Dark Times?

[DisneyNut2007]

Yeah, I agree better days are coming. DL is the focus right now and will be for a while.

I think HKDL is what's hurting WDW more than anything right now... Besides TDO. HK really does need more stuff. The park is pretty much a disaster. Kind of like how DLP hurt WDW in the 90's. Mystic Manor belongs at AK and Grizzly Trail belongs in Canada WS.

How anyone can say WDW is doing fine, while AK is being horribly ignored, not to mention EPCOT, is living on Mars.

But it is looking up. The FL refurb shows someone cares, despite TDO

(sigh) You had to ruin your post with more TDO slams, didn't you?!

You ought to be ashamed of yourself!

 

[Bairstow]

Weren't most attractions planned for the "Disney Decade" cancelled?

Actually we should be grateful. Many of these attractions ended up in Florida.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMNW7UnAlOk

 

[yeti]

There is nothing wrong with Disney World at all, its still amazing.

How many people have actually been there in the past year?

* Jimmy raises hand *


Its one thing to read about gripes of others who don't actually go, I figure its all they can do, complain about this and that because they cant go, but if you actually visited often, you would know first hand, you really have nothing to complain about.

And if you do go and still complain, you have too much time on your hands, get a life.


Jimmy Thick-Quit whining, just do it.

Oh, brother.

 

[yeti]

I'm starting to think that Disney can do NOTHING to make people on this message board happy.

True, that.

It seems like ANYTHING they do, is terribly wrong...at least according to this message board.

Don't blame people on this site for reacting whenever Disney makes a bad decision. It's rare enough that they ever do anything these days, so if the end result of some attention they give to a ride is disappointing, obviously there'll be an outcry of sorts.

Regardless of whether some cry out more than others. :lookaroun

I think the whole resort is WAY better now than it was 15 or 20 years ago.

In some ways, yes, others no...

And I think it will be WAY better in 15 or 20 years from now.

I'd say 5 or 10.

 

[stlbobby]

There is nothing wrong with Disney World at all, its still amazing.

How many people have actually been there in the past year?

* Jimmy raises hand *


Its one thing to read about gripes of others who don't actually go, I figure its all they can do, complain about this and that because they cant go, but if you actually visited often, you would know first hand, you really have nothing to complain about.

And if you do go and still complain, you have too much time on your hands, get a life.


Jimmy Thick-Quit whining, just do it.

I have to agree with Jimmy. I've been going since the mid-eighties and I like things better now than I ever did before.

What I really hate is people stating their opinions as "facts" that things are going down hill.

A few examples that have appeared on this thread--Horizons gone M:S built, characters in EPCOT, Pooh for Mr. Toad, Stitch for Alien Encounter, MILF for Timekeeper, JII, the Hat, the dining plan, leave a legacy, and the Tiki Room. All of these are subjective. You may not have liked them, but that doesn't mean they are empirically wrong.

I personally like most of these better in their current form. And only one I really liked better previously--Stitch Encounter, but I understand why they changed it, it never ran near capacity and Stitch is popular with little kids.

I also marvel when people claim AK and DH are half day parks because I have trouble getting everything in on a vacation. Both parks have fewer rides but they are packed with shows and experiences.

Disney keeps adding the Dumbo type rides because they are all always swamped. Kids love those rides. Why deride them for trying to make the lines shorter on one of the most popular attractions?

And finally, I think the end of SSE is finished. The end is about the interactive screen. I'm not sure what people are looking for.

 

[Bairstow]

People who like to think negative thoughts about Disney Parks would LOVE this blog:
http://imagineerebirth.blogspot.com/

It's actually very well-written, depending on the author.

 

[marni1971]

Okay kids, see-ya.

 

[musketeer]

I have to agree with Jimmy. I've been going since the mid-eighties and I like things better now than I ever did before.

What I really hate is people stating their opinions as "facts" that things are going down hill.

A few examples that have appeared on this thread--Horizons gone M:S built, characters in EPCOT, Pooh for Mr. Toad, Stitch for Alien Encounter, MILF for Timekeeper, JII, the Hat, the dining plan, leave a legacy, and the Tiki Room. All of these are subjective. You may not have liked them, but that doesn't mean they are empirically wrong.

I personally like most of these better in their current form. And only one I really liked better previously--Stitch Encounter, but I understand why they changed it, it never ran near capacity and Stitch is popular with little kids.

I also marvel when people claim AK and DH are half day parks because I have trouble getting everything in on a vacation. Both parks have fewer rides but they are packed with shows and experiences.

Disney keeps adding the Dumbo type rides because they are all always swamped. Kids love those rides. Why deride them for trying to make the lines shorter on one of the most popular attractions?

And finally, I think the end of SSE is finished. The end is about the interactive screen. I'm not sure what people are looking for.

This was an AWESOME post. This post hits on just about everything that I wish I could put into words about all the complaining that goes on here.

