More information about the new Epcot

Image: Disney

The 2017 edition of D23 was an epic revelation of the short-term future for Walt Disney World. We learned about dozens of new projects, from the Tron Lightcycle coaster to a replacement for the Great Movie Ride.

But a handful of announcements raised dozens of questions on their own — that is, what the heck is going to happen to Epcot?

In the near future, we’ll see a few different attractions and experiences debut at Epcot. From the Guardians of the Galaxy roller coaster to the Mission: Space restaurant to the Ratatouille ride, Epcot will look very different in a few years.

But how does that all work with Epcot’s current theme and layout? How can a Guardians of the Galaxy ride fit in, thematically, next to a ride and restaurant themed to a much more realistic experience of space flight?

At that D23 presentation, Disney also briefly showed what looked to be a dramatically reconfigured Future World at Epcot. If that redesign comes to fruition, it would require a ton of work to make happen. Is Disney actually changing Epcot? To what extent?

We’d certainly like to know! 

Some refurbishments for Disney’s classic attractions

Image: doctorow, Flickr (license)

With so many new attractions coming to Walt Disney World in the next couple of years, it might seem silly to stay focused on what’s already there. And yet, it’s hard not to notice how neglected some of Disney’s classic attractions are.

And so, it’s worth saving one wish for those beloved older attractions — hopefully so that they might be restored in some small way to their former glory.

There are a few attractions at Walt Disney World that fit this bill, from Spaceship Earth to Living with the Land to MuppetVision 3D. But above all else, there is one attraction which needs a major refurbishment: Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress.

It’s been over 20 years since Disney last refreshed Walt’s ode to progress, and it is in desperate need of several new coats of paint and a full technical refit. The finale scene — previously intended to be a futuristic vision of the year 2000 — is laughably dated. That wouldn’t be a problem necessarily, except for the fact that its predictions actually did come true. Virtual reality headsets and voice-controlled smart home devices are, in fact, the technology we live with today. But the show’s depiction of those technologies is itself so dated that it keeps the show in an uncanny valley where progress feels like a step backward.

The show was personally created by Walt Disney himself — let 2019 be the year that it gets the respect it deserves.