Let’s talk metaverse… Disney has recently decided to run with the Magic Kingdom Universe(MKU), modeled after the Marvel Cinematic Universe(MCU), to explore some of the characters from the parks that you may not even notice are there. Disney Imagineers built stories into some of the rides and attractions across the globe and, to the trained eye, you can pick up clues, references and subtleties all over the parks.
When Disney opened the Tokyo DisneySea location, they brought some new and fresh ideas to the game. In 1987, when planning the second gate at Tokyo, the idea was to recreate the Disney-MGM Studios from Florida’s Walt Disney World location. This idea was scrapped in 1992 but there was another idea that had been scrapped from California that would bring a whole new world to Oriental Land Company’s resort.
DisneySea was meant to be built in Long Beach, California and have a nautical theme that would celebrate all tales of the sea as well as become a cornerstone for nautical travelers. When Disney acquired Wrather Corporation in September of 1987, along with the land around Disneyland(including the Disneyland Hotel), Disney acquired the attraction lease to the RMS Queen Mary and it became a beacon for ideas about Disney’s next project. However, after much planning and much more opposition, coupled with troubles at the theme park in Europe(later Disneyland Paris), the idea was cancelled giving favor to the “WestCOT project.”
Toyko DisneySea turned into a park like nothing seen before. With seven themed lands, or “ports of call”, the different locations represent all things nautical. Of all the parks, I personally want to go to this one most, because it is so unique. The Mediterranean Harbor is the entrance “port-of-call”, themed after and Italian port city. Unlike the parks we are used to, the Mediterranean Harbor does not leaf to a central hub in which to choose your destination. Designed like an a real map of the world, the different locations are based on the idea of the “seven seas.”
The themed lands are called:
• American Waterfront, representing the northeastern seaboard of the United State in the early 20th century
• Port Discovery, home to the fictional “Marine Life Institute”
• Lost River Delta, representing the ruins of an ancient Aztec pyramid
• Mermaid Lagoon, home to the underwater world of The Little Mermaid
• Arabian Coast, representing an Arabian harbor combined with an “enchanted world from 1001 Arabian Nights”
• Mysterious Island, themed after the works of Jules Verne, French novelist, poet and playwright who became famous for his work in science fiction
All of this is important I swear, as we come to the point here.
There is a Disney secret society.
This society, the Society of Explorers and Adventurers, is built on science, art, research, exploration and adventure. This society formed on August 12, 1538, at Port Paradiso, Italy. Fortress Explorations served as the headquarters to this illustrious society, founded by Renaissance and Golden Age explorers, like Leonardo De Vinci, Marco Polo and Ferdinand Magellan. The mission of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers is to collect, conserve, and curate valuable cultural and artistic artifacts from around the world and make them available to the public in an artistically pleasing and sensitive manner. It is furthermore the mission of the organization to equip and mount socio-cultural expeditions to discover, explore, chronicle and protect the artistic achievements of human society, past and present, exalted and forgotten.
Here is where it gets crazy.
There are stories written into each one of the parks around the globe based on prominent members of this secret society.
Some of these members are:
• Harrison Hightower III, owner of the Hollywood Tower Hotel,
• Lord Henry Mystic, who finds his home at Mystic Point in Peru,
• Dr. Albert Falls, owner of the Jungle Navigation Company, and
• Barnabus T. Bullion, owner of Big Thunder Mining Company.
IT. DOES. NOT. END. THERE.
This is all an elaborate story tied into the overarching theme of the Magic Kingdom Universe. Tower of Terror. Mystic Manor. Pleasure Island’s Adventure Club. Fortress Explorations. Soaring: Fantastic Flight. Disney Cruise Line’s Disney Magic. Miss Adventure Falls. Big Thunder Mountain. Skipper Canteen. Jungle Cruise. Indiana Jones. The Tropical Hideaway. The Bengal BBQ. Colonel Hathi’s Pizza Outpost. Café Hyperion. The Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. Phantom Manor. The Haunted Mansion. Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar. Aulani. Everything across the globe connected under one story.
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