The Magic Kingdom brings us wonders of the imagination. EPCOT brings us wonders of the real world beyond our sight and the world yet to be. But the Studios brings us….stuff we can watch on television whenever we want. The other parks work because they take our fantasies and our dreams and make them tangible. The Studio is just recreating existing entertainment between media – first ‘American Idol’ was a television show (I don’t watch) and now it’s a stage show (I won’t go see). The Studios would work better if it went more the Magic Kingdom route and made specific environments so that guests could immerse themselves – make us feel like we were on Endor instead of just on the set of ‘Star Wars’, but that seems beyond Disney’s interest these days. It’s much easier to slap Toy Story graphics on a carnival ride and say it’s ‘Pixar Studios’.

Even better, going to lost and found at the end of the night and hearing the audio outside of Sid’s and enjoying the sights and sounds of an empty Hollywood Blvd all by myself.

Ryan: I’ve always thought they should move the Magic Carpets to the Animation Courtyard.

Jerry: That would be fine – linking the past and the present – if they did it in a consistent and clearly defined way. I wouldn’t mind a series of “Studios” themed to different franchises, if they were well-themed and clearly laid out.

Foxx: You express my thoughts perfectly on the experience of walking too far into the backlot. The Coke thing irritates me too. I will say, though, that I’m completely able to block out reality and buy into the lie of the studio era. I know that L.B. Mayer was a grade-A jerk and that every other studio head was either a megalomaniac or a sociopath but I can still buy the lie. Heck, so much of my beloved film, fashion and music from that era was defined by the effects of either a crippling economic breakdown or a unprecedented global war. When I find myself wishing that I lived in the era of Fedoras and Myrna Loy I have to remember that it probably kinda sucked to actually be there. Whoever wrote the line about the Studios representing Hollywood “as it never was and always will be” was spot-on. It’s a platitude, but a good one.

Thanks for the fun opportunity to talk Studios!

Shows are great, but I’d rather see more rides. That was one area where Universal Studios seems to have an edge over this park. Even the Sleeping Beauty walk through like they’re putting in Tokyo would work better than sitting through another show (put it in the Animation tour… at least give you something to do on the tour). Maybe with Fantasyland Forest coming along, we can get some decent rides in here (another idea: demolish Voyage of the Little Mermaid, and move Magic Carpets from the MK to it’s spot).

The fact is, Disney has a huge stake in ‘current’ entertainment. To me, the park tries to give a nod to the ones whose shoulders they stood on (Sunset Blvd, Hollywood Blvd) and show off what they’re doing to improve it (Pixar Place, Backlot). At least they’re not trying to wedge High School Musical into Future World (yet).

DHS isn’t a perfect representation of either of those ideas, but for me, it sure comes close.

I love the fact that you were just as confused by the large soundstage idea as I was! During my first visit in 1994, I had no idea why so many attractions were inside large and unattractive buildings.

“Setting Star Tours on a soundstage, for instance, is an enormous cop-out. I thought so the first time I went as a kid – I didn’t know what they were going for, with C-3PO’s coffee break area and bulletin board off to the side. Are we going to Endor, or are we watching people make a movie about people going to Endor?”

It wasn’t until reading about the Studios later that I understood the concept. When we visit, DHS is third on our list of theme parks due to TSMM and Star Tours. Otherwise, we would spend our time at MK and EPCOT!