Universal Epic Universe (South Expansion Complex) - Now Open!

[wdwfan4ver]

I'm not confusing anything. The PeopleMover is objectively not a themed experience, while Yoshi is.

Peoplemover is one of my favorite all time rides at WDW. Peoplemover is not a problem besides Tomorrowland at MK and Disneyland are messes for theming. I said Disneyland only because I read about so many people want changes to that land.

For Magic Kingdom, Tomorrowland Speedway really doesn't fit Tomorrowland. Tomorrowland Speedway is very dated and the cars are very dated also by not being electric. I know people use the little kid argument for Tomorrowland speedway, but doesn't matter from a theme standpoint.

 

[Tom Morrow]

You may not like the theme and that’s ok. But the coaster track is supposed to look like something other then a coaster track.

Wait… this is not correct. It is a roller coaster toy kit that Andy has modified by attaching Slinky Dog to the train. It is literally supposed to be a toy roller coaster. There are assembly instructions throughout the queue.

I don’t mind at all, I think it looks cool. But I know Disney came up with this concept because so many Disney park fans are against coaster track being visible.

 

[Tom Morrow]

1. THE CUSTOMER SERVICE: I’m prepared to get some real pushback for this one. But a lot of the TM’s we met were truly… not that nice. I can imagine how hard it must be to do your job in a new theme park, and I’m sure that management is putting so much pressure on everyone, but we truly experienced some rude TMs. (WE ALSO EXPERIENCED MANY LOVELY ONES). For example, when sitting at Pizza Moon they offered us a Table of 4 for 5 people. We said that we wouldn’t fit as we were 5 people and there were 4 chairs. The TM told us “this is all I can offer you.” After we asked how we should determine who gets to sit and who gets to stand, a manager swooped in and offered to push 2 tables together. Another example, when riding “Monsters Unchained” the TM asked how many people were in our party, when we responded 5- she said “ok! 4 and 1.” When we asked if we could do 2 and 3 like every other ride throughout the day, she made it seem like we had asked to cut the line before rolling her eyes and relenting. Just very confusing. Even getting drinks at Meed Hall for a bit, I went up to the “bar” area and asked if I pick up the drinks to which the TM cut me off and goes “No, please go back to your table. Bye!” and turned around- just a level of customer service well beneath Disney and even the other Universal parks.

Thank you for an objective review that shows you enjoyed the park while refraining from acting like it’s a perfect theme park experience like so many Universal fans are attempting to force a narrative of.

Just wanted to say that you are not alone in noticing how bad the service at Epic is. IMO the average service at Universal is still leagues below Disney’s (even if Disney’s has also slipped over the years), but Epic’s is worse than even typical Universal service.

They unfortunately had to hire probably 75% brand new hires so that probably isn’t helping. Also, hate to bring in generational debates, but the latest 20-somethings entering the workforce were those affected by COVID during their school years, and in general I’ve noticed a notable lack of empathy and basic logic from that age group. Not everyone, of course, but higher than average for that age group.

I hope they do something because it sucks to keep hearing about so many people looking forward to seeing a new theme park and then having the employees scream at them and give them sass all day.

If you were in the normal line for Monsters, there’s absolutely no reason you should have ever been split 4 and 1 instead of 3 and 2, for instance. That is bonkers.

 

[JT3000]

Are people really throwing shade at the people mover… an all time classic Disney attraction that adds kinetics to the park and was imagined as part of the theme of Tomorrowland …. A 60’s idealistic vision of the future

Yes, I am. "Part of the theme" or not, merely having a couple dioramas along the ride path isn't going to cut it for me. It's a ride that would be commonly scrutinized to the high heavens if it weren't "classic Disney."

Turns out it’s a rather good litmus test. That poster completely doesn’t understand at all what theming is.

You can pull it from the plaque for starters.
-A vista of wonderous ideas
-A step into the future, with predictions of constructive things to come.

Themes that come to mind like:
-A world in motion
-Connectivity
-Progress
-Quite literally future transit solutions from the old Disneyland Tomorrowland.

From the 2025 lens: Retrofuturism.

Slapping some animatronic AA Wall E figures around the ride and slathering it in rock work would not improve the theming for Tomorrowland. It would be decoration and speak to themes like love and eco-futurism and random rock decoration. Which are not themes of original Tomorrowland.

You are purposely splitting hairs. In themed entertainment, "theming" and "decoration" are literally the same thing, and you cannot properly express a theme without theming. According to your logic, I can build a basic, completely unadorned rollercoaster in my backyard, plop down a homemade diorama next to it, slap the name "Rollercoaster Transit Authority" on it and play some corny spiel about futuristic ideals of transportation and "a world in motion" during the lift hill and suddenly it's a themed experience!

No bueno.

Yes because someone talked about how horrible in every conceivable way Yoshi is as a ride. It's not a people eater like people mover, its mostly fully exposed to the sun and elements, unlike people mover. It has none of the charm of people mover and still has a height requirement???

But atleast you can go into a giant plastic dinosaur so it's "more themed" and I guess there's a little Dora minigame so obviously better?

I'd rather bake in the sun while looking at theming than sit under a roof looking at concrete.

 

[AidenRodriguez731]

Yes, I am. "Part of the theme" or not, merely having a couple dioramas along the ride path isn't going to cut it for me. It's a ride that would be commonly scrutinized to the high heavens if it weren't "classic Disney."


You are purposely splitting hairs. In themed entertainment, "theming" and "decoration" are literally the same thing, and you cannot properly express a theme without theming. According to your logic, I can build a basic, completely unadorned rollercoaster in my backyard, plop down a homemade diorama next to it, slap the name "Rollercoaster Transit Authority" on it and play some corny spiel about futuristic ideals of transportation and "a world in motion" during the lift hill and suddenly it's a themed experience!

No bueno.


I'd rather bake in the sun while looking at theming than sit under a roof looking at concrete.

It’s gonna amaze you what all that theMing is made of. Not to mention Tomorrowland is literally the theming… plus there’s fun show scenes inside the buildings. Yosh is a horrid ride with “scenery” that you can just see walking around

 

[BrianLo]

You are purposely splitting hairs. In themed entertainment, "theming" and "decoration" are literally the same thing. According to your logic, I can build a basic, completely unadorned rollercoaster in my backyard, slap the name "Rollercoaster Transit Authority" on it and play some corny spiel about futuristic ideals of transportation and "a world in motion" during the lift hill and suddenly it's a themed experience!

No bueno.

Ah no. I’m really not splitting hairs. Foundationally you don’t seem to understand what makes something themed.

How is a roller coaster a retro futuristic transit solution? You seem to be missing the very concept that the system itself fulfills the theme. Rocket rods less fulfilled the theme of Tomorrowland, though they poorly tried to change the themes of Tomorrowland and have since largely reverted back.

You very much seem to prefer heavy decoration above theming. Which honestly is totally fine if you just said so. They are not mutually exclusive because sometimes the execution of the theme might very well require such. You’d prefer a more dynamic ride that eschews the broader purpose of why they built what they built.

Of course Peoplemover and its show scenes could better executed in a 2025 lens. But they really are on theme. A minivan driving through Fantasyland would be unthemed. A minivan covered in polka dots would still be unthemed in fantasyland. People mover is perfectly themed to its land.

 

[sedati]

All photos I took. I don’t know how anyone can’t walk through this place and not be awed and immersed. The design is what makes me love Disney.

As everyone has always said (including me), it just needs a bit more life, and a little more fun and magic sprinkled in. But those are easy fixes if Disney actually decides they want to make the changes fans ask for.

Will Universal fix the shortcuts taken in Berk?

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Only two elements in all of your wonderful pictures "lock" this land into any specific timeline- the Falcon's dish, and Kylo's shuttle with First Order banner behind it.

 

[JT3000]

Ah no. I’m really not splitting hairs. Foundationally you don’t seem to understand what makes something themed - and then mocked me about it I might add.

