Defunctland is a YouTube web series that documents the history of discontinued amusement parks and amusement park attractions,[1][2][3][4] created and hosted by Kevin Perjurer, a pseudonymous man living in Florida.[5] The show presents the history and downfall of theme parks and attractions from around the world, most notably those of Disney, Universal, and Six Flags.
| Defunctland | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | History |
| Created by | Kevin Perjurer |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 56 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Running time | 12–50 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Release | February 15, 2017 – present |
The channel has amassed over 1.8 million subscribers as of November 2023[update]. The success of Defunctland led to two spin-offs: Debunkedland and DefunctTV, both of which premiered in 2018.[6][7][8][9] In 2024, the Defunctland series was nominated for Peabody Award in the "Interactive & Immersive" category.[10][11]
VR Park
editInitially, the Defunctland YouTube series was meant to be a showcase for attractions that would be a part of a virtual theme park of the same name. Soon after starting the channel in 2017, Perjurer uploaded a video titled "Defunctland VR: The Sorcerer's Hat" to show off the initial prototype of the park. While volunteers with knowledge of virtual reality environments did sign up, progress has been considered relatively slow.
About a year later, Perjurer made a post on his website about the VR Park to explain that it was still happening, as well as show off some of the progress up to that point. A video was uploaded in January 2021, showing a virtual reality version of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage, as well as other parts of the park.[12][13]
Episodes
editSeries overview
edit| Series | Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defunctland | 1 | 22 | February 15, 2017 | January 22, 2018 | |
| 2 | 21 | February 5, 2018 | March 22, 2019 | ||
| 3 | Ongoing | October 5, 2019 | - | ||
| Minisodes | 12 | December 18, 2017 | February 14, 2024 | ||
| Debunkedland | 1 | 2 | April 9, 2018 | April 26, 2018 | |
| 2 | 1 | October 24, 2019 | |||
| DefunctTV | 1 | 19 | July 12, 2018 | February 28, 2022 | |
| Jim Henson | 6 | April 16, 2019 | July 14, 2019 | ||
Season 1 (2017)
editThe first season of Defunctland, created by Kevin Perjurer, premiered on the YouTube channel of the same name on February 15, 2017, and lasted for 22 episodes. Initially, each episode ended with Perjurer polling the viewers on where the attraction should go in the VR Park, however, this was phased out by the end of the season. Perjurer originally pitched his voice lower during his narrations, which was also dropped before the end of the season. The season finale premiered on December 11, 2017.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Location(s) | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "The History of ExtraTERRORestrial: Alien Encounter" | Magic Kingdom | February 15, 2017 |
| 2 | 2 | "The History of Disneyland's Videopolis" | Disneyland Park | February 22, 2017 February 1, 2020 (Remastered) |
| 3 | 3 | "The History of Jaws: The Ride" | Universal Studios Florida Universal Studios Japan | March 2, 2017 |
| 4 | 4 | "The History of The Sorcerer's Hat" | Disney's Hollywood Studios | March 9, 2017 |
| 5 | 5 | "The History of Pretzel Dark Rides" | Across U.S. | March 17, 2017 |
| 6 | 6 | "The History of Pleasure Island" | Disney Springs | Part 1: April 3, 2017 Part 2: April 20, 2017 |
| 7 | 7 | "The History of Kongfrontation" | Universal Studios Florida | May 4, 2017 |
| 8 | 8 | "The History of Disney's Superstar Limo" / "The History of Disney's Worst Attraction Ever, Superstar Limo" | Disney California Adventure | May 27, 2017 April 19, 2018 (Remastered) |
| 9 | 9 | "The History of Back to the Future: The Ride" | Universal Studios Florida Universal Studios Hollywood Universal Studios Japan | June 9, 2017 |
| 10 | 10 | "The History of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: Submarine Voyage" | Disneyland Magic Kingdom | Part 1: June 23, 2017 Part 2: July 2, 2017 |
| 11 | 11 | "The History of Disneyland's America Sings" | Disneyland | July 4, 2017 |
| 12 | 12 | "The History of Ghostbusters Spooktacular" | Universal Studios Florida | July 13, 2017 |
| 13 | 13 | "The History of Son of Beast" | Kings Island | July 23, 2017 |
| 14 | 14 | "The History of Epcot's Body Wars" | Epcot | August 7, 2017 |
