When Epcot Center opened in 1982, it opened as the least Disney theme park in the world. That started to change in December of 1982 with the opening of Journey Into Imagination. The Kodak sponsored attraction was a huge hit with park guests, but one of the most important changes made to the park was the introduction of the park's unofficial mascot: Figment.
Figment the purple dragon was created by The Dreamfinder in the original Journey Into Imagination. He was a character approved by Kodak to serve as the figurehead of their new attraction. He was adopted as the unofficial mascot of Epcot and even had his own meet and greet location in the Imagination Pavilion from the mid 80s to the early 90s along with Dreamfinder.
In the late 90s, Kodak wanted to update Journey Into Imagination. The attraction was expensive to operate and the turntable used in the ride broke all the time. The attraction closed in 1998 and used the Imagination Institute theme from Honey, I Shrunk the Audience to unify the pavilion's theme.
When Journey Into Your Imagination opened in 1999, it was a huge disaster. Gone were the colorful sets, half the ride track, the upstairs Imageworks and, most importantly, Figment. Figment did appear in the attraction's queue and in the final scene, but these were nothing more than quick refrences rather than an actual role. This lead to protests of the attraction by a protest group called the "Friends of Figment" who wanted their favorite purple dragon returned to his home pavilion.
Well, the Friends of Figment got their wish in 2001 when Journey Into Your Imagination closed after only 2 years of operation. The attraction was generally hated by most theme park guests, so Disney pivoted and changed their tune on Figment as a character. In 2002, Journey Into Imagination with Figment opened, which is the current version of the attraction in operation today. Although it is still a far cry from how excellent the original attraction was, the current version brought back some of the humor and creativity that the original was known for, which was a welcome sight for fans.
That brings us to today. Journey Into Imagination with Figment has been operating for 15 years. Although it is a noted improvement over the previous version, the current attraction is still not nearly as good as the original and still one of the weakest dark rides still open today. Fans have been asking for changed to the Imagination Pavilion, especially the ride portion, but they might regret what they wished for if recent surveys being conducted by Walt Disney World are any indication. According to several other theme park sites, Disney is conducting guest surveys outside of the Imagination Pavilion asking guests if they know who Figment is and if they care about the character. The rumor is these surveys are being done to see if fans would be ok with Disney closing Journey Into Imagination and replacing it with an attraction based on an existing Disney IP such as Inside Out. For those of us who grew up coming to Epcot in it's heyday in the 80s and 90s, Figment has become such an important part of the park and Walt Disney World as a whole, that it would be a crime to remove him once again. Therefor, if you are approached by a Research Cast Member after going to the Imagination Pavilion, take the time to take the survey and give a few minutes to save this beloved icon. I would hope Disney learned the first time that removing Figment from JII is a bad idea, but with the changing landscape of the theme park industry and Walt Disney World as a whole, fans of the little purple dragon may have to fight once again.
Please use the hashtag #SaveFigment to try to keep our friend in business at the Imagination Pavilion. Leave comments at Guest Relations that you care about Figment and want him to stick around and most of all, take that survey if offered. Let's keep Figment around for generations to come. He tought us that one little spark of inspiration is at the heart of all creation, so let's get creative to #SaveFigment!
Written by Chris Coburn
Please use the hashtag #SaveFigment to try to keep our friend in business at the Imagination Pavilion. Leave comments at Guest Relations that you care about Figment and want him to stick around and most of all, take that survey if offered. Let's keep Figment around for generations to come. He tought us that one little spark of inspiration is at the heart of all creation, so let's get creative to #SaveFigment!
Written by Chris Coburn