Disney's latest announcement is another blow to the original California Adventure concept
Disney has seen a lot of changes lately but an underrated one comes this week as Disney is about to cut ties with one of the last remnants of what had once been the original California Adventure concept!
Disney just announced another change coming to California Adventure, one that’s surprising has taken so long. As part of the plans for the Avengers Campus that includes construction on the Avengers: Infinity Defense ride, Disney will be removing the long-running red trolley cars that once maneuvered around Buena Vista Street and Hollywood Boulevard.
It’s not a shocking move, as to many, these cars weren’t that big a deal. It’s not unlike the horse-drawn carriages at the Magic Kingdom, a quick tour around the area that sometimes seemed slower than just walking around. However, it’s important in another way as it cuts off one of the last links of the classic California Adventure concept.
The flawed execution of California Adventure
One of the greatest debates in Disney park fandom is whether California Adventure was a huge mistake. A second gate for Disneyland was always logical and there were multiple plans, including for a “WestCOT” or one based on oceans.
The issues in the creation of that second park have been documented in books and websites and Disney themselves in their The Imagineering Story documentary. It all boils down to Micahel Eisner being so focused on Florida that he pretty much cut corners and went cheap on California. Thus, rather than a fantastic and inventive park, we got one that could literally fit into the old Disneyland parking lot space.
And so Disney’s California Adventure was born, a park meant to highlight the Golden State with bits based on Old Hollywood, the wilderness, tourist spots, and more. Those huge letters were meant to feature the state even more with areas themed to various locations.
The issue has always been obvious: A park celebrating California based in California made no sense. Most of Disneyland’s guests are locals who already know all about what else California offers. Why pay a park ticket to see things like a wine garden when they can find them for free? The shows like Golden Dreams with Whoopi Goldberg looking at California’s history came off rather lame too.
The attempt at a Hollywood section was lackluster, especially Superstar Limo, which may be the worst Disney park attraction ever made. They tried to beef it up with Muppet Vision and other touches, and a Bug’s Life Land wasn’t bad. But the Midway section and its attempts to replicate much better parks like Knott’s Berry Farm were lacking.
It wasn’t all awful. Soarin’ quickly became one of the best Disney rides around to the point WDW had to have it. Grizzly River Run and California Screamin were also good rides. Yet from the beginning, California Adventure was seen as a failure, not so much in finances but in creativity and pretty forgettable for Disney fans. As Barry Braveman put it in the Imagineering Story doc, why would folks pay full price for a park with a third of the rides of Disneyland?