The Spirited 11th Hour ...

[Cesar R M]

MK opened unfinished as well.

how much of the original plan was built?
what is "unfinished" ? does this means unfinished until all expansions pads are exhausted?

 

[Cesar R M]

Due to script rewrites.

I wonder if they want to fix some if the complains about TFA.

Also, could this also means they want to extend the run of TFA?

*edit*

That guardians of the galaxy thing made sense.. having 2 tentpoles competing to each other is bad for business.

 

[FrankLapidus]

Looks like TFA did not make enough money, Burbank is probably asking is SW a viable franchise any longer because TFA did not make a billion per week in Box Office.

You're skirting dangerously close to troll territory now.

 

[FigmentJedi]

Star Wars: Episode VIII' delayed to December 2017. From Seeking Alpha.

I think this is a good thing. I thought it was a poor choice to load both GoTGv2 and SW EpVIII into the same month. I also imagine we will see a shuffle on the Avatar 2 date soon as well.

Nah man, Jimmy needs to learn nobody gives a crap about blue smurfs the hard way.

 

[John]

Back on topic of the OP.....could this be considered a sign of "spirited change" however so small? or could this be a sign of a major way of change in how things are done? With the recent slide on DIS I am not so sure. Iger and company bonus checks are looking a little lighter. Poor guy might have to get by on a few million less.

 

[hopemax]

really?I keep hearing that the entire place was incomplete other than the castle, ollivander's and the the three broomsticks restaurant.

Who is telling you this? Or am I missing sarcasm? They did add additional merchandise carts and Butterbeer sales locations to deal with the overwhelming demand. And they rather quickly reconfigured Ollivanders/Owl Post/Dervish & Banges building to add an additional wand show room. But all the stores were open. And the windows were "full" with many elements having movements and such. They just weren't able to be triggered by guests. There are videos and photo galleries out there by websites I don't think can be named here from May 2010 showing various elements.

 

[WDW1974]

Come on guys, we don't need four pages of wasted space. Let's try and keep it on the topic of WDI and what is happening in the parks until we get at least 30 or 40 pages. The old thread is still open to discuss sandwiches and why TFA changed your life and which Lifestyler Dr. Blondie is paying off with dozens of free cupcakes every week!

 

[WDW1974]

Do you think Vaughn could get picked up by Universal after his famous "no one can touch us" comment?

I'd be tempted to say no because he is so toxic, but they picked up Jason Surrell (after he had an online meltdown with members of this community and lost his Disney job). .. Much like baseball recycling managers, themed entertainment companies take retreads over and over ...

 

[Andrew C]

Come on guys, we don't need four pages of wasted space. Let's try and keep it on the topic of WDI and what is happening in the parks until we get at least 30 or 40 pages. The old thread is still open to discuss sandwiches and why TFA changed your life and which Lifestyler Dr. Blondie is paying off with dozens of free cupcakes every week!

They locked the other thread...

Anyways, I am wondering if "Chappie" as you call him is/was the only one upset with how WDI is currently doing business.

 

[WDW1974]

I'm still going off of the original timing of what I heard when I was told about SWL. DL first. Orlando after. How soon DL is coming shouldn't be a surprise. It's got all of their focus. '18 and '20 wouldn't surprise me in the least.

The only way I see things changing in Florida is if TSL gets developed at lightspeed. Which is theoretically possible considering how little there is to do with it in comparison to SWL. Ambitious TSL is not.

Hey, TSL can be quite a technical marvel. In Paris, they had giant Buzz wishing Guests a Happy New Year until January 7th in English, the next day he was back to his regular programming! If that isn't top of the line techie know how than I don't know what is!

 

[MichWolv]

Here's the difference, IF I am wrong I'll be pleased that stuff got done, If I'm right all the fanboi's will be weeping and wailing about how Disney does not care about them.

So you're a mature person who isn't ashamed to be wrong, and they're infantile whiny brats who act like two-year-olds if things don't go the way they hope.

My goodness, you're right! That is a huge difference. Thank you for clearing that up. It absolutely explains why your outrageously negative predictions make perfect sense.






...and the mocking continues.

 

[WDW1974]

I have a feeling there will be other changes.....

Not saying that because I know something or anything......

Oh, there will be. There are some folks with high six figure salaries and seven figure packages that have been doing almost nothing. That won't continue.

 

[Cesar R M]

Who is telling you this? Or am I missing sarcasm? They did add additional merchandise carts and Butterbeer sales locations to deal with the overwhelming demand. And they rather quickly reconfigured Ollivanders/Owl Post/Dervish & Banges building to add an additional wand show room. But all the stores were open. And the windows were "full" with many elements having movements and such. They just weren't able to be triggered by guests. There are videos and photo galleries out there by websites I don't think can be named here from May 2010 showing various elements.

