For many Disney Parks fans, the only thing more interesting than a great ride is a bad one. In fact, our Declassified Disasters series exists to dive deep into the not-so-successful attractions, lands, and parks that have existed across Disney and Universal’s properties.
But what makes a bad attraction? What fundamental features tend to handicap a story? And for all of us at-home, “armchair Imagineers,” how do we know what mistakes to avoid? Today, we’ll offer our takeaway of tell-tale signs of a bad attraction story – foundational flaws that tend to signal that the ride isn’t going to be a masterpiece. It’s not that attractions can’t rise above these narrative hurdles (and in fact, we’ll offer exceptions for each), but when you imagine a ride that just didn’t live up to its promises, chances are that one of these giveaway goofs was involved.