A Spirited 15 Rounds ...

[DisneyFan18]

Not to go into too much detail here (since there are 2 other threads for Incredibles 2), but Incredibles 2 made an estimated $180 million this weekend, making it the 8th largest opening weekend at the domestic box office, and the largest opening weekend for an animated movie.

Let’s hope that they find a good way to implement them at WDW as based on the current plan actions, it seems likely they will try, let’s just hope we don’t end with another Frozen situation!

@WDW1974 great to hear you’re back! How’s everything doing? Have you already watched I2?

 

[the.dreamfinder]

And now an insight from James Dyson

Don’t get carried away with thinking that the brand’s going to carry it through. The performance of the product is what carries it through, not the brand. I hate the word brand. It’s banned from our building.

Full Interview

 

[nor'easter]

Frozen has also already grossed 2 million in a week, and hasn't dipped below 98% and is allegedly pretty much sold out until the new year...so I think it will be fine. It will not be around like Lion King (which I doubt they even expected), but it will be successful, turn a profit and tour to sold out houses. By the way the tour has already been announced, a rarity for a Disney show that hasn't made back its investment on Broadway yet.

You're wrong, it's dipped below 98% many times. No one is suggesting it's not going to be successful...the response was in reply to Penguin's assertion that Frozen is still golden for everything. From Forbes: "Scrambling to unload their stacks of unsold tickets, scalpers who had hoped that Frozen would be the next Hamilton chose to resell their tickets at a loss rather than not sell them at all. Last week, for example, scores of front orchestra seats were resold on the website for about $60, which is more than 70% off of the original ticket price."

 

[HauntedMansionFLA]

Just placing this general observation here in the Spirited zombie thread - by which I mean that in his absence this thread never died.

Anyway, my family has been vacationing in WDW regularly over the last 7 years, at all times of the year. This is probably the first June trip we have taken where we were walking from Soarin back to watch Illuminations, looked around and then at each other and the wife decried “this park is dead!” Now of course she did not mean to imply that in a figurative sense, but rather in the literal, speaking to the evident fact that there were no crowds in Epcot...anywhere. The Soarin ride we just got exited we did standby...on a Saturday...and the posted wait time was 30 minutes...and it wasn’t even that long.

I know that somewhere in these nonsensical tomes where we passionately devote our excesses of time either disavowing or defending the direction the Bobs are taking us, it was stated that park attendance was down. I am not aware if that was simply anecdotal opinion or if said poster had inside connections. That being said, my observations of one Saturday night in June would support that sentiment. Epcot was so empty that we could have done standby for any ride and the wait, I guarantee, would have been shorter than the already short-posted wait time.

My question is why? If this has already been answered elsewhere I apologize. I was just curious if it is due to construction - because it is evident everywhere - or pricing, or competition, or if this is the calm before the 2019 storm. I would love to here some opinion.

We went Friday night. We had a Frozen FP and noticed how light the crowd was walking that way. We walked around WS and enjoyed the light crowd. We walked on Soarin’ with a listed wait time of 30 minutes. It will get worse with TSL opens along with Avatar.

 

[WDW1974]

Personally I have yet to go to DLP but follow things there closely. Food has seemed to be a problem there for a while. In terms of the parks themselves it was their goal to get Disneyland Parc back up to Disney standards for the 25th. Studios of course is the focus of the future. They know they still have a long way to go and Catherine Powell has certainly helped. I believe she is the one that called for the refurb of Phantom Manor for example. She hasn't left quite yet either. She just was there for the press event for the Marvel event and of course FanDaze. Disney Village is set to undergo major work and the Disneyland Hotel will get a major renovation after Hotel New York. They have come a long way but yes still have a long way to go.

First, you should go. It is an amazing resort and Parc Disneyland is some of the finest design work WDI has ever put out. It also has been bastardized very little over the years due to neglect. The worst example I can think of is replacing the perfectly fitting Visionarium (Timekeeper at MK) with a version of Buzz Lightyear. And that is something that can easily be fixed or, at least, changed as HKDL showcases. ... As to Disney standards, that is such a nebulous term in the 21st century under The Weatherman and Chappie. All I can say for certain is that the resort is being maintained and run the best it has in the last 15 years. Can you say that about WDW or DLR?

