0:00 Last Time on News Tonight
1:00 Opening
1:31 Construction Walls Erected at Splash Mountain With References to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Backstory at Magic Kingdom
2:54 Splash Mountain Audio References Removed from Walt Disney World Railroad, Liberty Square Riverboat, and Magic Kingdom Entrance Loop
5:33 Ariel’s Grotto Meet and Greet Reopens After 3 Years at Magic Kingdom
6:43 Test Seat Backdrop Installed Near TRON Lightcycle Run Entrance at Magic Kingdom
7:28 EPCOT Parking Lots Renamed After Guardians of the Galaxy, WALL-E, Moana, and Finding Nemo Characters
8:08 Tom Shares His Thoughts on EPCOT Parking Characters
12:43 https://www.wdwnt.travel
13:00 Perforated “Rippable” Tags Debut on New Mouse Ear Headbands at Walt Disney World
14:45 Accessible Minnie Van Reservations Now Open to All Walt Disney World Guests
15:43 Orlando Records Show Work Moving Forward on Disney’s Lake Nona Campus
16:32 Sign-off
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Yes figment needs a parking lot name, yes Disney sets the standard and needs to continue yes Epcot is Disney… ok you hate the coffee shop…let’s move on 😎. Do love most of your rants but…
I hope they don’t take off the animal kingdom ones
For those of you that have been there recently, how are we doing with the Cultural Reps returning to World Showcase?
I was at the EPCOT last week and saw the new names on the new signs. I have been visiting EPCOT since 1982. For me the new signs marked the end of the original purpose of EPCOT and what once was the most original and amazing park in America, probably the world. Though it was not Walts version at all it carried with it the spirit of Walt's idea of an Experiment Community of Tomorrow as well as hope that maybe in the future some version of his plan could be achieved. I feel the same way as Tom about EPCOT as it was the most original idea, with amazing landscape(s) ,immersive attractions and the music to go along with it . Yes each attraction lasted at least 15 minutes, yet attractions were designed with such high throughput it would still be a shorter wait even with today's crowds. Sure Guardians is cool but after a few rides it is just a thrill ride like everywhere else in America.
100% agree on Epcot. Every time we go my dad is always so upset about it, he went when it first opened as a kid and it was always one of the cooler places. Older kids, adults etc – not everything has to have a character or be completely for small children (this is like the whole thing of people bringing newborns). I get all these stories and I have a book from the 25th anniversary of the park (I thrifted) it used to be so… unique! God I wish I could’ve experienced it.
You guys, especially Tom’s rants, are so right about the theming and the lack of that same magic. So much is different from when I was a kid and I’m talking early 2000s!! There’s just this .. loss. I don’t know how to explain it
Another bit of the Kingdom's soul sold for the sake of fools. RIP.
I don't care for the new names. I liked the old names better and I feel they should have used Figment for one of the lots for Epcot.
I also agree with your rant as I was fortunate enough to see Epcot before they pumped it full of IP. I miss that Epcot.
Figment does not get near enough respect. He is such a beloved character and my all time favourite. Never Stop Ranting!!!!!!!!
Completely delusional over at Walt Disney World from the CFO to the CEO they do not get it people get all mad when you change things. Drastically this is something that offends me to my core I'm an old-school Disney guy I cannot stand the IPS in Epcot a truly dimanche's the past now the future of what is Epcot they might as well call it IPCOT plus Splash Mountain taking Zippity Doo Dah the actual music loop as well Dimension Walt Disney's Legacy part of their problem and this is why people are not happy with the Walt Disney Company as a whole
You know the Walt Disney Company corporate saying they are storytellers it's just corporate BS they spew to everybody and it rubs them the wrong way
Tom, I get the sentiment about the EPCOT signs, I really do. There are a lot of people that started attending Disney parks in their 30's, like myself and a few of my close friends; as well as the younger generation that have a much stronger connection with newer characters from the last decade or so. I was half-way into my 30's when I attended my first Disney park, and while it was an amazing experience, I lacked the same connection my partner has, she's got me hooked on Disney, and has been attending the parks for over 30 years. She too didn't like the change, but it's because it's nostalgic to her, and most likely to most of the people that have gone for as long as she has. I think these are positive changes for the newer generations, and refreshing to see for the middle generation that arrived a bit late to the parks. I love everything about HEIHEI, and I'm driving to EPCOT this weekend just to take a picture in front of that sign with my HEHEI merch. Great video, as always!
