ford91exploder
Resident Curmudgeon
Same here!
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A Spirited Perfect Ten
- Thread starter WDW1974
- Start date
Same here!
LondonGopher
Well-Known Member
This park SHOULD get built. I've been to a couple of the meetings (as an observer only, a family member is a solicitor involved in some of the property issues).
The planning permission(s) are proceeding apace (that's a S-L-O-W process here) and there is general goodwill. The enormous success of the Harry Potter studio tour here in London and the still BONKERS queues at King's Cross Station (to be photographed with the Platform 9 3/4 wall) have people seeing £££.
Kent is the EXACT right location, too. Not to assume that Americans don't know much about European geography/labour practises, BUT...
..this plot of land is less than two hours into England if you cross via the Channel Tunnel, not to mention VERY convenient for the 12 or so million of us who live in Greater London. And seeing that we patronise (in great and frankly baffling numbers) the truly inferior Merlin theme parks (LEGOLAND Windsor and Chessington World of Adventures, to name two)...the Paramount park SHOULD be a licence to print £££.The land itself is Brownfields...after the rehabilitation of much of the East End for the Olympics, there is a real appetite for gentrifying more and more of Greater London/the Home Counties.
Also, unlike France...people in England are used to working longer hours and by doing so achieving greater productivity. It ain't Japan - but compared to Paris, it is. I live five or so months of every year in France, dealing with the French legal system
...so this is more than just jingoism/casual racism. And I said this earlier in the thread (but I think it's worth repeating
) - if the STAR TREK section of this park is done at Diagon Alley level...the German guests alone will keep the park in business. Serious Easter Eggs! Can't wait to take my kid! Fingers crossed for decent transport links from King's Cross..
BrerJon
Well-Known Member
And I said this earlier in the thread (but I think it's worth repeating
With lands dedicated to both Star Trek and Doctor Who, plus large hotels, if nothing else Paramount London will become the go-to place for sci-fi conventions that's for sure!
BrerJon
Well-Known Member
Don't... give... them... ideas!
suburbianj
Active Member
They also today just signed a deal with aardman animations,who created Wallace and gromit,Shaun the sheep,chicken run so they have a whole world of options between the paramount movies,bbc worldwide and aardman animations for a wide variety of rides and shows aimed at all ages
culturenthrills
Well-Known Member
What love is that? If u are talking the Pirates refurb 4.5 months is not enough. So once again we get a half @$$ed rehab. IASW, Buzz, Peter Pan, SM, COP all need major refurbs.
gmajew
Premium Member
They are spending a fortune on improving infrastructure in the park. That alone should give them props. let alone getting the exterior of the buildings back in great shape. When was the last time you walked main street and the building look as good as they do now! Hey they still got a long way to go but they are making improvements.
It is not all roses but it for sure is not all black and dark either.
ford91exploder
Resident Curmudgeon
Interesting 'Shaun The Sheep' is one of my favorites, Shaun and the Dog have an curious relationship, I can recall when this was on the Disney Channel.
CaptainAmerica
Premium Member
Yet if they scheduled it for longer people would be crying out "how can it possibly take them so long to do a refurb!?"
hpyhnt 1000
Well-Known Member
You're right, the place isn't completely falling apart and there have been some positive things (trip reports from others confirm there are some areas that are in surprisingly decent shape).
But for every positive there is at least one corresponding negative, usually that has been around for years and is still not being addressed. Plus, taking nearly two years to put down a few new trees and paths, or to paint the backside of the Main Street bypass isn't exactly stuff that deserves a round of applause. Disney is hardly pushing themselves to get things done and that's a huge point of frustration.
One last point - if you want to talk about infrastructure, let's talk about the multi billion dollar SNAFU that is MM+ that has made WDW a more frustrating experience for CMs and guests alike.
There may have been some small steps forward recently, but they are coming after about a thousand steps backwards.
ford91exploder
Resident Curmudgeon
And on the China does not want western products front, We have this just in from Reuters some of this of course is because of the NSA bugging hi-tech products but...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/25/us-china-tech-exclusive-idUSKBN0LT1B020150225
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/25/us-china-tech-exclusive-idUSKBN0LT1B020150225
So, I'm up late last night and can't sleep ... and there really is only so much Manilow or Goo Goo Dolls one can listen to and I find this little gem on the YouTube.
It's Bob Iger (he of the Disney CEO Fumbles Entry to China ... and then gets his wife to make it disappear fame!) appearing on CCTV in 2013 after the Fortune event.
Now, watch it. What do you see? A confident CEO who is showing the world the cockiness he does in his seemingly monthly appearances on CNBC talking about the strength of the Disney BRAND and the possibilities in China?
Or do you see a meek, afraid, stumbling man who doesn't wish to anger his overlords? One without a prepared statement who is lost?
I know what I see.
I see what's there.
Also, gotta love that again ... no video whatsoever of Bob at SDL. Stock footage of everything from DL to some amusement park in China.
But again, don't let Wall Street know that Bob isn't (or hasn't) been allowed to show one pic of himself or any other top level Disney official on-site.
But just bless Michael Eisner's heart ... Shendi had no problem with the ex-CEO tweeting pics of attractions that haven't even been officially announced.