Powell's new position is basically Meg's old one with a bit more power. She oversees WDW, DLR and DLP and is based in Burbank. Old pal Michael Colglazier has the same position for SDL, HKDL and TDR. So ask yourself which one truly has more power.

 

[WDW1974]

It is real on a terrible level with the "fake news" wait times. We got into line at mine train at 9pm on a night MK closed at eleven. The CM at the entrance asked use if we are sure we want to get in line because the wait is well over an hour and it will be the last thing we can do that night. We were done in 20 minutes. I don't know if it was his personal agenda to discourage guests, or an intitiative from Disney, but if left us with a really crappy feeling. It's one thing for the posted wait times to be off but for a CM to actively discourage you from the attraction was on a completely different level of sliminess. It left me feeling like I just visited a used car dealership.

Yes, this has been SOP for quite a while now to get these parks shut down as quickly as possible and bring down labor costs.

I know I mentioned how bad this is when a park like EPCOT, that essentially has very few attractions, posts a 70-minute wait time at 8:50 p.m. when the real wait is about 20 minutes. How many little girls (and fanbois) go home upset because they didn't get to ride when they could have.

It absolutely is slimy and it is absolutely intentional.

BTW, saw a video of the GotG dance party at EPCOT and all I can say is ... no, I can't even ...

 

[WDW1974]

Oh, I completely understand your bewilderment. Sometimes when I see ridiculous behavior, I'm so stunned, that I can't figure out what to do. It's the type of situation that, after the fact, I'd probably think of something I could have said. Or, more likely, I would have sought out a CM, who could come over to the model train area, to ask them to stop throwing coins.

This is WDW. They may likely have a gun. Better to say nothing.

 

[WDW1974]

I'm scratching my head here.. did Lesseter really harass sexually people?
I ask because with the current climate, a man or woman who is very affectionate to people and that is usual in some cultures, would be instantly labeled as a serial sexual harasser in the USA.

The man has brought billions of dollars of value to TWDC ... and his properties will bring billions more as time marches on.

Lasseter did things that are simply not acceptable in today's work environment, nor should they be. They went a lot further than 'unwanted hugs' (is there one of us out there who hasn't gotten some of those from members of both sexes?) because that would have been very easy, even in the era of #metoo, to explain away when Zenia and her flying monkeys are doing the 'splaining. John brought about his own career demise as sad as it may be. And, despite his creative faults and blind spots, I truly wish it weren't the case.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

BatB and Lion King debut on Broadway 3 years after their movies were released. Frozen isn't "too soon" by Disney's standards, and the long wait for Little Mermaid (one of Disney's most popular movies) was met with poor reviews and the show closing earlier than planed.

If Frozen isn't hitting its numbers, it's probably because the show isn't that good and not worth $200 a seat. I doubt it's an overall decline in the popularity of Frozen.

Also interesting to think about how many more "family" shows there are on Broadway today (like Spongebob) compared to the 90s when Disney started that division. With more options to choose from (including Disney's own Aladdin and Lion King), families are less likely to settle for something that's just OK.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

http://www.olc.co.jp/en/news/news_olc/20180614_01e/main/0/link/20180614_01e.pdf

The press release is the most clear. Importantly ‘the four attractions and Disney hotel have been newly developed expressly for this project’.

A few additional thoughts - OLC’s fiscal years end in March. We are currently in their ‘fiscal year end March 2019’. Fiscal year 2022 means April 2021-March 2022. It’s listed as tentative and they’ve been recently horrible about sticking to their announced dates (beauty and the beast was originally penned for fiscal year 2017. I’ll just assume Spring 2023 and be happy when it is earlier.

Pooh’s Hunny Hunt sounds similar to other Pooh attractions in marketing speak. Hong Kong’s Frozen was literally described scene for scene as FEA and has a 50% larger show building and is apparently utilizing Shanghai’s boat tech... so who freaking knows these days when they describe things.

Yes this is all behind Arabian coast in the parking lot with presumably the hotel being Bayside Station. No I do not expect a freely traversable connecting gate, OLC won’t even sell Park hoppers for the first two days. How that expansion pad lives another day is amusing.

A mystical fountain into new new fantasyland as ‘port’? Er ok. At least it’s litetally three boat attractions. I’ll give is a B- thematic pass.

I also expect the Pixie Hollow attraction to be a throwaway. Will be interesting to follow what happens to Pan in TDL.


