This week, we go on a tour of the Italy Pavillion at EPCOT to see why everyone loves Via Napoli. Is it the Italian pizza ovens, the tomatoes, flour, and mozzarella imported from Italy, or is it the special water they use from a Florida spring to match the chemical makeup of the water used in Naples? Who knows, but the result is pure magic. And after our trip to Italy, Chris takes us back in time to re-experience Body Wars, a classic EPCOT ride. If you miss that ride as much as he does, here’s a chance for you to hop in the Bravo 229 and save Dr. Cynthia Lair.
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For show notes, transcript, and more details from this episode, please visit: https://scfadp.com/podcast-season-3/title-disney-news-2-28-a-review-of-via-napoli-at-epcot-and-body-wars-the-classic-epcot-ride/
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All music for this episode is available through a creative commons license. The background music for the News segment was created by Kevin Macleod: Fuzzball Parade by Kevin MacLeodLink: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5044-fuzzball-parade
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Show Notes:
Society of Explorers and Adventurers series in development for D+
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/magic-kingdom-tv-universe-in-the-works-at-disney-exclusive
Poly has begun construction of the new monorail station
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/disney-begins-rebuilding-polynesian-village-monorail-station/
DVC Villas reopening at Grand Californian May 2nd
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/disney-vacation-club-villas-reopening-may-2nd-at-disneys-grand-californian-at-disneyland-resort/
WDW adds nearly 100 more operating hours during Spring Break weeks
Source: https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/disney-world-adds-nearly-100-more-operating-hours-for-spring-break/
Job Opening listed for Hotel Services Director at Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser
Source: https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/disney-job-posting-for-hotel-services-director-at-star-wars-galactic-starcruiser/
Disney is selling Corporate Packages that include Harmonious viewing in October
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/disney-selling-corporate-packages-that-include-harmonious-viewing-in-october-2021/
EPCOT Entrance Flag Poles
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/all-entrance-flag-poles-now-installed-at-epcot/
Space 220 Restaurant is looking for an Executive Pastry Chef
Source: https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/patina-group-seeking-executive-pastry-chef-for-space-220-restaurant-in-epcot/
La Gelateria continues development in the Italy Pavilion
Source: https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/work-continues-on-la-gelateria-in-italy-pavilion-in-epcot/
Disney Junior Character Breakfast Returns to HS (Hollywood and Vine) March 22
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/disney-junior-character-breakfast-returns-to-disneys-hollywood-studios-march-22nd/
Fantasmic Testing Underway at HS
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/fantasmic-testing-underway-at-disneys-hollywood-studios/
White rhino calf joins the AK herd
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/white-rhino-calf-joins-herd-at-disneys-animal-kingdom/
Peoplemover refurb extended until April 3rd at MK
https://blogmickey.com/2021/02/tomorrowland-peoplemover-refurbishment-extended-until-april-3rd-at-magic-kingdom/
Body Wars
Sources: https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Body_Wars
Via Napoli at EPCOT: https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/epcot/via-napoli/
Transcript:
Chris 0:04
You’re listening to supercalifragilistic awesome Disney podcast. Each week, we’re going to talk about three things. In Main Street USA, we’ll talk about the latest Disney news. In Tomorrowland, we talk about things we’re looking forward to. And World Showcase is dedicated to our favorite Disney adventures. So let’s get this show on the road. Por Favor Mantengase Alejado De Las Puertas.
Hello out there. podcast family. Welcome to this week’s show. My name is Chris. And I’m Kelly. We’re so excited. We’ve got a lot to do today. But first and foremost, I think we need to acknowledge that this is the first time you have replayed a set of ears. Yeah, and
Kelli 0:59
I’m doing it on purpose. Yeah,
Chris 1:01
these are. This is an intentional replay of yours. I love trying to figure out what it’s all about. These are obviously your your Italy pizza ears in Italy. Pizza gingham bow.
Kelli 1:11
Yes. And there they are my favorite ears. They are the most comfortable ears I own and when I put them back on today, I thought you know what, I’m ready to say it. These are my favorite ears. Wow,
Chris 1:19
what commitment from you?
Kelli 1:21
I’m ready to say it.
Chris 1:22
That’s a strong, strong I know it is with your commitment issues and all that.
Unknown Speaker 1:27
We’ve always
Chris 1:30
just, you know, you got more than Hey, my my favorite thing every week is to see where the downloads are coming in from this week. We saw folks in Bixby Oklahoma. Oh, which I think is probably the same people that download it from like Forest Hills, Oklahoma or there’s another place out there like close right next door. Okay, I think they work in one of those two towns, but whatever.
Unknown Speaker 1:55
I don’t care. Hey,
Chris 1:56
I love them. I love them two times as much. West Milford, New Jersey. Forest Hills, Michigan, and Valencia Spain on the
Kelli 2:07
Valencia is that where the oranges come? I knew you were gonna ask that.
Chris 2:09
The oranges come from Florida but
Kelli 2:12
Valencia oranges come from Florida.
Chris 2:14
I think that they probably let’s just say they get their name from Valencia Spain.
Kelli 2:19
I want to say that they come from Valencia Spain. Then
Chris 2:22
let’s say that then. Let’s say that when we buy Valencia oranges they come from Spain from Spain from the east coast of Spain.
Kelli 2:29
So exciting.
Chris 2:31
So speaking of exciting What a wonderful segue. This week, March the first Yes, we launch our next contest giveaway giveaway celebrating the launch of Ryan and the last dragon which comes out Friday.
Kelli 2:48
Yes, so be on the lookout for that launch video on YouTube. We’ve got an awesome loungefly a board game some cool drink ware and stuffy so we’re pumped about it.
Chris 3:00
Be on the lookout for that cannot wait. Yeah, the last one was so much fun.
Kelli 3:04
It was I know I’m excited about this one. All right, so
Chris 3:07
let’s jump into Main Street. Okay, so pretty excited about the fact that Disney plus is very early stages to launch a a new cinematic or TV universe not unlike what people are doing Marvel Universe and DC Universe and all that. So this is all around the characters of the Magic Kingdom and maybe disney world as a whole This is a society of explorers and adventurers
Unknown Speaker 3:38
Oh yeah, you’re
Kelli 3:39
gonna love that. Yes, I
Chris 3:41
am people so imagine like stories around the Jungle Cruise captain. Like in this alternate reality the Jungle Cruise captain is a real person right? The prospector for the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad was a real character. Right right. So really excited to see what He neither of those are actual storylines. Right now it’s too early for all that but that’s sort of the idea. That’ll be fine. Develop a whole series around the SEA people that’ll be fine too. super exciting. resort news, the Polynesian has begun construction of their new monorail station. Okay, so
Unknown Speaker 4:20
that’s exciting.
Chris 4:21
They’ve cleared out the cavity. That is exciting. DVC villas in California Grande, Californian are set to open up on May the 2nd. So folks, maybe that’s a light at the end of this COVID tunnel, especially for California.
Kelli 4:35
They have suffered.
Chris 4:39
And people have really, really, really suffered and I saw some news that the California Adventure Disney’s California Adventure is opening up some parts also again to to like dining and things like that.
Kelli 4:51
Okay, so alright, fingers crossed for y’all.
Chris 4:53
Walt Disney World has added nearly 100 more operating hours during the spring break weeks in the coming weeks. weeks so even though nobody’s
Kelli 5:01
getting spring break, I like to point that out. I’m not bitter or anything. Yes,
Chris 5:07
yeah, I can. I cannot hear it in your voice.
Kelli 5:10
I am not bitter but there is zero spring breaks at the college level. We’re getting wellness days. Okay, well, not the same day. Well, I mean, everything’s asynchronous. What even is a wellness day?
Chris 5:23
This is a 10 minute segment. Are you ready? Can we leave early? I’ve
Unknown Speaker 5:29
been waiting to express myself.
Chris 5:32
Hey, there is a job opening now listed for a hotel services director at the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser.
Kelli 5:42
Now, wouldn’t that be a fun job? I
Chris 5:45
think that might be a fun job.
Kelli 5:47
Wow. All you Hospitality Management people there for you. That’s fantastic.
Chris 5:55
That’s a cool job. That would be really Wow,
Kelli 5:58
that’s awesome.
Chris 5:59
Disney is selling corporate packages that include harmonious viewing for October the 1st
Kelli 6:05
Oh, so that’s gonna be using those barges.
