Parks and Resorts- EPCOT Roundup

What should happen with EPCOT?

EPCOT is a unique and amazing park, but where should the future be. Is it now relegated to the role of a "traditional" theme park or is it still a unique mixture of education and entertainment? I believe the latter and that this distinction should still be idealized. How should this be done?


WORLD SHOWCASE-

The World showcase. The best food at WDW in my opinion, this is an amazing mixture of culture, food, alcohol, and a few weak attractions.

Where can it go from here? Expansion is necessary. New countries? Spain, Australia, Russia, etc.
Also, each country needs at least one TOP quality full service restaurant. Each country should also have some "attraction", whether it be a video or actual ride. Currently, only China, Mexico, Norway, America, Canada, and France have actual attractions. Italy needs something to do, Germany is essentially a shopping center, UK/Japan/Morocco are interesting to look at, but still need something more.

What needs work- Disney should not continue to force current IP into countries unnecessarily. Maelstrom may be been boring, but it was based off of fact. Arrendelle "looks" like Norway, so that's good enough. This is slippery slope if this trend continues. Now, this does not apply to princesses appearing in representative countries, but don't change wholesale attractions that no longer represent the host country.

FUTURE WORLD- 

Future world needs some help, but there are still some great attractions. The land is a small, yet very sustainable little area. The Seas is a great site and with Turtle Talk & Nemo, this is a great site. Mission Space is a unique attraction with great theming. Test Track is a top notch attractions etc.


What needs work-

Journey into imagination- Where Should Disney take this land? How about putting Inside Out into here? This IP seems to fit this one perfectly.

Innovations- This is a tired concept (IMHO), but it could be regenerated...but along with new technologies, I would move the Carousel of progress from MK to here (with a modern update as well).

Ellen's energy adventure- Love the concept, shorten the ride and update it.


The gems of EPCOT however are the restaurants. This park is meant to entertain while educating and is where you are supposed to get great food and alcohol. Therefore adults are the primary customer here...this is a GOOD thing. I suggest the following

1. An expansion of Living with the land (Actually seeing food being grown is a fascinating lesson)

2. The creation of at least three new countries in WS over the next few years (get rid of that outpost area also).

3. AVOID ANY Marvel or Star Wars IP

4. Update Nemo attraction to add Finding Dory characters

5. Update Spaceship earth attraction

6. Make parts of future world a second "shopping district". Currently, the art of Disney store there dominates, but that area could house several more high quality stores

7. Update Club cool with the soda flavors

8. COCO attraction in Mexico?

9. Canada needs some real stores

Thoughts?

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Disney Studios- The Sad Saga of Marvel Villains

   The Sad Saga of Marvel Villains

 A good comic book movie always has its competing forces; the hero and a villain. Alas, the strength of Marvel movies has never helped build up the latter. Most of the villains in the MCU are forgettable and are therefore unusable.

Iron Man (Obediah Stain)-  weak and useless

Incredible Hulk (Abomination)- Personally I think he's a good villain, but they didn't use him as well as they could, and they killed him off

Iron Man 2 (Whiplash)- They edited too much of him, made him boring and nonsensical.

Thor (Loki)- Obviously, Marvel has done well by Loki, but they've basically taken him out of the villain role altogether.

Captain America (Red Skull)- A good villain, a little boring, but again, killing him off doesn't do any good. Bring him back and build him up!

Avengers- (Thanks)- A great villain, who hopefully they will show the twisted titan for what he is.

Iron Man 3 (Mandarin)- Boy did they ruin this one...sigh.

Thor 2 (Malakith) Whatever his name is, it could have been good, but they didn't dive into him nearly deep enough.

Captain America 2 (Winter Soldier)- Once again, a good villain get transformed into a hero.

Guardians of the Galaxy (Nebula)- She could be interesting, but GOTG2 is also using her as a villain.

Avengers 2 (Ultron)- Personally I think they did him well, but where can you take him from here.

Antman (Yellow Jacket)- Weak villain. Can't even use him elsewhere.

Captain America 3 (Whatever the conniving guy's name is, boy did they ruin that one)

Doctor Strange (Mads Mikkelson's character)- Another weak endeavor


How do you make a strong villain? Here are some rules

1. There must be a back story to the villain
2. Hero and villain cannot just immediately start fighting, need a complicated relationship
3. Do not kill the villain or even allude to it
4. Do not use successful villains as heroes.
5. The villain should be a real threat to the hero (i.e. obediah stain against iron man is weak)
6. Do not make up villains or totally change the villain, but them call them a classic villain's name

Thoughts?