| 15 | 15 | "The History of Earthquake: The Big One and Disaster!" | Universal Studios Florida | August 21, 2017 |
| 16 | 16 | "The History of Cedar Point's Disaster Transport" | Cedar Point | September 4, 2017 |
| 17 | 17 | "The History of Captain EO" | Epcot Disneyland Tokyo Disneyland Disneyland Paris | September 25, 2017 |
| 18 | 18 | "The History of Action Park" | Action Park, Vernon, New Jersey | October 16, 2017 |
| 19 | 19 | "The History of Beetlejuice's Graveyard Revue" | Universal Studios Florida | October 31, 2017 |
| 20 | 20 | "Top 5 Extinct Disney Walk-Around Characters" | N/A | November 13, 2017 |
| 21 | 21 | "The History of Drachen Fire at Busch Gardens Williamsburg" | Busch Gardens Williamsburg | November 27, 2017 |
| 22 | 22 | "The History of The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera" | Universal Studios Florida | December 11, 2017 |
Season 2 (2018–19)
editThe second season of Defunctland premiered on February 5, 2018. A common theme throughout the season was the rise and fall of Michael Eisner and his effects on the Disney Parks and The Walt Disney Company as a whole. This season ended on March 22, 2019. The 11th and 12th production blocks were used to produce a double-length episode on the failure of Disney's America, while an additional 23rd production block was used to remake the Season 1 episode on Disney California Adventure's Superstar Limo.
The production value of each episode increased dramatically in the second season, with episodes extending in length and utilizing custom graphics fit to the theme of the episode. Some episodes even include customized theme songs or music. Perjurer stated that the cost of each episode averages around $1,000, with some being as expensive as $2,000.[14]
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Location(s) | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | 1 | "The History of Tomb Raider: The Ride" | Kings Island | February 5, 2018 |
| 24 | 2 | "The History of Alton Towers' Black Hole" | Alton Towers | February 19, 2018 |
| 25 | 3 | "The History of Journey Into Imagination" | Epcot | March 5, 2018 |
| 26 | 4 | "The History of Alfred Hitchcock: The Art of Making Movies" | Universal Studios Florida | March 19, 2018 |
| 27 | 5 | "The History of Nara Dreamland" | Nara, Japan | April 2, 2018 |
| 28 | 6 | "The Failure of Euro Disneyland" | Disneyland Paris | May 8, 2018 |
| 29 | 7 | "The History of Disney's Best Coaster, Space Mountain: From the Earth to the Moon" | Disneyland Paris | May 13, 2018 |
| 30 | 8 | "The History of Busch Gardens' Swinging Classic, the Big Bad Wolf" | Busch Gardens Williamsburg | May 21, 2018 |
| 31 | 9 | "The Demolition of Six Flags AstroWorld" | Six Flags AstroWorld | May 31, 2018 |
| 32 | 10 | "Top 10 Forgotten Disneyland Attractions" | Disneyland | June 21, 2018 |
| 33 | 11 | "The War for Disney's America" | Haymarket, Virginia | July 4, 2018 |
| 34 | 12 | "The History of the Nickelodeon Hotel" | Holiday Inn Resort Orlando Suites - Waterpark | July 31, 2018 |
| 35 | 13 | "The Failure of Disney's Chuck E. Cheese Ripoff, Club Disney" | Across U.S. | August 14, 2018 |
| 36 | 14 | "The Failure of Disney's Arcade Chain, DisneyQuest" | Walt Disney World Resort Chicago, Illinois | September 4, 2018 |
| 37 | 15 | "The History of Worlds of Fun's Destroyed Classic, The Orient Express" | Worlds of Fun | October 4, 2018 |
| 38 | 16 | "The History of Disney's Scariest Attraction, Cinderella Castle Mystery Tour" | Tokyo Disneyland | October 25, 2018 |
| 39 | 17 | "The Mystery of the Abandoned Santa Claus Theme Parks" | Across U.S. Brazil Arctic Circle | December 23, 2018 |
| 40 | 18 | "The Demise of Australia's Biggest Theme Park, Wonderland Sydney" | Sydney, Australia | January 15, 2019 |
| 41 | 19 | "The Downfall of Disney's Official Airline, Eastern Airlines" | N/A | February 5, 2019 |
| 42 | 20 | "The History of the Terrifying Splash Mountain Predecessor, Tales of the Okefenokee" | Six Flags Over Georgia | March 7, 2019 |
| 43 | 21 | "The Failure of Hong Kong Disneyland" | Hong Kong Disneyland | March 22, 2019 |
Season 3 (2019–present)
editThe third season of Defunctland premiered on October 5, 2019. It will last for 22 episodes, of which 13 have been released so far. It has an overarching theme of revisionism and futurism, as well as hinting at the future influence that Walt Disney would receive when he eventually decided to build Disneyland. An additional 23rd production block was used to remake the Season 1 episode on Disneyland's Videopolis.
