Super Hero Headquarters in Walt Disney World

By Nick

I've mentioned it in the past, I grew up loving Disney, Star Wars, and Marvel comics. The fact that they are all under one roof so to speak is amazing to me.

When Marvel was acquired by Disney in 2009, I wondered how they would incorporate them into the park, since Universal Studios has had the theme park rights to many of the most popular Marvel characters since the 1990s, and, from what I've read, this contract is pretty ironclad.

Even Marvel merchandise is hard to find within the parks. But fear not true believer,
Super Hero Headquarters recently opened in Downtown Disney’s Westside in Walt Disney World to serve your need for Marvel Tee Shirts, toys, costumes, art, graphic novels, books, and buttons, among other super items! Excelsior!

Disney Kingdoms: Seekers of the Weird

By Nick

I was late to the party. Again. I didn't hear that Marvel and Disney had teamed up to bring fans graphic representations of Disney attractions until people all over Facebook started posting pics of the cover of Figment #1, which caused a lot of excitement, not only because it showcased the beloved purple dragon, it also featured the beloved Dreamfinder!

When I investigated and discovered it was actually part of a new comic book imprint called Disney Kingdoms,  I immediately looked into what, if anything, had already been published!

What I discovered was weird. Seekers of the Weird to be more precise.

I bought the graphic novel from Amazon, when it was inevitably released in that preferable format for me, and fully intended on reviewing it for Halloween time, which I thought would be appropriate considering the macabre subject matter.

Obviously, that didn't happen. But I digress.

Seekers of the Weird is based on concept art created by Imagineer and Disney Legend, Rolly Crump, for an attraction that was to be located at the end of The Haunted Mansion, a Museum of the Weird.

This attraction was so far along in the planning stages that it was featured on the Disneyland 10th Anniversary Show, with Walt Disney himself speaking to Rolly about the concept.
The show is on the Walt Disney Treasures-Disneyland USA DVD box set, and it is readily available on YouTube. As an added bonus, Marc Davis discusses concept work for the Haunted Mansion in the same segment.

As for the story in Seekers of the Weird, it is indeed weird. It reminded me very much of the odd horror comics I would read while at the doctor's or dentists office as a kid in the early 70s, or the Vertigo line of comics from DC I bought in the early to mid 90s. This isn't a bad thing, just surprising it's coming from Disney, and it may be off putting to an audience not accustomed to this coming from Disney. Not that the Haunted Mansion isn't on the dark side, come to think of it!

The artwork is good, and fits well with the story. The artists involved did a nice job paying homage to Rolly Crump's concept work.

This is an interesting read, but, to be honest, if not for the historical ties to Walt Disney era Imagineering, it would not have caught my attention. The same cannot be said for Figment, one of my favorite Disney characters, and I've already pre-ordered that graphic novel, which comes out in May.

Mostly Spoiler Free Review of Big Hero 6

By Nick

I had absolutely no idea what to expect from Big Hero 6. I knew it was based on a Marvel comic, and that was the extent of my knowledge of the source material. From the previews, I expected a cute and fun movie I'd enjoy, but I wound up really loving it.

The opening cartoon short, Feast, was worth the price of admission. It is sweet and funny, as is the feature film that follows.

To be honest, I was a little nervous in the beginning. It started off with a bit of action, but got somewhat slow, which was necessary to move the story along, but it had many of the children at our matinee show very fidgety.

But then, with the extended appearance of Baymax, the robot pictured above, the movie finds both it's true heart, as well as fun and excitement. I'm not exaggerating when I say Baymax is now one of my favorite Disney characters. Ever. I enjoyed every moment he was on screen. There are many laugh out loud moments, that had adults and children cracking up together.

The film moves very quickly when it finally gets going and there are several exciting action sequences, as well as moving moments. The animation is superb. The visuals are stunning.

There are some predictable plot points, but this didn't detract from  my enjoyment of the film at all. I wanted to see it again immediately after it ended.

Speaking of endings, stick around through the credits for a surprise cameo.

Guardians of the Galaxy Mostly Spoiler Free Review

By Nick

I love Marvel movies. I've seen them all, and own most of them, but for some reason, I've never written a review for one on this blog. I am compelled to now. Why? Because Guardians of the Galaxy is my favorite Marvel movie to date.

