Epcot (General Discussion)

[Nick]

Figment is a big merch mover for Epcot, definitely.

Also, if you APs get those Figment magnets, I recommend not putting them on your car because it’s open season. I’ve had two stolen after trips to the parks on two different cars. This was mere days after getting the magnet.

 

[belloq87]

The way you guys are talking about Epcot (and most fans do) is such a small window in time where the park was great. From 82-92 pretty much were Epcot’s best years, but around ‘89-91 was when the park was at it’s absolute peak, imo.

That’s only 10 years of the parks lifespan for a park about the future (which is always advancing). They destroyed EPCOT Center in the mid-90s and early 2000’s and have never really had a true vision for replacing attractions literally EVER in the park’s history.

The park opened strong, but they’ve never known what to do with it since.

There's no denying the park of my first few visits ('91, '93, '94) is the standard by which I will always judge the park.

Where we part ways is that the replacements that eventually arrived in the '90s and early 2000s were still designed with the intention of fitting the original conception of Future World. So while some replacements weren't as good as the originals (Imagination, Mission: Space), and while others were trade-ups (Test Track) or sideways moves (Ellen), you could still see that the intent was there to make them all belong in the park. That made changes easier to swallow.

That seems to be gone now.

I do certainly agree that they don't appear to know what to do with the park at this point.

 

[Ultranel]

I mean Walt’s vision was just “get companies to tell people what’s the future”.

Yeah progressive industries bringing new technologies and he wanted for EPCOT to always be the first to have their technologies (the guinea pig). He wanted EPCOT to be that model city that was always ahead. The original layout of EPCOT was all Walt. He explained it all in a 60s video.... and fast forwarding to 2019, we still have no city in the USA that would come even close to the Utopia he wanted to build. Perhaps Epcot today would've been a fully operational Green Energy City, still demanding more technology from the industrial complex. Reality is, EPCOT never happened. They tried compare Celebration to the original EPCOT idea, and that's just disrespectful to Walt, because Celebration is just another ordinary sub division with the worse road system, but nice wrapping paper (if you're into the 1930's). Perhaps EPCOT wouldn't worked at all... after all, our technology today is lame. We invented the internet, then smart phone and it all stopped there. Today's technology is the same crap we already had but updated.... so probably the industrial complex today would've been a ghost town or just a bunch of telemarketing company trying to sell you crap.

 

[Ultranel]

The baffling thing, to me, is that it's not like Figment is some forgotten thing they try to brush under the rug. He's still plastered over all the merchandise in the park!
.

I mean, do they even have M&G? its so sad.

 

[shiekra38]

Figment is a big merch mover for Epcot, definitely.

Also, if you APs get those Figment magnets, I recommend not putting them on your car because it’s open season. I’ve had two stolen after trips to the parks on two different cars. This was mere days after getting the magnet.

Why Figment's version of Mystic Manor hasn't happened yet is beyond me

Justice for Figment

 

[OLSinFLA]

Yeah progressive industries bringing new technologies and he wanted for EPCOT to always be the first to have their technologies (the guinea pig). He wanted EPCOT to be that model city that was always ahead. The original layout of EPCOT was all Walt. He explained it all in a 60s video.... and fast forwarding to 2019, we still have no city in the USA that would come even close to the Utopia he wanted to build. Perhaps Epcot today would've been a fully operational Green Energy City, still demanding more technology from the industrial complex. Reality is, EPCOT never happened. They tried compare Celebration to the original EPCOT idea, and that's just disrespectful to Walt, because Celebration is just another ordinary sub division with the worse road system, but nice wrapping paper (if you're into the 1930's). Perhaps EPCOT wouldn't worked at all... after all, our technology today is lame. We invented the internet, then smart phone and it all stopped there. Today's technology is the same crap we already had but updated.... so probably the industrial complex today would've been a ghost town or just a bunch of telemarketing company trying to sell you crap.

Walt's vision was DOA. There were too many realistic issues with it, starting with experimenting with people's lives, and ending with people living there would have the right to vote on whatever Disney wanted to do. (The film you refer to was a propaganda video designed to sell RCID to the legislature and was actually never intended to be seen by the public. Very little actual thought had gone into the issue of EPCOT when it was made. Walt died shortly thereafter and someone - not anyone from Imagineering - decided to air that film as a tribute on TV. It was a very, very blue sky concept at the time). John Hench used to say whenever someone would bring this up "We're haunted by that ****** painting"

 

[Ultranel]

Walt's vision was DOA. There were too many realistic issues with it, starting with experimenting with people's lives, and ending with people living there would have the right to vote on whatever Disney wanted to do. (The film you refer to was a propaganda video designed to sell RCID to the legislature and was actually never intended to be seen by the public. Very little actual thought had gone into the issue of EPCOT when it was made. Walt died shortly thereafter and someone - not anyone from Imagineering - decided to air that film as a tribute on TV. It was a very, very blue sky concept at the time). John Hench used to say whenever someone would bring this up "We're haunted by that ****** painting"

I understand your point but the so called "fake video" actually still make more sense than anything our current technology is doing today. The plans make sense, and the Utopia could have been built even with 60s technology..... He was not asking for flying cars, He was asking mainly for a transportation system that was in sync with everything on that city.... Look at today's park hoping technology... it take you almost an hour to go from park to park. The plans were there, just no one cared or dared to do anything about it.