The rant about the brain dead chicken was funny. Stupid chicken.
I like the rant. Epcot is having an identity crisis. Its becoming just another park- which sucks because it’s been my favorite park for about the last 25 years.
Epcot used to be about reaching the future. It was the expansion of Walt's final opus – the New York World's Fair. The parking lot began the journey to "imagine" and "create". Epcot ceased to be about what could be and that was because the company forgot that we wanted to see hope and expectation. Now, we just go back to what has been done and drink ourselves into forgetting.
I think that you are right in what you refer to as Disney can't look at it as "just the parking lot" or "just the coffee shop" AND they need to be careful , because this is a lesson that they have
taught Universal and they are using it!!! Be careful! I want Disney to continue to thrive and for this not to become their undoing………….Thank you for reminding them of that over at Disney……..I hope they are listening. I think so……………
I wonder if the new adventure will have a donkey in a bowler hat working in the salt mine?
Disneyland is an overpriced ghetto carnival
It’s funny they remove the songs like “when I see an elephant fly” and “Zip a dee doo dah”, because of how it affects the black community (correction white people on twitter), yet Disney still very much uses “following the leader” from Peter Pan despite having a literal racist slur towards natives in the song itself……….but ya inclusivity disney.
Totally agree, Tom! EPCOT was amazing and really special in it’s original form!!! It’s a tragedy that we lost Horizons, Universe of Energy, Maelstrom and the other OG attractions! 😢
Honestly 75% of the reason I watch this show is for the occasional rants. They are always spot on and Disney needs to hear it.
What will happen to all of the animatronics, briar patches and other design elements of Splash Mountain? Thank you for all of your reporting and your loving concern for Walt and Roy Disney's vision.
They should have named the lots Earth, Energy, Horizon, Motion, Community, Land, Imagination, and Sea, and used the original EPCOT Center logos for the signs. Younger guests wouldn't know the extent of their significance, but they would still be inspirational names instead of just more cartoon characters.
Epcot is a masterpiece which has been defaced….I am hoping that one day it will regain its true spirit of imagination….thanks for your passion Tom
Thanks for saying "Auto Plaza!"
And thanks for the appropriate rant.
Love your takes Tom.
I totally agree that Hei Hei shouldn’t be one of the parking lot names, but maybe it’s because of Journey of Water that’s opening up soon? That’s the only thing that I could think of connecting Hei Hei to Epcot… but even then, wouldn’t they put just put Moana instead of Hei Hei? Again, I don’t agree with the new parking lot signs, but I thought I would just provide another perspective.
I agree about EPCOT center. I was 12 when it opened and my dad got a job there, I really loved it. But it did feel more educational; which is clearly not a desirable aspect for keeping kids entertained nowadays …Re: Figment, I think they think giving us his popcorn bucket was enough. Though maybe he just doesn't fit into the "land" theme if you consider the others' relationships to land… I also really suspect if they didn't know how outraged fans would get, they would have erased him out of the park YEARS ago! 😕
You have a great point about Figment not being represented. Take out Hei-Hei and make Figment
Tom Corless is the Voice of Disney Fandom and when he says "Why the stupid chicken?", Iger and company should take note and swap Hei Hei out for Figment.
The laughing place song was my favorite on the ride so I hope they don’t get rid of it playing at the entrance.
Stitch, Olaf, Figment and Remy parking lots would have been more memorable. However, I can get over that as long as they bring back the trams! Where are they?!
Hooray for shorter tags!!!! 🥳
When I was little, and still now Epcot is just the best Disney park
I agree. Way too much IP in Epcot
Presenting my soplution for parking lot names: Figment, Dreamfinder/Dr. Nigel Channing, Rocket, Gamora, Timon, Pumbaa, Nemo, and Dory.
Bruno is my favourite
Princess and the frog is great
I like Erel
Tron is cool
I love gardins of the galaxy
I like wallie and eve
The parking lot characters are put there in pairs. I thought that was obvious. You would need to get a classic female EPCOT Center character to put in Moana's place.
I haven't processed the death of Splash Mountain yet. It feels unreal 🙁 And I am shocked that Disney did not respect the frontier theme. Disney used to be about the experience and now it makes no sense…