A Spirited Perfect Ten

[Kman101]

Another wonderful post ParentsOf4, but I also appreciated BrianLo's post as well. He makes some valid points.

Anyway, I think Anaheim did a much better job with the Frozen fest. The snowground actually looks incredibly inviting and the theming in the theater was well done. Freeze the Night looks very meh though. I will say, even though they're extremely similar, I give WDW the slight edge in the sing-along script, but it's not by much. None of it in Anaheim looks temporary but who knows? I do love the Royal Theater Frozen show. Just like I loved the Tangled one (haven't seen the BaTB one). Heaven forbid WDW gives us something like that. Although they tried, sort of, with the sing-along.

I was also in the parks the first week of December. Parks weren't dead per say but everything was basically walk on. Jingle Cruise was much improved this year and I think they did a good job with it. Anaheim's look like they threw up Christmas all over the ride everywhere. WDW's was a bit more tasteful. Still think they should bring back Country Bear Christmas, considering they offer a Christmas party and no overlays what-so-ever except for Jingle Cruise now. Yet, Anaheim's offerings are free and they have numerous overlays. Yet people still pay more for less at WDW. Something's wrong with that picture. I can see the lower crowds, extra entertainment, etc. being a draw if you want to spend a little less for about 8 hours in the park, but for just the Christmas party? Not really worth it anymore and hasn't been for a while. I'm still annoyed over that Tomorrowland dance party they want to call a show.

 

[ford91exploder]

i wouldnt wish replicators onto anyone

or the next universe's

now what am i referencing?

Hmm - Stargate fans here as well

 

[lazyboy97o]

Wait... I thought it was Ben Franklin that did the eyeglass thing or was that just bifocals?

Just the bifocals.

Yep, and this is why Disney is being very secretive about details of their Shanghai Park

Internal theft is very much an issue.

 

[MrTomHamilton]

What these people ... these fans don not realize is that just because a giant media corp uses Walt Disney's name or like ness or his creations does not mean this was his vision or that he'd support it in any way. Now, maybe I need to accept that Walt Disney was dead before I was even born ... and that he was dead decades before many of today's fans were. Maybe that's why it's so easy for them to think that Darth Vader and the Incredible Hulk are as Disney as Mickey or Donald. But they're not. Not even as Disney as Buzz or Kermit (creations that have Disney DNA in them). And at the end of the day (and post) you have to decide are you more a fan of Walt Disney's 'Disney' or even Card Walker's (no, not Michael Crawford and Andy Castro's imaginary friend) and Ron Miller's 'Disney' or Michael and Frank's 'Disney' or are you a fan of Bob Iger's 'Disney' .. of his vision (such as it may be). I am not. Not at all.

And that's where the online battles rage.

This right here. I grew up on Disney in the 80s (I can still remember the glorious day we got The Disney Channel in 1983 - not that monstrosity they call the Disney Channel now, I'm talking the REAL Disney Channel with Dateline Walt DIsney World updates, classic live-action and animation and stellar original programming). For me, Walt Disney's Disney - and yes, even Michael Eisner's and Frank Well's Disney - will always be the true Disney. Call me crazy but I loved seeing MIchael Eisner introduce the Disney Sunday Night Movie back in the day, much like my parents loved seeing Walt Disney introduce Wonderful World of Color. Can you imagine Bob Iger doing that? I certainly cannot.

 

[ford91exploder]

That's a good read on what China does well: BUILD, BUILD and BUILD BIG!

I do worry about where it all is going. The whole Ghost City deal isn't a joke. You can't just build it and hope they will come. Doesn't work that way. But since I wish to work there again, that's really all I intend to say about this.

Another example is the New South China Mall, Unlike other malls which decay from loss of tenants this one has been 99% empty since it's opening. This particular mall is said to be the second largest in the world.

 

[ford91exploder]

I still chuckle when they mention Iger "running DisneyCo as the sum of all its parts".
He only focused on Wall Street, DVC, basic DCL expansion and Movie franchises.

To be fair Iger does use WDW as an ATM for the 'more important' parts of Disney like ESPN...

Building those wonderful themed 'ESPN Zones' remember how (NOT)packed they were, Another few hundred million down the drain

 

[Kman101]

Yes, Iger has neglected WDW for a very long time.

I don't see the issues in them acquiring Marvel, Lucas, etc. though. It's not like either has been given much presence in the parks. Should more Disney-bred properties be used more? Sure. But I don't see anything wrong with expanding and including other properties. Whether we like it or not, Marvel/Lucas, ARE *now* Disney owned. It's not wrong for fans to like them.

But for all the money spent on them, money like that should have also been invested in the parks.

 

[jakeman]

To be fair Iger does use WDW as an ATM for the 'more important' parts of Disney like ESPN...

To be fair, that's completely inaccurate as ESPN is fairly profitable on its own.

Now ABC Family might be another story...

 

[stevehousse]

It'll be interesting to see what happens to ABC Family after Pretty Little Liars ends in a year and a half, as it's the only program that really sustains their network.

 

[RSoxNo1]

I feel sorry for all the "Guests" having a great time on vacation who fall prey to Disney's DVC sales pitch.

Disney (literally) is banking on consumer naivety and the reputation of a man who has been dead for 50 years.

In the defense of DVC, they're not the only faction of the company that functions by deceiving customers. That's the basic foundation for Fastpass+.

 

[wdisney9000]

Hmm - Stargate fans here as well

If you think things get heated around here, go check out the Stargate forums when they debate who is a better leader between Jack Oneil vs Cameron Mitchell. It gets pretty intense. I dont why anybody would choose Mitchell. apologies for off topic post

 

[Rteetz]

It'll be interesting to see what happens to ABC Family after Pretty Little Liars ends in a year and a half, as it's the only program that really sustains their network.

