Why the D23 Expo Announcements Were Disappointing, and We're Not Mad
Concept art fills each letter of D23 in this graphic, from left to right, Moana Journey of Water, Dinoland Ideas, and Test Track redo. All concept art copyright Disney.
Destination D23 happens every other year, alternating with the D23 Expo, and both are the place where Disney often makes announcements about their projects and business plans for the next two years. It's where we often learn about a new ride or fireworks show, or even a new park. That's why we like to call it "the most magical time of the year".
Because such hype typically occurs at these events, the expectations are high, and if we're being honest, this year did not deliver like the past few have. So, in this article, we're going to summarize all the Disney Parks announcements (and a somewhat related Cruise Line announcement), and discuss why we're disappointed, but not mad.
D23 Disney Parks Announcements 2023
Here are the announcements from D23 this year, summarized.
New scenes will be added to Star Tours in the Spring of 2024 that feature Ashoka
The Hatbox Ghost, a cult favorite animatronic over in Disneyland California, will be coming to the Haunted Mansion at Walt Disney World for the first time this November
The Country Bear Jamboree is being updated with a new act and new songs - date TBD
Test Track will be reimagined sometime in the near future, taking inspiration from the ride that previously occupied the space, World of Motion - date TBD
A new show, inspired by Zootopia, will be moving into the Tree of Life theater, replacing It's Tough to be a Bug - date TBD
A new EPCOT fireworks show is coming: Luminous - The Symphony of Us, on Dec 5, 2023. Details are vague but as with most shows at EPCOT, it will include fireworks, fountains, lasers, lighting effects, and music. If they bring the taco barges back, though, I'm out.
Journey of Water will open on October 16th, and will feature a Moana meet & greet.
Asha from the upcoming movie, Wish, will have a meet & greet at EPCOT
A Figment meet & greet will be returning to the Imagination pavilion in EPCOT
World Celebration, the final neighborhood of EPCOT to be remodeled will be completed in December
A new 'watering hole' (possibly a lounge?) based on the Pirates of the Caribbean will open in Adventureland - date TBD
For a limited time, Soarin' Over California will return to Soarin' EPCOT starting this month
Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point, the new Disney private island experience for the Cruise Line, will open in June of 2024
There are additional details about the Disney Cruise Line's 6th and 7th ships. The 6th is called Disney Treasure. The 7th is a ship Disney purchased from another cruise line that went out of business. It was originally being designed as the largest ship at sea in terms of passenger capacity called Global Dream. It will be renamed Disney Adventure.
There was continued talk about the reimagining of Dinoland, U.S.A, with mentions of Zootopia, Encanto, and Indiana Jones, but no specifics or dates.
Vague references were made to an expansion beyond Big Thunder Mountain in the Magic Kingdom, referred to as "the biggest thing they've done in Magic Kingdom", but we don't know what the expansion will be yet or when.
The Test Track pavilion, which is said to be getting an attraction makeover soon
That seems like a lot, until you realize that the list you are looking at is:
The closure of previously started projects (World Celebration, Journey of Water)
Some new character meet & greets (Awesome. Wow.)
Updates to existing attractions (Hatbox ghost, Test Track update, Soarin', Star Tours with Ashoka)
One new minor attraction (Zootopia replacing Tough to be a Bug)
A new lounge
More updated fireworks for EPCOT (With fireworks updates being something we're now not too excited about given the disaster that was HarmoniUS, plus the concept art shared is the same concept art as was from HarmoniUS!)
Pretty big stuff happening in the Cruise Line, but we already knew this from previous years' announcements
Some very exciting but too vague to be understood, or even really relied upon, discussion points about a land re-imagining, and possibly a new land in a theme park. These are by far the most exciting things we've heard, but they lack so many details we have no idea what the timeline would even be.
Balloons on Main Street, U.S.A. As long as this remains the same, we're not mad.
People Are Disappointed, But Not Us. Here's Why.
Compared to prior years in which sweeping announcements were made of new attractions (Tron, Guardians), entire park revitalizations (EPCOT), absolutely huge Cruise fleet expansions, and enormously anticipated celebrations such as WDW's 50th Anniversary, and Disney's 100th anniversary, it's easy to look at this list of enhancements and speculations and feel a bit disappointed. But we are taking that disappointment over here with a healthy dose of realism.
Realism and Disney? What? Why?
Let's look at how the last few projects went, shall we? The EPCOT reimagining had to be dramatically scaled back. Remember how there was going to be a multi-level Play pavilion? And it took much longer to complete than was anticipated. Granted, a big unforeseen complication was the pandemic, but even so, it was meant to be ready for the 50th (which started in 2021 and ended last year), and it wasn't. I still haven't seen that Walt statue that everyone keeps talking about. TRON was also hugely delayed. And the fireworks they were so excited about at EPCOT were a dud.
Which is all to say, I'd much prefer Disney complete their previously promised projects before taking on more ambitious plans. They have gone through a major cycle of new attractions and reimagining, and that still needs to get done. Tiana's Bayou Adventure still needs to open after EPCOT is completed. And I'm okay with giving them time to do that rather than asking for another new thing.
And when it comes to new lands or updated lands, maybe it'll be good if Disney slows down a bit and listens to what guests want. We know Dinoland will become something, but the way Disney seems to be approaching this development is by dropping teasers and then watching the crowd's reaction. Maybe this is informing them which way to go so we don't end up with another HarmoniUS. And I'm, frankly, okay with that. My hope is that Bog Iger's return means a return to listening to what the guests want, not just what makes for the bottom line. I think the small things that are cult favorites, like the Hatbox ghost, Soarin' Over California coming back for a limited time, and Figment meet & greets are all easy ways for Disney to say "We're listening, and we know what you like, and here are a few little treats to show you we've been listening."
At least that's our hope.
Yes, of course, we want to know what this Magic Kingdom expansion might be, or we might want to be assured that the Dinoland U.S.A reimagining will be something demonstrably better than what Dinoland was, but when it comes to big announcements and big changes like those, well, like Aaron Burr, I'm willing to wait for it.
What did you think of the D23 announcements? Are we underplaying how awesome they are? Or are you irrevocably disappointed and NOT willing to wait for better things? Let us know by coming over to our Facebook page and commenting on this post. You can also follow us over there to see when new articles are posted each week. Until next time...
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