Anyone else hate Captain EO?

MansionGoer13z

Active Member
Loved it as a kid.

Now, if I was to see it again now I would probably hate myself for seeing it again. It would probably be the same result of me trying to watch the original He-Man MOTU 26 years later while saying to myself. "Really....I actually liked this garbage as a kid?"
 

menamechris

Well-Known Member
Off The Wall was '79 and that was the last "cool" album he ever made.

If you listened to him after that you were totally bogus.

Totally.

LOL - WOW! Ya, only the hugest selling album of all time. A video that only helped define MTV and the 80's. But okaaaay....I am sure you're right... :wave:

And sorry, but some would argue that Off the Wall was selling out to the disco fad.. hhmmm
 

Thrill Seeker

Well-Known Member
Captain EO was the best of all the films shown in the Magic Eye Theater. I never saw Magic Journeys, but I heard is was just a scenery film. EO, although cheesy, was state of the art at the time and has a lot of personality. It's also an enjoyable film. HISTA relied too much on irritating effects that diminished the good parts. The rat tails especially were quite annoying. There were some good effects, but the effects simply used to startle people are just annoying. I actually like how the HISTA effects are used much better in Captain EO.
 

AllHailToad

New Member
I haven't seen Captain EO in its entirety since the last time it played in Epcot, but on the basis of YouTube excerpts I don't think it's aged well at all. It seems too derivative of Star Wars, too kitschy and quite possibly marks the beginning of loud, flashy, mindless thrill rides that are gradually diminishing the parks' subtlety and charm (i.e. Body Wars, Mission: SPACE, Stitch's Great Escape, etc). Still, I'd be interested in seeing EO again, if only for sentimental reasons. Otherwise I think HISTA is probably the better show, but as Thrill Seeker pointed out it too is pretty gimmicky.

Magic Journeys, on the other hand, gets my vote for best Disney 3D show period. Sure it has its share of limitations -- the primitive CGI, some flat and stilted visuals, an unshakeable 1970's vibe (which I don't really object to, as it adds an interesting bittersweet dynamic to the film, though some people find it offputting) -- but I feel it's one of the few attractions that truly captures the wonder, imagination, and even confusion of childhood, along with Journey Into Imagination and Mr. Toad's Wild Ride (which incidentally also use a similar dream-like associational structure). Plus its premise is more timeless and captivating than EO, or any of other show for that matter, because it moves beyond the confines of formulaic plots and plugs for popular culture novelties, and instead explores more universal and mysterious territory: the nuances of the human mind.
 

docandsix

Active Member
Hate is a really, really strong word.

Which means it applies perfectly to the way I feel about Captain EO. That film was a horrible waste of money and time even in the 1980's, and has only soured with time.

The entire Imagination Pavilion is now useless real estate, good only for being avoided entirely.
 

AEfx

Well-Known Member
Ok I can vouch for about 10 people. My feelings were the movement that Michael had would make our Generation love it even if it wasn't that great . Kind of the love that most people have for their favorite artists. Alot of today's artists are mediocre at best but still break sales records. I can vouch for about 90% of the people I have grown up with and everyone else outside of the US saying that Michael was a great entertainer/artist. If you don't like him then I wasn't talking about you. Sorry.

You'll find it's more of an age group, than a "over-X" crowd. Those of us who grew up in MJ's heyday when he was the one and only real pop musical icon (much like our parents had with Presley).

As to the side note about sales figures, what's interesting is that, actually, they don't. Sure, most major artists have a number of "titles" (Britney, for example, is the youngest person to have a #1 album and #1 single at the same time, and keeps breaking her own "youngest to have X-#1 albums", or Janet who has the most top 10 singles from any sole album for Rhythm Nation, Whitney has the #1 single of all time, etc.), but it's doubtful anyone will ever trump Jackson there.

Jackson has had the #1 selling album of all time as a record for almost 30 years (Thriller), and the 2nd best selling album of all time has less than half of the sales of Thriller. It's unlikely that anyone will ever break that record, especially with the switch over to digital music.
 

Skylinecar1982

New Member
The best selling single of all time seems to be Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" with 50 million sold. The highest Whitney has is 12 million. Is that right? I got it from wiki and you know how accurate that is.
 

AEfx

Well-Known Member
The best selling single of all time seems to be Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" with 50 million sold. The highest Whitney has is 12 million. Is that right? I got it from wiki and you know how accurate that is.

Ack...it was bestselling soundtrack album. The single itself was the longest running #1 at the time (but I believe that has been beaten at this point). Of course, both are in reference to The Bodyguard soundtrack, and "I Will Always Love You", of course. (Side note, I think my favorite record is Cher's, who is the only person to have a #1 charting hit in each of six different decades - it used to be #1 single over five decades, but her 2010's song only hit #1 on the dance charts, I believe).

Original point being, though, that just about every artist has some claim to a record or title (or more than one), but it's doubtful MJ's will ever be surpassed. Thriller sold 110M albums, and the #2 bestselling album is just under 50M, I believe.

In the era of digital music and such, it's highly unlikely we'll ever see an artist break that feat. Longevity counts (which is why Madonna has a ridiculous amount of "titles"/records), but it's just doubtful a synergy between the right time and the right artist will ever happen again like that.
 

Spike-in-Berlin

Well-Known Member
I don't hate it, I liked the film when I saw it first in 1984 but even in 1984 I considered the song only mediocre, not even near the range of Thriller or his other great 1980ies hits. I didn't even care about getting it as a file when finally Napster, Morpheus and other filesharing sites made it possible to get nearly every song from WDW.
When I saw it again in 2010 I quite enjoyed but I would prefer a new show in the building.
 

Mreinventttt

New Member
Captain EO is awesome. I especially like the pelvic thrusts that sounds like spare change jingling in your pocket. MJ will go down in history, not only as a child molester but as musical genius. Nuff said!
:rolleyes:
Missy
 

jjharvpro

Active Member
EO is classic, and full of nostalgia! I do believe it is a hit-or-miss, and haters of MJ will dislike it. But I thoroughly enjoyed it for what it is! Keep it, until a new, great show comes along!
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom