The Spirited 11th Hour ...

[TalkingHead]

I'm tired of repeating myself.

That makes two of us.

 

[sshindel]

This post almost read like a PR made by Disney Parks

Just saying, what interactive parts are in the Little Mermaid queue?
The AA bird?

Because I'm a plant! You figured me out.

When really it's just that I formed my own opinion on the expansion based on a few trips.

The interactive crab game in the queue is what I was referring to.

 

[Cesar R M]

The big problem is that the scale is out of whack to what surrounds it (SDMT and Prince Eric's castle).

We should give them some credit though, the Mermaid facade is really excellent! The scale works quite well and isn't overbearingly large, small enough to fit the charm of fantasyland without being so small that it's laughable.

The Tokyo concept art would definitely have been the more appropriate look, but they were so committed to Belle's Cottage and the Village I think they panicked that it was too close proximity and needed to be "far away".

Maybe one day in the far future they will redo it, create a larger castle and set it further back on the show building.

this this and this!!!.. this was my major issue with NFL.
The paths are too wide and there is zero real transition between these attractions.. its just like.. out of nowhere BANG! you're in a sea cave.. and then BANG! you're in a mine mountain in the middle of a forest..

 

[Cesar R M]

Because I'm a plant! You figured me out.

When really it's just that I formed my own opinion on the expansion based on a few trips.

The interactive crab game in the queue is what I was referring to.

probably it was your huge enthusiasm in your deliver that made a lot of us get ticked

No seriously, We've had some members here who defend disney out of convenience than in realism or execution (think them about trying to make sure their investments do not fail)

 

[sshindel]

Technology doesn't make an entertainment experience.

Nope, but an entertainment experience is a personal measure, varying from person to person.
Also, 'Twas why I said "I'm not saying one is better than another". Good attractions and bad attractions can be made with both. My personal opinion on Mermaid is very high. It does vary for others though, with opinions varying drastically from person to person.

 

[sshindel]

probably it was your huge enthusiasm in your deliver that made a lot of us get ticked

No seriously, We've had some members here who defend disney out of convenience than in realism or execution (think them about trying to make sure their investments do not fail)

As we have members that trash Disney's every move. I realize that a positive opinion is rather rare in the Spirited threads, which is likely why mine stuck out like a sore thumb.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Nope, but an entertainment experience is a personal measure, varying from person to person.
Also, 'Twas why I said "I'm not saying one is better than another". Good attractions and bad attractions can be made with both. My personal opinion on Mermaid is very high. It does vary for others though, with opinions varying drastically from person to person.

Seeing that Disney has now tried to fix the attraction three times and spent 50% of the initial cost, the lackluster experience is probably not much of a matter of taste.

 

[PalisadesPkteer]

Agreed. I hear there may be some interest in EPCOT finally, but consider that informed rumour at this stage.

Angie is phenomenal, thanks for asking! Just a little while ago she was playing with my socks and pulling them and rubbing my leg and I told her that "Legions of fanbois would pay me to do that!" She buys that too!

Hello Spirit.

Have you heard anything about the 35th Anniversary of EPCOT? Will it be as I
expect and be a one day event with special maps, speakers and a few special items in restaurants?
Expecting only a one day event for MK 45th as well with same format.

With this shake up, any way that Tony Baxter comes back?

 

[PhotoDave219]

As we have members that trash Disney's every move. I realize that a positive opinion is rather rare in the Spirited threads, which is likely why mine stuck out like a sore thumb.

I don't trash every move by Disney.

I'm simply disappointed by most of their corporate decisions.

 

[sshindel]

Seeing that Disney has now tried to fix the attraction three times and spent 50% of the initial cost, the lackluster experience is probably not much of a matter of taste.

I don't fee it's a matter of taste, it's a matter of personal entertainment value.

Now, I've been quite busy the last 6 months or so, but 50% of its budget? I see mention of a single, month long closing to address lighting and paint issues. How did they spend 50-100 million on this?

 

[sshindel]

I don't trash every move by Disney.

I'm simply disappointed by most of their corporate decisions.

No, I surely didn't mean you, or point anyone specifically out. But you'd have to admit that there are posters that do, just as there are those that defend anything the company does.

And I have my own Disney windmills at which I tilt, so I get having negative opinions. I have plenty of them about specific subjects.

 

[PhotoDave219]

No, I surely didn't mean you, or point anyone specifically out. But you'd have to admit that there are posters that do, just as there are those that defend anything the company does.

And I have my own Disney windmills at which I tilt, so I get having negative opinions. I have plenty of them about specific subjects.

I choose my righteous indignation towards the decisions management makes carefully. Changes of cups, napkins, etc., ending mid-level attractions that were meant to be closed at least a decade ago (See "Eo, El Capitain") or any of the other twinkerrage du jour, fauxrage, or other social media witchhunts I can simply do without.

I believe in the big picture and there have been big picture items that irritate the hell out of me. (Losing trees, the new hub, reduced sightlines, astroturf, ridiculously old films at epcot, lack of reinvestment, constant profit margins, dwindelling entertainment, higher prices, etc., simply to name a few) I think there's plenty the company does that is good but at the end of the day as the Disnee-is-a-Bizness crowd is so fond of reminding us, they're simply in business to make a egregious amount of money. I feel that if they want to continue to do that, they should do things a little differently instead of distracting people with cupcakes, dance parties, or nostalgic obscure characters that no one ever heard of before One Man's Dream.

Step one: Separate the President & CEO positions.

Step two: Stop paying the executives in stock.