Disney Studios- All about Pixar

Well Disney has now owned Pixar for 11 years and IMHO both companies have benefited from the relationship. Obviously, Disney has benefited from the fresh ideas and name recognition that Pixar brings in (especially during the stale disney animation decade of 2000-2010). Pixar benefits from deep pockets, better marketing, and cross promotion leverage. Pixar's hits have been massive, but their occasional misses have been very weak. Let's go over them by time period

The Disney/Pixar Contractual period

Toy Story- A buddy pic that was fresh and opened up new possibilities. Grade- A-

A Bug's life- A bit sloppy and dull. Grade B

Toy Story 2- More clever and fun than the original. Grade A

Monsters Inc.- Another clever hit filled with humor. Grade A-

Finding Nemo- A smash hit, near perfection. Grade A+

The Break off period

The Incredibles- Clever, but still lacking. Grade B

The still contractually obligated to work with you period

Cars- Eisner's pet project, well overrated. Grade C+

The Buyout period (i.e. the renaissance of fresh ideas)

Ratatouille- Clever, fun, heartwarming. Grade A

Wall-E- Innovative and charming. Grade A

Up- Visually spellbinding, weird plot, but amazing first 20 minutes. Grade A-

Toy Story 3- Funny and fitting with the other Toy Story movies. Grade A-

Cars 2- An unnecessary sequel that suffered greatly. Unwatchable. Grade F

Brave- Should have been better, but watchable. Grade B-

Monsters University- Another unnecessary sequel, but did have charming moments. Grade B

Inside Out- A fresh idea with great execution. Grade A

The Good Dinosaur- Too many rewrites with no strong plot. Unwatchable. Grade F

Finding Dory- A tough sequel, but charming moments.


What should Pixar's future be? Clearly they have a good plan of releasing an original film every year with a sequel every other year, unfortunately their not sticking to this plan because there are three sequels planned in the next three years (Cars 3, Incredibles 2, Toy Story 4).

I am not against sequels per se. I think Incredibles and Toy Story might warrant them, I also believe Inside Out could warrant one, but let's not go crazy here. There needs to be another fresh 15 ideas they work on.

Additionally, when it comes to the parks, I believe there needs to be a stronger organization of Pixar properties in the parks. At WDW, if there is a pixar place then clearly they should go there, however, Wall-E is easily doable in tomorrowland, Inside out at Journey into imagination, etc.

Thoughts?

Disney Studios- Marvel Phase 3

We are in the midst of Marvel's Phase 3 films. Captain America Civil War was a strong start to the phase and Doctor Strange helped grow the universe. We now proceed to the rest of the upcoming films through 2019 and where the MCU will likely be heading.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2- We are only a month away from GOTGv2 premiere and there is wide amounts of speculation. The energy of this franchise is unique and is only comparable to the 2012 release of the Avengers. Director James Gunn's leadership helps to make this film both engaging, witty, and relatable, and all with smaller characters (giving them more freedom). Kudos to Kevin Feige and the rest of the Marvel studios staff for experimenting with the smaller characters and making them enjoyable.

Spiderman Homecoming- I know this is not technically not a MCU movie, but it's a hybrid between Sony and Disney. The tone of the film looks promising, Michael Keaton looks great, the humor seems upbeat, very excited about the prospects. Also, if Disney and Sony can continue their partnerships then new agreements can continue.

Thor Ragnarok- Very excited about this one; Thor movies are pretty boring to begin with, but combine it with the Hulk and tease a Hulk vs Thor fight, and i'm sold!

Black Panther- Not too excited about this one. Chadwick Boseman did a solid job as Black Panther in Captain America Civil War, but the lore behind the character is pretty weak. His main interest is in how he interacts with the other characters.

Avengers Infinity War and part 2- This is the one most everyone is ecstatic about! The introduction of Thanos is very promising. If they follow the storyline of Infinity gauntlet (Thanos gets the gems, add Adam Warlock, all heroes die, etc.) then it should be a GREAT way. This could be a great way for the original heroes (Robert downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, etc. can bow out. if they want out)

Ant-man and the Wasp- I admit I did not love Ant-man, but I wholeheartedly believe in growing the universe and this could be good.

Captain Marvel- I would have created this one before Infinity War, but her addition could be a great start.

I'm very excited about these, but here's where I think Marvel Phase 4 could go

- Adam Warlock movie
- Hulk movie (Buy back the distribution rights)
- Celestial figures figure in a movie (Dr. Strange & Warlock?)

Thoughts?

Disney Studios- A proper film slate formula

Disney films come in several forms based upon the business entity that created it. Obviously, Disney owns many franchises including Marvel, Lucasfilm, the Muppets, Pixar, etc. These are of course in addition to all of Walt Disney Pictures, Walt Disney animation studios, Touchstone, and other Disney companies. Each year seems a little different in what the film slate represents, but in general I believe Disney is at its strongest with a mix of the following.

Each year should encompass at least

- 1 Tentpole film. This is a large blockbuster film, typically made by Walt Disney Pictures. Budgets for this one should be at least $100,000,000 and should be released somewhere between May-July each year. Examples of these include Pirates of the Caribbean, Alice in Wonderland, Oz the Great and Powerful, etc.