Aaah I see!, Maybe thats what they mean!, the missing elements (the wands) and the lack of karts and stuff you see now.

Because yeah.. I was there 2 weeks ago and while most of uni was empty.. the harry potter areas were full to the seams..

And the "unfinished" talk was in a few websites online.

 

[WDW1974]

What was that you mentioned about fantasyland for disneyland? Is an expansion being considered if so that's impecable. And what are your thoughts on the soon to be cut third attraction for star wars land this kinetic mover around the area?

That third attraction was news to me. I wouldn't be surprised if it was something pitched and not approved and by saying it was cut ...well, you get the fans all lathered up in support for something that wasn't a done deal to begin with. Not saying that is the case. Just that for as long as I can recall (since the original SW overlay for Tomorrowland died), I have heard two major attractions, food and beverage, retail, area development etc. Never three attractions.

 

[twebber55]

You're skirting dangerously close to troll territory now.

he jumped the troll line months ago

 

[WDW1974]

I think the most important section of your post is the suppositions on how Weis landed his new gig.

So what are the choices?

1) the good soldier/reward for DCA/Shanghai
2) He knows where the graves are buried and was hinting at a tell-all
3) Our fearless leaders finally came to an understanding that he is the best and only real candidate

Hmm...can you give us a hint?

2) sounds like it's the hardest to beleive and probably the correct answer

I don't fully know what went down; just putting pieces of information together. But I don't get why people would think No. 2 is so hard to believe. I get that most people here don't work in or understand how the entertainment business works. But leveraging your knowledge of the intimate dealings of a troubled project is simply smart business.

And if TWDC truly wanted to make a splash with this news, which you would do if you were rewarding someone then you wouldn't bury it in the news cycle and you'd have quotes from Iger, Staggs and Chapek talking about how great Bob is and why he is getting that opportunity.

Oh, and there was no No. 3 because it was a decision, not a campaign or process.

 

[WDW1974]

Any chance Weis goes after folks like the Kirk Brothers or Tim Delaney, who had become quite critical of WDI's spending practices once he left?
EDIT
Additional Question: Where does Weis' move leave Hong Kong's second gate, which he was creatively in charge of?

Would love to see that happen, but although stranger things have happened (like Bob getting this job to start with) I think those ships have sailed.

As to HK's second gate, I am hearing conflicting info on it and don't want to post much until I know something solid. I KNOW it has been in active development. I KNOW that one will be built. But ... need to find out more.

 

[asianway]

I'd be tempted to say no because he is so toxic, but they picked up Jason Surrell (after he had an online meltdown with members of this community and lost his Disney job). .. Much like baseball recycling managers, themed entertainment companies take retreads over and over ...

Thinking about the Surrell incident makes me smile, every time.

I'm not sure how sequestered you've been but did you know Merf was a CM now? Good for him he knows how things are supposed to be done

 

[TalkingHead]

I'd be tempted to say no because he is so toxic, but they picked up Jason Surrell (after he had an online meltdown with members of this community and lost his Disney job). .. Much like baseball recycling managers, themed entertainment companies take retreads over and over ...

Thanks for sharing the insights and seeing a new Spirited thread's like having Christmas in...January or whatever.

One thing I don't grasp is how much influence one person can have in the design process of themed entertainment. You mention that there's a recycling of employees, and I guess that's part of my confusion. It seems like the fan community has hoisted up a few "celebrity Imagineers" over the last twenty years -- Tony Baxter, Joe Rohde, etc. But really there are dozens, hundreds, of people doing work that is attributed to each of those personalities.

Aren't these theme park projects, like animated movies, intrinsically collaborative? Is there a distinctive "style" that someone like Weis has, or is the idea that he might be able to push for new non-IP projects? What exactly does an 80s/90s WDI fan have to look forward to with this change? I don't see Disney moving away from franchise attractions anytime soon, so I guess I'm left wondering what any of these WDI executive changes can accomplish.

Put another way, informally and cynically, you might say Marc Davis ain't walking through that door. It's going to take a lot for me to fall in love with modern-day WDI, but maybe Avatar will be a start...

 

[WDW1974]

Just wanted to point out that MiceAge was being knowingly deceptive in that article. The "Moving Walkways" are being removed, not the skybridge. Dusty confirmed it in the comments of the article.

Knowingly deceptive? As far as I know, Dusty doesn't write the column. So if he and the writer have conflicting information, then how is it deceptive to present both views?

And since my last head had referenced morons in the fan community justifying Disney using cheap (crappy?) toilet paper, so BRAND addicts and advocates will defend any and all things, do you feel that it is OK to cut something as basic as moving walkways (you know they won't maintain them anyway!) from a major project like this? Is that exceeding Guests' Expectations?