Chris 6:11
Yes. Speaking of barges, the the big huge centerpiece has now been rolled out. It’s huge. Its enormous. It’s six storys tall. It’s a big huge ring. I think if you walk through the ring, it works like a Stargate and sends you to another world. I
Kelli 6:28
think that’s how it works. What does it say? It’s supposed to be the world’s biggest water curtain.
Chris 6:33
Yeah, something like that.
Kelli 6:35
Whatever means I think it’s like when they shine that they project the pictures onto the water.
You called it something else and I really liked your word for it too. I remember when you did the fantasmic show. I don’t remember what you called it a fan. And no, I don’t care what you call it. But whatever your term was, was great. Okay, I think Disney calls it a water curtain. Yeah, they
Chris 6:54
do. They call it a water curtain. Oh, Zack Ridley really is pushing it out. I’m ready to see what apparently people are. are bothered that it’s not perfectly centered, depending on like, where you’re looking at it like from future world? Yeah, that would that would bother you too. Yeah. Well, Zack says or Who was it? No. One of the reporters I follow on on Instagram and Twitter said you know, just be be really patient. That whole world celebration area is going to move everything in the future world area which will become world celebration to the left a little bit and so whenever they finish that the the ring should be centered at that point. So they’re moving futureworld not the ring. Right. But it looks amazing. This This show is gonna be redonkulous they installed some new flag poles around the entrance that are either I don’t know what the cut I think they’re gonna have logo flags. Maybe I don’t know where they’re gonna have there, but just still sprucing up the entrance for Epcot Space 220 is looking for an executive pastry chef and don’t even
Kelli 8:04
that restaurants never opening there is
Chris 8:06
just rumors suggesting March or April. Oh wait,
Kelli 8:09
you are April No way. Just
Chris 8:12
wait. Just when? What later news man wait. You talk about being teased. A new the gelateria in Italy is still under construction. So I think that Venice, Italy being modeled after Venice. Having a legit gelateria is a good thing since that’s what we ate half of our time. We agree. Disney Jr. Character breakfast is returning to the Hollywood and Vine Hollywood Studios. handyman. Looks like them. vampirina might be there now.
Unknown Speaker 8:42
That is
Chris 8:44
Fantasmic testing is underway at Hollywood Studios. That I am about that. Ranger remember who Ranger is?
Kelli 8:52
Yes, it’s the rhinoceros
Chris 8:55
baby Rhino has officially joined the herd on the Savanna less.
Kelli 9:00
I think I saw some pictures of him playing in the mud. And he met some of the rest of the folks.
Chris 9:05
Yes, that’s right. Rest of the her
Kelli 9:08
nose to nose with some other nose. It was presh I saw that little Ranger
Chris 9:15
on all right. Last thing speaking of being teased, the Peoplemover has been pushed.
Kelli 9:21
All that is holy.
Chris 9:24
They’re still refurbishing it. So all those folks that were getting trained last week. Oh, psych. I think that was the official letter they got after training like like,
Unknown Speaker 9:33
Oh my goodness.
Unknown Speaker 9:36
So yeah.
Kelli 9:36
What in the world?
Chris 9:38
I don’t know. That’s the thing. It’s like nobody knows what could be wrong with this thing.
Kelli 9:42
It’s not that the people mover that is causing this many issues.
Chris 9:47
Okay. Are you ready for a Minnie Take segment?
Kelli 9:52
I think they’re I think they are pushing the Peoplemover back just in anticipation for October. The
Chris 9:58
first for the 15th literally had been down a year and a half. But
Kelli 10:02
yeah, I think every month they’re gonna say we’re gonna launch it next month. psych. Well, we’re trying it again psych over launch next month psych all the cars ran into each other.
Chris 10:10
I think the fact that we keep using psych over and over again is a real window into our age.
Kelli 10:16
We are hip, honey. Very hip and on fleek. Not
Chris 10:21
with this. Just give it Okay, Minnie Take are you sure you ready? Yes. what’s right for us this week? Best bathroom at the Magic Kingdom?
Unknown Speaker 10:34
Ah,
Kelli 10:36
no. Isn’t that an interesting question? Best bathroom at the Magic Kingdom? Okay, well, I mean, I’m gonna say that it has to be the one in the corner, near Space Mountain.
