Inside Mr. Toad's Wild Ride

It's time for Mouse Troop's first Toad-related post of 2013, and today we're actually climbing aboard one of those awesome motorcars; get ready for a trip through Mr. Toad's Wild Ride!

The entry hall tapestry pays tribute to the mural on the 1955 version's exterior. It details your upcoming trip from beginning to end.

The short interior queue gives us a glimpse of Toad's lifestyle. He certainly loves chandeliers...and carvings of himself.

 He looks so innocent...

We watch a few cars begin their journey by entering the library, knocking poor MacBadger off a ladder...

...and crashing out through the fireplace, sending sizzling embers across the floor.

As we climb aboard our motorcar, I must apologize for the upcoming murky, grainy on-ride photos. Between my slow reflexes, my iPhone's limitations and the ride's many abrupt turns, the results of this photo safari leave a lot to be desired. On the plus side, I think the shots manage to convey the look and black-light atmosphere of the ride...in a murky sort of way...

And...we're off! We encounter MacBadger, crash through the fireplace, escape a falling suit of armor and (as the black-light effects take over), rush down down a weasel-infested hall, disrupt Mole's dinner, and crash out of the mansion through a glass wall...

The local bobbies are not pleased to see us crashing through the countryside. We avoid a near head-on collision with another car (our own reflection) and pass Ratty's riverside home.

Weirdest Classic in Fantasyland: Mr. Toad's Wild Ride

When most people think of Disneyland's Fantasyland, they think of Sleeping Beauty Castle, Teacups and Dumbo. Plunging into hell after being killed by an oncoming train probably doesn't enter their minds. To a true fan, however, no trip to Disneyland is complete without a spin through Fantasyland's weirdest attraction, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. If you've never rampaged through moonlit London aboard one of Toad's out-of-control motorcars, be sure to check out this gem on your next trip. Like all of the classic Disneyland dark rides, it keeps getting tweaked and improved. I love the recently enhanced "crashing through the fireplace" effects.

Disney's got an animated Mr. Toad's Wild Ride film in production, and they're boasting it's based on the ride. The odd thing is, the ride's already based on Disney's own film,  "The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad," which is based on Kenneth Grahame's classic novel, "The Wind in the Willows."

So, soon we'll have a movie based on a ride based on a movie based on a book. Crumpets, anyone?