Ever since we saw the first trailer introducing the team, my wife and I were super excited to see this film, even though I was not at all familiar with the characters or team, despite being a comic book collector from the age of 12 to my mid 30s. It looked hilarious. It certainly helped that one of our favorite actors, John C. Reilly, the voice of Wreck-It Ralph, featured prominently in the preview.
Then the following previews showcased the action and special effects, which looked great.

I stayed away from spoilers, but did pick up the Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Prelude paperback, which gave a back story to some the characters.

So, I was prepared to laugh and to see great effects, but what I wasn't prepared for was how emotionally attached I would become to this new group of heroes.

As the movie started we were immediately emotionally invested in the team leader Peter Quill, aka Star-Lord.

The movie then kicks into high gear, and the action and fun almost never let up. Sprinkled throughout are classic songs from the 70s and plenty of cultural 80s references. The writing is clever and the jokes are rapid fire, and I'm sure I missed a couple of lines because we, along with the rest of the audience were laughing so hard. There are also more emotional moments, yes, even tear jerking moments, which never become overly sentimental, because a lighter moment follows close behind.
There is not a dull moment or scene that goes on too long.

And if you are worried you won't be able to make a connection to a CGI  wise cracking, gun wielding raccoon and a walking tree, don't worry, their scenes pack some of the biggest emotional punches and biggest laughs.

As Barbie says, there are previews that promise a lot, but don't deliver. All of the best material are shown in those brief clips. This is certainly not the case with Guardians.

Stick around after the credits, it will reward true comic book history fans, as well as cheesy 80's movie lovers.

At the end, we were left wanting more. And the movie promises more, in fact, it tells us the Guardians will be back!

We can't wait!

Disney and the Doctor

Disney and the Doctor

by Arthur E. Vassar

I love a good mash-up... especially when it involves a couple of my favorite subjects, Disney and Doctor Who. Suffice it to say I absolutely loved this mash-up of Disney Princesses as the Doctors (from artist Amy Mebberson) that came out of the 2012 New York Comic-Con.

There are so many cool details (especially Rapunzel's hair doubling for Doctor #4's scarf!) in this picture. Then there is this past years Disney Heroines as Companions (from artist Karen Hallion), of which this is one image of ten.

It set me to thinking about whether there were any connections between Disney and Doctor Who, and there are lots...

Disney Parks in the Whoniverse

There are many references in the TV series, audio dramas, and books to Disney parks. In the episode “Delta and the Bannerman”, Nostalgia Tours was bringing a party of Navarinos to Disneyland but they wound up crash landing in Wales. In the book “Winner Takes All”, the Ninth Doctor (Christopher Eccleston) told Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) that he was not impressed with Disneyland and could take her somewhere with real talking mice. In the book “Urrozdinee”, the titled theme park was EuroDisney (Disneyland Paris' original name), but in the 22^nd century. 

In the audio drama “The Nightmare Fair”, the Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) was pondering where he could go on Earth to have good time, so his companion Peri (Nicola Bryant) suggested Disneyland. In the episode “The Girl Who Waited”, the Apalapucia quarantine centers contained a replica of Disneyland on the planet Clom including the “Warpspeed Death Ride” roller coaster. In the book “Kursaal”, the Eighth Doctor (Paul McGann) described the titled planet to Samantha Jones (only appeared in written form), as a cross between Disneyland and Babylon 5.

During the 1970's, the BBC looked into filming a story at Disneyland with the Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) and the Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) but these plans were shelved due to budget issues. Even the Doctor's dog K-9 was not immune to a Disney connection. His live-action/computer animation series that started in 2010 aired on Disney XD in the UK, Ireland, Scandinavia, Poland, Italy and The Netherlands and Disney Channel CEE in Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Slovakia, Hungary and The Czech Republic.

You say you want a Doctor... tell you what I'm gonna do...

 

The Second Doctor, portrayed by Patrick Troughton, played the character of Roach (one of the pirates attacking the stockade) in the Disney live-action film Treasure Island. Jon Pertwee, who played the Third Doctor, was the in the Disney live-action film One of Our Dinosaurs is Missing as The Colonel. The Fourth Doctor (Tom Baker) was the guest host, as the Doctor, in an episode of the television series Disney Time in pre-filmed inserts introducing clips from Disney shorts and films (including Blackbeard's Ghost, Jungle Book, African Lion, etc. He also appeared as Anatole Blaylock in the Remington Steele (ABC-TV, owned by Disney) episode “Hounded Steele”.

