Five Times Disney Fans Were Wrong…and Once They Were Right
Fan investment is often a double-edged sword.
Companies want their customers to care, but they don’t want to face chronic complaints whenever anything changes.
![Walt Disney Company](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/081612_Launch_Img2.jpg)
![Walt Disney Company](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/081612_Launch_Img2.jpg)
Walt Disney Company
Alas, people love Disney so much that it’s one of the most overly criticized businesses on the planet, particularly in the entertainment and theme park divisions.
Sometimes, those complaints are valid. In other instances, Disney deserved more trust.
![Disney revenue increase](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/2023-walt-disney-company-studios-headquarters-burbank-california-stock-5-scaled-e1707074836298.jpg)
![Disney revenue increase](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/2023-walt-disney-company-studios-headquarters-burbank-california-stock-5-scaled-e1707074836298.jpg)
The Walt Disney Company
Here are five times Disney fans were wrong…and one time the critics had it right.
Closing Maelstrom
You’ll notice a recurring theme to many of these complaints.
Fans hate when Disney closes their favorite attractions, a phenomenon we’re currently witnessing at EPCOT.
![Test Track concept art](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024-wdw-epcot-test-track-chevrolet-concept-art.jpg)
![Test Track concept art](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024-wdw-epcot-test-track-chevrolet-concept-art.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Later this week, Test Track will close in its current form, returning as Test Track 3.0.
Many fans have expressed their aggravation that this excellent thrill ride is about to go away forever, at least in the way that we know it.
![Maelstrom](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Maelstrom.jpg)
![Maelstrom](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Maelstrom.jpg)
Photo: Disney
This change circles back to recent park history, as it also happened a decade ago.
In October 2014, Maelstrom at the Norway pavilion closed permanently, breaking the hearts of World Showcase loyalists.
![Maelstrom](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Maelstrom-ride.jpg)
![Maelstrom](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Maelstrom-ride.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Maelstrom had opened only a few months after the Norway pavilion itself, and it embodied EPCOT’s first growth phase.
However, Disney had a plan, and it was the correct one for the time. Based on the success of Frozen, Disney wanted to add a park presence for the characters.
![Royal Sommerhus at Norway Pavilion](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Royal-Sommerhus-Norway-Pavilion-EPCOT-scaled.jpg)
![Royal Sommerhus at Norway Pavilion](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Royal-Sommerhus-Norway-Pavilion-EPCOT-scaled.jpg)
Royal Sommerhus at Norway Pavilion
Critics assailed Disney for eroding the culture of Norway by introducing elements of the fictional Arendelle.
Frozen Ever After debuted in 2016 and immediately earned a spot in the discussion for best overall EPCOT attraction.
![Disney Genie pricing](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Frozen-Ever-After-Disney-World.jpg)
![Disney Genie pricing](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Frozen-Ever-After-Disney-World.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Nowadays, literally nobody argues that Disney should have left Maelstrom instead, and I say that as a Maelstrom superfan.
Injecting the Frozen brand into the Norway pavilion has paid massive dividends for Disney and its fans.
Opening the Disney Skyliner
![Disney Skyliner](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/2024-wdw-epcot-disney-skyliner-2-scaled.jpg)
![Disney Skyliner](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/2024-wdw-epcot-disney-skyliner-2-scaled.jpg)
Disney Skyliner
I wrote this last October and still feel strongly about the topic.
Before the Disney Skyliner opened, people were in an especially hyper-critical mood, even though the parks were on a hot streak.
![Disney Skyliner 2024](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2023-wdw-disney-skyliner-photo-by-bioreconstruct-on-twitter-x2-scaled.jpeg)
![Disney Skyliner 2024](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/2023-wdw-disney-skyliner-photo-by-bioreconstruct-on-twitter-x2-scaled.jpeg)
Photo: @bioreconstruct on Twitter/X
Some criticized Toy Story Land for lacking shade, while others falsely claimed that Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge wasn’t up to snuff.
Riding on the wave of those criticisms, the Disney Skyliner caught flack for two reasons.
![encanto skyliner](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/encanto-skyliner-debut-scaled.jpeg)
![encanto skyliner](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/encanto-skyliner-debut-scaled.jpeg)
Hollywood Studios Skyliner station
First, Disney revealed that the gondolas wouldn’t use air-conditioning, instead relying on ventilation to keep them comfortable.
Some fans stubbornly refused to believe that this would be possible, failing to understand that the air is cooler so high in the air.
Second, Disney stated that the gondola system would remain in constant motion, never stopping for guests to disembark.
People swore that this would lead to frequent accidents and injuries.
Then, during the first week in operation, the Disney Skyliner infamously had a crash.
At that point, some were ready to dismiss this form of transportation as a failure, stubbornly ignoring that ski resorts around the world use it.