 

[shiekra38]

Walt's vision was DOA. There were too many realistic issues with it, starting with experimenting with people's lives, and ending with people living there would have the right to vote on whatever Disney wanted to do. (The film you refer to was a propaganda video designed to sell RCID to the legislature and was actually never intended to be seen by the public. Very little actual thought had gone into the issue of EPCOT when it was made. Walt died shortly thereafter and someone - not anyone from Imagineering - decided to air that film as a tribute on TV. It was a very, very blue sky concept at the time). John Hench used to say whenever someone would bring this up "We're haunted by that ****** painting"

I often wonder if the OG Epcot model would have flown or resulted in the company filing for bankrupcy....fun to ponder

 

[JungleSkip]

I mean, do they even have M&G? its so sad.

They used to have a big M&G figment but I think he’s long gone

I often wonder if the OG Epcot model would have flown or resulted in the company filing for bankrupcy....fun to ponder

Ever play BioShock?

:bolt:

Walt Disney was an admirable man, but I’d be lying if I said his corporate vision of the future wasn’t both flawed and dystopian.

“Real” Epcot never happening was probably a very good thing.

 

[Nick]

They used to have a big M&G figment but I think he’s long gone



Ever play BioShock?

:bolt:

Walt Disney was an admirable man, but I’d be lying if I said his corporate vision of the future wasn’t both flawed and dystopian.

“Real” Epcot never happening was probably a very good thing.

I think Roy could’ve potentially talked Walt out of “real” EPCOT. But these are things we’ll never know because he didn’t live for it to play out.

Reminds me of the book “11/22/63”, by Stephen King.

 

[belloq87]

The original EPCOT idea would have, I think, ultimately been very valuable as a testing ground for new ideas and technologies (assuming you got other companies to buy into the concept).

I do not think, however, it would have worked as a practical model for future urban development.

But still, it was a "Big Idea," and that sort of giant ambition is one of the things I appreciate most about Walt Disney.

 

[shiekra38]

Ever play BioShock?

This made me laugh pretty hard

Speaking of the overhaul, I do wonder if an IP is in the future of SSE

or if they don't have plans to refurbish it in any way for the forseeable future

 

[belloq87]

Speaking of the overhaul, I do wonder if an IP is in the future of SSE

or if they don't have plans to refurbish it in any way for the forseeable future

There is a rumor of SSE going down for roughly 2 years for a new track/ride system and a revamped ending and descent.

We'll see if any of that is accurate.

 

[WowFactor]

I mean, do they even have M&G? its so sad.

They used to have a big M&G figment but I think he’s long gone

I have this pics from a book I bought in 1990 (first visit).

 

[JungleSkip]

I have this pics from a book I bought in 1990 (first visit).

View attachment 8879 View attachment 8880

That was the original meet and greet. I have a picture somewhere of Little me with those guys.

*sigh*

The good old days.

 

[WowFactor]

That was the original meet and greet. I have a picture somewhere of Little me with those guys.

*sigh*

The good old days.

Me too, the "somewhere issue" stopped me to post the pic though. I remember Figment grabbed my cap and throw away, so I look completely upset in the pic
:grin::grin::grin:

 

[Ultranel]

I have this pics from a book I bought in 1990 (first visit).

View attachment 8879 View attachment 8880

The forgotten years. I remember that like if it was today. Dreamfinder, another victim of corporate Disney... Thanks for the share, good memories!

PS: I just noticed his horns are lavander, Awww! he was just a baby there lol.

 

[Nick]

New Mariachi-style Coco show coming to Mexico Pavilion:

Mariachi Cobre Presents the Story of ‘Coco’ at Epcot March 6th - Blog Mickey

 

[RevFreako]

New Mariachi-style Coco show coming to Mexico Pavilion:

Mariachi Cobre Presents the Story of ‘Coco’ at Epcot March 6th - Blog Mickey

I was hoping this would come over.

 

[Mad Dog]

New Mariachi-style Coco show coming to Mexico Pavilion:

Mariachi Cobre Presents the Story of ‘Coco’ at Epcot March 6th - Blog Mickey

My first look at that photo, an old time show from early TV visualized in my mind, namely "The Howdy Doody Show".