- 1 Walt Disney Animation studios film. These are the classic Disney cartoons today. The revenue is not always ideal, but the tradition continues and quality remains high. These are respectable films. Examples include Frozen, Wreck it Ralph, Tangled, Princess and the Frog, etc.

- 2 or 3 Small live action films. These are the economical movies that Eisner called the "Singles and doubles" strategy. These will not make lots of revenue, but they can be made for fairly cheap and they tell a compelling story that is family friendly. These are low risk, medium reward. Examples include Million Dollar Arm, Alexander the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day, McFarland USA, etc.

- 1 Lucasfilm movie per year. I am going to limit this to be Star Wars related. The current line up has a switching off between the Skywalker storyline versus anthology films. Disney has a large library of books it can draw from for its anthology films that there are a lot of options here, including character origin stories or side stories.

- 1-2 Pixar movies per year. Pixar is the ultra quality animated films that seek to entertain. These films come in two forms, original films and sequels. If Disney makes two films per year then one should always be original whereas the other can be a sequel. However, if only one film occurs per year then it should be original.

- 2-3 Marvel movies per year. Marvel movies are the best action movies of the year and should continue at a growing frenetic pace. The MCU can continue to grow and should be thought of in that way. There are still many smaller characters that Marvel can introduce and compelling comic storylines they can utilize. If Disney can negotiate with Fox and Sony, then Disney can utilize the restricted characters.

- 1 Live action remake. These are a more recent phenomenon and have included Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, and Jungle Book. There are about 15 planned remakes currently. I applaud the drive to make these, they will bring in substantial revenue if done well, but these must be distinct and separate from the tentpole film as stated above.

1- Disneynature film. These documentaries don't make a lot of money, but they can be made economically and play an important role in film.

Additional- I believe a Muppet movie could be supported every 3 years, Indiana Jones every 3 years,
Winnie the Pooh every 5 or so, etc. Thoughts?

Disney Studios- 2016 Year in Review

The film slate has gotten progressively better under the leadership of Alan Horn (remember the disastrous 2011 film slate) and Disney should be proud of the year they had, but there is still significant room for improvement. The film slate was fairly predictable with few surprises or risks taken...they're playing it safe, which is fine to a point, but is not a optimal long term strategy. The film slate was as follows

The Finest Hours- I admit I never saw this one, no interest. Chris Pine on a boat... It did not get stellar reviews, did not make much money, however it was a January release so what should we really expect. I commend Disney for pushing these smaller movies, echoing back to Eisner's single and doubles strategy should be a part of each year's film slate. This one just looked terrible.

Zootopia- This is a solid film, worthy of praise, but it is not fun. Nobody will be taking home a Judy Hopps doll. I applaud the fact that Disney strayed away from the Musical genre for this one, instead choosing film noir. The potential franchising opportunities of pitch of this film were outstanding; can you imagine a film city full of animals as a more perfect place than Animal Kingdom? Alas, the slow and serious tone make it less of a kid's film than previously expected. Grade- B

The Jungle Book- Fun, technological, and forgettable. The best part of this film was the casting and the graphics. This is a GREAT way to really jump start the "Disney live action remake genre" (After Cinderella). Grade- A-

Captain America: Civil War- A surprise announcement for Phase 3, this film skewered the comic book storyline, but still managed to pit the heroes against each other. Action, plot, and acting were all excellent. Grade- A

Alice Through the Looking Glass- Did you see this one? Most people didn't, it wasn't in theaters very long. Entirely forgettable and nonsensical (Not in the good Lewis Carroll way). This seems like a bloated waste of money that SHOULD have been made, but needed better execution. The first Alice in Wonderland was too heavy, this one was heavy and boring. Grade- F

Finding Dory- A sequel to Finding Nemo...a beloved Pixar classic. The stakes were high. How do you follow near perfection? That is a tough task. Did Pixar meet the same mark, alas no, but Finding Dory is enjoyable and has some very heartwarming moments. Ed Oneil's octopus is a welcome addition and fun character to prod the storyline along. Grade B

The BFG- Read the book as a kid, thought it was ok, however no real interest in seeing this today, so I admit I never did. Reviews were mixed, Spielberg directing...eh i'll move on.

Pete's Dragon- This is the epitome of an unnecessary remake with no purpose that nobody was clamoring for. See, in 2010, Disney made a sequel to Tron...at least it advanced the storyline. Here this is an alternative remake...reviews were fairly positive, but still...I didn't see it. No interest.

Doctor Strange- Moving the MCU along now we get a magical hero, pretty excited about this one. Casting was good with Cumberbatch, The main plot line was constrained because they had to incorporate the time gem into it. Side characters were totally useless. Grade- B

Moana- Haven't seen it yet, but it looks underwhelming, Dwayne Johnson appears to be annoying, Disney marketing did not push it that much so that makes me think they had low confidence in it.

Rogue One- Haven't seen it yet, but I hear it's pretty good. Time will tell how these anthology films will fare. Will they be able to stand on their own after 2019's Episode 9?

Overall, grade- B