And no one on Wall Street demands answers. That shouldn't be surprising ... no one was asking for answers about derivatives and negative credit default swaps and all sorts of fake products that were being peddled right until the economy crashed either.
It's Bob Iger (he of the Disney CEO Fumbles Entry to China ... and then gets his wife to make it disappear fame!) appearing on CCTV in 2013 after the Fortune event.
Now, watch it. What do you see? A confident CEO who is showing the world the cockiness he does in his seemingly monthly appearances on CNBC talking about the strength of the Disney BRAND and the possibilities in China?
Or do you see a meek, afraid, stumbling man who doesn't wish to anger his overlords? One without a prepared statement who is lost?
I know what I see.
I see what's there.
Also, gotta love that again ... no video whatsoever of Bob at SDL. Stock footage of everything from DL to some amusement park in China.
But again, don't let Wall Street know that Bob isn't (or hasn't) been allowed to show one pic of himself or any other top level Disney official on-site.
But just bless Michael Eisner's heart ... Shendi had no problem with the ex-CEO tweeting pics of attractions that haven't even been officially announced.
And no one on Wall Street demands answers. That shouldn't be surprising ... no one was asking for answers about derivatives and negative credit default swaps and all sorts of fake products that were being peddled right until the economy crashed either.
Omnispace
Well-Known Member
We all have our regrets in life.
I've got a lot of mail over my ''hate'' of Bob Iger (and, yes, at this point, I fully do hate the man as his behavior is tarnishing anything that is left of Walt's company and the people who made it even better and bigger) and why I'm ''making a big deal'' about him getting a negative opinion piece removed from the web.
Look, folks, if you can't see why behavior like that is abhorrent, then I doubt anything I say or anyone else says will make a bit of difference.
Censorship is disgusting and anti-American, and when it is done by the head of the world's largest media company while using his wife's influence , while she heads one of the most prestigious journalism schools in the nation, it rises to grotesque.
You either agree or you'd rather whine about $105 MK tickets (you can do both though!) or how long the Pirates rehab is (HINT: not nearly long enough!)
But think of it this way, if TWDC can censor a meek Business Op-Ed in the HuffPo, what else has it and any corporation you can think of kept from your eyes? That's not how a supposed free press in a supposed democracy works. That's not how any of this works (he sez while trying to wrap his mind around why Bob dressed his wife as Yoda for the Oscars!)
If you don't get why censorship is a problem, then you're part of the problem. Now, go read the Patriot Act.
Look, folks, if you can't see why behavior like that is abhorrent, then I doubt anything I say or anyone else says will make a bit of difference.
Censorship is disgusting and anti-American, and when it is done by the head of the world's largest media company while using his wife's influence , while she heads one of the most prestigious journalism schools in the nation, it rises to grotesque.
You either agree or you'd rather whine about $105 MK tickets (you can do both though!) or how long the Pirates rehab is (HINT: not nearly long enough!)
But think of it this way, if TWDC can censor a meek Business Op-Ed in the HuffPo, what else has it and any corporation you can think of kept from your eyes? That's not how a supposed free press in a supposed democracy works. That's not how any of this works (he sez while trying to wrap his mind around why Bob dressed his wife as Yoda for the Oscars!)
If you don't get why censorship is a problem, then you're part of the problem. Now, go read the Patriot Act.
Cesar R M
Well-Known Member
you still need to get a NEW DISK for this supposed key change to activate.
older disks should be unaffected if they decide to just change the plug.
CaptainAmerica
Premium Member
I haven't seen anyone say "Bob Iger had that story pulled and I'm okay with it." The closest thing I've seen is more along the lines of "do we really know that Bob Iger had that story pulled?" It's a question of fact versus question of principle.
Cesar R M
Well-Known Member
which is ironic.
as USA as attacked many china based companies for "planting" bugs and backdoors in their hardware.
note that they attacked and did mention "fear" (aka "we fear they might be affected..")
yet they never did show proof, unlike the US bugging memories, cell phone chips and now disk drives of all kind.
Cesar R M
Well-Known Member
speaking of Eisner..
what if the chinese officials hate the Weatherman's behaviour and style of business but they loved the passion of Eisner?
Compared to Eisner.. bob really looks like a low quality dummied AA.
This is a line that has been trotted out at me for the last 15 years. When MSUSA got new lighting and paint about a decade ago, wasn't I happy? When they finally fixed (and, indeed, plussed) Mansion, wasn't I happy? When they got Splash Mountain to about 80% of where it should be (and that's all it is for all the blubbering I read online), wasn't I happy?
I'm sorry, but, no.
I don't give Disney credit for doing what they conditioned me to expect ... just the basics. Upkeep. How do you give them credit for what they did regularly when admission was $15 a day or $35 a day
They have so Walmarted their product and their audience that it's OK they let Pirates (or Small World or CoP etc) rot, so long as years down the road they do a half-@ssed or even good rehab.
They get no props for me.
They have people walking backstage as a solution for a problem they largely created. They have taken what was a beautiful, integral part of the MK and turned it into hot, barren piece of land that makes the castle imposing when it shouldn't. The first act, if you will, is off. There is no reveal anymore. You step onto a turn of the century Main Street and just see a giant fake fairytale castle looming. Again, that's not how this is supposed to be. It's not how any of this is supposed to be.