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Location(s) | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 44 | 1 | "A Roundabout History of the Ferris Wheel" | Chicago, Illinois | October 5, 2019 |
| 45 | 2 | "Walt Disney's Childhood Amusement Park, Electric Park" | Kansas City, Missouri | November 14, 2019 |
| 46 | 3 | "The Fair That Changed America" | Century of Progress Fair, Chicago, Illinois | November 21, 2019 |
| 47 | 4 | "The Craziest Party Walt Disney Ever Threw" | Lake Norconian Club | January 21, 2020 |
| 48 | 5 | "The History of Beverly Park Kiddieland" | Beverly Park Kiddieland | February 26, 2020 |
| 49 | 6 | "The History of Mickey Mouse Park" | Walt Disney Studios, Burbank, California | March 22, 2020 |
| 50 | 7 | "The History of Tomorrowland 1955" | Disneyland | April 19, 2020 |
| 51 | 8 | "The History of Coney Island" | Sea Lion Park Steeplechase Park Luna Park Dreamland | June 13, 2020 |
| 52 | 9 | "The History of Freedomland U.S.A." | Freedomland U.S.A. | July 7, 2020 |
| 53 | 10 | "The History of the 1964 New York World's Fair" | Flushing Meadows–Corona Park | August 9, 2020 |
| 54 | 11 | "Walt Disney's City of the Future, E.P.C.O.T." | Walt Disney World | October 12, 2020 |
| 55 | 12 | "The History of Disneyland's Adventure Thru Inner Space" | Disneyland | March 6, 2021 |
| 56 | 13 | "Journey to EPCOT Center: A Symphonic History" | Walt Disney World | November 19, 2023 |
Minisodes (2017–present)
editBetween the release of main Defunctland episodes, Perjurer will occasionally release smaller Defunctland "minisodes". These episodes can relate to topics outside of theme parks, such as products, advertising, and events.
| No. | Title | Location(s) | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The History of the Country Bear Christmas Special" | Walt Disney World, Tokyo Disneyland | December 18, 2017 |
| 2 | "The History of McDonald's Mac Tonight" | Worldwide | December 31, 2017 |
| 3 | "The History of Disney California Adventure's Demolished Entrance" | Disney's California Adventure | January 15, 2018 |
| 4 | "Muppetland: The Disneyland Invasion That Almost Happened" | Disneyland | November 20, 2018 |
| 5 | "Burger Invasion: The History of McDonald's and Disney" | Worldwide | May 29, 2019 |
| 6 | "The History of Cedar Fair's Berenstain Bear Country" | Cedar Fair | August 1, 2019 |
| 7 | "The History of the Worst Six Flags Coaster, Green Lantern: First Flight" | Six Flags Magic Mountain | May 2, 2020 |
| 8 | "The History of Toys “R” Us Times Square" | Times Square | December 21, 2020 |
| 9 | "The History of the Worst SeaWorld Ride, Submarine Quest" | SeaWorld San Diego | May 11, 2021 |
| 10 | "The Handwich: Disney's Failed Sandwich of the Future" | Walt Disney World | June 17, 2021 |
| 11 | "The Bizarre Garfield Dark Ride" | Kennywood Park | May 19, 2022 |
| 12 | "The Awful Wiggles Dark Ride" | Dreamworld | May 9, 2023 |
| 13 | "The American Idol Theme Park Experience" | Disney's Hollywood Studios | February 14, 2024 |
| 14 | "Kid Cities" | La Ciudad De Los Niños Wannado City KidZania | June 19, 2024 |
Debunkedland
editThe first Defunctland spin-off, Debunkedland, was created by Kevin Perjurer and Noah Randall. Hosted by Randall, the series focused on debunking various rumors and myths about theme parks and theme park attractions. The initial run of the series, hosted by Randall on the Defunctland YouTube channel, lasted for only two episodes in April 2018. The series was rebooted with a third episode on the Themed Alternative YouTube channel, hosted by the mysterious "K", voiced by Bleaker, written by Corvyn Hartwick and edited by Heath Jinkins. This new incarnation of the series premiered on October 24, 2019.