The one I really wanted to highlight was how I too more often than not prefer the newer attraction. Horizons was great, I completely agree. But put that side by side with Mission Space, Mission Space would draw much much much more of a crowd, and I personally would ride Mission Space over and over.

I LOVE the spaceship earth ending. On our last visit, we rode it three times JUST to do different options with the ending. From reading these boards, you'd get the impression that it was the worst possible thing ever created in human history.

And regarding the replacement of Mr Toads Wild Ride. I again fell victim to selective memory. I thought it was just the greatest thing in the world. Well, they have one in california. I rode it. I was severely disappointed. I'm sure if it was completely rebuilt today, it would be a great ride, but put it side by side with Winnie the Pooh, and the Pooh would draw much more crowds and be much more popular.

 

[Krack]

The one I really wanted to highlight was how I too more often than not prefer the newer attraction. Horizons was great, I completely agree. But put that side by side with Mission Space, Mission Space would draw much much much more of a crowd, and I personally would ride Mission Space over and over.

I LOVE the spaceship earth ending. On our last visit, we rode it three times JUST to do different options with the ending. From reading these boards, you'd get the impression that it was the worst possible thing ever created in human history.

You don't see even a teensy bit of irony in the fact that you don't mind Horizon's being gone, yet you prefer the new Spaceship Earth because you could re-ride it and have three different endings?

 

[musketeer]

You don't see even a teensy bit of irony in the fact that you don't mind Horizon's being gone, yet you prefer the new Spaceship Earth because you could re-ride it and have three different endings?

Not at all. In Horizons, there were ONLY 3 endings. In spaceship earth, there are MILLIONS of them. Plus, they put our faces on them.

And I didn't say that I don't mind Horizons being gone, I do miss it. BUT, what I did say is that I think Mission Space is a better, more modern attraction.

And so I ask the question then, why is it that the ending to Horizons was the greatest gift to mankind, and how dare it be taken away, yet the ending to spaceship earth is one of the most evil things ever created?

And by the way, the space ending to Horizons has NOTHING on Mission Space.

 

[misterID]

If you agree with Jimmy Thick on anything... I feel very sorry for you.

 

[memster]

If you agree with Jimmy Thick on anything... I feel very sorry for you.

I do and thanks for the sympathy:animwink:

 

[Krack]

Not at all. In Horizons, there were ONLY 3 endings. In spaceship earth, there are MILLIONS of them. Plus, they put our faces on them.

And I didn't say that I don't mind Horizons being gone, I do miss it. BUT, what I did say is that I think Mission Space is a better, more modern attraction.

And so I ask the question then, why is it that the ending to Horizons was the greatest gift to mankind, and how dare it be taken away, yet the ending to spaceship earth is one of the most evil things ever created?

And by the way, the space ending to Horizons has NOTHING on Mission Space.

Speaking for myself, when I think of classic Disney attractions, I want to see something I cannot see somewhere else. To me, that justifies the high ticket prices. Because of the use of AAs and the way the ride immersed you into its scenes, Horizons could not be experienced anywhere else. Similarly, not so much the descent, but certainly the futuristic city model at the conclusion of old Spaceship Earth was something I could not see anywhere else - particularly in that type of of immersive presentation; touchscreens, flash animation and photoshop are technologies I have at home and use daily. I can snap a photo and cut and paste it on a cartoon body in less than 45 seconds using my home computer - can you imagine how dated that is going to be 20 years from now? This is the communications pavilion (at least it was when Future World had a cohesive theme) - why does the show end with current technology instead of the future of communications?

Similarly, this "can't get it anywhere else" preference is why I loved World of Motion and have a healthy disdain for Test Track. Now, you might say "You can't get the Mission Space experience anywhere else?" and I supposed you'd be right, but almost every Six Flags in America has a centrifuge-based ride and, to be honest, I've been to traveling carnivals (operating out of a Walmart parking lot) that have had a spinning centrifuge ride. In my opinion, Horizons was a far more unique experience than Mission Space is.

So, to answer your question, I actually think the Horizons Choose-Your-Own-Ending (as it was on its opening day) was brilliant and something we had never seen before, but would probably be the weakest part of the ride experience today. Of course, that was 30 years ago when it was a "brilliant" experience - I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a fairly extensive refurb after 30 years that could easily enhance, update and improve that ending with newer technology.

To conclude, Mission Space sucks - Horizons rules! The end.

 

[devoy1701]

There is nothing wrong with Disney World at all, its still amazing.

How many people have actually been there in the past year?

* Jimmy raises hand *


Its one thing to read about gripes of others who don't actually go, I figure its all they can do, complain about this and that because they cant go, but if you actually visited often, you would know first hand, you really have nothing to complain about.

And if you do go and still complain, you have too much time on your hands, get a life.


Jimmy Thick-Quit whining, just do it.

Nice Jimmy. Actually the parks are looking great. Has anyone noticed the amount of construction walls and scrims up? Everything is getting much needed facelifts. We're starting to get out of the rut of preventive maintenance goes out the door due to budget cuts. I don't think that Main Street has been scrim free in almost a year! And it looks GREAT!

