Harmonious Epcot Fireworks Review
Harmonious is the new nighttime spectacular at Epcot for Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary, and the long-term replacement for IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth. This fireworks review shares photos of the show, plus how it compares to its predecessor, other blockbuster nighttime spectaculars, and whether Harmonious is worth its blockbuster budget and daytime visual blight.
Before we get started, some basics about Harmonious. Walt Disney World has routinely touted it as “one of the largest nighttime spectaculars in Disney theme park history.” To our knowledge, there’s no commonly accepted method of measurement for nighttime spectaculars, but World of Color at Disney California Adventure is probably the largest.
World of Color is also the most logical comparison for Harmonious. Both feature a variety of show effects, including choreographed fountains, colorful lights, and lasers. The difference is that Harmonious dials it up a notch, adding more moving parts–literally. There are custom-built LED panels, fireworks, and other dynamic visuals on World Showcase Lagoon.
This Harmonious review will attempt to answer several questions: does this all work? Is Harmonious a worthy replacement to IllumiNations? Do the ‘extras’ help Epcot’s nighttime spectacular surpass World of Color? Does the quality of Harmonious justify the daytime blight of its huge barges?
Let’s start by taking a look at Harmonious in isolation, discussing whether it works and sharing photos from the new nighttime spectacular…
Although presented in a different form, Harmonious is very similar to a montage nighttime spectacular you’d see in one of the castle parks. Which is to say that it features visuals and songs from a variety of movies, and loosely ties them together with a through-line. In this case, that commonality is “culture.”
I’m not sure culture, on its own, is a particularly strong unifying element for this nighttime spectacular. For a production intending to evoke a sense of global unity, the choppiness is a problem.
Harmonious comes across as a series of disconnected scenes; transitions are few and far between, with a lot of fading in and out instead. This actually makes sense given the substance and tone of each, which would otherwise be discordant if actually weaved together into one seamless production.
This might seem hyperbolic, but there are credible reports that Harmonious was rearranged weeks before its debut. Given its presentation, that probably could’ve been accomplished relatively easily by dragging and dropping scenes on a computer. On the plus side, this should allow for segments to be swapped out in the future.
Harmonious is at its best when judging and viewing each scene on its own. Individually, I love several segments, including those from Moana, Lion King, and Mulan. The latter two feel more adult, with a certain elegance that is appreciated for something on World Showcase Lagoon.
Then there’s Coco. It’s high energy and vibrant–a total showstopper. This brings the lagoon alive in a way that, for me, comes pretty close to IllumiNations. For families, it’ll likely be even more impressive and enjoyable. Coco moves nicely to Princess and the Frog, which is also mostly strong. The same can’t be said for “Someday,” which is probably not how I would’ve culminated a show meant to uplift and inspire.
Stylistically, Harmonious is also a mixed bag. Presenting songs in different global languages was a clever idea both to distinguish this nighttime spectacular from one in Magic Kingdom and for Harmonious to fit Epcot’s World Showcase. If anything, I would’ve liked to see this taken further, but I can understand there might be trepidations about that.
It also would’ve been nice if Harmonious were presented as a cohesive production. It doesn’t need to tell a story, per se, but it shouldn’t feel so disjointed. Disney created the lovely Epcot Anthem–perhaps reinterpretations or musical cues from that could be used to transition between scenes?
As a whole, the visuals of Harmonious are pretty. The fountains, lasers, lights, and other effects are eye-catching and engaging. If you have a direct view of the Stargate, you’ll likely leave impressed.
The use of screens leaves something to be desired. Multiple sequences feature rudimentary animation, and this becomes a problem when the music slows down and those screens could be better leveraged to sustain the show. I will say that Harmonious plays much better in person than it does on video. There’s a lot to see and take in that simply cannot be conveyed via YouTube.
With that said, is Harmonious a worthy replacement to IllumiNations?
I’m a biased reviewer and cannot give a fair answer to that. I absolutely loved IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth. I saw it more times than I can count—probably more than all other Disney nighttime spectaculars combined. It was an elegant and sophisticated fireworks show totally unlike anything at Walt Disney World. IllumiNations was rife with symbolism, nuance, and abstract ideas–you know, things small children and drunk adults visit theme parks to see!
As much as I’m still an IllumiNations superfan who would’ve preferred to see it modernized, I can recognize that Reflections of Earth had a good, long run. I’m also cognizant of its (perceived) faults. IllumiNations’ middle was too slow and boring, there was nothing “Disney” about it, and the visuals were hard to see.
