As a long time fan of Figment, I’m thrilled to announce that Dreamfinder and Figment will return this fall in an all-new Disney Kingdoms comic series titled “FIGMENT 2.” This new series is a sequel to the fan-favorite, sell-out Figment miniseries based on the beloved Journey Into Imagination attraction in Epcot at Walt Disney World Resort.
“Figment 2” will be written by Jim Zub and penciled by Ramon Bachs. The Disney Kingdoms team shared with me the cover artwork created by John Tyler Christopher. He also drew an incredible action figure variant cover for this first issue (I know I’m not the only one wishing those action figures were real!).
I recently caught up with Jim Zub, who wrote the first “Figment” mini-series, to learn more about what readers can expect.
Steven: What was your reaction to the fan response to the original Figment miniseries?
Jim: “Working with these beloved characters and having our new story be embraced by Disney fandom was an absolute thrill. Whenever you’re working with established material, you want to find a balance between giving people what they expect and adding something new and unexpected. I’m incredibly proud we were able to do just that in a way that respect the core themes that make Journey Into Imagination so special.”
The miniseries was an origin story for Dreamfinder and Figment. Where do you hope to take readers with this new adventure?
Jim: “Our new journey picks up right where the previous mini-series left off. Figment and Dreamfinder are now in the modern world and they’re going to discover that a lot of things have changed in their absence. The legacy of dreams and imagination they left behind more than a hundred years ago is greater than they ever expected, but they’re going to find it hard to live up to their own legend. Couple that with a young dreamer inspired by the Academy Scientifica-Lucidus and a dark threat from an unexpected source and we’ve got all the ingredients for high adventure.”
I recall hearing you rode the original EPCOT Center attraction with Dreamfinder. Do you have a favorite memory from that experience?
Jim: “I visited Walt Disney World Resort over 25 years ago, so my memories of the original Journey Into Imagination attraction aren’t razor sharp. Going through the reference material sent over from Walt Disney Imagineering helped remind me of the main visual elements. We wanted to bring those elements into our comic in unexpected ways. Some of it is through lines of dialogue or lyrics of music, but also specific visual motifs as well. With both stories, I’ve tried channeling the feelings of wonderment and exploration the attraction left me with.”
If you missed the first miniseries, Disney Kingdoms recently released a hardbound book of all five-issues. I found my copy at Once Upon a Toy in Downtown Disney Marketplace at Walt Disney World Resort.
Look for “FIGMENT 2” coming to Disney Parks this fall.
Comments
Figment 2, #1 appears to be scheduled for release on Wednesday, September 9 at your local comic shop! Previews of the issue have been released so just do a quick search to enjoy (and it has awesome Epcot overtones!).
I agree with Eric above, but we need to keep Figment and Dreamfinder at Epcot, where they belong. But the attraction needs to return to Version 1 with updated effects.
…and if only they would resurrect the original Figment ride (or something akin). Figment 2 was awful and Figment 3 is cute once or twice, but then pretty boring. If the line is longer than 2 minutes (which is rare, which should also be a clue), I’ll go elsewhere.
REALLY enjoying the current Big Thunder Mountain series…really hoping for a Twilight Zone series in the future…or how about Expedition Everest?
What are the possibilities of a Tiki Room Kingdom series? And, are there/will there be Park exclusive variant covers, or just the ones distributed to comic shops?
I didn’t know about this. DF and Figgy are two of my faves. I really love the steampunk elements on the first cover.
Wow, I had NO idea their was a book series based on Dreamfinder and Figment. They are my favorites from Epcot from when I first visited back in 1983. I was VERY sad that they changed the ride and now it seems, from reading the comments, that the ride is completely gone?! Oh, that’s a killer 🙁 I do hope they put it back—and the OLD version 😀 😀 😀
I also second Stephen’s suggestion to bring the Dreamfinder back to Epcot. This is one ride I really miss and I never go on the new ride anymore as it just doesn’t cut it.
I second Stephen’s suggestion. Bring the Dreamfinder back to Epcot (Center)!
Philip,
Haunted Mansion and Museum of the Weird were related, but ultimately their backstories were quite different. I still feel like there’s ground left to cover there.
I’d be on board with anything related to the Country Bears too!
This announcement is the BEST BIRTHDAY GIFT EVER!!!
@Brock – Wishing you many happy returns of the day!
Hi Steven,
Thanks for letting us know about Figment’s new comic series! Can’t wait for Figment 2!!! I really enjoyed the first Figment series. It was quite a bit different than I expected and it was really good! Now if we could just get Disney to bring Dreamfinder back to Journey Into Imagination and put it back reasonably close to the original version!! We’ll keep on hoping!! Thanks again!!
Could they return to Epcot next? We miss them!
I will be looking for the hardbound book when I go to WDW in 2 weeks, I hope I find a copy 😉
@Louise – Safe travels! I hope you have a wonderful visit. 🙂
Well, Benjamin, there’s also Country Bears.
And they already covered Haunted Mansion with Seekers of the Weird.
This was certainly an interesting series that I’m happy to get into a bit more.
However, I’m surprised to see that the Disney Kingdoms series is already moving into sequel territory when there are so many park related stories to explore:
Haunted Mansion, Jungle Cruise, Tiki Room, Matterhorn, Tower of Terror…
Actually that’s about it. Unfortunately most of you’re rides these days are already based on movies which already have stories to them instead of original concepts. I guess you wouldn’t want to include those in this series.
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