Changes

Although a Japan pavilion had always been planned for World Showcase, the pavilion went through many changes before its creation. As early as 19781977, Imagineers had planned an omnimover attraction for the Japan pavilion<ref> http://progresscityusa.com/2012/06/16/a-secret-showcase/ </ref>. At this time, Disney still planned on having each World Showcase pavilion inside an identical semi-circular building. Inside however, guests would have boarded their ride vehicles and taken guests on a tour of a wide variety of Japan's landscapes and landmarks.

Once it was decided that each World Showcase pavilion would have architecture and theming unique to each the individual country, Imagineering initially chose building designs for the Japan pavilion were based on the traditional Pagoda, which had actually originated in China. Once this error was recognized, the whole pavilion had to be re-imagined <ref name= "Martin"> http://www.martinsvids.net/?p=90 </ref>. The final version of the Japan pavilion was inspired by various structures from all of Japan's different regions. Imagineers and consultants from Mitsukoshi designed the pavilion to give guests a representative sampling of a a variety of traditional structures, which would also serve practical needs. For example. , the pavilion's Torii was modeled after one found near Hiroshima Bay. The Goju No To pagoda on the other hand was based on a similar structure in Nara.

The Japan pavilion eventually opened with the rest of [[EPCOT Center ]] on October 1, 1982. At this time, the pavilion included three restaurants (Temoura Kiki, Matsu No Ma lounge, and the Teppanyaki Dining Room), the Mitshukishi department store , and the Bijutsu-kan (a museum). The icon of the Japan pavilion is the Goju No To five-story pagoda, a building that is most associated with Buddhism. The five tiers of the pagoda each represent an element which Buddhists believe the universe was created from. Guests can often see live entertainment near the pagoda.

When the Japan was initially built, a massive show building was constructed behind the fortress <ref name= "Book"> The Epcot Explorer's Encyclopedia: A Guide to Walt Disney World's Greatest Theme Park </ref>. The building was going to be home to an attraction known as "Meet the World"- a "carousel theater" type show which was being developed for [[EPCOT Center]] and Tokyo Disneyland simultaneously <ref name= "Martin"/>. Unlike [[The Carousel of Progress]] which used stationary sets with a rotating theater, Meet the World was going to have a stationary theater with rotating sets <ref name= "Jack"> http://land.allears.net/blogs/jackspence/2012/02/epcots_japan_pavilion_part_one.html </ref>. The theater would have featured six, 600 seat theaters, giving the ride an hourly capacity of 3,600 guests <ref name= "Martin"/>.

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 Japan's islands and their volcanic beginnings. In this scene, the audience would have been introduced to their hosts as they traveled back to islands' 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 the project was cancelled <ref name= "Martin"/>. Another reason the attraction was not built may have been due to the fact that 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 Meet the World was never builtcancelled, 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 potential of this proposal, Fuji Film offered to cover the cost 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 Walt Disney World. Eventually, plans for the coaster fell through <ref name= "Martin"/> and the show building still remains unused.

Throughout its history the Japan pavilion has seen a number of changes. In The first came in 1991, when the Yakitori House was expanded <ref name= "Martin"/>.

In 2007, the Japan’s Teppanyak Dining Room was completely redesigned and expanded <ref name= "Martin"/>. The restaurant eventually reopened as the more modern [[Teppan Edo]] <ref name= "Book"/>. The two other restaurants in Japan, Tempura Kiki and the Matsu No Ma lounge , were combined into a new dining location called [[Tokyo Dining]] <ref name= "Book"/>. Later that year, the refurbishment on the pavilion’s pavilion's fortress was also completed <ref name= "Martin"/>. In December 2011, the Yakitori House closed for refurbishment. When the restaurant reopened, its name was changed to [[Katsura Grill]] <ref> http://www.wdwmagic.com/dining/yakitori-house.htm </ref>.