Chris 10:54
Okay, they’re behind the stage that
Kelli 10:56
yes, behind the stage, right? Because they don’t use that stage. You know, a lot. It’s not being used every day. But even if it is, like people don’t usually go to the right behind the stage. And so I think that’s the least used. But what makes it the best. I mean, it’s clean, right when I know it’s clean. But what I think makes it the best is the noise level. There’s something back there about the trees that really make it seem quiet quiet back there. Like you could take a phone call if you needed to.
Chris 11:26
Not that you’re speaking from experience that I ever have. Yeah, I hear you. I think that it’s less so right now because of the COVID line management goes right through that like goes right by they’re now they’ve stretched that line for Space Mountain out that goes right by their but typically i think i think this is a tricky one because people are just going to be tempted to say the Rapunzel bathroom. But knew Oh, man, there’s just too many people want to
Kelli 11:54
not use the restroom in Fantasyland, any of them in any of the fantasy stories. No, no, I mean Gaston’s is maybe better than some of the others. But you’re talking about Rapunzel is right across from It’s a small world and you’re paying people been in that line for Peter Pan for two and a half hours and it’s
Chris 12:11
always crazy that he writes small it’s a it’s a prettiest prettiest bathroom at Walt Disney World but it’s not the best bathroom.
Kelli 12:18
And by best we’re talking cleanliness and and yeah
Chris 12:20
and rarely used.
Kelli 12:22
Yes. Clean and rarely used is what we’re going for you walk into that Rapunzel bathroom and that is the only birth control you’ll ever need. Yeah,
Chris 12:30
I’m gonna go with I believe there’s a bathroom to sort of to the right of Tomorrowland Terrace that I think gets very seldom used.
Kelli 12:40
You know what, I think you’re right.
Chris 12:42
And so while I also were over near the purple wall, yeah. No. Yeah. You’re saying there is one over there? Yes. I’m talking about I’m talking about the one between for Okay, between Tomorrowland terrace and like the plaza restaurant?
Kelli 12:56
Yeah. No, I think you’re right. Yeah.
Chris 12:59
I don’t think anybody ever uses that.
Kelli 13:00
Yeah, cuz it’s fairly early when you come in the park. And if especially if Tomorrowland terrace is not open, not open, right.
Chris 13:07
It’s rarely ever open. I
Kelli 13:08
would say if Tomorrowland terrace is open, I wouldn’t because again, you don’t want to eat in your you don’t use the restroom near food.
Chris 13:18
All right, well, on that note. On that note,
Kelli 13:22
our little Minnie Take bathroom segments
Chris 13:24
have got to be out of control. So I think you’re up for tomorrow. Are you Oh, you’re excited. I’m ready.
Kelli 13:34
So last night, we were watching Stanley eat cheese on Searching for Italy. And it made me want to hop on a plane to Naples and eat my weight in pizza with fresh tomatoes in San Marzano tomatoes.
Chris 13:48
It’s a good show we
Kelli 13:48
recommend it so that’s what we’re doing today. Oh brick go into via Napoli.
Chris 13:53
Oh, right. can look at you calling it Napoli.
Kelli 13:56
I practice it for me several times. And I wrote the pronunciation out in my notes. So we normally go to Tutto Italia in the Italian pavilion out or like we eat or drink our way around the world showcase. And so when we get around to Italy, like I just have no space for pizza. You mean like no, but it always looks really Oh my goodness. It’s got amazing reviews. So first of all, it’s a fairly unassuming entrance at the very back of the Italy Pavilion. And it’s run by the patina restaurant group which runs to Tutto Italia and oh my goodness, maybe
Chris 14:32
Space 220.
Kelli 14:35
In 2020 it was voted best theme park restaurant by the Orlando Sentinel. Wow. And they also operate pizza restaurants in Disneyland and in New York. Oh, so patina group knows what they’re doing right. We’re big fans of Patina Group.
Chris 14:50
We are we are very big fan. Right.
Kelli 14:52
So here’s the description from the website. Enjoy traditional Neapolitan pizza delivered right to your table from cheesy quattro formaggio To sausage top. The thin crust pizzas are made with fresh mozzarella cheese, San Marzano tomatoes and real Caputo flour imported from Southern Italy. Water for the dough is even sourced from a spring similar to Ellie’s Campania region. pizzas are then cooked in wood burning ovens named after the three active volcanoes in Italy, Mount Etna Mount Vesuvius and Stromboli to ensure every detail is perfect famed restaurant tour Nick Valenti spent time in Naples studying the art of dough crust sauce and oven temperatures at the famous pizzerias Dhamma show and tree and on before creating the menu at the Napoli restaurant a pizzeria
Chris 15:44
so there’s so much there.
