True. We just might. We had a meeting there yesterday on something small. WDI is all of a sudden very busy again. That's good news.
Very good to hear on all fronts. Having talent like yourself back can only be good, no matter the size of the project.
With Shanghai about to break ground plus the major projects in Anaheim and Hong Kong ... oh, and that little WDW one too, it's not surprising that things are a bit busy again.
I do worry when folks like Tony Baxter and Joe Rohde have nothing of substance on their plates, however.
Nice to hear your voice, welcome back. Glad you like Hunny Hunt, it's something I'd thought we'd see more of in the states by now. There was a group of imagineers that had to work very hard to make that ride work reliably so we'll pass your compliments on to them telepathically!
Thanks. You're one of a select few in these parts apparently!
I loved Hunny Hunt. I admit I was skeptical that anything themed to Pooh could ever be an E-Ticket, but that attraction certainly is. From the wonderful immersive queue to the AAs to the great ride system. Hard to fathom that it was developed over a decade ago and yet hasn't gone beyond Tokyo Bay.
It also gets you thinking. Disney has so many amazing characters and franchises that still have the cardboard and blacklight approach in 2011. After soaring with Harry Potter at IOA (the absolute BEST thing going in O-Town right now), it makes you wonder what a real 21st century take on Peter Pan's Flight could be ... think of all the technologies and special effects that could take you to Neverland ... or on a Wild Ride with Mr. Toad or on a Magic Carpet with Aladdin and Jasmine or on an escape from the clutches of Cruella etc ... possibilities are endless, yet nothing like that is happening. You're doing something with Dumbo in 2011 and the answer is to simply add a second spinner and an interactive queue? Why not rethink the entire concept? Isn't that what folks like Walt and John Hench would have done?
Mermaid should be a very nice D-Ticket type Omnimover, but it certainly isn't raising the bar at all ... yet Hunny Hunt did over a decade ago. What was that thing that Walt said about resting on laurels?
As an aside, I was blown away by the entire Tokyo Disney Resort ... TDS is the first Disney park I've ever been in that has made me feel that I wasn't on a movie set, but an actual participant in the film/narrative. That level of immersion is something to behold. It was so impressive that I missed a 6.9 earthquake (and even though I've lived in LA, I have never experienced a quake) at TDS while in the queue for JTTCoTE because I just thought the rumbling and shaking were part of the show (and that volcano does indeed do both). When the lights came on and the attraction shut down, I just assumed it was the old 'Test Track' ride system that has its issues. No one panicked and the only langauge announcement was in Japanese. Park stayed open. No one was acting strange (Duffy obsessions aside). Wasn't til I met friends for dinner that I was told that indeed there had been a quake that made buildings sway in Tokyo.
To me, that speaks volumes about the skill, craftsmanship and showmanship on display in Tokyo.
The only thing in Orlando I've seen that's on that level right now would be WWoHP.
