One thing not discussed is the supposed budget for all this stuff. How in the love of Walt can all this stuff cost so much money?! If this release talked about a full-on Pirates ride and a full-on Mansion I’d think about it. But I fear the Mansion will be more akin to something you’d see at a regional theme park than a Magic Kingdom.

It’s insulting to see these off-the-shelf rides with a modicum of theming turning up in a Magic Kingdom park. Somehow, at crapfests like California Adventure and Disney Studios Paris I’ve come to accept it, but even Hong Kong Disneyland deserves better!

I know that WDI is having to pay now for poor decisions made by management almost 10 years ago, and that blame for poor decisions must now be shared between Disney management and the HK government. I feel better about underwhelming expansions when I think that they’re laying the groundwork for success in the future – like I said, Grizzly Trail could hold a lot of potential, but only because there’s adjoining space to expand it into a serious land. Where I get worried, and feel the need to agitate, is something like Toy Story Land that, I think, locks them into a seriously flawed concept and layout that will prevent future additions. Once something cruddy is built, even temporarily, it’s hard to get rid of it – just look at Mickey’s Birthdayland.

So, it’s a mixed bag, and I think the expansion will really only be able to be judged several years from now, when we see how they expand on these ideas.

About the concept artists – it’s true that there was a second wave of these master artists, but I have to admit that I’m sadly unfamiliar with them in specific. I think that’s probably because this art was less widely distributed as time has passed and Disney plays their cards closer to their vests than in the time of EPCOT’s construction. Obviously a lot of fantastic art was being done in the early 1990s because it can be seen for Port Disney, Disney’s America, WESTCOT & Animal Kingdom. We just never see this art except on the sly, so we don’t know the artists.

I certainly think there’s room for all styles, but it seems like that crucial element has been missing for several years now.

DC: I agree with you as well, that the medium isn’t crucial to the piece. But I would like to see a mix of things. After all, a lot of Marc Davis’s character pieces were cartoony but they were also brilliant. My problem is that, almost uniformly, the sole art pieces they release for projects anymore are in this very literal, descriptive comic style. It’s been this way for HKDL, the DCA expansion, and pretty much everything else they’ve added for quite a while. In an odd way, it almost seems patronizing – although I can’t justify that feeling at all.

That being said, I’m surprised they’re using these pieces as their primary art for release to the public. They’d be fine as secondary concept illustrations, but as key art, they seem rushed and broad. It’s quite possible that’s on purpose, to maintain some secrecy and allow the concepts further development.

The key word being “master.” The individuals that worked for WDI during the creation of Disneyland Paris, DisneySea and Animal Kingdom were not only great at painting awe-inspiring Disney concept art, they were highly-esteemed artists outside Disney. And just as they learned their craft from the likes of Ryman and Redmond, if they were still there they would be passing their craft on to the 3rd generation of WDI concept artists.

Alas, WDI has been reorganizing for years and these great talents were let go. What they have now are younger concept artists like Chris Turner who are adept at cartoony renderings and Photoshop, but are not well-experienced in the brush, broad-stroke oil and watercolor paintings that really inspired us all in 1970s-1990s.

As far as your assessment of the HKDL expansion, I think you are a little on the negative side. Could it have been better? Of course. Would I have planned it differently? Yes. But considering the economic conditions and that it could have been far worse (Raging Spirits), I am happy with 2/3 of the current plans.

I don’t know what the deal is with WDI artwork anymore. Everything they release is done in a very cartoony, comic style. Not that there isn’t room for that sort of art, but they don’t release anything at all anymore in that evocative, artistic tradition of Herb Ryman, Dorothea Redmond, or Sam McKim. Everything also has the distinct flavor of Photoshop or Illustrator… someone needs to pick up a paintbrush!