Kelli 15:46
So details First of all, the water is a big deal. Okay the team at via Napoli sought out to find water wells in Florida, similar to those in Naples. Consequently Via Napoli uses water nearly identical to the chemical composition to the water of Naples, Italy. Wow. This produces the best density for the dough which in turn makes the pizza better.
Chris 16:08
Well that the good dough does make a pizza better.
Kelli 16:11
Right then you’ve got the pizza ovens named after the active volcano I
Chris 16:14
cannot believe I think the fact of the podcast is that there’s a volcano named Stromboli
Kelli 16:20
but so these pizza ovens look like somebody’s face and you’re putting the pizza in there. I’ve
Chris 16:25
seen that.
Kelli 16:29
So I’m gonna read you two reviews. This first one is from Disney tourist blog who we love and they’ve done several reviews on via Napoli and they say without question via Napoli serves the best pizza pies in all of Walt Disney World. We take that a step further proclaiming it one of the few places we’ve ever dined serving truly authentic Neapolitan pizza, right down to the imported ingredients, wood burning ovens and even the water sourcing. Simply put via Napoli is one of the best world showcase restaurants and a great value if you split a pizza. It’s a really fun restaurant and it lives up to the hype. Wow. Now this is after they spent three or four paragraphs talking about how the service is never good. Oh yes, they say that you’re getting truly European service where the waiter like shows up gives you food or water and then disappears. They’re like so As Americans, we don’t care for that service. But it is truly a European experience.
Chris 17:23
Well, that is true. That’s true. But it’s not a very Disney experience. It’s
Kelli 17:28
not. But apparently the food makes up for it. Well, Disney food blog says seriously, the pizza here is fantastic. It’s our favorite in Disney World and offers a great value to boot. So these are two websites that we look at regularly that are given it for sure. Hard, you know, five stars. So I’m going to run through some of the menu items. Okay, now some of these are not available during COVID. Obviously, they have a pared down menu Womp womp. But I’m going to go through what they what they normally have or what they had in 2019. Let’s all hope they bring back. Sure. First of all, I’m going to start with three words. Fried risotto balls. Yeah,
Chris 18:07
those are strong Big Three strong words.
Kelli 18:10
Three strong words. This is called arancini. They only offered these pre COVID they do not have them right now. Which is so sad. It’s so sad cimarola this is this is fried stuffed artichokes they also have calamari which is to die for mozzarella capris a which you know I always love and prosciutto e Malone for appetizers. I’m sorry if I’m pronouncing that incorrectly. This is prosciutto and cantaloupe. And for the kids, you can get fried mozzarella bites. With like
Chris 18:48
little kids or the kids at heart maybe. I just
Kelli 18:50
get a kid. Like a couple of kids size things. They have several different salads and they also had a soup pre COVID so you remember we went on our honeymoon to Italy? Yeah, it’s like antipasti antipasti first course first course and the pasta course and then the main course right in the desert. Okay, so similar to that they’ve got a pasta course on the menu, okay. And it’s what you would expect. Spaghetti and meatballs. Spinach ravioli cheese tortellini. sauteed with pancetta, sweet peas and served in a parmesan cream sauce. Really good looking penne would look like an amazing lasagna, fettuccine and a great linguini. Okay, and a lot of these you can get with whatever meat you would like or whatever protein you would like. Okay, right. So shrimp chicken.
Chris 19:39
This is not just a pizzeria.
Kelli 19:40
What have you known? For the second course? They’ve got things like eggplant parm, branzino pork loin, chicken marsala is steak, and chicken parm, right. So all of the traditional Italian, you know, entrees that you would expect. But based on every you know, really review that I read. The real star is the pizza. Oh sure. Right. It’s a thin crispy crust with what looks like just a really awesome doughey edge. You know, I love the edges. I
Chris 20:11
know so
Kelli 20:12
many people eat the pizza and never eat the edge. I’m looking at you. And yes, it is not always you don’t you’ll leave the edge and I think what an epic waste of love the edge, especially if it has like a bubble. You know, like a burnt
Chris 20:29
burn bubble.
