All things Universal Studios Hollywood

[Phroobar]

Im pretty excited about the park’s future beginning with Fast and Furious. Too bad they didn’t keep up the momentum after opening Nintendo World as 2024 and 2025 have been pretty dry, not even a new Dreamworks Theater film (when is that gonna happen?).

Well Fan Fest did get that USJ 4D movie in the theater. It wasn't very good or even dubbed.

 

[MK-fan]

Well Fan Fest did get that USJ 4D movie in the theater. It wasn't very good or even dubbed.

Let’s just put a Prince of Egypt 3D film in there already!!!!!

 

[Too Many Hats]

lol. I’ve never been on it. There’s no show building right?

Feast your eyes on this masterpiece.

 

[Too Many Hats]

It all depends on what company you are rooting for. Which in itself is dumb since neither company cares about you. They just want your money.

You're wrong. Disney loves me so much that they're tracking whether or not I actually go to Disneyland when I tell them I'm planning to go. They're so devastated by my no-shows that if I bail on them one more time, they're going to freeze my pass capabilities (presumably because they can't take any more heartbreak).

 

[Phroobar]

You're wrong. Disney loves me so much that they're tracking whether or not I actually go to Disneyland when I tell them I'm planning to go. They're so devastated by my no-shows that if I bail on them one more time, they're going to freeze my pass capabilities (presumably because they can't take any more heartbreak).

Codependent much?

 

[truecoat]

Feast your eyes on this masterpiece.

Better than I thought, but that's not saying much.

 

[PiratesMansion]

Better than I thought, but that's not saying much.

I weirdly have nostalgia for that queue.

Far from a truly great queue (especially in a park like IOA), but considering that the actual ride is just two naked S&S towers side by side, it gets the job done well enough.

 

[mickEblu]

Feast your eyes on this masterpiece.

Definitely didn’t expect this. That would a Fun surprise for an attraction with with two exposed drop towers.

 

[CoastalElite64]

 

[PiratesMansion]

And?

 

[Too Many Hats]

I’d argue USF is better than USH, even in its sad current state. Surely Diagon Alley/Gringotts, Men in Black, ET Adventure, and the superior Mummy count for something. Both parks need a ton of help, though. And it’s disheartening to see that apparently there’s 2 Universal parks out there that are arguably even worse.

 

[Disney Analyst]

I’d argue USF is better than USH, even in its sad current state. Surely Diagon Alley/Gringotts, Men in Black, ET Adventure, and the superior Mummy count for something. Both parks need a ton of help, though. And it’s disheartening to see that apparently there’s 2 Universal parks out there that are arguably even worse.

I think at this rate, having Nintendo out west is like a Diagon Alley out east.

I think USH is in far better shape than USF at this point.

Add in the new coaster, and things are looking even better!

 

[Too Many Hats]

I think at this rate, having Nintendo out west is like a Diagon Alley out east.

I think USH is in far better shape than USF at this point.

Add in the new coaster, and things are looking even better!

It's been a minute since I've been to USF; your take is plausible. Personally I'd say Diagon Alley/Gringotts is vastly superior to Nintendo/Mario Kart, but obviously that's pretty subjective.

I'd also contend USF is a more pleasant park to stroll through, with more interesting environments. USH is small, poorly-organized, and overcrowded; every inch of that park feels chaotic.

 

[PiratesMansion]

I'd say USH is in better shape, in part because it has to be, as the only Universal park in California.

Whereas people are too distracted by IOA and Epic at the moment to care all that much if USF is in a sorry state. And people would still pop over for Diagon Alley if the rest of the park was a grass field.

 

[Disney Analyst]

It's been a minute since I've been to USF; your take is plausible. Personally I'd say Diagon Alley/Gringotts is vastly superior to Nintendo/Mario Kart, but obviously that's pretty subjective.

I'd also contend USF is a more pleasant park to stroll through, with more interesting environments. USH is small, poorly-organized, and overcrowded; every inch of that park feels chaotic.

Oh for sure, USH has a wild layout, but it also makes the park short of charming, like Disneyland.

I am also probably being grumpy, but Fallon and Fast and Furious really sour me when it comes to USF.

And no shows (hello unused amphitheatres) anywhere to be found…

 

[Too Many Hats]

Oh for sure, USH has a wild layout, but it also makes the park short of charming, like Disneyland.

I just... can't compare to USH to Disneyland in any way, haha.

I am also probably being grumpy, but Fallon and Fast and Furious really sour me when it comes to USF.