Season 1 (Hosted by Noah Randall)
edit| No. | Title | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Conspiracies of ExtraTERRORestrial: Alien Encounter" | April 9, 2018 |
| 2 | "The Controversies of Jaws: The Ride" | April 26, 2018 |
Season 2 (Hosted by "K")
edit| No. | Title | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Myths of Pirates of the Caribbean" | October 24, 2019 |
DefunctTV
editThe second Defunctland spin-off, DefunctTV, premiered on June 12, 2018. It was co-created by Kevin Perjurer and Heath Jinkins, and hosted by Perjurer. The show takes a look at the history of defunct television shows, their inception, and what eventually led to their downfall.[15]
Season 1 (2018–present)
edit| No. | Title | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The History of Bear in the Big Blue House" | June 12, 2018 |
| 2 | "The History of Legends of the Hidden Temple" | July 17, 2018 |
| 3 | "The History of Zoboomafoo" | September 18, 2018 |
| 4 | "The History of Between the Lions" | December 13, 2018 |
| 5 | "The History of the Wubbulous World of Dr. Seuss" | February 19, 2019 |
| 6 | "The History of Dragon Tales" | August 31, 2019 |
| 7 | "The History of Welcome to Pooh Corner" | October 18, 2019 |
| 8 | "The History of the Original Ghost Busters" | October 31, 2019 |
| 9 | "The History of Gullah Gullah Island" | November 30, 2019 |
| 10 | "The History of Oobi" | December 22, 2019 |
| 11 | "The History of Dumbo's Circus" | April 4, 2020 |
| 12 | "The History of Adventures in Wonderland" | May 10, 2020 |
| 13 | "The History of Mousercise" | July 14, 2020 |
| 14 | "The History of the Big Comfy Couch" | November 19, 2020 |
| 15 | "The History of Buzz Lightyear of Star Command" | February 6, 2021 |
| 16 | "The History of Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?" | April 6, 2021 |
| 17 | "The History of Fetch! with Ruff Ruffman" | May 31, 2021 |
| 18 | "The History of The Puzzle Place" | August 8, 2021 |
| 19 | "The History of Under the Umbrella Tree" | February 28, 2022 |
DefunctTV: Jim Henson (2019)
editA six-episode DefunctTV miniseries on the life and work of Jim Henson premiered on April 16, 2019, and ended on July 14, 2019.[16]
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "The History of the First Muppet Show, Sam and Friends" | April 16, 2019 | |
|
DefuncTV explores Sam and Friends, the Wilkins Coffee commercials, and the other local Washington, D.C., shows Jim Henson had worked on. | ||||
| 2 | 2 | "The Curse of Sesame Street" | April 30, 2019 | |
|
DefunctTV explores Sesame Street and The Muppet Show pilots, such as The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence and Hey, Cinderella!. | ||||
| 3 | 3 | "The History of The Muppet Show" | May 15, 2019 | |
|
DefunctTV explores The Muppet Show and The Muppet Movie. | ||||
| 4 | 4 | "The History of Fraggle Rock" | June 12, 2019 | |
| 5 | 5 | "The History of Muppet Babies" | June 27, 2019 | |
| 6 | 6 | "The Final Jim Henson Hour" | July 14, 2019 | |
|
DefunctTV explores The Jim Henson Hour, Muppet*Vision 3D, The Muppets Celebrate Jim Henson and Jim Henson's passing. | ||||
Feature-length documentaries
editOn August 20, 2020, Defunctland released Live from the Space Stage: A Halyx Story, a feature-length documentary by Matthew Serrano about Halyx, a space-themed band that performed at Disneyland's Tomorrowland Space Stage in 1981, including interviews with Gary Krisel, Mike Post, Jymn Magon, and members of Halyx.[17] A second feature-length documentary, Disney's FastPass: A Complicated History, was released on November 21, 2021, examining the history of ride ticketing as well as the implementation, development and efficacy of line management systems at Disney parks.[18] A third feature-length documentary, Disney Channel's Theme: A History Mystery, was released on November 20, 2022, chronicling Perjurer's investigation into the then-unknown composer of the iconic Disney Channel jingle.[19][20] He released his fourth documentary in 2023 that explores the development and history of Disney's Epcot.[21][15][22]
| No. | Title | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Live from the Space Stage: A Halyx Story" | August 20, 2020 |