Kelli 20:32
I never leave the edge of a pizza and people who’d leave the edge I cannot relate to. So it’s got that kind of an edge. Okay, that if you leave it, it’s just sacrilege like you know it just got to bubbled up with the heat in that oven. Right? Why would you leave that? So it’s wood fired and authentic. It comes in 10 inch 20 inch or half a meter.
Unknown Speaker 21:01
Which I love
Kelli 21:04
the Margarita is to die for naturally right if you can’t make a margarita pizza Via Napoli then just go out of business. Where’s that? Napoli You can also build your own but supposedly the specials are where it’s at, like the ones that they’ve built for you. So I’m going to run through a couple first of all the Quattro formaggi this is for cheese’s Of course I need
Chris 21:29
to say more than now you don’t perfect
Kelli 21:31
Carciofi, this is white pizza with artichoke fontina, mozzarella and truffle oil. Now people say that this might sound like an odd combination, but it is apparently addictively good. Is that truffle oil artichoke? just puts it right over the edge. Prociutto y Melon. Again, this is going to be your white pizza with fontina cheese mozzarella, prosciutto cantaloupe and arrugula. Which sounds great. I mean, I’m not gonna eat the prosciutto but I’m totally for cantaloupe on a pizza. I mean, I’ve had pineapple on a pizza.
Unknown Speaker 22:05
Okay, okay,
Kelli 22:07
I can step out there. The content tomato sauce, mozzarella and Italian spicy sausage. They also have a pepperoni so this isn’t pepperoni. This is just this is Italian spicy sausage. Alright. broccolini white pizza with cherry tomatoes mozzarella porchetta robiola which is another white cheese and broccoli Rob. I love a white pizza
and they have so many white pizzas. That’s what I love the most like almost all their specials are white pizza, San Gennaro white pizza, mozzarella, fontina sweet Italian sausage, hot peppers, onions and cherry tomatoes. So almost all of their specials are white pizzas, which I think sells it for desserts. They’ve got tiramisu, cannoli pistachio cheesecake, and torta della nona which is grandmother cake which they also serve Tutto Italia, we’ve had it It’s fantastic. They have a fairly extensive drink menu, wine specials wine flights. They also have these really cool fruit juice coolers.
Right and you can get like a blood orange fruit juice cooler. That is supposed to be amazing. But then they have other fun like martinis you know we’ve got some really fun drinks tutto Italia to same kind of thing like really fun chocolate or coffee martinis and and things like that so
Chris 23:26
so don’t write Via Napoli off as like the other lesser restaurant in Italy. This is a legit stop in place.
Kelli 23:34
It’s supposedly the best pizza at Walt Disney World,
Chris 23:37
maybe all of Florida.
Kelli 23:39
What an epic fail that we’ve never been.
Chris 23:40
I gotta tell you. After watching the CNN thing I’m wondering about the San Marzano tomatoes like they said they import them and they say they import them. Yeah,
Kelli 23:49
so that is the only place you can get the San Marzano tomatoes Stanley Tucci told us that.
Chris 23:55
He says,
Kelli 23:56
oh, okay, well
Chris 23:58
see pretty awesome job. We will see you on the world showcase. So clearly, I’m going through some sort of midlife thing. We’ve got a lot of change going on in our life. And I realized that my last World showcase was Captain EO something that doesn’t exist anymore, but I love from my childhood. Well, welcome to this week’s episode of body wars, which also doesn’t exist anymore. And I loved it.
Kelli 24:24
You’re going through a thing, honey, but it wasn’t working out. So
Chris 24:29
body wars. If you don’t know, I’m sure many of you do know, it just shut down in 2007. So it hasn’t been that long. I know. It feels like it’s been a lot longer. It’s been a long 14 years since since as but so so body wars. So what was Do you remember body wars?
Kelli 24:47
You were inside somebody’s body? Yeah. fighting off of an infection. Yeah,
Chris 24:53
right. That was the idea or you could write right? So body Wars was a motion simulator ride. The wonders of life pavilion at Epcot, the premise of the attraction had guests shrunk down to survey a mission carried out inside the human body, did you ever see the science fiction movie. It’s like a 1966 movie called Fantastic Voyage.
Kelli 25:16
No, but isn’t that’s based off of a Jules Verne
Chris 25:18
Novel. I think maybe I don’t know. I need to learn more about Jules Verne clearly, yeah,
Kelli 25:23
I’ve got my reading list for this year.
