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4. The responsibility

Image © Disney/Marvel.

Jim Zub recognized the significance of telling the first story about Dreamfinder and Figment outside of a Disney park. When I asked him if it was daunting he replied:

"It was, but I really enjoyed the challenge. The more research I did, the more I realized how much the attraction and characters meant to generations of Disney fans. That was intimidating, but it also meant that if we did a good job there would be an audience already excited to read the final result. The Disney Imagineering team was very supportive and offered a lot of great feedback during development."

5. The inspirations for the Figment Comic

A great comic adaption of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Image © Marvel/Disney.

When I asked Jim about where he looked for inspiration for the Figment comic book he explained:

"Beyond the attraction itself I tried to channel that buoyant feeling you find in whimsical fantasy adventure stories like The Wizard of OzAlice In Wonderland, or Mary Poppins. I didn’t want to make it “childish” by any means, but there’s a joyous quality in those stories that works for all ages."

6. Developing the story

Image © Disney/Marvel.

I asked Jim Zub to describe the story he’s telling in his own words. His response:

"The comic tells the story of the man who will become Dreamfinder and his first adventure with his whimsical dragon companion named Figment. It’s a bombastic adventure tale about inspiration and exploration told with a bit of steampunk flare."

Jim said that he was particularly proud of creating the first villains for Dreamfinder and Figment:

"The original attraction doesn’t really have any character progression or antagonists, so that’s where we did the most story building. Coming up with the enemies of imagination and figuring out how they’d come into conflict with Blair and Figment is something I’m really happy with and I hope our readers enjoy. Heroes are only as good as the villains they overcome, so I hope we created some interesting antagonists."

Closing thoughts

Image © Disney/Marvel.

The Figment comic book is telling a very special, moving story. I asked Zub what makes Journey into Imagination such a memorable experience for so many park-goers. His answer was eloquent:

"I think the core message of using your creativity and creating new things is unique and compelling. It carries a distinctive sense of wonderment and joy that embraces the potential in art, science, and the unknown in a really engrossing way.”

I hope reading about the author’s efforts to share Figment with a new audience has convinced you to check it out. It’s available digitally or at your local comic book store. There will also be a bound collection of the series once it’s completed. From one Disney fan to others, its truly something to behold.

Elements based on Figment © Disney

 
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