Last thought: hello Shanghai, are you there?

I'm going to book a trip just for that Tangled ride. Sounds like the best boat ride ever. (No sarcasm!)

 

[Animaniac93-98]

When they said "Tangled gondola ride" I thought at first they meant like the ones coming to WDW

 

[WDW1974]

Please tell us more!

And yes, I've noticed the lack of project movement at SDL. I went again this past March... attendance is not the issue at that park. The merch that does move is those bubble wands. I'm not kidding, bubble wands are Shanghai's Duffy or Potter wands.

As per Beijing, is the menu plan as dismal as it sounds? I know the fanbois are all riled up with the budget increase, but I assume that is like Shanghai's 800mil increase, a bunch of lip service for major cost overruns.

And people say I get around. Are you looking to become a Disney Blogger?

I didn't pay huge amounts of attention to what was selling or not selling when at SDL. I did see many shopping bags. But to see vast amounts of SDL merchandise, including opening day plush and pins and stamp sets, sit for months at 50-80% off at outlet stores in FL tells you that someone (why is everyone looking at Chappie?) misjudged the audience there. No other rational explanation. I think I spent close to $200 on merchandise that would have cost close to a grand in Shanghai. And, even now, even after the bloggers and tweeters and eBay sellers have carted off box loads at all of the stores statewide, they still have stores with over half the merchandise coming from SDL.

Beijing is further behind at this stage than Shanghai was. Woodbury and Company have axed plussed attractions and unique ones for copies and let's not even discuss the utter stupidity of not weatherizing this park correctly. But this is the same guy who was recently given added funds by his Comcast overlords for Orlando and told his team that they were going to sit back a bit and wait to see how all of the Disney development affected the overall tourism sector. Really.

 

[WDW1974]

Besides food carts, I think only 3 are open on a regular basis: the food court in Studio 1, Remy's and Buffet des Stars. The rest are only open on super busy days. This is the main reason IMO why the park needs a Hollywood Blvd.

There are far more locales open now on a regular basis in both parks. Just since the 25th began ... and not only on super busy days either.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

There are far more locales open now on a regular basis in both parks. Just since the 25th began ... and not only on super busy days either.

I want to try those new drinks they're selling at Victoria's.

 

[WDW1974]

So what happens to Peter Pan in the other park? And why does it sound like they’re getting a clone of Frozen Ever After? I thought Tokyo was going to be getting a bigger ride.

Certainly hope and expect the rides to be significantly different and the original to remain. The original got a wonderful refurb and upgrade about 18-20 months ago and looks spectacular. ... This is no different than having Little Mermaid, Nemo and Toy Story attractions in multiple parks in FL. ... Tokyo's Frozen attraction will be unique and not a clone of anything. Paris and HK will almost assuredly have the same attraction ... with HK also getting a Frozen version of SDMT.

 

[WDW1974]

OLC almost always does it like no other Disney park.

Most people, and bloggers, have no idea. The true place where MAGIC lives is on Tokyo Bay. Even Crackpot Corless now agrees with this.

 

[WDW1974]

So “Incredibles 2” was a better version of “Solo”, I guess?

The box office would seem to indicate (since folks in these parts only care about numbers) that Incredibles 2 was a much, much, much, much better version of Solo.

 

[WDW1974]

The DIS has several podcasts. One focuses on WDW, another on DLR, another on history, another on dining, another on Dining, and another on Disney/Universal travel.

Yup. And this was the WDW one, although DLR was mentioned I believe ... the best point made was near the end on a segment about TSL where Pete attacked the company for having a QSR themed as Andy's Lunchbox serve a menu at least half of which are alcoholic beverages. Again, shows Disney is the best at hypocrisy. This was also, by far, the best discussion of the podcast.

But my only point was that out of 4-5 people on it, so many things were either not known, incorrect or vague.

If I were going to do a show where I was going to present myself as an expert on WDW, I'd make sure I had as much knowledge and facts on my side (or someone there who could Google the info) and I'd toss in educated opinion.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

with HK also getting a Frozen version of SDMT.

Any chance that comes to Paris too?

 

[LittleBuford]

Pete attacked the company for having a QSR themed as Andy's Lunchbox serve a menu at least half of which are alcoholic beverages. Again, shows Disney is the best at hypocrisy.

What's hypocritical about it?