| 2 | "Disney's FastPass: A Complicated History" | November 21, 2021 |
| 3 | "Disney Channel's Theme: A History Mystery" | November 20, 2022 |
| 4 | "Journey to EPCOT Center: A Symphonic History" | November 19, 2023 |
| 5 | "Kid Cities" | June 18, 2024 |
References
edit- ^ Anderson, Sage (February 12, 2019). "'Defunctland' offers a fascinating exploration of the death of amusement park rides". Mashable. Archived from the original on April 12, 2019. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- ^ Rayne, Elizabeth (October 11, 2017). "Stuff We Love: Defunctland, the internet's virtual zombie amusement park". Syfy Wire. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
- ^ Zakarin, Jordan (November 13, 2018). "The weird, abandoned, and mythical theme parks of America [Fandom Files #58]". Syfy Wire. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
- ^ Novak, Matt (January 10, 2019). "YouTube Allows Disney Nerds to Relive Extinct Theme Park Attractions". Paleofuture. Archived from the original on April 29, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
- ^ Winkie, Luke (July 9, 2023). "Defunctland's Wild Ride". Slate. Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
- ^ D'Anastasio, Cecilia (September 11, 2018). "'DefunctLand' Investigates How And Why Theme Parks Die". Kotaku. Archived from the original on November 25, 2019. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
- ^ Raftery, Brian (November 2, 2019). "Where 'Jaws,' the Ride, Lives Forever". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
- ^ Frost, Raymond D.; Fox, Alexa; Strauss, Judy (2018). E-marketing. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-74484-3.
- ^ Andrasko, Nicole (January 22, 2019). "YouTube's Defunctland Explores the Derelict Beauty of Theme Parks". Study Breaks. Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
- ^ Hipes, Patrick (April 25, 2024). "Peabody Awards Nominations: 'The Bear', 'Bluey', 'The Last Of Us' & More – Full List". Deadline. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
- ^ The Peabody Awards
- ^ Clayton, Natalie (11 January 2021). "Defunctland's VR amusement park revives a long-dead Disney ride". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2022-01-26 – via www.pcgamer.com.
- ^ Radulovic, Petrana (8 January 2021). "Disney's extinct 20,000 Leagues ride has been resurrected in VR". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2022-01-26. Retrieved 2022-01-26.
- ^ Defunctland [@Defunctland] (March 28, 2021). "Some inside-baseball but most Defunctland episodes typically cost around $1000 to make. I think the most expensive episode was probably less than $2500. This one is... expensive" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 20, 2023. Retrieved May 20, 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b Alter, Rebecca; Gularte, Alejandra (November 23, 2023). "A Guide to Defunctland: YouTube's Favorite Theme-Park Enthusiast". Vulture. Archived from the original on November 23, 2023. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
- ^ Hughes, William (May 16, 2019). "YouTube's Defunctland chronicles the creation and evolution of The Muppet Show". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
- ^ Taylor, Drew (August 21, 2020). "This Summer's Wildest Disney Documentary Is a YouTube Movie About a Failed Sci-Fi Rock Band". Collider. Archived from the original on August 23, 2020. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
- ^ Taylor, Drew (22 November 2021). "Disney's FastPass: Waiting in Line Gets Its Own Documentary". TheWrap. Archived from the original on 2023-08-20. Retrieved 2023-08-20.
- ^ Brady, Erin (November 25, 2022). "The Daily Stream: Disney Channel's Theme: A History Mystery Is One Of The Year's Best Documentaries". /film. Archived from the original on November 4, 2023. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ The best video essays of 2022|Sight & Sound
- ^ Whittaker, Richard (December 15, 2023). "Richard Whittaker's Top 10 Films of 2023". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on December 19, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
- ^ The best video essays of 2023 - Polygon