Mouse House Weekly

Mickey's Toontown opened in Disneyland on January 24, 1993. The area was inspired by Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and resembled a set from a Max Fleischer cartoon. The buildings were, and still are, stylized and colorful. There are several attractions involving classic cartoon characters, such as the houses of Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

The fictional backstory given for Mickey's Toontown is that it was a hidden Toon suburb that Mickey Mouse had moved to in 1930 to keep in touch with his humble Midwestern roots, with his friends following soon after. When Walt Disney was looking for a location to build Disneyland, Mickey pointed him towards a large orange grove nearby for him to build his park. After the park opened, Mickey and his friends would travel between their Toontown homes and Disneyland to meet the countless guests that visited the park, before eventually deciding to open their hometown to the public later in the 90s, digging a tunnel through the berm.

On November 15, 2021, it was announced Mickey's Toontown would be closed until 2023 as part of an "ambitious reimagining project". The new Toontown would include the exciting new ride Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway. Additionally, the long-closed Chip and Dale's Treehouse was removed, and a new park space, CenTOONial Park, was created adjacent to Goofy's Playhouse near the land's entrance. CenTOONial is now home to a new fountain of Mickey and Minnie and a Dreaming Tree inspired by the one Walt Disney sat under as a child in Marceline, Missouri. Other play areas in the reimagined land include Goofy's "How to Play" Yard surrounding Goofy's Playhouse and the Donald's Duck Pond splash pad at Donald's Boat.

This new and exciting Mickey's Toontown opened on March 19th, 2023 and Rachel and Jeremiah were there to take in the new imagined themed area. In this podcast they review the new and improved family friendly area. They share details of their experience exploring an area of the park that they normally do not spend time in. This informative podcast should be very welcoming to anyone coming to visit.

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Star Wars is a very action-packed and fantastical series, so it was about time Disney produced an anime series with stories that take place in the Star Wars universe. Blake and JJ, in light of the second volume of Star Wars: Visions coming out this year, are here to discuss the first volume of the anthology series, discussing each episode individually, and discussing the series as a whole and its quality. They've also ranked each individual episode, talking about each episode based off of their placement in the rankings. Blake and JJ discuss their experience and opinion on anime in the past, the art styles and their different varieties, and the stories and characters in each episode, and how memorable and well-written they are. They also discuss what they've done Disney lately, which include the Oscars and the most recent MCU movie. If you love Star Wars, anime, or even both, this is the show for you, so tune in and hear their thoughts!

Have you seen the first volume of Star Wars: Visions? What are your thoughts on it, and do you think it deserves more volumes? Let us know, and connect with us at Mouse House Weekly, we'd love to discuss with you!

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Toy Story 5 is now in production, and that announcement got us thinking...which Toy Story toy is the best? Put differently, if we found ourselves at a garage sale at Andy's house and all of the Toy Story toys were in a box, which toy would we choose? It is March madness season, so that means we had to settle this question with a bracket! Who will come out victorious? We're quite certain it's not who you think! Grab your travel buddy, fill out your own bracket via the link below, and let's find out which toy reigns supreme! (Is that a Zurg hint???)

Download your bracket here. Watch the Haunted Mansion trailer here. Watch the Peter Pan and Wendy trailer here.

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Quantumania brings the Quantum Realm to the big screen to blast off Phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Bryce is joined by Ben to discuss the latest film in the MCU. They look back at Phase 4 and discuss what they are looking most forward to in the future of Marvel films and tv shows. Ben and Bryce give their opinions which may or may not agree with the critics.

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There are so many decisions to make when planning a Disney vacation, but choosing when to go may have the most impact on your trip. Ben and Erica are tackling the best month to visit the three major U.S. Disney destinations: Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and Disney Cruise Line. Crowd levels, pricing, weather, offerings, and more are important factors in knowing which month makes the most sense for you and your family. Ben and Erica rarely agree on their Disney takes, but could that change on today's episode? Listen to find out and learn what month you need to consider whether you are traveling by land or sea next time you visit Disney!

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We all love the many fantastic characters that Disney animation has created. Characters like Elsa, Woody, Simba, Maleficent, Gaston are all fun to watch and offer something special. But would you date one? It's an interesting question. Sure Woody is an adorable doll, but his snarky attitude may be too much to handle on a first date. As we all celebrate Valentine's Day during February Jeremiah and Rachel are here to tackle this fun topic. Just like the many online social media games, they have created their own version of Would you rather date this character? They put the names of many of these beloved characters into a hat, then pull two and discuss which one they would rather date. Come join in on this exciting discussion! Would they even entertain the idea of dating a villain or a grumpy dwarf? How would they handle a date with the king of the pride lands? This episode is packed with much love.

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Indiana Jones Adventure is one of the most beloved Disney rides in any of the parks. A classic, memorable, and thrilling ride. However, over the years, some things have changed on the ride, and as some more changes are sure to approach with it going through some refurbishment until sometime in Spring, Blake and JJ are here in this week's episode to discuss the state of the ride right now, and praising what they love about it, as well as some of the criticisms to some of its issues from before it going into refurbishment. After discussing what they had done Disney recently, they discuss a lot about the ride, including the story of the ride, as well as its backstory, what they enjoy about the ride and why it ranks among their highest rides, and its amazing queue. If you love the thrill and immersiveness of Indiana Jones Adventure, and also want to hear some insight into what has changed (and broken!) on the ride over the years, well, my friends, the moment is drawing near…for you to play the episode. Already I am envious of the wonders that await you!

• The HORRIBLE State of Indiana Jones Adventure by Chris with a K
• Dead Heat Star Wars fan film by Cinema Films Motion Pictures

Are you excited to see what comes of the ride's refurbishment? What are your thoughts on Indiana Jones Adventure? Let us know, and connect with us at Mouse House Weekly, we'd love to discuss with you!

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All Aboard! Last month we set sail on the Disney Dream for our first EVER cruise! Darrell is very prone to motion sickness and Kari hates traveling, so how did the trip go? We opted for a cruise instead of a visit to the parks because we wanted a relaxing vacation where we could unwind and not have to worry about going from place to place. We've heard others talk about how great cruises are, but did it live up to the hype?

Shortly after returning home, we sat down and tried to cover EVERYTHING! We talk about the crazy weather we encountered, why we never to got to visit Castaway Cay, our visit to a chocolate factory in the Bahamas, and how we dealt with rough seas. We also talk about the cuisine, meeting characters, the Broadway-style shows, games we played, and, of course, we talk about our cabin!

There is a lot to cover, but we still take time to give you tips on how to speed up the process for getting off the ship and how to make sure you're prepared for check-in day!

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David just finished the Dopey Challenge at the 2023 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend! He gives us the full recap of registration, training, carb-loading, and the overall race experience from this year's events. All this plus a splash of Disney news on this week's episode of Mouse House Weekly!

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The cries of Disney fans across the land have been heard! Disney released some big announcements, covering everything from Magic Key passes at Disneyland to the return of complimentary parking at WDW. Ben and Erica break down all the big news and then share what announcements they would like to hear next! Listen along and then let us know what you think of the Disney News!

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