What is so bd about people thinking about a film, when they see something? I mean, we have been dealing with this all the time (me at least^^). "I play a fantasy game" "Oh, like in Lord of the Rings (Harry Potter...whichever was more popular at the time)?" "Ah... no, not exactly, there's also some science fiction in it" "Oh, I see, like in Star Trek (or Star Wars, see above)".... ahh yea, whatever.
Some people even laugh at WoW in general, because there was a South Park episode about it. They don't know WoW, only South Park, but it is in their mind, so they think about it, when they hear "WoW".
Most of my friends who don't play WoW, don't play because it's too cartoony style. They think it's childish. Not because of Pandaren, because of the style per se.
One of my friends laughed his butt off, when he did the quest to cleanse Teldrassil, because he said he felt like "Sailor Moon".
People will always think of a thing they know, when they see something similar. But that doesn't make the point more valid, nor should it prevent anyone from having fun with it.