How is a roller coaster a retro futuristic transit solution? You seem to be missing the very concept that the system itself fulfills the theme. Rocket rods less fulfilled the theme of Tomorrowland, though they poorly tried to change the themes of Tomorrowland and have since largely reverted back.

You very much seem to prefer heavy decoration above theming. Which honestly is totally fine if you just said so. They are not mutually exclusive because sometimes the execution of the theme might very well require such. You’d prefer a more dynamic ride that eschews the broader purpose of why they built what they built.

Of course Peoplemover and its show scenes could better executed in a 2025 lens. But they really are on theme. A minivan driving through Fantasyland would be unthemed. People mover is perfectly themed to its land.

How is a rollercoaster a "retro futuristic transit solution?" Because I say it is. If Disney can tell you the PeopleMover is a "retro futuristic transit solution" and you just accept that at face value, I can do the same with a rollercoaster or any other ride system with moving vehicles.

Do you actually see the PeopleMover being used anywhere as a transit solution? Because I don't, and it's very much currently the future compared to when that thing was built.

This all just feels like a handwaving away of the ride's critical flaws. Something like Yoshi certainly has flaws of its own, but it at least serves its purpose as part of a broader themed experience. It's not being grandfathered in by rote acceptance of a dated, amorphous notion of what it represents rather than what it actually is.

 

[brb1006]

Am I the only person who's super curious to see how Epic Universe will turn out during the Halloween and especially Christmas seasons? Did we get any hints on Epic getting some Christmas or Halloween decorations yet?

 

[BrianLo]

How is a rollercoaster a "retro futuristic transit solution?" Because I say it is. If Disney can tell you the PeopleMover is a "retro futuristic transit solution" and you just accept that at face value, I can do the same with a rollercoaster or any other ride system with moving vehicles.

No, because a WED-way was specifically made to be a near-futuristic mass transit solution. A roller coaster is a thrill ride, not a transit solution.

Do you actually see the PeopleMover being used anywhere as a transit solution? Because I don't, and it's very much currently the future compared to when that thing was built.

Now you don't understand what retro-futurism is and how this makes it hold up so well.

This all just feels like a handwaving away of the ride's critical flaws. Something like Yoshi certainly has flaws of its own, but it at least serves its purpose as part of a broader themed experience. It's not being grandfathered in by rote acceptance of a dated, amorphous notion of what it represents rather than what it actually is.

I'm not trying to hand wave, I already said I don't understand what your position is. Because you keep calling it unthemed when it is not. What exactly do you want them to do to it? What is the problem with Peoplemover? I say this when I'm fairly confident 9/10 forum goers are begging for them to bring it back at Disneyland, hence my confusion.

I can think of a few things that could be done to make it better executed, but there's nothing off with its theme.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Do you actually see the PeopleMover being used anywhere as a transit solution? Because I don't,

Innovia people mover and monorail: Efficient solutions for urban and airport transit

Alstom’s Innovia™ portfolio of fully driverless automated people movers (APM) and monorails embody the evolution of successful and dependable transit operations over many years. Designed to specially serve airports, rapidly growing cities and dense urban areas, Innovia solutions operate on...

www.alstom.com

Alstom’s peoplemover business in part traces back to WED Transportation Systems. Disney sold the business to Bombardier who recently sold it to Alstom.

 

[dothebrdwalk]

Thank you for an objective review that shows you enjoyed the park while refraining from acting like it’s a perfect theme park experience like so many Universal fans are attempting to force a narrative of.

Just wanted to say that you are not alone in noticing how bad the service at Epic is. IMO the average service at Universal is still leagues below Disney’s (even if Disney’s has also slipped over the years), but Epic’s is worse than even typical Universal service.

They unfortunately had to hire probably 75% brand new hires so that probably isn’t helping. Also, hate to bring in generational debates, but the latest 20-somethings entering the workforce were those affected by COVID during their school years, and in general I’ve noticed a notable lack of empathy and basic logic from that age group. Not everyone, of course, but higher than average for that age group.

I hope they do something because it sucks to keep hearing about so many people looking forward to seeing a new theme park and then having the employees scream at them and give them sass all day.

