to share a few of my thoughts on the re-imagining of EPCOT's future world area. Unfortunately I will not be including any new EPCOT concept pictures, but those can easily be found at https://wdwnt.com/ or https://chipandco.com/. Some of these feelings I've had for a bit of time now and some are new. The fun is these are my thoughts and it is totally okay if they differ from yours!

    Ellen's Energy Adventure closed just over two years ago (already!). Replacing the long standing EPCOT attraction is an all new Guardians of the Galaxy roller coaster that will feature some really awesome state of the art technology. The old Universe of Energy building is being transformed into a queue area as well as the station for the coaster. Personally, I never experienced Ellen's Energy Adventure. As I learned about EPCOT, the attraction just sounded incredibly dated. With that in mind I spent my time in EPCOT doing other things. I know the attraction had its fans and have some pretty cool scenes and what not, but I wasn't heartbroken at all to hear it was being replaced. What is replacing it though had me mildly concerned.

    When the Guardians of the Galaxy Roller Coaster was announced I had a few fears. One has not been realized, one kind of has. Even back in 2017 rumors were flying all over that all of future world was going to be getting an overhaul. With Guardians of the Galaxy being announced I was honestly afraid that future world would be transformed into more of a Marvel themed land. I know that Universal has the rights to use the Marvel characters at their Florida park, but still I was nervous about it. That nervousness was also fueled by an internet rumor that Universal was considering ending their hold on the now Disney owned characters. As it turns out, Guardians of the Galaxy looks like it will be the only Marvel property in EPCOT.

    My other fear was that following Frozen Ever After that a new trend would start at EPCOT. That being a wave of IPs flooding the park's attractions. Frozen Ever After replaced Malestrom at EPCOT's Norway pavilion and while it has proven to be very popular, the ride seemed out of place at EPCOT. Since then we have had multiple IP attraction announcements. Remy from Ratatouille is getting his own ride, Guardians of the Galaxy is getting a ride, Illuminations: Reflections of Earth is being replaced with a show that will apparently feature various Disney characters, while not confirmed to be Wreck it Ralph themed, the new play pavilion's concept art looks like it is nearly ripped right from that movie. Other smaller attractions such as Reflections of China are slated to be updated with Disney character involvement as well. As of yesterday, Moana will be joining in on the fun with an interactive Journey of Water attraction.

    I could make a whole blog on this topic alone, but for now I'll just summarize my thoughts because D23 is just getting ready to take off and I'm sure more will come. While I feel that it is great to see many of these attractions appealing more to kids by taking on Disney animated characters, I fear that what EPCOT was is getting lost. The first couple times I visited that park I left with a bunch of knowledge about different countries that I didn't have before going through the gates. Future world's uh... technology of the future??? while dated showed that the area had a history focused on tomorrow. It was fun and educational. I worry that as time passes we will continue to see less and less of that and more and more animated characters moving in. My hope is that Disney is able to find a balance for EPCOT to keep the education and make it more appealing to kids. I am all for adding on to pavilions (France is gaining Ratatouille), I am not all for attractions coming in that take away from knowledge about a country and it's people's legends, etc (Frozen Ever After). More of this stuff in another blog...

    With all that said, I am hyped for the new nighttime show that will be replacing Illuminations: Reflections of Earth. Don't get me wrong, I love Illuminations. It is probably one of the most awesome firework shows I've ever seen. That said when you look at the technology that Disney has at their disposal now, the show is in a word, dated. While EPCOT Forever will run for a little bit, the real focus is on A Celebration of Disney Music that will be starting in 2020. This show has unlimited potential and can be something really, really special. Judging by the name we will be taking a trip through some of Disney's biggest musical numbers yet again right? I wonder. While Magic Kingdom (and Fantasmic) is home to the Under The Sea, Be Our Guest, Friend Like Me variety, what if EPCOT goes a different direction. What if this show features music from Coco, Moana, Mulan, etc? In other words, focusing on different musical styles from around the world as opposed to the safe zone of Disney songs.

    That plus the incredible laser, projection, water screen, and other technologies at their disposal, Disney could really be making something magical to replace the crowd favorite Illuminations. Whatever the case I am hyped for the show. Happily Ever After has been showing off what today's technology can do for a firework show and I expect more of the same here. Lastly I just wanna throw this out there. EPCOT's entrance sounds like it is going to be beautiful. While I understood the whole leave a legacy thing, I couldn't help but feel like I was walking through a mess of concrete walls heading into the park. The extra foliage is going to look gorgeous and bring shade to a park that has virtually none.

    Well that's all I have for right now. I'm sure by the time D23 is wrapped up I'll have a mess of other things on my mind. Thanks as always for reading. I hope you have a magical day!