One question still persists after Disney’s acquisition of Marvel: will superheroes from the House of Ideas ever start roaming around Disneyland? We do already know that the park’s stores have already been stocking Marvel merchandise, but the possibility of “cast members” in spandex still hasn’t been addressed. The LA Times’ Geoff Boucher recently caught up with Disney’s CEO Bob Iger at a “Blue Carpet premiere” at the California Adventure and raised that very question.
So answered Mr. Iger…
"We're just now considering all of our different options, so it would be premature to say when or where in the parks you would see Marvel characters -- but I think it's safe to say that you're going to see some of those great Marvel characters walking around in the future."
Having been to Disneyland recently, I can say that the cast of costumed characters is running a lot more diverse than the simple roster of “Mickey and his pals” that lil' Tommy P shook hands with. When you’ve got Jack Skellington, Stitch and the Incredibles trotting around, it really wouldn't too out of place to see Spidey, Iron Man and the Hulk joining them. == TEASER ==
However, Boucher speculates that some Marvel-themed rides would give Disneyland’s Anaheim sister, the California Adventure, an identity it needs. And that, of course, brings up the issue of what’s going to happen to Universal’s Islands of Adventure. Having gone to that park a few times, I’ve got to say that it’s always an amazing experience. The costumes are a little out-of-date - - most of them haven't been changed since 2000 - - but it still feels like you’re stepping into Marvel Universe with whole host of characters to greet you. Spider-man the Ride, the Incredible Hulk coaster, Dr. Doom’s Free Fall, Storm’s teapot-style cyclone kiddy ride, an entire arcade filled with portraits of villains ( Baron Zemo, Attuma, the Kingpin, the Red Skull and so on) and there's even a 360 degree mural depicting all the major eras and crossovers like SECRET WARS, THE INFINITY GAUNTLET and ONSLAUGHT.
Needless to say, that's a big portion of Marvel’s catalog and it'd make any superficial renovation to take out the characters next to impossible. Last I checked, they hadn't reached a decision on this but I still hope they can reach some kind of agreement that'll allow this island to stay - - I’d hate to see it go away.
-- Tom Pinchuk is the writer of UNIMAGINABLE for Arcana Studios and HYBRID BASTARDS! for Archaia. HYBRID BASTARDS! is available here and UNIMAGINABLE is available here for pre-order on Amazon.com.
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