If you were in the normal line for Monsters, there’s absolutely no reason you should have ever been split 4 and 1 instead of 3 and 2, for instance. That is bonkers.

Glad to hear I'm not alone in this experience! I can imagine it's tough in a new park, and our take away of it was that it's probably a lot of "everyone is someone else's boss" and no one truly knows exactly what they're doing yet, but yikes. We were literally SCREAMED at to get out of the way for the "MARIO BROTHERS COMING THROUGH." When we were standing in Super Nintendo and Mario and Luigi were leaving. SCREAMED. I can never imagine that happening at Disney. It was a mess.

 

[JT3000]

Innovia people mover and monorail: Efficient solutions for urban and airport transit

Alstom’s Innovia™ portfolio of fully driverless automated people movers (APM) and monorails embody the evolution of successful and dependable transit operations over many years. Designed to specially serve airports, rapidly growing cities and dense urban areas, Innovia solutions operate on...

www.alstom.com

Alstom’s peoplemover business in part traces back to WED Transportation Systems. Disney sold the business to Bombardier who recently sold it to Alstom.

I see monorails, but I don't see a recognizable connection to the PeopleMover.

No, because a WED-way was specifically made to be a near-futuristic mass transit solution. A roller coaster is a thrill ride, not a transit solution.

Anything can be transit if built for that purpose. As it stands, the PeopleMover is merely a theme park ride, no different to a rollercoaster. It isn't transit. It doesn't take you anywhere. You end up right back where you began, just like any other ride. You're giving it legitimacy as a form of transportation because Disney told you to. I could do the same with any other ride system, except I'm not Disney.

Now you don't understand what retro-futurism is and how this makes it hold up so well.

I know an excuse when I see one. The PeopleMover, just like most of Tomorrowland, is accepted as "retro futuristic" because it's too dated to be genuinely futuristic, which was the original intent. It was never meant to be retro anything. It's now The Tomorrow of Yesterday Land, and it holds up not due to some enigmatic quality, but because everyone just accepts that as being good enough.

 

[BrianLo]

I know an excuse when I see one. The PeopleMover, just like most of Tomorrowland, is accepted as "retro futuristic" because it's too dated to be genuinely futuristic, which was the original intent.

I never meant to imply otherwise. Hence from the 2025 lens the theme has obviously changed perhaps too conveniently (as you say and I am not disagreeing) for the whole land. Tomorrowland is a mess because they can’t seem to decide what they want to do with it. The choice to me is obvious (go all in retro future and re-dedicate), but I’m not Disney.

You still are not directly answering my original question, for whatever reason. I’m not personally offended that you dislike the PeopleMover.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I see monorails, but I don't see a recognizable connection to the PeopleMover.

The title of the page starts with “Innovia people mover” and there’s a picture with a people mover…

Here’s a Wikipedia list

Category:Innovia people movers - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[Sir_Cliff]

You are purposely splitting hairs. In themed entertainment, "theming" and "decoration" are literally the same thing, and you cannot properly express a theme without theming. According to your logic, I can build a basic, completely unadorned rollercoaster in my backyard, plop down a homemade diorama next to it, slap the name "Rollercoaster Transit Authority" on it and play some corny spiel about futuristic ideals of transportation and "a world in motion" during the lift hill and suddenly it's a themed experience!

Not really. Decoration is more superimposed ornament than theming, at least according to the way it has traditionally been defined at Disney theme parks. For example, you can stick a bunch of sea shells around your apartment and it will certainly be decorated with a seaside motif. If it's just a modern apartment with a bunch of seashells stuck on the walls, though, it wouldn't be a themed apartment. Disney has certainly been guilty of this kind of decoration recently, for example at the crepe restaurant by Ratatouille.

As for the Rollercoaster Transit Authority, if the theme was an idiot tries to start a theme park in his backyard that might actually be better themed than something with more bells and whistles because it would be more believable.

 

[mellyf]

Am I the only person who's super curious to see how Epic Universe will turn out during the Halloween and especially Christmas seasons? Did we get any hints on Epic getting some Christmas or Halloween decorations yet?