Chris 25:25
I love that movie. it was one of the movies I had on repeat when I was growing up with a VCR you know, oh, bless it. And, and this this threw me straight back to that because this is like living in a simulator that movie.
Okay. And so they use the same simulation technology that they use for Star Tours. Okay. And Star Wars had come out in Disneyland a couple years prior to this opening up in Epcot. Okay. The video portion of the simulation like what you’re seeing everything is directed by Leonard Nimoy. Oh, Dr. Spock himself that’s crazy
Yeah, sure. He wasn’t actually a doctor. So the wonders of life pavilion which is closed down. This is the big dome that you see over beside mission space, which will be the future home of the play pavilion, which seems super exciting. That dome opened up in October of 1989 and closed on January 1 2007. Back then it housed body wars and cranium command as the main attractions but it would also host nine other attractions, all dealing with aspects of the human body. I got coached In fact, Coach’s Corner on how to improve my tennis serve by Chris Evert. Oh, and you could also Gary Carter was in New York Mets catcher he would teach you how to have a nice baseball swing, and Nancy Lopez Hall of Fame LPGA golfer would teach you about your golf swing. Nice. It was pretty cool technology back then. The original idea was actually to do an omni-mover style ride. The idea for this type of pavilion was around before they ever built Epcot when they were planning for Epcot. But they couldn’t find a title sponsor. Remember all those future world pavilions had title sponsors? Oh, that’s right. It was GE in the world of energy, or Yes, Chevy or whoever for the world of motion, right. They couldn’t find a title sponsor for this health and wellness pavilion, they always wanted to build. And finally in the mid 80s, MetLife, came on and said that they would help to fund this pavilion, and they continued to fund it up till 2001. So so back then they didn’t have the same technology they had later. So they this was going to be an omni-mover style ride, sort of like the cars that you would find in figment and your journey into imagination or
Kelli 27:45
Okay, or
Chris 27:46
The Haunted Mansion or something like that, right. So the idea was that you would be in this Omni mover style ride and you would go through these oversized sets of where you were going through the human body. There were plans for like a 35 foot tall heart. Wow. Okay, so, but then, over the years, Star Tours, the technology for Star Wars sort of came out and they were like, Hey, we can do body wars even more. Yeah, right. To build a heart. You wouldn’t have to build a 35 foot tall
Kelli 28:16
heart right?
Unknown Speaker 28:17
How lucky.
Chris 28:21
So, so let’s talk about the ride itself. You go into this big dome. I love this thing. This was I was so sad when they shut this thing down. I loved it so much. So you would you were that the idea? Everything’s a story, right, is that you are part of an observation team recruited by MET, the Miniaturised Exploration Technologies group. Okay. And you would as you were waiting in the queue, you would there was video monitors up above you that were telling you what you were gonna do and how this was all gonna work. Yeah. All right. And while you were walking in line, you would pass through these light things that were supposedly decontamination scans to decontaminate the body right? You would board a special ship the Bravo 229 I’m sure 229 means something somewhere in this you know in Disney lore, piloted by Captain Braddock with plans to be shrunk down travel into the human body and pick up Dr. Cynthia Layer. She’s already inside of a patient’s body monitoring how white blood cells attack a splinter in this patient Ah, okay. Okay. And so then you board the ship. You view everything through the front window except for one little monitor where the captain can speak directly to you think of the Star Tours environment. It’s exactly like that where there’s a there’s a you’re looking through the front window, but it’s really a simulated film. Captain Braddock will speak to us through the side monitor and all that our probe vehicles moved to the ministration chamber where we’re shrunk by a particle reducer I’m using air quotes. And we are shot. After some fancy lights were shot right down into the patient’s body. And immediately we see all these white blood cells fly past us on their way to the infection site where this splinter is okay. Once you’re inside the body, like the simulation really is cool, you literally feel like you’re like your vessel is floating in some sort of a fluid now. So we arrive at the splinter in like this looks like a big huge log right sticking inside this body. We arrive at the splinter we see Dr. Layer swimming around taking readings, and suddenly, like the little piece of splinter that she’s holding on to breaks off and she’s pulled into a