The argument could be made that, of these three main criticisms, Harmonious only addresses one. In a weird way, Harmonious actually is a spiritual successor to IllumiNations!
Like its predecessor, Harmonious arguably has a pacing problem.
There are a couple of stretches that are “slower.” Both in terms of the musical choices and the visuals on the barges, I could see these dragging on too long for some guests. I don’t have that issue with Harmonious, but I also didn’t have that problem with IllumiNations.
Harmonious also, inexplicably, has a visuals problem. For all of the complaints about their appearance during the day, the Harmonious barges somehow look small during the nighttime spectacular. Perhaps I’m too accustomed to World of Color, which fills the entire lagoon, but Harmonious does not awe or overwhelm the senses. Even up close, it looks distant.
Another related issue is that Harmonious does not offer true 360º viewing. The front of the house (old FastPass area) offers a fantastic perspective, and not even Japan or Italy compare with that. You can see the pyro and fountains from pretty much anywhere in World Showcase, but not the full dynamic of the screens.
To answer the next question, Harmonious is no World of Color.
For all of its additional “stuff” and technical capabilities, Harmonious just doesn’t wow in the same way as World of Color. To be sure, that DCA nighttime spectacular is not without its own faults, but those breathtaking fountains, mist screens, and other effects help overcome most criticism. In fairness, fireworks help carry Harmonious–and World of Color’s normal versions have none of those. So perhaps this will be a closer call for others, but we think World of Color coalesces into a complete show better than Harmonious.
Next, does Harmonious justify the daytime blight of its huge barges?
No. There aren’t any visuals in Harmonious that are suited only to this unique presentation. Rather than coming across as purpose-built infrastructure for the nighttime spectacular, it feels like Harmonious is working around the constraints of its quirky platform.
While there are moments when the water tacos and Stargate are used together in harmony to produce beautiful and cohesive imagery, they’re few and far between. And again, those visuals are also only visible from a couple of specific angles–everywhere else is only getting the partial effect.
A lot of Harmonious is visually stunning, but I’m skeptical this couldn’t have been accomplished with a more traditional and straightforward presentation. If anything, the infrastructure takes me out of the show more than it immerses me in it. When everything is moving, the barges remind me of Kang and Kodos from the Simpsons (I’m not even kidding) or some sort of device aliens would devise to distract and abduct foolish Earthlings.
To me, the style of the Harmonious barges comes across as a solution in search of a problem, or a contrivance. An instance of the tail wagging the dog, with technology (or whatever you want to call those barges) unnecessarily dictating the show presentation. There’s simply no good explanation for why the barges look the way they do–it’s unintuitive.
Perhaps this is bias as an IllumiNations fan, but it boggles my mind that Walt Disney World heard the complaints about that globe being too small and decided this was the answer. Instead of the more straightforward solution: building a larger globe. More fountains and mist screens could’ve been added, with the show still changing completely.
Going in a totally different direction, Walt Disney World could’ve used Universal Orlando’s Cinematic Celebration as a template, but with 360º viewing. Disney fans will likely scoff at that suggestion, but it’s a technically impressive lagoon show that uses an array of visuals to great effect.
Universal’s approach is simpler and more straightforward, but it works. I give Walt Disney World credit for the ambition with Harmonious, but it feels overly elaborate and excessive for its own sake, without enhancing the production. (And so many moving parts means tech fails are inevitable.)
Ultimately, Harmonious is perhaps the biggest move towards the company’s aim of making Epcot “more Disney” and appealing to today’s guests. While there are certainly old school EPCOT Center fans who will continue to lament every little change (we’ve done our own fair share of that–see Why Fans Can’t Let EPCOT Center Go), this is clearly the direction Walt Disney World is taking the park. For our part, we’re done holding out hope of a return to EPCOT Center–a park that has been dead for two decades. It’s a fool’s errand and an exercise in futility.
For us, the core issue is whether Harmonious accomplishes anything beyond the “more Disney” mandate. To be sure, it’s a visually impressive, mesmerizing, and mostly fun nighttime spectacular. There are several scenes that are an absolute blast, and others offer quiet contemplation that are befitting of Epcot. Those are almost enough to carry Harmonious and overcome its faults.
The trouble is that Harmonious doesn’t actually address the core complaints regular guests had with IllumiNations. Once you look beyond the pyro and other effects–features that would’ve been part of any new nighttime spectacular–Harmonious is not really accomplishing much that’s unique or impressive. That’s a problem for a show that is so elaborate and heavy-handed with its presentation.
