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Why didn't The Little Mermaid ride turn out like this?!

AllyInWonderland

AllyInWonderland

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
So I just discovered this concept video of what The Little Mermaid ride was gonna be like before they built it.

(Don't get mad at me, but I hate the Little Mermaid :P ) I'm not a fan of this new ride either except for the fact that it has nice air conditioning. I would ride this ride more times than the new one. I like how it has a darker theme and isn't as happy as the current ride.

Enjoy!


 
disney4life2008

disney4life2008

Well-Known Member
This looks like the exact ride - the only difference is that this is computer generated so it looks much better than the ride itself. I love the ride only because of the air conditioning but I will never stand in line for more than 5 mins for it. The ride itself is pathetic and looks like something that belongs in a new start up theme park not at the Magic Kingdom
 
rob0519

rob0519

Well-Known Member
disney4life2008 said:
This looks like the exact ride - the only difference is that this is computer generated so it looks much better than the ride itself. I love the ride only because of the air conditioning but I will never stand in line for more than 5 mins for it. The ride itself is pathetic and looks like something that belongs in a new start up theme park not at the Magic Kingdom
Click to expand...

I have to agree: Great Air Conditioning. I was totally disappointed in the ride itself. Six hundred million for the new Fantasy Land and this is the best Imagineering was able to come up with? The Dyson hand dryers in the new bathrooms are more high tech than any part of this ride.
 
stevehousse

stevehousse

Well-Known Member
Wish they would have built the original Little mermaid ride that was to happen in the 90s. I know on one of the DVDs for it, there was a mock up model of the ride that u got to actually " ride" through. It was 10x better than the current version. Need to find the link for it...
 
Magenta Panther

Magenta Panther

Well-Known Member
disney4life2008 said:
This looks like the exact ride - the only difference is that this is computer generated so it looks much better than the ride itself. I love the ride only because of the air conditioning but I will never stand in line for more than 5 mins for it. The ride itself is pathetic and looks like something that belongs in a new start up theme park not at the Magic Kingdom
Click to expand...


Agreed. It's a letdown, particularly after you wind your way through the queue, which is pretty nifty (if a little claustrophobic).
 
Magenta Panther

Magenta Panther

Well-Known Member
AllyBaker3 said:
So I just discovered this concept video of what The Little Mermaid ride was gonna be like before they built it.

(Don't get mad at me, but I hate the Little Mermaid :p ) I'm not a fan of this new ride either except for the fact that it has nice air conditioning. I would ride this ride more times than the new one. I like how it has a darker theme and isn't as happy as the current ride.

Enjoy!


Click to expand...



VASTLY superior to what we got. What a bummer...
 
Californian Elitist

Californian Elitist

Well-Known Member
Not only is Mermaid great for a cool down, it's also great for a nice rest, since the ride is so dang long. Good thing it's, most of the time, a walk-on at DCA. There's no way in Hades I'd wait more than ten minutes for it.

This version would've definitely been better (except for the gigantic Ursula, that was terrifying), but it was still missing something. Maybe The Little Mermaid as a dark ride just puts me off. They should have went with another movie. Hunchback would have been great, or Sleeping Beauty.

Good thing is there are six, far superior dark rides in Disneyland. Monsters in DCA is also better than Mermaid.
 
Marc Gil

Marc Gil

Well-Known Member
Okay, when you think about the other Fantasyland dark rides, this one is one of the better ones. How can you say it isn't good? It's a good 5-6 minutes and it does a pretty good job at telling the story of the film other that let's say Peter Pan's Flight. The Ursula Audio Animatronic is breathtaking. Her movements and mannerisms are so lifelike! It's great air conditioning, but c'mon the ride isn't horrible! It's entertaining, fun, cute, and a breath of fresh air for our Fantasyland. It not might have that much of a climatic ending, but come to think of it, do the other rides in Fantasyland have a climatic ending? Peter Pan's Flight, Winnie the Pooh? Think about it! Under the Sea models after those primitive Fantasyland dark rides and while it's not the best ride at MK, it's still a fairly decent ride. I feel like this expansion has done justice for our lacking fantasyland.
 
The Empress Lilly

The Empress Lilly

Well-Known Member
Jose said:
DLP wanted to build this version of the ride...:cry:
Click to expand...
This version changes the story: first Ursula is defeated, and then afterwards Ariel tries to steal a kiss from Eric.

I guess the movie plot was too complicated for a four minute darkride: 'give me your voice, I make you human, but you must kiss Eric before sunset or your soul is mine'.

The DCA/MK Mermaid couldt really solve this 'complicated plot' either. The ride is great up to and including Ursula. From there on it feels rushed, with brief sets and no dramatic resolution. I think the 'proposed DLP' version solves this issue a bit better, even if at the expense of artistic license.


Of course, alternatively, WDW could learn the difference between story and plot and produce a classic darkride based not on retelling a narrative stroy through the clumsy, inadequate means of a darkride.
Wish that they instead would build a darkride that casts the guests as the protagonist, making him, say, relive the scary adventures of Snow White or the zany enthusiasm of a Toad on wheels.
 
jkl2000

jkl2000

Well-Known Member
Marc Gil said:
Okay, when you think about the other Fantasyland dark rides, this one is one of the better ones. How can you say it isn't good? It's a good 5-6 minutes and it does a pretty good job at telling the story of the film other that let's say Peter Pan's Flight. The Ursula Audio Animatronic is breathtaking. Her movements and mannerisms are so lifelike! It's great air conditioning, but c'mon the ride isn't horrible! It's entertaining, fun, cute, and a breath of fresh air for our Fantasyland. It not might have that much of a climatic ending, but come to think of it, do the other rides in Fantasyland have a climatic ending? Peter Pan's Flight, Winnie the Pooh? Think about it! Under the Sea models after those primitive Fantasyland dark rides and while it's not the best ride at MK, it's still a fairly decent ride. I feel like this expansion has done justice for our lacking fantasyland.
Click to expand...

I haven't been on it yet :eek: but from what I've seen it looks pretty good. I like that Disney is still committed to the whole idea of Dark Rides. It also looks like it will REALLY appeal to my DS4, who's just seen TLM for the first time recently, so should really enjoy this ride in October. I have a feeling he's really going to enjoy this ride, and it will make all the other dark rides (especially HM) easier for him. It looks more KID oriented, so maybe that's why some people find it boring. Just guessing, but I expect to enjoy it.
 
Goofyernmost

Goofyernmost

Well-Known Member
It's a nice little ride. Very kid friendly an some of it is pretty well done. I'm not sure what anyone was expecting from a Fantasyland ride, but it delivered all that it was intended too. Also the first dark ride with Omnimover in quite a while.:D
 

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