Disney Playing catch up with Universal... Potter Disney's biggest mistake in 20 years...

[Beholder]

Pandora will be somewhat like food to a starving man.

People will gobble it up because they've been undernourished at WDW for so long.

What I'm hoping is that IF Disney builds a quality experience, then the starving tourists will feast on a world class meal. And the brain trust of TDO will realize (finally accept) that building a great attraction will result in great returns. No, Avatar the movie may not be a merchandise machine, but maybe Avatar "the Land" will be. As someone who needs absolutely NOTHING else to be worried or upset about, I choose to be optimistic that this Avatar/Pandora expansion will be great. I want it to be great. WDW needs it to be great.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Pandora will be somewhat like food to a starving man.

People will gobble it up because they've been undernourished at WDW for so long.

I still think it is a damned if you do, damned if you don't proposition. If it is a huge success it'll just reinforce the idea that theme park additions should be chosen by box office success. If it bombs it is proof that large scale investment into Walt Disney World is a losing proposition.

 

[jcldtrek]

Its not bad if the addition lands don't overtake the parks and are just an addition. universal is turning their park into harry potter park with now lesser universal themed areas. its great the potter areas are a big draw, but for how long? when they eventually fizzle what will universal have left???? not a good move.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Its not bad if the addition lands don't overtake the parks and are just an addition. universal is turning their park into harry potter park with now lesser universal themed areas. its great the potter areas are a big draw, but for how long? when they eventually fizzle what will universal have left???? not a good move.

IF Harry Potter fizzles they'll just replace the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Universal Orlando Resort has shown no qualms about replacing attractions and lands.

 

[jcldtrek]

yeah true, they really don't have a major franchise, unless Jurrasic World reboots and becomes a hit. Doubtful.
Disney does make me wonder at times. Seems they do more upgrades at their other parks more often and don't add much to Disney World as much. Fantasy land was the biggest thing in the last 14 yrs. next up is Avatar land which hopefully will kick . Hollywood Studios desperately needs a refurb meaning, newer rides and updated areas. just my opinion on current state of things

 

[Mike S]

IF Harry Potter fizzles they'll just replace the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Universal Orlando Resort has shown no qualms about replacing attractions and lands.

 

[PrincessNelly_NJ]

Coaster park? No. I mean, it has five coasters, but only three ADULT coasters. It IS, however, still a thrill park.

Clearly. But I was just responding to the person who said they dont go to Universal because they don't like coasters. I was just pointing out that is it a "coaster heavy" park like Six Flags.

 

[lazyboy97o]

View attachment 57727

Now I'm going to have songs from Hercules stuck in my head...

 

[Tom Morrow]

Its not bad if the addition lands don't overtake the parks and are just an addition. universal is turning their park into harry potter park with now lesser universal themed areas. its great the potter areas are a big draw, but for how long? when they eventually fizzle what will universal have left???? not a good move.

Just two lands, one land in each park. And honestly I think its pretty genius, and this has never been done before. To have a themed land span two parks, and in a way that actually makes sense within the context of the material its themed after. Diagon Alley also manages to fit in with Universal Studios by also being London and having the London facade, adding to the cities in the park: Hollywood, New York, San Francisco, and (to a lesser degree) Springfield (Simpsons).

 

[WDW1974]

To me this is the bigger problem than Potter going to Universal. For our family, the entire experience and ambience that Disney does so well (and I still think is better than Universal although I haven't seen Potter's addition yet) brings you back and makes Universal a "maybe" addition to the trip. But our last visit we noticed a decline in the quality and don't even get me started on the erosion of the fine dining experience thanks to the dining plan. We endured basically sitting in the family next to our table's lap at Chefs Le France, which in the 1990s never would have happened as the seating was less crammed, only halfway through the meal to endure their son vomiting everywhere and a mass cleanup which consisted of me trying to eat my entree with a bucket 4 inches from my foot…no apologies for our ruined dining experience mind you. I keep hoping Disney will bring the fine touches back, they WERE the best at them in their heyday.

OK, I was out of this thread. I thought whatever value it had had run its course. But a fellow member pointed out your post and I just had to comment.

If I am reading your post correctly (and correct me if I am wrong) but you are saying that you'd basically rather sit next to puking brats then visit UNI. Is that right? Or am I misreading?

And can I ask you something? Why in the world would you sit in a biohazard zone? As soon as vomit flew, you should have been moved immediately to another location and YOUR ENTIRE CHECK SHOULD HAVE BEEN COMPED with possibly a return free meal given as well. How does one sit there in that situation?

OK, said my piece ... it just sounds insane.

 

[whylightbulb]

Agree...wasn't a good movie. But, was an amazing visual world. A world I would love to explore. Capture that world in animal kingdom. Bring in to that park a wonderful nighttime experience and Ak attendance goes up by a minimal of 500,000.

The Nighttime show at AK will be pretty minimal. It will not be anywhere close in quality to World Of Color or Fantasmic. It will be a "nice to have" but definitely not a "must see." The original concept would have been similar to World Of Color and the final version has been reduced to a small-scale Bellagio fountain show with some water projections.