There are aspects of Harmonious that we really enjoy, but it’s very odd to see it stumble in some of the exact same ways as IllumiNations. Like its predecessor, Harmonious feels destined to alienate some guests and partially satisfy others. It’s hard to envision this being a homerun or beloved nighttime spectacular for many guests, but it also shouldn’t be a complete flop for many guests. It succeeds more than Magic Kingdom’s new fireworks show (and fails less), but given what Disney invested in Harmonious and its higher stakes, that’s not exactly a ringing endorsement.
Finally, we’ll round out this review with some practical info. First, Harmonious is one centerpiece of the World’s Most Magical Celebration, but not the only new offering–or even the only new nighttime spectacular. As always, consult our Guide to Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary for everything you need to know about the festivities.
With regard to Harmonious, our Best Epcot Fireworks Viewing Spots are largely unchanged. While we (obviously) have yet to view Harmonious from all of those locations, our preliminary recommendations are spots 1, 2, 4, and 5. Speaking of which, when it comes to the New Harmonious Dining Packages at Epcot, we’d recommend Rose & Crown over Spice Road Table. The former has a better viewing angle and a seating area that isn’t as deep.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Are you excited to see Harmonious in person at Epcot? If you’ve watched video, what’s your first impression of Epcot’s huge new nighttime spectacular? Does Harmonious “work” for you, or is it a misfire? Is Harmonious a worthy replacement to IllumiNations? Do the ‘extras’ help Epcot’s nighttime spectacular surpass World of Color? Does the quality of Harmonious justify the daytime blight of its huge barges? Do you agree or disagree with our review? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
I loved Illuminations, and I absolutely love Harmonious too. The engineering of the production is fantastic. I think the theme of different cultural musical themes throughout the Disney library plays very, very well. I have seen it probably five or six times in person and a few times on YouTube (check out the Clifflix version), and I really don’t have a problem with the pacing at all. I do agree that Someday as a musical selection seems a little anti-climactic, except that if you listen to the narration, it actually makes a lot of sense, and the fact that it pulls back form the Disney IP for the finale is actually something I really like, that sets it apart from all the other “nighttime spectaculars.” Still, for me, even with the show production qualities I really like, the greatest element for me is the musical arrangements. The instrumental layering, and then the vocal performances on top of it, are as good as anything I’ve ever heard at a Disney park. (And yes, I still listen to the Illuminations soundtrack regularly and love it, but that’s a different type of orchestration and feel.)
I do agree that for those who remember the lagoon prior to the Stargate and tacos, it is rather unappealing during the daytime. No doubt about it, and I really wish they had found a better way to handle that (maybe the Stargate hinges down more flat during the day, etc.), but while I don’t like that, the show to me is worth it.
I just saw Harmonious and started crying at the end I hated it so much. Illuminations was perfect – gorgeous, elegant, with stirring music- and I saw it about a million times. This show is jarring, disjointed, with incredibly irritating music and absolutely no goose bump-inducing parts. I am posting because I am desperately searching for a good video (on YouTube or preferably Disney-produced version) of Illuminations that I can watch at home. Does this exist?
OMG, the Stargate! Yes!!! That’s exactly what we said when we saw it! We thought the giant eyesores surrounding it looked like big metal armadillos, but I like your name for them better: water tacos, lol! Those metal monstrosities don’t improve the show enough to justify having to look at them all day rather than the beautiful vistas that once graced World Showcase.
And don’t forget the giant squid arms flailing around during the show, which distracted me every time they moved, wondering what their purpose was.
Your analysis is spot-on with ours as well. It’s visually pretty, if you take each part separately. The music is alright, but it’s just more movie songs, and they’re not even woven together as cohesively as they are at MK. Visually, my question was, “Why do we need giant armadillos with long-drawn-out cartoon clips?” Epcot is about appreciating the beauty and culture of the world, and recognizing that even though we’re all different, we’re all one. None of the clips spoke to anything remotely like that.
This show feels totally disjointed without any thematic unity – musically, visually, and especially with regards to story-telling, which is supposed to be Disney’s forte. It is lacking the sophistication and beauty of Illuminations. We saw it at Christmas time and ESPECIALLY missed Let There Be Peace On Earth; that used to have me in tears every time. Instead, after this show, I just felt confusion in a sensory-overload sort of way, like, “What was that?!”
