The Beauty of Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe

Let me start out by saying that when I use the term "beauty" to describe Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe, I'm not really talking about aesthetics. That's not to say it's not a nice looking quick service restaurant, because I honestly think it is. No, when I talk about "the beauty" of Cosmic Ray's, I am talking about its idealism.

I'm not going wax philosophical or anything like that but, I like what Cosmic Ray's and the "lounge lizard", Sonny Eclipse, represent. To me, this restaurant stands for something that I hope is not dying off in Walt Disney World: original theming and attractions. I'm sure that this quick service restaurant's theming--and Sonny Eclipse himself--owe a great deal to sci-fi movies and books (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, perhaps?) but still, this restaurant is not based directly on a Disney movie, or any movie for that matter.

Now, there's nothing wrong with basing attractions and restaurants on existing IP's (intellectual properties). One great example is the Be Our Guest restaurant in the Magic Kingdom. That restaurant is absolutely beautiful and I was really blown away by the attention to detail that was in every nook and cranny.

But looking at one of my earlier posts which focused on The Tower of Terror, I am reminded of how good and authentic an attraction can feel without being based on a movie. The Imagineers have an awesome history of creating unique experiences that don't need to emulate a movie and I'd really love to see this continue. However, given the fact that Disney is already working on an Avatar land in the Animal Kingdom and Star Wars land and Toy Story land at Hollywood Studios, I'm afraid the trend of original-themed restaurants or rides at Walt Disney World might be a thing of the past.

I can't really blame Disney if they go completely for movie-based rides and attractions. After all, they spend literally billions of dollars on the Star Wars franchise so it really won't be a surprise if they mine the Star Wars universe for an endless amount of attractions. Disney's Hollywood Studios may end up turning completely into a Star Wars/Pixar theme park and I'm sure each and every one of those attractions would contain the same level of detail that I have grown to love at Disney. 

But here's the thing: when an attraction is based on an existing IP, people go into it with certain expectations. They know what a character's voice should sound like. They know how the music should sound. They know what the setting should look like. A well done, completely original attraction does not open with any of those pre-conceived expectations so, if it's good (like The Tower of Terror) it stands on its own. It doesn't need the muscle of Star Wars, Pixar, or Marvel to back it up.

But business is business and, in order to stay relevant, I just can't see Disney investing a lot of time and effort into restaurants and attractions that don't already have a huge audience.

Hang in there Sonny Eclipse! Don't ever let the Mos Eisley Cantina Band take your place!!

What are your favorite original Walt Disney World attractions/restaurants?

Also... 40 days to Disney!!