Disney quickly made a few adjustments, and the Disney Skyliner has worked without incident since then.
More importantly, this form of transportation has reinvigorated Disney by reducing our overall dependence on the bus system.
The Pirates Changes Would Make the Ride Worse
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/75.webp)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/75.webp)
(Renie Bardeau / Associated Press)
I cannot help but think about Pirates of the Caribbean as the opening date of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure approaches.
The two share a common fate in that outside parties hold a strange interest in their fates.
On rare occasions, Disney attractions somehow become politicized, which shouldn’t even be possible.
They are, by definition, theme park entertainment. You must inject your own politics to believe anything else is at play.
At Pirates of the Caribbean, Disney simply chose to update the tasteless human auction scene to something funnier and more modern.
The prior incarnation included fat-shaming and misogyny as well, actions Disney didn’t think were appropriate.
![pirates of the caribbean](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/piratesbrideauction2018.jpg.webp)
![pirates of the caribbean](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/piratesbrideauction2018.jpg.webp)
Photos: OC Register
So, Disney changed the story from a redhead being sold at auction to Redd the Pirate, a raucous participant.
The new version injects a bit more levity into an attraction overflowing with it. Ergo, the whole thing fits together better today.
![Pirates of the Caribbean Disneyland](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/download.webp)
![Pirates of the Caribbean Disneyland](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/download.webp)
Photo: Renie Bardeau / Associated Press
Meanwhile, once people stopped generating headlines from the faked outrage, the story completely vanished almost overnight.
Re-Theming The Great Movie Ride
![The Great Movie Ride](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/The_Great_Movie_Ride_-_Disneys_Hollywood_Studios_5480336421.jpg)
![The Great Movie Ride](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/The_Great_Movie_Ride_-_Disneys_Hollywood_Studios_5480336421.jpg)
Photo: Josh Hallett
Generally, Disney faces the greatest outcry when it touches the perceived untouchables, the iconic attractions that everyone loves.
Park officials must take this approach, though. After all, Walt Disney himself demanded that theme park attractions be updated over time.
![Jingle Cruise](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2023-wdw-mk-magic-kingdom-holiday-overlay-jingle-cruise-jungle-decor-1-2-scaled.jpg)
![Jingle Cruise](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2023-wdw-mk-magic-kingdom-holiday-overlay-jingle-cruise-jungle-decor-1-2-scaled.jpg)
Jingle Cruise
In fact, Disney faced the first unofficial re-theming when fans turned on Jungle Cruise.
During that attraction’s early days, it was a straitlaced story celebrating the wonders of nature.
Since the animals on display were transparently fake, even 1950s crowds couldn’t take it seriously, leading to the ride’s waning popularity.
Disney saved the day by allowing the Cruise Skippers to alter the dialog to inject humor where there was none.
![Hollywood Studios](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Great-Movie-Ride-entrance.jpg)
![Hollywood Studios](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Great-Movie-Ride-entrance.jpg)
Photo: Disney
Since then, Disney has tried to perfect everything at its parks, sometimes at the expense of beloved attractions.
At Disney’s Hollywood Studios, The Great Movie Ride had entertained guests since the beginning, but it had also grown long in the tooth.
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Great-Movie-Ride-Alien.jpg)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Great-Movie-Ride-Alien.jpg)
Alien was featured on The Great Movie Ride. Photo: Flickr.com/Havoc315
When management chose to re-imagine the entire park on the fly, The Great Movie Ride became a reminder of the past.
Disney didn’t want that and instead chose to re-theme this attraction into Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway.
![Great Movie Ride Wizard of Oz](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Great-Movie-Ride-Wizard-of-Oz.jpg)
![Great Movie Ride Wizard of Oz](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Great-Movie-Ride-Wizard-of-Oz.jpg)
Photo: Disney Fine Art
Fans haaaaaated the idea when announced and spent the entire closure lamenting Disney’s decision.
Then, Runaway Railway opened, everyone remembered how much they love Mickey & Minnie Mouse, and we all lived happily ever after.
![Great Movie Ride](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Great-Movie-Ride-Western.jpg)
![Great Movie Ride](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Great-Movie-Ride-Western.jpg)
Photo credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G73istjKGUA
That’s almost always how these stories play out.
Updating Mission: BREAKOUT!
Of course, we’re all thinking about re-theming right now because Disney closed Splash Mountain last year to replace it with Tiana’s Bayou Adventure.
Critics have been quick to dismiss this idea as change for the sake of change, while others note that all connections to Song of the South are unwelcome.
