The World of Color

 

The previous time we were at Disneyland, we thought about trying to see the World of Color, which everyone said was really good, but we did not feel like hassling with the lines and the people. There isn't really seating, and it generally starts about a half an hour after California Adventure closes, which means that you have had a whole day in the park, and then you are waiting, and standing. We had doubts about how much we would even enjoy the show.

Still, everyone tells you how great it is, so we decided this time we should make an effort. We looked into things to make it less painful, and one thing you can do is pre-order meals and get your tickets there. Normally you have to go get a FastPass by the Grizzly River Run. This is more of a crowd control issue. There is no extra charge for seeing the show, but the tickets give you an area to stand in, and that adds some order.

We ordered a picnic dinner, where our tickets came with that. I accidentally ordered the wrong thing, and had to fix it via email. Customer service was wonderful. That should be no surprise, but I was grateful for it. We picked up our dinner around six, ate while the parade went by. Our tickets were for 8:30, yellow area.

We gradually worked our way over to the area, going on a few more rides on the way. They recommend getting there early, but we did not want to be in front, so we did not end up arriving until about 8:10, and it was fine. We were finally going to see the show. And, we were unimpressed.

There are things about it that were impressive. There is definitely spectacle, and it is well set up in terms of being able to see and hear well from any position. I was impressed with the film images appearing on the water jets. I had never seen that before, and it was more effective then I would have expected film projected onto water to be. Also, they threw in some pyrotechnics, and I don't think this is generally known, but I love fire.

No, the disappointing part was the content. One of the real Disney strengths is story telling, and I was disappointed by the lack of narrative.

The program was set up as kind of a highlights reel, I guess, with no through-line between the different clips. There were dramatic moments, but they did not connect to the other moments, and that left it feeling kind of empty for me. Also, sometimes it was very illogical.

For example, the starting song goes "The World is a Carousel of Color", and so you kind of expect an emphasis on color, which would make sense - this is the World of Color! However, color isn't really hinted at again, even though you are seeing colors. They have songs that would work for that. They have a clip from Pocahontas, and you would think they would go for "Colors of the Wind", because that would be logical. No, they go with "Just Around the River Bend." Okay, this is a water show, and a river is made of water, but it doesn't really seem to fit.

They use a clip from The Lion King where there is the stampede and Mufasa dies, and while that does have dramatic sounds and excitement, so it seems like a good fit that way, but it ended with Simba going "Dad?" at his dead father's body. They didn't get back to that movie, so there was no payoff. The drama was added with no point. I can't get behind that.

My sisters actually tried to leave a little early. Actually, for safety reasons, once the lights go down for the start of the show, they ask that you stay in your places until the show is over and the lights go back up. This is logical, and I am a rule follower, but also, I had come this far, I was going to stick it out for the end. So, basically, the three of us did not care for it.

That being said, the crowd loved it, and applauded, and there were plenty of "oohs" and "ahs". Again, the spectacle was totally there, and you can be dazzled by that. I just know that they are capable of much more, and I'm surprised that they didn't go that route.

I guess if I am covering disappointing stuff first, maybe next Saturday I should write about Downtown Disney.