Credit: Jeremy Wong, FlickrThe Lunar New Year Celebration just arrived at Disney’s California Adventure park at Disneyland, and two special guests have fans chomping at the bit to meet them. However, as seen in the video from @wdwmagazine, Meilin and her mom just got their own official Disney Meet and Greet, and fans are surprisingly loving it.
@wdwmagazine.com We just met Meilin Lee and her mother, Ming Lee at the Lunar New Year Celebration at Disney California Adventure! ✨♥️ This festival will be held now through February 18! ✨ A special thank you to @Disney Parks for inciting us to this media preview! #hosted #disneyland #lunarnewyear #turningred #meilinlee #minglee #pandamei #disneyfacecharacter #disneycharacters #4town #4townie
♬ Nobody Like U – From “Turning Red”/Chorus – 4*TOWN (From Disney and Pixar’s Turning Red)
At first, it seems a bit strange for characters from a movie about a giant red panda (perfect for one of Disney’s “fur characters”) to appear in their humanoid forms as face characters. However, reactions from fans have been overwhelmingly positive. The previous reveal seen just last week suggested that the human versions of the characters were merely stand-ins for full-fledged suits (as seen with Red Panda mei in the parades), but it looks like Disney has gone a completely unexpected direction.
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On one hand, the characters we’ve seen at the Disney parks have some of the most incredible and definitive looks and designs that match their movie counterparts, and seeing these two as face characters when they should be full-furred red pandas, is a bit strange. On the other, the interactions shared on social media are gaining more and more supportive responses.
Panda-Monium Hits Disneyland
Pixar ‘s Turning Red (2022) was something of a surprise hit when it landed on Disney+, and that same enthusiasm seems to have followed Meilin and Ling into the park. Already a day after their debut, and fans are loving the experience.
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In the TikTok above, fans are already sharing their thoughts in the comments. Several commenters are absolutely gushing about how incredible the character portrayals are, but fans on Disneyland’s Reddit are intensely more vocal.
u/kcoy1723 writes,
“I didn’t know if they were going to be face characters or not. Glad they are. Interested to see the personalities. Playing Mei is no easy feat.”
To which u/thedudeabides2022 replies,
“Yeah I was thinking they’d go the direction of Lilo or Russel, but I don’t think that would have really worked.”
Further down, u/Not_Steve adds a more detailed and personal critique about both the characters and the Pixar film.
“When this movie came out I thought it was good but wasn’t relatable to me (which is good, I don’t have to relate to every movie, it’s not always for me). However now that I’m looking at Mei’s costume from a more realistic point of view, I can’t stop laughing. I definitely wore that in 2002. They look great and I’m happy that there are more Asian representation in Lunar New Year than Mulan.”
Of course, while some fans feel seen and represented by the characters, there are those eager to point out the opportunity for some Disneyland visitors to make the experience incredibly awkward.
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u/DJMikeSteeze references Ming’s overzealous nature after Mei’s first transformation in the movie and writes,
“How long do we think it’ll be before someone asks them to autograph a box of sanitary pads?”
Jokes aside, the Meet and Greet from Turning Red is turning heads at Disneyland, and fans are eating it up like the beautifully animated soup dumplings at the Ming’s dinner table. Now the question remains, how soon till we see these two at EPCOT?
Did you get a chance to see Mei and her mom? Tell Inside the Magic about it in the comments down below!