Fortunately I have never experienced either. In my head canon, they shuttered Twister and Earthquake and Beetlejuice and just haven't gotten around to replacing them yet.

(That said, I've experienced F&F several times on the USH tram tour, and that's been traumatic enough)

And no shows (hello unused amphitheatres) anywhere to be found…

Bourne? I've heard mixed things. But yeah, the glory days of Beetlejuice and the Wild, Wild, Wild West Stunt Show are long gone.

RIP Terminator 2: 3D.

 

[Touchdown]

USH is a movie studio trying to be a theme park, USF is a theme park trying to be a movie studio. Both succeed better at being the things they are vs the thing they are trying to be. USH has the weird layout, lack of big spaces to congregate, lack of central feature (USF’s lagoon.) The Studio Tour is amazing, and worth a visit for that alone, but other then that it has one flat ride (SLOP) and one 3-D movie (Kung Fu Panda) that is exclusive to that park, everything else is replicated in Orlando and with the exception of maybe Jurassic World everything in FL is either identical or better then in Hollywood. SNW early opening in USH drew me back after I vowed to not return the first time. I don’t know if a coaster will be enough to draw me back again, maybe if Fan Nights really takes off, but I could see Orlando replicating that in Jan/Feb in their soundstages.

 

[CaptinEO]

If Disney had built Velocicoaster or a coaster like it in the way Universal did, they would have been crucified online.

I think it's important to understand why people are more forgiving to Universal than Disney.

Disney has been overpromising and underdelivering. Their "magical" and "fantastical" press releases for things like a Downtown Disney foodcourt let alone rides/lands are way too over the top.

Furthermore, they announce their lands years in advance and keep the press releases going, do corny ABC TV tie ins, Dancing with the Stars, Disney Christmas Parade Announcements, etc. They have been overpromising and in many cases underdelivering.

Universal will be building a new ride or land and not formally announce it until about a year out from its opening, and they don't use the PR speak Disney does. I think Universal underpromises so ends up overdelivering.

Because Universal built it instead, people handwave away all of the awkward visuals and sightlines it then creates.

Does Incredicoaster count? That may be one of the most low effort things done in recent years and it's outright embarrassing.

 

[PiratesMansion]

I think it's important to understand why people are more forgiving to Universal than Disney.

Disney has been overpromising and underdelivering. Their "magical" and "fantastical" press releases for things like a Downtown Disney foodcourt let alone rides/lands are way too over the top.

Furthermore, they announce their lands years in advance and keep the press releases going, do corny ABC TV tie ins, Dancing with the Stars, Disney Christmas Parade Announcements, etc. They have been overpromising and in many cases underdelivering.

But people keep using Universal's high points-which are admittedly very high-while glossing over the parts of the experience that hasn't improved in kind, and ig bring that they still produce a fair amount of mediocrity themselves.

Universal will be building a new ride or land and not formally announce it until about a year out from its opening, and they don't use the PR speak Disney does. I think Universal underpromises so ends up overdelivering.


Does Incredicoaster count? That may be one of the most low effort things done in recent years and it's outright embarrassing.

Incredicoaster absolutely counts, but it's basically grandfathered in at this point by most people. Some people here even process to liking it now.

I think that time has a funny way of softening mediocrity for a lot of people. It happened with the Tarzan Treehouse, A Bug's Land, both existing Monsters Inc attractions in the states, etc. Once something becomes sufficiently established, people move on. Which, to be fair, is probably what should happen. It's not productive to be mad about something for a long period of time.

 

[Professortango1]

I think at this rate, having Nintendo out west is like a Diagon Alley out east.

I think USH is in far better shape than USF at this point.

Add in the new coaster, and things are looking even better!

Diagon Alley is the best theme park land I have experienced up until Isle of Berk, and still arguably equal. SNW....is not.

I can also take the Hogwarts Express from USO and end up at Hogsmede in minutes. Hollywood on the otherhand has an unthemed giant escalator taking me to its expansion; a discounted version of Mummy, the mangled version of Jurassic World (first half terrible, second half great), and discount SNW (the worst land in EU.)

Now Hollywood is adding a big ugly lightly themed coaster to its park while Orlando is removing their big ugly exposed coaster.

Orlando keeps getting better while Hollywood keeps losing its charm.

When I visit Florida, I typically start and end my day in USO and only go to IOA for a few hours in the middle so I can do Popeye, Spiderman, and Hagrid's.