Line #35 Ride/SplashMountain


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/splash_mountain.png]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:''Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay\
3	Wonderful feelin', wonderful day!'']]
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5	''Splash Mountain'' is a Ride/DisneyThemeParks attraction that debuted at Ride/{{Disneyland}} in 1989 and Ride/WaltDisneyWorld and [[Ride/TokyoDisneyResort Tokyo Disneyland]] in 1992. The attraction is a log flume based on the animated portions of ''Film/SongOfTheSouth''.
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7	The attraction features characters from the film's animated segments, focusing on Brer Rabbit leaving his briar patch home in search of his "Laughin' Place". Brer Fox and Brer Bear seize the opportunity to finally catch him, but he manages to stay one step ahead of them - well, until they finally reach the "Laughin' Place" and Brer Fox traps Brer Rabbit in a beehive. Fortunately, Brer Rabbit outwits Brer Fox by begging him not to throw him in the briar patch, which Brer Fox does - which is our cue to hurtle out of the mountain and down a waterfall, landing in the briar patch with a large SPLASH. Many of the animatronics in the Disneyland version were [[PropRecycling recycled]] from ''Ride/AmericaSings''.
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9	In June 2020, [[https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/25/business/media/disney-splash-mountain-princess-frog.html it was announced that the attraction's Disneyland and Walt Disney World counterparts would be re-themed]] to ''WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog'', later revealed in 2022 to be named ''Tiana's Bayou Adventure''. Although the announcement coincided with renewed calls for Disney to rethink its connection to ''Song of the South'', following waves of international UsefulNotes/{{Black Lives Matter\|Movement}} protests and a greater awareness of racially problematic material, Disney stated that work on the revised attraction had begun a year earlier and an official announcement was delayed because of the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic. Disney World's ''Splash Mountain'' closed for good on January 23, 2023; and Disneyland's followed on May 31. Both versions of ''Bayou Adventure'' are expected to open in 2024, with WDW opening first on June 28.
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11	Meanwhile, the Tokyo Disneyland attraction will be unaffected for the foreseeable future.[[note]]Disney doesn't own Tokyo Disneyland; the company licenses its characters and products to the Oriental Land Company for use there, so it's up to Oriental Land if they want to do the retheming or not.[[/note]] In fact, in 2022, it began operating a new seasonal variation of the attraction, ''Splash Mountain "Get Wet MAX"'', which adds an extra water spray in the big drop into the Briar Patch from July 1 through August 31 to help stave off the hot and humid Tokyo summers.
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13	----
14	!!The attraction provides examples of:
15	* AccessoryWearingCartoonAnimal: Mr. Bluebird, just like in the movie.
16	* AdaptedOut: None of the live action characters from the film show up. In particular, Uncle Remus’ role is replaced by Br'er Frog.
17	* BearyFunny: As in the film, Br'er Bear might be [[BearsAreBadNews a villain]], but he's too stupid [[HarmlessVillain to be an actual threat]].
18	* BeeAfraid: The Laughin' Place is swarming - no pun intended - with bees, as Br'er Bear finds out the hard way.
19	* BriarPatching: Br'er Rabbit, of course, does this - and just like in the movie, Br'er Fox falls for it. This is also where the big drop that everyone knows ends up going to.
20	* CanonForeigner: A large percentage of the ride's characters do not appear in ''Song of the South''.
21	* CirclingVultures: Right before you board the lift hill to the final drop, you go under a branch where two vultures are perched. In ''Ride/AmericaSings'', these vultures told the tale of Billy the Kid. In the Walt Disney World version, the vultures wear top hats and tuxedos, just like they did in ''America Sings''.
22	* CueTheSun: If taking place during the day, the final lift hill has the riders emerging from the cave into the sun, before going over the big drop.
23	* CulturalTranslation: The Disneyland version is situated in Critter Country, which is adjacent to New Orleans Square. As a result, the music on it is arranged as orchestral big band jazz, not unlike in the original film. The Magic Kingdom version is located in Frontierland, and because of that and Florida being adjacent to Georgia, where ''Song of the South'' takes place, the music uses bluegrass compositions, with banjos, fiddles and harmonicas as the primary instruments. Tokyo's version also uses the latter compositions.
