This is a very well-executed and informational documentary series on Disney+. It is 6 episodes that are anywhere from 45 minutes to a little over an hour long each, and each episode covers a different era or aspect of Disney's theme park division. It covers topics such as its initial creation and execution by Walt Disney himself, the creative process of making new attractions and growing the park(s), the successes and failures of Michael Eisner's handling on the franchise, the growth into foreign markets, and more. If you have even a passing interest in theme parks, def give this series a chance and at least watch the first 2 episodes. If you still dont really care about it after that point then go ahead and drop it.
While a lot of information about the Disney parks and franchise have been available to the public for years, we theme park enthusiasts have usually had to gather on websites & forums or watch YouTube channels like "Theme Park History" and "Yesterworld" (both of which I highly recommend checking out) to learn more. The fact that this show now exists on a platform such as D+ is a very good thing imo, because now we get more information from the source. Even the most knowledgeable of theme park fans are likely to learn a new thing or two since a lot of the information presented here (especially by some of the people who are interviewed) was not previously public knowledge. This show is also a good way for Disney to directly feed their audience more info about the parks and keep them updated & excited. I sincerely hope this series gets a 2nd season so that they can cover things they didn't have time to cover in this first season. I also hope other theme park companies take notice and release similar series. I would love to see a Universal do their version of this and cover topics such as their Halloween Horror Nights events, their history, their creative process, and specifically their wildly different park in Japan.
As for the more technical aspects (cinematography, editing, etc.), it's very much above average and well done. Not much else to say in that regard.
Contrary to what another user put in their review here, this documentary is actually open & honest on at least a number of things. While at the end of the day of course this is a Disney+ series so it's going to paint Disney in a positive light, I was pleasantly surprised when they didn't shy away from covering the company's missteps and blunders in good detail, and I really respect that. There are def still a few things they glossed over, particularly regarding Walt Disney, Bob Iger, the theme park's recent business practices, some of the other scrapped theme park projects (tho they did cover a couple like Disney America) and a few other things, but those can be saved for future episodes. I feel this series did the best it could with the time it had.
As a theme park enthusiast myself, my final rating for the first season of The Imagineering Story is a solid 8 out of 10. Above average technical quality, the content is very informative and honest (even to those of us who already knew a lot), sets a precedent for competitors to follow, and leaves the door open for future seasons to have lots of potential. If you're gonna get or already have Disney+, be sure to watch this show.
