Disney Kingdoms:
Walt Disney Imagineers and a representative from Marvel joined forces to talk about the Disney Kingdoms line of comic books that bring theme park concepts to the printed page. They discussed how the Imagineers pitched the concept to Marvel’s Joe Quesada during a baseball game and how both sides (Marvel and Disney) have fun, as the books are outside their normal “work”. Jim Zub, who wrote the Figment book and is currently working on Figment 2, was on the panel and discussed how “cool” it was to be writing for Disney characters. They also discussed how comic book retailers did not order enough books as the title brought in new readers who were not familiar with the industry practice of pre-ordering books. David Gabriel from Marvel mentioned that he got a frantic call from Bob Iger’s office asking what was up with this Figment book they had heard about. As it turns out, some members of Disney’s Board of Directors were interested in the book. A few months later, David received a hand written note from Bob telling him how wonderful the book was.
Former Imagineer and current Marvel executive David Crosby discussed how starting with a comic based on the never-built Museum of the Weird allowed them flexibility in their first title as they were not beholden to an actual attraction. Speaking of Museum of the Weird, they discovered they could not call the book by that title as there is a real Museum of the Weird in Austin Texas and that is why the book is called Seekers of the Weird. They also did not call Figment Journey into Imagination as they felt it was too close to Journey into Mystery which is a classic comic book that featured Thor. Finally, the team showed us some interior pages to Figment 2 which reveal that Figment and Dreamfinder travel forward in time to what appears to be modern-day Epcot.
Sanjay’s Super Team:
Pixar showcased their latest short, Sanjay’s Super Team, which will be attached to The Good Dinosaur this fall. There is a lot to say about this short, but we don’t want to spoil it quite yet as we presume many of you will have a chance to see it at the D23 Expo. Let it just be said that the latest short from Pixar is very different than anything they have done before, while still retaining that Pixar “tear-inducing” factor.
Gravity Falls:
The crew of Disney XD’s Gravity Falls, which is very popular among the Comic-Con crowd, premiered a new trailer for the second half of season two.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HbJ2c2H1tek
Things have never been stranger in Gravity Falls after the shocking truth about Grunkle Stan’s past is revealed. Season 2 continues on July 13 as Mabel and Dipper battle enemies old and new.
Raiders, Raptors, and Rebels: Behind the Magic of ILM:
As ILM prepares to celebrate 40 years, the Science Channel will be premiering a new documentary on the special effects wizards that will air on July 19. Jeremiah is excited to share more information about this in an upcoming feature article, so stay tuned.
Floyd Norman Documentary:
The nightcap was the premiere of a new documentary on Disney Legend Floyd Norman.
Disney Infinity:
We got some time today to get some hands-on time with Disney Infinity 3.0. One thing I have been impressed with is how the Disney Infinity team has listened to the feedback from players which has resulted in improvements in each iteration of the game. I asked one of the game’s producers what changes he is most excited about and here are some highlights:
- There will be 5 play sets which will offer a great variety of game-play as each has its own unique flavor. For those that have had trouble keeping track, there are 3 Star Wars play sets (Clone Wars, Classic Trilogy, Episode VII), Inside Out, and a yet to be announced Marvel play set coming.
- Every Star Wars figure will be unlockable in all the Star Wars play-sets allowing you to play with any of your favorite Star Wars characters in all three play sets.
- Toy Box Expansion games are a new feature that allow you to play additional games in the Toy Box. Folks that pre-order from select retailers will get the Toy Box Takeover action-adventure game for free. That being said, I will also be picking up the Toy Box Speedway expansion when it is released this fall. It was so much fun.
- They also added functionality to the “sidekicks” in the Toy Box. Instead of just standing around, now you can assign them actions such as helping you defeat bad buys.
- In a great development, power discs will no longer be sold in blind packs. Now you will know exactly what you are getting, removing a major consumer frustration prior to this point.
Big Disney Infinity fans were invited to be in the audience for a special “on location” edition of Toy Box TV. There were special guests, including Inside Out co-director Ronnie Del Carmen, and general frivolity for all involved. One special treat was that they teased a new figure coming to the game. While not formally announcing anything, they strongly hinted that Ant-Man will be coming to Disney Infinity 3.0.
We will have more on Disney Infinity in the coming weeks so stay tuned.
