Changes

The Meet the World attraction would have followed a young boy, a young girl and a magical crane, as they led the audience through Japan’s history<ref name= "Martin"/>. The show was to have consisted of four acts, which would use in-theater effects, projections, and Audio Animatronics, to tell the story. Act I of Meet the World was going to show the origin of Japan’s islands and their volcanic beginnings. In this scene, the audience would have been introduced to their hosts as they traveled back to island’s early history<ref name= "Martin"/>. Act II would have then featured Japan reaching out to the world, and the world coming to it. This scene would have ended with the country in self-imposed isolationism<ref name= "Martin"/>. Picking up here, Act III was going to show the battle between the proponents of isolationism and the proponents of expansionism<ref name= "Martin"/>. Finally, Act IV would have shown Japan just after the 1940s, now a modern nation, and once again reaching out to the world. A final scene would then have featured the hosts saying goodbye<ref name= "Martin"/>.

Although the show was designed and ready to go, Meet the World never made its debut in the Japan pavilion. The reason for this may have been that during construction, errors were found in the show building <ref name= "Martin"/>. It was decided that a new show building would need to be created, and this put the future of the attraction in jeopardy<ref name= "Martin"/>. With EPCOT Center already over budget, the attraction was eventually pushed to Phase II of the park, before its construction was cancelled <ref name= "Martin"/>. Another reason the attraction was not built may have been because the show glossed over Japan's involvement in World War II <ref name= "Jack"/>. No matter the reason behind the decision, Meet the World was never installed in the Japan pavilion. Since the attraction was never built, other ideas have been suggested for the empty show building. One idea, called for a Circlevision-360 film aboard a bullet train <ref name= "Jack"/>, while in the early 1990s, Imagineers pitched an indoor roller coaster, which was to be housed inside a replica of Mount Fuji <ref name= "Martin"/>. Adding the validity of this proposal Fuji Film offered to cover the coast of the coaster’s construction and operation in return for sponsorship <ref name= "Martin"/>. The deal stalled however, due to Kodak’s (who sponsored Journey Into Imagination among other things in Walt Disney World) unhappiness with Fuji Film moving into Disney World. Eventually, plans for the coaster fell through <ref name= "Martin"/> and the show building still remains unused.

===History Since Opening Day===

Throughout its history the Japan pavilion has seen a number of changes. In 1981, the Yakitori House was expanded <ref name= "Martin"/>.