Only reason I watch that channel is for 25 days of Christmas

 

[Goofyernmost]

In the defense of DVC, they're not the only faction of the company that functions by deceiving customers. That's the basic foundation for Fastpass+.

I don't feel sorry for the "Guests" that get sucked into the DVC thing. Just goes to show how important math was in school. They should have paid attention. Also, most of them get sucked in because they were looking for something free, be it tickets or lunch, whatever. Then once they got there they didn't have the ability to say no to the sales people. Those that bought in, knowing what they were doing, probably are happy with their decisions.

It's not like no one has ever mentioned the bad parts of DVC type setups. It seem to me to have been pretty common since the first introduction of timeshare programs. If you have gone through life with blinders on, don't be surprised if you are sideswiped.

Oh, and on the Fastpass+ issue, that has been the reality of the thing since the introduction of the original Fastpass. Nothing new there. However, it still is a better system then the original for the bulk of Guests. Someday I hope that some hacker gets into the systems and completely destroys FP (of any form) from ever operating again and we go back to the slower for some, faster for most, but, totally fair and up front in how it works, queue line.

 

[PhotoDave219]

To be fair Iger does use WDW as an ATM for the 'more important' parts of Disney like ESPN...

Building those wonderful themed 'ESPN Zones' remember how (NOT)packed they were, Another few hundred million down the drain

No no.... ESPN is the largest cash cow. P&R is #2 and WDW is the largest of that.

 

[wdisney9000]

WDW fans should despise Iger for what's happened at WDW during the last 9 years.

They should, but IMO, this goes right along with what @WDW1974 said about people who never visited WDW before Iger took over. Those people are used to rides not being maintained or breaking down. Theyre used to show elements not working for months on end. Theyre used to minimal additions to ride capacity. They have only seen the Grand Floridian with multiple lights burned out on the roof which is why they cant understand why it bothers people so much that the flagship resort looks terrible in that state.

Perhaps Iger knew it was just a matter of time until a new crop of visitors would accept lower quality as the standard in Orlando. They even defend it now. I guess they dont realize that 99% of what they LOVE about WDW was put in place by the previous caretakers, not the current ones, who rely so heavily on nostalgia yet dont respect it enough to even spend the proper money to maintain it.

 

[Cesar R M]

If you think things get heated around here, go check out the Stargate forums when they debate who is a better leader between Jack Oneil vs Cameron Mitchell. It gets pretty intense. I dont why anybody would choose Mitchell. apologies for off topic post

Pretty sure these kind of debates are everywhere.
Reminds me of my gaming junkie days. Where the debate was the best processor and best video card.
It was always AMD vs INTEL, Nvidia vs ATI. And it almost always went with gigantic insults until the mods entered the fray.

 

[OSUgirl77]

I don't feel sorry for the "Guests" that get sucked into the DVC thing. Just goes to show how important math was in school. They should have paid attention. Also, most of them get sucked in because they were looking for something free, be it tickets or lunch, whatever. Then once they got there they didn't have the ability to say no to the sales people. Those that bought in, knowing what they were doing, probably are happy with their decisions.

It's not like no one has ever mentioned the bad parts of DVC type setups. It seem to me to have been pretty common since the first introduction of timeshare programs. If you have gone through life with blinders on, don't be surprised if you are sideswiped.

Oh, and on the Fastpass+ issue, that has been the reality of the thing since the introduction of the original Fastpass. Nothing new there. However, it still is a better system then the original for the bulk of Guests. Someday I hope that some hacker gets into the systems and completely destroys FP (of any form) from ever operating again and we go back to the slower for some, faster for most, but, totally fair and up front in how it works, queue line.

I was able to say no pretty quickly when they showed me the interest rate (I think it was something like 17%, but I don't remember exactly), and also when they showed me the maintenance fees. For what the maintenance fees were going to be on the GFV, I could almost stay for a week at the WL with a discount. Even if you pay cash and don't finance (which is the only way to do it IMO), it still doesn't make sense if you go once every year or two for only a week. I happily took my 3 extra FPs, climbed into the van with our personal driver to take us to AK and got the heck out of there.

 

[wdisney9000]

No no.... ESPN is the largest cash cow

and Hundley only sued for $15,000...lol

 

[tribbleorlfl]

The pricing tactics may have changed, but the sell at any cost 'tude has been there for at least 15 years...

When I made it clear to Bruce (who claimed he sold the very first DVC at OKW, no likely BS sales story there) that we just wanted to see the model, get the sales materials and get our free lunch, he became borderline belligerent turning red and asking why anyone would take a tour just 'for a free lunch'' ... well, gee, maybe it's because you offered that in order to waste our time viewing your product.

While I agree DVC by virtue of being associated to a family-friendly enterprise should stay away from this behavior, this kind of contempt for their customers is rampant in the timeshare industry.

Look at "Queen of Versailles," the documentary about the Seigel empire's demise. There's a scene where the sales team is having a morning meeting at their new Vegas resort and the sales manager was openly telling his staff to guilt the customers and do whatever it took to keep them there till they bought. In a seperate interview, he expressed similar disgust for customers who came just for the incentive (DL tickets, I believe) and had no intention to buy, saying "There's no free lunch."

All in all, it highlights why I have such a low impression of the sales "profession." Anyone whoose livelihood is dependent on getting someone else to buy something is not going to have that other person's best interests at heart (or even their own employer's).

 

[ford91exploder]

To be fair, that's completely inaccurate as ESPN is fairly profitable on its own.

Now ABC Family might be another story...

Not quite what I meant, What I was trying to say is the profits from P&R go into media acquisitions which to Iger are the 'More Important' parts of TWDC.