 

[Crazydisneyfanluke]

Hello Spirit.

Have you heard anything about the 35th Anniversary of EPCOT? Will it be as I
expect and be a one day event with special maps, speakers and a few special items in restaurants?
Expecting only a one day event for MK 45th as well with same format.

With this shake up, any way that Tony Baxter comes back?

Expect cupcakes. Nothing more.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I don't fee it's a matter of taste, it's a matter of personal entertainment value.

Now, I've been quite busy the last 6 months or so, but 50% of its budget? I see mention of a single, month long closing to address lighting and paint issues. How did they spend 50-100 million on this?

The original has been closed three times for reworking.

 

[sshindel]

The original has been closed three times for reworking.

Ahh, I thought we were speaking of New Fantasyland

 

[GoofGoof]

Back to trashing FLE? Can't wait for Avatar land to open. At least it will be something different to trash

 

[tirian]

@WDW1974 and @ParentsOf4

What do you think about how Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey is trying to increase his influence in the WDC? He's been on the board and is up for reelection, and seems to be trying to jump to Disney while his other two ships sink. "Twitter and Square are in financial trouble, so I guess I'll try to gain power at Disney!"

http://usat.ly/1T3Bc7c

 

[Smiddimizer]

Not a Star Wars fan - eh? LOL. In any case, you can have reservations about what is replacing it, but that's far different from the sudden affection and outrage about a largely abandoned area that is being revitalized. (It's a lot like what happened with Maelstrom, most discussion you'll find from pre-closing announcement was complaining about the dumb film at the end - and that in general the attraction was among the worst guest satisfaction ratings of any attraction at WDW).

That is some of the most prime theme park real estate in the known world - eventually, it was going to go.

Look at a map of Disneyland when it opened and another from the time he died.

I love Star Wars as you know but...well Lawrence Kasdan recently tried to argue that it is its own genre. It's not. Fantasy is a genre, the Western is a genre, Adventure, Sci-Fi....these have been around since time immemorial. Star Wars is too specific to have a dedicated corner in Disneyland. I say this because I can easily picture Iger or some other wax figurine defending its placement due to cultural relevance. It may be iconic for what it is, but for where it is, Star Wars makes as much sense as Avatar, or Toy Story Land, or Harry Potter, or Fifty Shades or whatever.

But back to the river...well the root of my splitting hair is Disney's misplaced sense of pragmatism that disregards conventional theme park wisdom. They could have quashed that discussion by revitalizing Maelstrom the right way: updating it, or gutting it like a svalbard reindeer and installing something more appealing that relates to Norway.

I fear having Star Wars in the backyard will cheapen the experience and overall atmosphere of the area. The prime real estate was Toontown, Big Thunder Ranch and the area north of it...not quite this. Of course they could revitalize the river in a good way, and if so I'll give SWL the benefit of the doubt. Otherwise I'll demonstrate my wrath by complaining about it online.

Anyway I did as you asked and all I got was the removal of the Phantom Boats.

 

[wdisney9000]

social media witchhunts I can simply do without.

I prefer to call it shaming. There is really only one particular group that gives me cause to pick up the pitchfork and IMO, they ask for it. Pretty sure you know who im talking about

 

[hpyhnt 1000]

I choose my righteous indignation towards the decisions management makes carefully. Changes of cups, napkins, etc., ending mid-level attractions that were meant to be closed at least a decade ago (See "Eo, El Capitain") or any of the other twinkerrage du jour, fauxrage, or other social media witchhunts I can simply do without.

I believe in the big picture and there have been big picture items that irritate the hell out of me. (Losing trees, the new hub, reduced sightlines, astroturf, ridiculously old films at epcot, lack of reinvestment, constant profit margins, dwindelling entertainment, higher prices, etc., simply to name a few) I think there's plenty the company does that is good but at the end of the day as the Disnee-is-a-Bizness crowd is so fond of reminding us, they're simply in business to make a egregious amount of money. I feel that if they want to continue to do that, they should do things a little differently instead of distracting people with cupcakes, dance parties, or nostalgic obscure characters that no one ever heard of before One Man's Dream.

Step one: Separate the President & CEO positions.

Step two: Stop paying the executives in stock.

Can't like this post enough. It really gets to the heart of why threads like this come into existence, and it's a sentiment that (I believe) should be felt by all Disney fans. I really don't think anyone on these boards hates WDW - no, not even @ford91exploder! But many us do have complaints and worries about how we see the resort, and company as a whole, operate.

It's a mindset that seems to start at middle management and go all the way up to the CEO. It's one that I think can best be described as "grudging appreciation" of the Disney Parks®. They make a lot of money for the company, but they also require a lot of time, energy and investment. And the execs and higher ups hate that "time, energy, and investment" part. They just want return without the constant investment. And that shows in how the parks have been run for the past decade.

Ever increasing prices, dance parties instead of streetmosphere, new attractions where more thought was put into the facade than the ride itself, existing rides where show effects sit dirty and broken, an obsession with expanding DVC, and all the other myriad of things that are done and then justified as, "Well, Disney is a business." And yes, as nitpicky as it is, it goes all the way down to plain napkins, soda "rationing", and a refusal to plant trees and provide benches.

There's no passion or excitement on any decision. Everything is through the lens of expenditures vs. returns. There's a bloated bureaucracy that both inhibits timely change and that also makes anything new much too expensive. That all has to change. As antithetical as it may sound in today's political and economic world, Disney needs to STOP running as a business - because it's slowly killing itself from the inside (no, not in terms of profit and $$$, but in terms of creativity, passion, and expertise).