Disneyhead'71
Well-Known Member
I think IOA already has some great themeing. And I don't get the Six Flags comparison at all. I simply think a lot of people have "Disney Blinders" on. Cat in the Hat is far superior to a lot of the Fantasyland dark rides including the brand new Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid. And the themeing of Seuss Landing as a whole is fantastic. I think that Jurassic Park has a ton of great themeing. Poseidon's Fury is fantastically themed as is Mythos. Dr. Doom's is better themed than Maliboomer was. But to say that Toon Lagoon looks anything like a Six Flags is simply ignorant.I think its funny that people around here talk about Universal like its about to be the top tier theme park in the world or even getting close to it. They did one amazing thing in Harry Potter and we all know a lot of that was due to the control that Rowling had. She wanted so much control that Disney passed on the idea. Harry Potter is amazing, no doubt, but then I see a photo like this and its essentially a show building with some paint on it and cutouts of Transformers. Where is the attention to detail they learned from the success of Potter? The ride itself is also a clone of Spider-Man with different characters. Im just not buying into the idea that Universal is becoming the end all be all of creating entertaining experiences in theme parks.
I made my first visit to Universal last year and I have to say that other than Potter, the whole place felt very Six Flags-ish to me. They have dated characters like Popeye and Dudley Do Right in place of Six Flags' Looney Tunes. Exposed coasters and thrill rides like Dr Doom and Hulk with queue lines that have very little to look at and are the epitome of what I can't stand about Six Flags' queue lines. The ride props and such are just very cheap looking ( ie. the large crate above your head on Jurassic Park that "falls" looks like its plastic and does not convey a sense of weight or danger ). And then you have all the outside food establishments which mimics Six Flags / Johnny Rockets. In my view, Harry Potter makes the whole rest of the park look cheap.
Now Im not saying by any means Disney is perfect as it is not and there are A LOT of things that need to be done around property, but unless Universal tears up its whole park, sans Potter, and rebuilds everything on par with the Potter expansion, they will never beat Disney. I think right now they are competing because of Potter and the fact that Disney isn't adding anything to its parks ride-wise, but if Disney decides to start building, I think Universal will take a huge hit.
Six Flags:
Dudley Do Right Ripsaw Falls:
I just think a lot of Disney fans just can't get past seeing coaster track. They don't understand the concept of "Impressionism" as an art form. If Disney fans were art fans the only artist they would like is Rembrandt. And they would HATE Claude Monet. Or Bach vs Debussy.
Then Disney fans love to point out that Universal has games. Ummm:
Oh, is that coaster track I see?