11 fictional locales that should be theme parks
Who’s going to indulge their inner magic nerd and go to Universal Studios’ Magical World of Harry Potter? Well, if you’re like me, you probably wish there were more theme parks based on awesome places from movies, Disney Parks not included (but even Disney missed a few movie places that would make killer parks). Here are a few key locales from movies and television that should exist in real life:
Kuzcotopia (The Emperor’s New Groove)
After watching The Emperor’s New Groove as a kid, I wished there was a real Kuzcotopia, mostly because I wanted to see how Kuzco would build it if he was still in his selfish stage. I bet it would be lavish. However, for the real world application of Kuzcotopia, the meaning of the word would have to be expanded to include the entire kingdom-this way, we could also go to the crazy diner that has everything “swimming in gravy”, the precarious bridge above the ravine, Yzma’s lair and Pacha’s house and the pool Kuzco built (along with his not-so-lavish vacation home).
The Wonka Factory (Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory)
Any way you slice it, the Wonka Factory would be a scary place. Whether you include the trippy, vomit-inducing boat ride and the creepy orange Oompa-Loompas from the ‘70s version or Willy Wonka’s page haircut from the ‘00s version, this potential theme park could be one that both scars your children while simultaneously pleasing them with complementary chocolate bars.
Wonderland (Any incarnation of Alice in Wonderland, particularly the recent version by Tim Burton)
I believe Disneyland had Wonderland for a while, so this one isn’t totally new to the theme park idea. But, with the recent resurgence of Wonderland love due to Tim Burton’s incarnation and the viral release of the 103-year old British film (the first time Wonderland had been committed to film), a new Wonderland theme park is in order. There is high potential for this park to be extremely scary and unpalatable, what with the Cheshire Cat and the creepy blue Caterpillar (the book is rumored to be based on drug trips, anyways), but the food court would be fun-guests could buy petit-fours with “Eat Me” written on them, dainty china cups of tea, and “Drink Me” vials filled with some sort of delicious, sweet liquid.
Gotham City (Batman comic books, Batman: The Animated Series, Batman movies, in particular Batman Begins and The Dark Knight)
This theme park might be more for the adults. From the first mention of the city in the Batman comics, Gotham has been a scary, seedy place. Key locales such as Arkham Asylum, the Batcave, and the hideouts of resident crazies like the Joker, the Penguin, and the Riddler would be best suited for a Halloween celebration, so the park might only be open during October nights. Thinking of running up on the Joker alone is enough to strike fear in the hearts of the most burly of men! The biggest draw, however: having Batman legend Kevin Conroy’s voice booming through speakers as the Bat himself.
Metropolis (Superman comic books, Superman:The Animated Series, various television shows)
I’m not as versed in Superman-lore as I am Batman-lore. But still, it would appeal to the journalist in me to see what The Daily Planet looks like. Other key locales: the Kent farm, Steel’s neighborhood, and Lois Lane and Clark Kent’s city residences, simply because I don’t think we’re ever given a glimpse as to where they live in Metropolis.
The Hall of Justice or The Watchtower (DC Comics, The Superfriends, The Justice League)
While you can pretend the Cincinnati Union termial is the real thing, it would be need to see a true life Hall of Justice. The Hall of Justice has the classic briefing room that was shown in almost every episode of The Superfriends, and similarly, The Watchtower has the monitor womb, a.k.a. the room J’onn J’onzz is always in during the later seasons. The Watchtower wouldn’t be in space, of course, but think of walking up to the structure itself-it’ll be like walking to those incredible and scary-looking Ripley’s Believe It or Not museums. You would be intimidated and awed at the same time. And inside, there would be cool rooms displaying “vintage” costumes, memorabilia, and, of course, the monitor womb, where you could see what was happening around the world and the universe (i.e. Gotham, Metropolis, Darkseid, perhaps). It would also be really cool if you could actually meet the Justice League (double pay for the guy who has to wear the green makeup and prosthetics to be J’onn J’onzz). Ditto all of this for The Hall of Justice. Would Darkseid make a good theme park?
Crystal Tokyo (Sailor Moon manga, Sailor Moon anime)
There really isn’t a specific locale in Crystal Tokyo, but just the idea of being able to visit the mythic Crystal Tokyo would make a lot of Sailor Moon fans’ dreams come true, especially if they actually got to meet Queen Serenity, Princess Serenity/Sailor Moon and the Sailor Scouts/Sailor Princesses (all played by actresses, of course).
The world of Dragonball Z (Dragonball Z manga, Dragonball Z anime)
While most of the show took place in deserted areas, there are a few places fans would know from the show. Capsule Corp. (especially Vegeta’s hyperbolic chamber), Kami’s Lookout, Master Roshi’s Kame House, and key planetary sites like Planet Namek, King Kai’s planet and Planet Vegeta would be great to have (“traveling” to the planets would take place in one of those stationary simulation rides that would mimic traveling into outer space). What would also be cool: seeing the Afterworld. (More like the Elysian Fields and Tartarus in Hades from Greek Mythology, this world was simply called “Hell” in the manga and unedited version of the cartoon, but it was stupidly renamed “Home for Infinite Losers” or “HFIL” by American dubbing company Funimation. It would not be called “HFIL” in theme park form).
The world of Avatar: The Last Airbender (Avatar: The Last Airbender cartoon, Nick Magazine comic strips)
Talk about labor-intensive! The builders and designers behind the Magical World of Harry Potter have spent years developing and painstakingly working the area down to the minute details. For anyone who has seen the show, think how much more work would have to go into creating the Four Kingdoms! Every kingdom in the show is lavish and detail-oriented, and there are too many important locales to list in this article. Definitely, the project crew would have to limit the locales down to a workable list, but the definite places of interest would be Katara and Sokka’s village, Princess Yue’s ice castle, Zuko’s war ship and fire palace, the island of the Kiyoshi Warriors, Boiling Rock prison, The Cave of Two Lovers, the swamp, and the remains of Aang’s air monastery.
Starfleet Academy (Star Trek television, book, and movie series)
Any self-respecting Star Trek fan (or Trekkie/Trekker, if you’re really hardcore) wants to at least see Starfleet Academy, if not go inside and actually attend class. Just like the Magical World of Harry Potter, Starfleet Academy would be a complete immersion into the world of futuristic San Francisco. There would be an initiation session that would determine what your concentration would be (Engineering, Command or Science) and actual “classes” to take. Also, the cafeteria would have out-of-this-world cuisine, like infamous Cardassian Sunrise and plomeek soup.
What movie locales would you like to see as theme parks?