 

The Sixth Doctor (Colin Baker, no relation to Tom) appeared as Harry George Chauvel in the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (LucasFilms, now owned by Disney) episode “Palestine, October 1917”. John Hurt who recently was unveiled as The War Doctor (from the Time Wars storyline) has many Disney connections. Chronologically they are the live-action film Night Crossing (Peter Strelzyk), The Black Cauldron (voice of the Horned King), The Tigger Movie (Narrator), Valiant (Felix), and Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Crystal Skull (Professor Oxley). The Ninth Doctor, portrayed by Christopher Eccleston, was the villain Malekith in the recent Marvel film Thor: The Dark World. Finally, David Tennant who portrayed the Tenth Doctor was the voice of Huyang in two episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

You want more... How about companions and guest stars...

James Corden (who portrayed Craig Owens) in the Doctor Who episodes “The Lodger” and “Closing Time” will be playing The Baker in the upcoming Disney film of the musical Into The Woods. Billie Piper (Rose Tyler) had an uncredited appearance in Evita (Hollywood Pictures, imprint of Disney) as a girl wanting Juan Peron's autograph. Karen Gillan (Amy Pond) is going to be playing Nebula in the upcoming Marvel film Guardians of the Galaxy. Alex Kingston (River Song) was in the ABC-TV series Flash Forward (playing Fiona Banks) as well as the film The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (Adele) for Miramax (which Disney owned after its release).

Ben Browder of Farscape and SG-1 fame did turns for Doctor Who (Isaac in the episode “A Town Called Mercy”) and Disney (Eric in an episode of Grace Under Fire (ABC). John Barrowman (Captain Jack Harkness) was the voice of The Stranger in the Marvel animated series The Super-Hero Squad Show. Bill Nighy, who portrayed Dr. Black in the episode “Vincent and the Doctor”, was Davy Jones in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, the voice of Sabre (G-Force) and Slartibartfast (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Disney film). Speaking of Hitchhiker's Guide, it was written by Douglas Adams who also wrote scripts for nine episodes of Doctor Who and script edited 20 episodes of the show.

 

 

John Cleese (of Monty Python fame) is the one with the oldest Doctor Who tie (1979), and many Disney connections. He was a visitor to an art gallery in the final part of the “City of Death” storyline. His Disney connections are as follows: The Great Muppet Caper (Neville), Mr. Toad's Wild Ride (Toad's lawyer), George of the Jungle (voice of Ape named Ape), the Narrator for Mickey's Magical Christmas, Mickey's House of Villians and House of Mouse; Around the World in 80 Days (Grizzled Sergeant, Walden Media, distributed by Disney), Valiant (Mercury), and the Narrator for the most recent Winnie the Pooh film. Lastly is Neil Gaiman, who wrote the Doctor Who episodes “The Doctor's Wife” and “Nightmare In Silver”. His 2008 novel The Graveyard Book (which won the Newbery award for Best Children's book of the year) has been optioned by Disney, and it looks to be directed by Ron Howard.

Finale...

Marvel Comics (which is owned by Disney) had the comic publishing rights to Doctor Who in Britain from 1979 to 1996, during which time they issued Doctor Who Magazine, Doctor Who Special, Doctor Who Yearbook, Doctor Who Classic Comics, and some graphic novels. This also brought a chance for the U.S. fans of the Doctor to enjoy him in various appearances throughout the Marvel Universe (making him know as The Doctor – Earth 5556).

Let me close this article by saying that I have surely missed some actors/actress contributions to this Disney/Doctor Who connection convention, for that I apologize. But one last story to share... During the 1980s and 1990s, Disney (under Michael Eisner) began to acquire other media entities (ABC and ESPN) which followed through to the early 2000 acquisition of The Muppets, and lastly Marvel and Lucasfilm. But in that earlier time frame was when we first started seeing Lucas mix with Disney in the form of Star Tours. But what if that hadn't happened... It turns out that around that time Disney actually tried to acquire the Doctor Who franchise and video library from the BBC. They had planned to have put in a walk-through exhibition of the inside of a TARDIS in Tomorrowland. Also, whenever a new Doctor was to be announced, the press conference would have been held in Tomorrowland.

Until next Time and Relative Dimension in Space!

Sources for this article include Mouse Planet (Korkis' Korner), TARDIS Data Core, Wikipedia, IMDB, YouTube (Tom Baker intros), Amy Mebberson art, Karen Hallion art

This article was originally posted on the Walt's Basement Disney Forum.