capillary Oh, no. Right? a blood vessel there, that starts to zoom her around the patient’s body. So Captain Braddock makes an unauthorized decision to follow her. And now we’re off on a whirlwind high paced trip through the body, ourselves trying to rescue Dr. layer, okay, okay. We travel through the right ventricle of the heart and into the lungs, where a white blood cell is attacking Dr. layer. Right. So what’s cool is that when you would travel through I mean, obviously, we’re zooming in, you know, in the simulators making us feel that, but when you go to the heart, you would literally, And once we get this on YouTube, you’ll see this better, but you would literally feel yourself like as the hearts beating, like going back and forth. As the hearts beating and like when the heart would shoot you out. You would feel that being zoomed out. Yeah, well, we’re this little white blood cells, like there’s got tentacles, he’s trying to grab dr layer and whatever. We shoot him with lasers. I’m sure it is FDA approved lasers. Sure. But he’s obliterated, he’s gone. she climbs into the ship. And now we got to get out of here. But our ship is low on power now. And so how are we going to get a power source to re-materialize or whatever? Well, she says (carbohydrates) get to the brain, of course, obviously get to the brain. Because the brain runs on electrical energy. So it’s not carbohydrate, it’s not carbs, we do not need to carb up. Okay. So good guess. So we jump into another blood vessel that is now going to take us through the heart again, this time, I think it’s the left atrium or something. And this shoots us out, he would go to the same sort of feel of being in the heart shoots us out, we go to the brain, where we’re sort of floating around in the fluid around the brain. And you can see all these electrical currents, you got electricity running around in the brain, we touch a neuron. And that gives us gives our ship power again. And we now have the power to re unshrink ourselves, I guess. And we get zapped back to where we started from outside the body. a whirlwind adventure to seriously to save Dr. Cynthia layer.
Kelli 33:00
Really don’t remember that.
Chris 33:01
Oh my gosh, I loved it so much
Kelli 33:03
thought I did until you described it. And now I realize you’re just
Chris 33:06
swimming around inside the body. And it’s just I loved it so much. One of the coolest things to me is that Tim Matheson played doctor or played Captain Braddock, he was our pilot. You know who Tim Matheson is?
Kelli 33:22
I don’t?
Chris 33:23
Well, most people are gonna know him as otter from Animal House. But you dear would know him as President. Vice President hoynes from West Wing. Oh, wow, that
Kelli 33:35
such a superpower that
Chris 33:37
you have. Yeah. He was our captain on the ship. Dr. Cynthia layer was played by Elizabeth Shue. Do you know who that is?
Kelli 33:44
The name sounds really familiar.
Chris 33:46
Yeah, she was the girlfriend and Karate Kid and a million other things. But you would know her as the girl that Val Kilmer falls in love with in the movie The Saint?
Ah, yes. All right. Yeah.
Kelli 33:59
You don’t just know actors and actresses. You know where I saw? Yeah.
Chris 34:03
And where you would know they were out not just where I saw wherever I just, I mean, these people were famous then. Right? And I loved that, like these people signed on. And Leonard Nimoy signed on to video to direct the thing. And I just loved that ride. It brought me such happiness to see the sign up on the wall and wonders of life. It was this cool sign.
Kelli 34:24
Yeah, loved it. I don’t remember it at all. Now that you mentioned him, I
Chris 34:27
think I’m gonna watch Fantastic Voyage tonight.
Kelli 34:31
Got all of Jules Verne’s novels on my list for this year. I want to go back and
Chris 34:35
watch. That’s a different one. I think it is a definitely a Jules Verne novel, I believe, but okay, the one I’m thinking, okay. All right, folks. That’s this week’s show. We hope you enjoyed it. As always, if you did, please do us a favor, run out to iTunes. Give us a rating. Give us a review. And that really helps us bring more people to the show.
Kelli 34:57
It absolutely does. And if you’re looking for more things Disney please visit SCFADP.com. That’s s for super, C for Cali F for Fragallistic A for awesome D for Disney P for podcast. We’ve got a bonus episode this week. So excited. the Flower and Garden Festival. food. So we’re gonna do our virtual walk around and talk about the menus we’re excited about.
Chris 35:20
That’s right. Join us for that. Join us also on all the socials, instagram, twitter, facebook at SCFADP, go out there and subscribe to our YouTube page supercalifragilistic awesome Disney podcast. All the conversations online, the more the merrier.
Kelli 35:39
Yes, we would love to hear from you.
Chris 35:40
And with that, we hope to see you real soon.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