No you're not! I feel like Dark Universe and Harry Potter could be amazing at Halloween. We're going to be there in early September, so I'm sure that's too early to see Halloween decorations.

 

[Tom Morrow]

Wait, I’ve lost the plot. Are we arguing that Yoshi is a better ride than Peoplemover because it is “more themed”? And that people only like Peoplemover for nostalgia? Because no.

Peoplemover:
- shows you a lot of cool views of the park, inside space mountain, etc, and acts as a tour
- is covered from the sun
- moves at a brisk enough pace to both be exciting while providing enough breeze to be relaxing
- no restraints so the seats are comfortable and allow you to relax
- is a long ride both physically and time-wise
- Has a high capacity so waits are short
- anyone can ride it

Yoshi:
- is slow moving so you don’t get any breeze
- is in direct sunlight most of the time
- mostly just views of the land’s props up close (they’re cute and one view gives you a view of the whole land, sure)
- has a restraint system so you can’t really relax on it
- has a low capacity so the waits are long
- is a short ride both physically and time-wise

Like, there is no contest here. I could ride People over all day, I never care to ride Yoshi more than the one time I did.

 

[MrPromey]

Turns out it’s a rather good litmus test. That poster completely doesn’t understand at all what theming is.

You can pull it from the plaque for starters.
-A vista of wonderous ideas
-A step into the future, with predictions of constructive things to come.

Themes that come to mind like:
-A world in motion
-Connectivity
-Progress
-Quite literally future transit solutions from the old Disneyland Tomorrowland.

From the 2025 lens: Retrofuturism.

Slapping some animatronic AA Wall E figures around the ride and slathering it in rock work would not improve the theming for Tomorrowland. It would be decoration and speak to themes like love and eco-futurism and random rock decoration. Which are not themes of original Tomorrowland.

The theme of the Yoshi ride is essentially Yoshi's Island with the baby Mario and other characters.

It's a "dark ride" that is largely outdoors and makes double-duty of the scenery of the entire Mario Land as a backdrop for major parts of it but even outdoors, has ride specific elements.

It's uncovered because if they covered it, it would look like nothing from the games.

It's not all that deep but neither are most Fantasy Land rides... and neither are the stories of Yoshi's Island games.

This likely works better in Cali and Japan where the heat is not sweltering 8-10 months out of the year but I have no idea how they could have done this otherwise unless they'd better positioned it and built up the high points - hills, Whomps, etc. to provide shade both east and west with the only time most of it got direct sunlight was during the noonish hours... That would have been an interesting and creative way to deal with that, actually, but they'd have had to rethink the layout of the land from the previous two builds to accommodate which is, I guess, expecting too much from them.

I totally agree it's brutal in the afternoon hours, in particular, though.

I think the comparison with People Mover, other than that they both are largely outdoors, and are kinetic additions to their lands is kind of silly.

I love People Mover (I'm not slighting it in the least) but it's "theme" is basically to act as a travelog for the land and that's not the point of Yoshi at all.

Seriously, I love People Mover. I wish they'd give it more love for the indoor scenes and I'm annoyed to no end with the last referb of Space Mountain that, among other things, turned that part of People Mover into a ride through total darkness but if a condition of it never being removed was that they would never change a single thing about it, I'd take that deal in a heartbeat!

 

[BrianLo]

The theme of the Yoshi ride is essentially Yoshi's Island with the baby Mario and such.

That’s not really a theme, that’s the franchise. The theme of Super Nintendo World is more along the lines of discovery and play. I actually don’t have a huge problem with Yoshi for what it is worth. I think it’s cute and reasonably well decorated. I’ve done the Osaka one.

Though capacity, height restrictions and the lack of design for Florida’s climate are all evident flaws.

I think the comparison with People Mover, other than that they both are largely outdoors, and are kinetic additions to their lands is kind of silly.

I agree, they really should not be compared. They aren’t remotely trying to be similar attractions. We should be comparing Yoshi to Alice or maybe that tinkerbell ride (haven’t watched a ride through purposefully).