Any yes...added 25-30 more acres to the guest area of MK is definitely something to complain about. :brick: I don't know what those DL folks use to do when all they had before an expanded Frontierland and the Matterhorn was a picnic hill and a Circus area... :shrug:

Are you serious? Fast Pass is extremely effective! If you know how to use the system, fast pass is great. I have taken 7 trips to WDW over the last year and a half and can't even begin to imagine how many fewer rides I could have gone on without fast pass. I love the fast pass system and am very glad they have it (I remember the old days when there was no such thing).

QUOTE]

Most of the time it just tells me to come back five hours later...I know the whole point is to wait and go elsewhere in the park, but I could just do that without fast pass.

Fast Pass does nothing but slow everything down. And they stopped being useful to me when they started to restrict how many FPs you can get at one time. Standby lines are much longer because of those FP returns, and the people with FPs are waiting 2, 3, 4 hours without actually waiting in line. Axe the whole system I say.

 

[stlbobby]

Just to clarify, I'm not annoyed that people prefer things like Mr. Toad and Horizons better, what upsets me is that people state such things as universal facts and then state we are in "Dark Times" due to it.

People tend to forget that for every change there are fans and haters.

I really think things are great TSMM was a great addition, I like Nemo better than Tarzan, I don't like American Idol, but I think it is a great addition because it is unique and exciting for fans, I love Soarin', the HM refurb was amazing and SM's wasn't revolutionary but it was nice, Tianna's boat show was fun, the upcoming improvements look awesome, and the technology used at TTwC and MILF is the epitome of can only be seen at Disney.

I do miss a few things like Millionaire, a personal favorite, and the Country Bears Xmas special, and the way the Pleasure Island closed was poor.

But those are all opinions not facts.

I doubt the company considers it "Dark Times", as they keep bringing in more and more people in every year.

 

[musketeer]

Fast Pass does nothing but slow everything down. And they stopped being useful to me when they started to restrict how many FPs you can get at one time. Standby lines are much longer because of those FP returns, and the people with FPs are waiting 2, 3, 4 hours without actually waiting in line. Axe the whole system I say.

Fastpass slows things down? So fastpass makes the trains in space mountain go slower? How does it know to go slower becauese fastpass exists?

Does it make the vehicles in Kilamanjaro safari go slower? Does it slowdown the hang-gliders in soarin?

Does it make it so that less people per hour can ride? How in the world does it do that?

 

[LoriMistress]

Personally, I've never been to WDW during the 70's, 80's, or 90's. So I have no way to compare my experiences. I love WDW. Sure, there are a few things that I can take it or leave it. I just figured if people are that upset with how WDW is ran either write a letter to Disney directly of your complaints, or if these "dark times" ruining WDW that much for ya, then stop going to WDW.

 

[Krack]

Fastpass slows things down? So fastpass makes the trains in space mountain go slower? How does it know to go slower becauese fastpass exists?

Does it make the vehicles in Kilamanjaro safari go slower? Does it slowdown the hang-gliders in soarin?

Does it make it so that less people per hour can ride? How in the world does it do that?

Actually, it makes it so the exact same amount of people per hour can ride. It has no effect on people seeing more attractions and rides in a day (than they would without the system), unless you only ride Fastpass attractions, and only while using a Fastpass, and rides with no lines (which would cause it to benefit you) or you don't ever utilize Fastpass (which would have a detrimental effect on the amount of attractions you could see in a day).

 

[devoy1701]

Fastpass slows things down? So fastpass makes the trains in space mountain go slower? How does it know to go slower becauese fastpass exists?

Does it make the vehicles in Kilamanjaro safari go slower? Does it slowdown the hang-gliders in soarin?

Does it make it so that less people per hour can ride? How in the world does it do that?

it does indeed slow down the per hour ride capacity of the attractions that use FP (never thought I would say this but where's Markjohns when you need him to explain the effects FP has on per hour ride capacity?!).

 

[Krack]

it does indeed slow down the per hour ride capacity of the attractions that use FP (never thought I would say this but where's Markjohns when you need him to explain the effects FP has on per hour ride capacity?!).

The easiest way to explain it is that regardless of Fastpass or no Fastpass, the same amount of people are going to be in the park. And at any given time ... assuming standard time allotments for eating, shopping, and non-attraction based entertainment watching (parades) ... those people are going to be in-line somewhere in the park, whether they are holding a Fastpass to some other attraction or not. So while you have a shorter line to experience the Fastpass attraction (with the Fastpass), you now have a longer line to experience every other attraction in the park (including the standby lines on all Fastpass attractions). People don't just get a Fastpass and sit on a bench for two hours until it becomes usable - they get on line somewhere else in the park. That line is now longer. Over the course of a typical day, the time spent waiting in line and the amount of attractions experienced is going to even out; most people just don't realize it.