 

[danlb_2000]

OK, I was out of this thread. I thought whatever value it had had run its course. But a fellow member pointed out your post and I just had to comment.

If I am reading your post correctly (and correct me if I am wrong) but you are saying that you'd basically rather sit next to puking brats then visit UNI. Is that right? Or am I misreading?

And can I ask you something? Why in the world would you sit in a biohazard zone? As soon as vomit flew, you should have been moved immediately to another location and YOUR ENTIRE CHECK SHOULD HAVE BEEN COMPED with possibly a return free meal given as well. How does one sit there in that situation?

OK, said my piece ... it just sounds insane.

I'll let the OP confirm, but I surely didn't read it that way. Sounds like they are big fans of Disney, but have gone to Uni, but they have noticed a decline in quality on their recent trip to WDW.

 

[danlb_2000]

Potter makes as much sense at WDW as Avatar at AK. Why not put James Cameron's Terminator in Tomorrowland? How about Cameron's Titanic in WS...it could launch from England. Although I like the Potter books & films, its not needed. Uni got the rights so it's over.

So you are saying that Potter is a perfect fit for WDW?

In theory I wouldn't have had a problem with HP at WDW. Disney did great attractions based on Star Wars and Indiana Jones neither of which was a Disney IP at the time, so I don't have big problem with the use of outside franchises. With that said I don't believe that Disney would have been anywhere near as ambitious with HP as Uni was.

 

[CinematicFusion]

The Nighttime show at AK will be pretty minimal. It will not be anywhere close in quality to World Of Color or Fantasmic. It will be a "nice to have" but definitely not a "must see." The original concept would have been similar to World Of Color and the final version has been reduced to a small-scale Bellagio fountain show with some water projections.

Well, that is disappointing. So it will be something playing in the background that no one really cares about, or not recommended. Once you see it, it doesn't bring you back to the park. Oh well. Thanks for the response.
So..It's not going to be this show anymore...

From Disney:
“Rivers of Light promises to be an innovative show unlike anything ever seen in Disney Parks, combining live music, floating lanterns, water screens and swirling animal imagery. The show will magically come to life on the broad, natural stage of the Discovery River, between Discovery Island and Expedition Everest, delighting our guests and truly capping off a full day of adventures at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.”

 

[CinematicFusion]

Pandora will be somewhat like food to a starving man.

People will gobble it up because they've been undernourished at WDW for so long.

Pandora will be a great addition. If it was going to universal, it's my personal opinion that people on this board would be praising the new land and saying how groundbreaking the land will be.
This land is a great fit for Animal Kingdom. It's a land that never would have been done without Potter. I think Cameron and his crew will bring us something special.

 

[Sam the Disney Man]

Pandora will be a great addition. If it was going to universal, it's my personal opinion that people on this board would be praising the new land and saying how groundbreaking the land will be.
This land is a great fit for Animal Kingdom. It's a land that never would have been done without Potter. I think Cameron and his crew will bring us something special.

I agree. From what I can see, this movie has a lot of potential. Shoving aside the "Not-So-Family-Friendly" stuff for a second, it seems like something that will work extremely well for Ak. The movie's core is based around living with the land. Combine that with some magical stuff and tall blue people and you get a concept that could become something great. From what I've heard, seeked out, and seen, it looks like a good land. Honestly, I can't wait to see what rides are put in here. I've heard a water ride and something with large ride-on dino's, but that is rough speculation at its finest. Still, it seems like something fit for countering Universal.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Pandora will be a great addition. If it was going to universal, it's my personal opinion that people on this board would be praising the new land and saying how groundbreaking the land will be.
This land is a great fit for Animal Kingdom. It's a land that never would have been done without Potter. I think Cameron and his crew will bring us something special.

Or perhaps they would wait and see what is actually being built, given the lack of coherent and substantiated rumour, regardless of location. Avatar haters would hate no matter who created the attraction.

 

[Mr Toad]

So you are saying that Potter is a perfect fit for WDW?

In theory I wouldn't have had a problem with HP at WDW. Disney did great attractions based on Star Wars and Indiana Jones neither of which was a Disney IP at the time, so I don't have big problem with the use of outside franchises. With that said I don't believe that Disney would have been anywhere near as ambitious with HP as Uni was.

It's all in the execution...Uni did a great job for sure. Disney would have found a way to make it fit somewhere and would have done it right. People just don't want to see HP/Marvel/Whatever at WDW for whatever their reasoning may be. You can argue til the end of time either way about it and both sides would have merit.

 

[note2001]

Competition is a good thing. However, I'd love to see some scribblings on Disney's part of what they would have done.

Looking forward to seeing the HP expansion at Universal.

 

[Mike S]

The Nighttime show at AK will be pretty minimal. It will not be anywhere close in quality to World Of Color or Fantasmic. It will be a "nice to have" but definitely not a "must see." The original concept would have been similar to World Of Color and the final version has been reduced to a small-scale Bellagio fountain show with some water projections.

That is so disappointing. It doesn't take that long to guess why this is being done though. TDO seems to actively try to not wow anyone anymore simply because it costs money.