Our honest assessment was that the effects were visually spectacular but it lacked heart, soul and theme. We all agreed we won’t make an effort to stay late for it in the future because we don’t really care whether we see it again; it just isn’t that compelling.
still great and beautiful but it didn’t move me like Illuminations
I played the Iluminations soundtrack on the way home and got choked up
Just got back from Disney yesterday. Watched the live stream of Harmonious before we left but didn’t watch in person. But, did c the barges during the day and it looks even worse in person. Who came up this this idea? We were disappointed it took away from r beautiful view of the golf ball. Btw, the golf ball has the best show in all Disney. We went one night and was memorized.
Those are some gorgeous photographs
Illuminations had an amazing message within it, and it touched so many that looked forward to it. Why did Disney mess with “perfect”.
Now we have the eyesore of barges cluttering the lagoon and a pretty disjointed show 🙁
The Harmonious fireworks are spectacular on their own, however, the songs that make up the show are not nearly as good or powerful as the songs from Illuminations.
Sometimes change isn’t really for the good.
Question.
It looks like Harmonious is at 9:45pm
My memory back in 2019 was that Epcot show was 9:00pm
Checking since it affects our overall plan.
Thanks.
What’s odd to me is that older tech might have been a better solution. Maybe six smaller barges that have a fabric screen which could be raised during the evening and lowered during the day, preventing an obstructed view. Six would allow an open circle around the centerpiece, so people in different areas of the lagoon could still get good views. Projectors could be on the barges themselves, or in projector towers across the lagoon.
I also would have loved to see more spotlighting on each country. They honestly could do without the giant sidebarges and have a show where they have character songs in native languages, but with installed LED lights on the corresponding pavilions to match the music (the only two which wouldn’t have songs would be Canada and Japan–and you could even probably sneak Brother Bear into Canada).
I think one of the problems is, Disney wants to be able to continue to sell premium seating. If they developed a 360 degree show, the demand for premium seating will fall. At least, that’s likely what Disney thinks–I personally believe there would still be a solid market for literally ANY seated area with an unobstructed view. Anyone with kids would be happy to both 1. sit for the show and 2. give their kids a good view without having to carry them.
Please get rid of the barges now
I absolutely LOVE that it gets referred to as the Stargate.
Beautiful photos as always! I’d have a better impression of Harmonious if I just looked at your photos and hadn’t already seen the Disney Parks livestream. Our next trip is a resorts only trip in December staying at Wilderness Lodge and planning to do monorail and skyliner crawls to see the resorts’ holiday decorations – inspired by your posts. We’re hoping to get dinner reservations at California Grill and Topolinos to see the MK and EPCOT fireworks from the restaurants. Do you have better locations you’d recommend or good alternative locations if we can’t get those ADRs? I have your Best Restaurants for Magic Kingdom Firework Views. Should I assume the same? Is the terrace outside Chef Mickey’s open to anyone or only those who were eating there or Contempo?
I liked the fireworks, hated the music and the dumb barges. Occurs to me that I have not liked any of their redos lately. Oh well, it is not being done for me, it is for the next generation.
I saw Harmonious in person and I absolutely loved it. My main critique is the barges – I don’t think the projections do enough to justify to ugly barges during the day. I loved the music and the fireworks. The use of Disney songs in different languages was beautiful and I just thought it was a fantastic experience for me. I saw it twice – once from the UK and once from France. I couldn’t really see the main circular screen at all but it didn’t bother me… I wish they’d get rid of that honestly.
In the 1980’s there was an Electric Parade that was spectacular. What ever happened to it? It was my very favorite thing to see at Disneyworld. I also miss the submarine ride at the Magic Kingdom, since I am claustrophobic.
I kept thinking as I watched the Disney Parks Blog livestream that the mechanical arms looked like Ursala’s tentacles, and I awaited her purple eyelids to emerge from the water and smash the taco barges at the end. Ok, maybe too dramatic, but once that visual was in my brain, I couldn’t unsee it. 🙂 I felt overwhelmed in a bad way by all the visuals and jumbled songs. It also felt too similar to Enchantment to me… a bunch a clips from Disney movies, one after the other. All that said, tho, I watched an interview with the main creator, and can appreciate what he attempted to do….it just felt over the top, bizarre, and in your face. I don’t particularly want to end my evening at Epcot feeling bludgeoned by a night time spectacular. I want to feel inspired, emotional and impressed with the marriage of Disney’s artistic creators and engineers. They’ve done it in the past…so I expected as much with the new show. But it appears to have missed that mark.
I saw the preview show last week. Loved The Lion King arrangement but the rest felt like a giant commercial for Disney movies. All I could think was that the moving arms shooting water reminded me of the kraken from Pirates of the Caribbean. Now if only the Black Pearl had sailed across the lagoon!