![The Laughin' Place](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2023-wdw-mk-magic-kingdom-splash-mountain-laughin-place-playground-play-area-1.jpg)
![The Laughin' Place](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2023-wdw-mk-magic-kingdom-splash-mountain-laughin-place-playground-play-area-1.jpg)
The Laughin’ Place
Disney officials fall on the latter side of the conversation, having buried Song of the South deep in the Disney Vault.
However, long before the Splash Mountain discussion arose, we had one that didn’t involve politics at all.
![Splash Mountain Disney World](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Splash-4.jpg)
![Splash Mountain Disney World](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Splash-4.jpg)
Credit: Disney
Instead, Disney decided to re-theme Twilight Zone Tower of Terror into Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT!
I’m on record as saying that this is the biggest outrage I’ve ever covered as a Disney writer.
![Guardians of the Galaxy - MISSION: Breakout!](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-guardians-of-the-galaxy-mission-breakout-exterior-dca-disneyland.png)
![Guardians of the Galaxy - MISSION: Breakout!](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-guardians-of-the-galaxy-mission-breakout-exterior-dca-disneyland.png)
Guardians of the Galaxy – MISSION: Breakout!
Southern California fans feel a unique attachment to their Disneyland attractions, and they were livid that Disney took away Tower of Terror.
Park officials didn’t have much of a choice, though. They were converting Disney California Adventure (DCA) into a half Pixar/half Marvel park.
![Elevator door](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-dlr-disneyland-resort-disney-california-adventure-guardians-of-the-galaxy-mission-breakout-monsters-after-dark-exterior-interior-atmo-sign-2.png)
![Elevator door](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-dlr-disneyland-resort-disney-california-adventure-guardians-of-the-galaxy-mission-breakout-monsters-after-dark-exterior-interior-atmo-sign-2.png)
Elevator door
The Guardians of the Galaxy (GotG) re-themed proved crucial to those plans, and nobody’s complaining now.
I say that because Tower of Terror was an original Disney’s Hollywood Studios attraction that later transitioned to DCA.
![Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: BREAKOUT!](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/guardians-mission-breakout-groot-16x9-1.webp)
![Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: BREAKOUT!](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/guardians-mission-breakout-groot-16x9-1.webp)
Photo: Disney
The new version, Mission: BREAKOUT!, is a Disneyland Resort exclusive that comes with an ancillary benefit.
During the spooky season, Disney adds the Monsters After Dark overlay, turning the former Tower of Terror into two different GotG rides.
![Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: BREAKOUT!](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Untitled-design-83.png)
![Guardians of the Galaxy - Mission: BREAKOUT!](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Untitled-design-83.png)
Photo: Disney
The updates create an exclusive feel for the new elevator drop tower, one that’s tailored to Disneyland enthusiasts.
Thinking Galactic Starcruiser Would Fail
![Galactic Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Starcruiser-Entrance.jpg)
![Galactic Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Starcruiser-Entrance.jpg)
(Kent Phillips, photographer)
As an optimist by nature, I tend to give proven businesses the benefit of the doubt. That goes double for Disney, a company that has earned my trust.
However, here’s an instance where Disney was wrong while fans were right…and I totally took the wrong side here.
![Galactic Starcruiser 2023](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/star-wars-galactic-starcruiser-dispatches-sabacc_TALL.jpg)
![Galactic Starcruiser 2023](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/star-wars-galactic-starcruiser-dispatches-sabacc_TALL.jpg)
Credit: Kent Phillips, photographer/Disney
For most of my adult life, I’ve watched Star Wars fans fantasize about the idea of a Star Wars hotel.
Many years ago, Las Vegas created a Star Trek experience that tantalized envious Star Wars fans.
![Passholder Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Ouanni.jpg)
![Passholder Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Ouanni.jpg)
(David Roark, photographer)
Then, Disney finally announced that it would give them what they wanted.
Alas, what nobody learned until later was the price. Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser established new heights in immersive storytelling.
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Sandro.jpg)
![](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Sandro.jpg)
Photo: (David Roark, photographer)
Sadly, to experience the pinnacle of Disney Imagineering, you had to pay more than $1,000 per night.
People said that Disney had set the price too high, but I’ve dealt with Star Wars zealots for most of my life. So, I wasn’t so sure.
![Star Wars Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Starcruiser.jpg)
![Star Wars Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Starcruiser.jpg)
(Matt Stroshane, photographer)
During the heady first year of Galactic Starcruiser, demand exceeded supply. Soon afterward, only the diehards remained, though.
The Star Wars Hotel people had wanted for decades lasted barely 18 months.
![Star Wars Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Galactic-Starcruiser.jpg)
![Star Wars Starcruiser](https://mickeyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Galactic-Starcruiser.jpg)
Photo: Disney
That’s the one recent time when Disney critics were absolutely correct.
So, how will Tiana’s Bayou Adventure play out? Stay tuned…
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!
Feature Photo: Disney