24	* GladIThoughtOfIt: In the Disneyland version, just before you hurtle down the big drop and right after Br'er Rabbit begs Br'er Fox [[BriarPatching not to throw him in the briar patch]], Br'er Fox exclaims, "Well, I'm glad I thought of THAT, 'cause that's JUST where you're goin'! Heh-heh-heh! Here you GO...!"
25	* DarkReprise: "Burrow's Lament". Only the Disneyland version uses vocals - the Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland versions use an instrumental version.
26	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: As the first one to open, the Disneyland version has some differences from the later versions, namely featuring logs that seat six guests single-file, rather than eight guests two-abreast. Disneyland's version is also faster-paced, taking two minutes less time than the Florida and Tokyo versions. The musical arrangement is quite different, too, using an orchestral big band style, as opposed to a more bluegrass style used in Florida and Japan (see CulturalTranslation above).
27	* FantasticFoxes: Br'er Fox, of course. The Disneyland version also features a fox riding a geyser in the Laughin' Place sequence and several foxes on the riverboat at the end.
28	* {{Foreshadowing}}: The sign for Br'er Fox's home is pointed directly at the first drop of the ride, where the riders can see a group in front of them drop into his "trap". This lets them know, before seeing any of the characters on the ride, that Br'er Fox is going to be a source of trouble for them.
29	* IronicEcho: The Walt Disney World version has Brer Porcupine appear right after we see Brer Rabbit for the first time, singing that Brer Rabbit's heading for "a little bit of trouble" and that it's "time to be turnin' around"[[note]]In the Disneyland version, Brer Porcupine instead appears during the "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" sequence[[/note]]. Later into the ride, among the things that the vultures before the big drop say is, "Time to be turnin' around... if only you COULD!"
30	* IWillShowYouX: Among the things the vultures right before the big drop say to us are, "So, you're lookin' for a Laughin' Place, eh? We'll show YOU a Laughin' Place!"
31	** In the Florida version, after he captures Br'er Rabbit, Br'er Fox randomly says, "Say, Br'er Rabbit, how 'bout I take you to MY Laughin' Place? Heh-heh-heh! 'Cept I don't expect you'll be doin' much laughin'! Heh-heh-heh!"
32	* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: [[AvertedTrope Averted]], the ride features several friendly reptiles. Specifically, there's...
33	** The Swamp Boys, a band of alligators, in all three versions.
34	** Br'er Terrapin and the Hitchhiking Alligator in the Disneyland version. The latter also appears in Tokyo.
35	** The geyser-riding turtles in the Laughin' Place scenes of the Walt Disney World and Tokyo Disneyland versions
36	** Br'er Gator, who despite being larger and less anthromorphic than the other gators, only goes after Br'er Fox - the attraction's villain. Earlier in the ride, Br'er Gator is also seen fishing, with Br'er Frog on his back, using that odd vantage point to lazily fish as well.
37	* ShooOutTheClowns: Br'er Bear is noticeably absent from the scene where Br'er Fox captures Br'er Rabbit and the lift hill to the big drop, although, in the WDW version, his voice can be heard just before the big drop, as he says, "Briar patch?"
38	* StickySituation: Br'er Fox traps Br'er Rabbit in a beehive rather than with a Tar Baby.
39	* StockBeehive: All over the Laughin' Place scene. One lodges itself on Br'er Bear's nose, and Br'er Fox uses another to trap Br'er Rabbit.
40	* SuddenlySpeaking: In the Walt Disney World version, Mr. Bluebird talks.
41	* VileVulture: At the beginning of the final lift hill, just before the large drop, a pair of vultures makes snide comments about your fate.
42	-->'''Vulture #1''': If you've finally found your laughing place...\
43	'''Vulture #2''': How come you aren't laughing?
44	* WickedWeasel: Averted, each version of the attraction features cheerful weasels among the critters in the Laughin' Place. In the Disneyland version, these are the same animatronics used for the weasel in ''Ride/AmericaSings''.

Context Ride / SplashMountain