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Here come the mermaids
- Thread starter jed012788
- Start date
Pumbas Nakasak
Heading for the great escape.
No baps, no interest.
Yankee Mouse
Well-Known Member
Subtle is one thing. But if it just looks like a blob in the water that isn't being subtle that, in my opinion, is just bad presentation. You should at least be able to tell it is a mermaid not some white light in the water. Or even if you just glance at it or miss it and say "what was that?" Maybe the next time you ride you can look for it and say, "oh its a mermaid." As it stands now (based on the video) all you might say the second time is, "oh its some strange blurry light, I don't get it."
GrumpyFan
Well-Known Member
Keep in mind, the video is not a good representation of the effect. At best, the camera is able to pick up maybe 60% of the image/projection due to the low light levels in there. In person, you (and your eyes) will have a much MUCH better perspective. But, don't judge this solely on a youtube video.
Looking at the video, I can tell it's a mermaid at least at the end, it looks like a tail.
YunaB17
Member
Is anyone else incredibly creeped out by the mermaid skeleton? I feel like it's going to haunt me. How many kids do you think are going to start crying because they killed Ariel?
So I swear I did not imagine this but no one outside of my family seems to have seen this. Back in August of 2011 they were experimenting with switching between the two in Disney World. It was like the 16th of August right after the busy season ended and I went on in the afternnon with my mother and we were suprised to see Davy Jones instead of Blackbeard. My brother went on that night and it was Blackbeard instead. I have video somewhere but I'm studying abroad so I don't have it with me.
Super Stitch
Member
We just got home from the world yesterday & we were able to experience the mermaid addition twice. The effect is indeed very subtle & if you didn't know what you were looking for you might miss it. In fact if it wasn't for the music you may not even know what it was supposed to be. We were very disappointed after all of the hype!
Yankee Mouse
Well-Known Member
Oh I understand completely, and that is why I noted in that last sentence that my statement was based solely on the video . I will be there next week to look at it in person (can't wait). I wasn't excited about the mermaids but regardless I look forward to checking it out in person.
Weather_Lady
Well-Known Member
It's so hard to assess something from a video. From what little I can see, the effect resembles a large, silvery tuna fish that disappears and reappears, while an unseen woman who is located somewhere above the water (she must be, since her voice is not garbled or distorted) sings a haunting old sea chanty. Perhaps non-movie devotees will conclude that the skeletons on the beach were tuna fishermen-turned-pirate, and that the voice is that of an invisible siren who caused them to crash against the rocks, where they thereafter died on the beach while constructing a Fiji mermaid for P.T. Barnum. Now if only Disney would make that movie, and then it could "reinspire" the attraction once again... 
The MaD Hatter
Well-Known Member
You were right in your initial assessment. I've seen it in person and it is just a blurry light in the water. It looks nothing like a mermaid.
Antonio Tucker
New Member
It's a good concept, but they need to do something different. i think they should just have their heads bob up and out of the water, they don't even need to move much...with a splash of their tail behind them.
danv3
Well-Known Member
This. I thought I was looking at bubbles only the first two times, then I finally saw something fish-like. It's nothing to get excited about.
C.FERNIE
Well-Known Member
How pleasant, bobbing along
Bobbing along on the bottom of the beautiful briny sea
What a chance to get a better peep
At the plants and creatures of the deep,
and look a 1 million dollar light lol! i have been told it looks like (someone told me its a fish!) a, well its, a, dam it, its a moving light! wow! wait a go! dam glad we love this ride anyway! techno fish!
Bobbing along on the bottom of the beautiful briny sea
What a chance to get a better peep
At the plants and creatures of the deep,
and look a 1 million dollar light lol! i have been told it looks like (someone told me its a fish!) a, well its, a, dam it, its a moving light! wow! wait a go! dam glad we love this ride anyway! techno fish!
cupanudles
Active Member
Bad concept integration, bad execution, unnecessary and a waste of good funds.
novawildcat18
Well-Known Member
This had so much potential, even with a projection system rather than AA's. I'm really disappointed that the reviews are mostly negative.
AEfx
Well-Known Member
(Novawildcat - Please don't think this is directed at you - it's in general to all the posts and expectations - even mine!
)This is a classic case of the Internet running away with itself and building up false expectations.
It was a little blurb in the generally vapid Disney Parks Blog, that said a little update was coming to tie into the most recent film. It went so far as to say it would be installed overnight, which should have been a big hint right there it wasn't a big deal. They never even said what it was.
Before someone says "But they made a big blog post about it!" here is a sampling of the other "big blog posts" they have made in the past month:
Is This the New Turkey Leg at Magic Kingdom Park?
Certified Cheese Pro at Napa Rose in the Disneyland Resort
Celebrate Disney California Adventure Park Expansion with a New Disney Parks Blog Wallpaper
Every Role a Starring Role – Disneyland Resort Laundry Production
Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom Power Up Shirts Arriving in Mid-October
My guess it wasn't intended to be some crystal clear image of a mermaid. It was an effect to make you go "what was that?" and then you see the skeletons and it leaves it up to you. Perfect for those that don't like intrinsic ties to the films, but a nice hint for those to catch who are wanting tie ins ("I wonder if that was a mermaid!").
I hate to say it, because I love him, but I think Lee's picture got expectations way high thinking we were gonna SEE mermaids in the flesh. I hesitate to say that because I don't want him to hold back sharing future info, but in this case we took it and ran with it until suddenly we had animatronic mermaids (being installed overnight?) jumping and splashing through the water.
Although I'm sure it could be more realistic, I don't think it was meant to be. And with the light conditions in that area, unless they spent a great deal of money (which people seem to say they wouldn't want anyway) making some photo-realistic mermaids appear under the water would be a really large task - and would go from "creepy" to "too much" for a lot of younger riders, I'm sure. (Though I wish Disney did more scares in dark rides, having something equivalent to the Witch from Snow White appear at the very beginning of POTC would lead to ten minutes of a dozen or two unhappy people having to listen to screaming kids asking to get off rather frequently, I would assume.)
It is a minor effect, it looks like it does it's job - it's us that made it up into a big mountain for what was an overnight addition of what was intended to be a minor effect. Even I had visions of animatronic mermaids - but as I said earlier in the thread, I am almost grateful that we did not, as we all know water + animatronics (even simple, and if they were too simple, we still would be complaining) is a recipie for a broken effect six months down the line. We would have replaced Yeti Watch (which, frankly, should come down as there is nothing new to "watch" over the last half-decade) with "Mermaid Watch".
Just an attempt at a little perspective here. YMMV.
PREMiERdrum
Well-Known Member
So we complain about how obtrusive the Jack Sparrow additions are, whilst complaining about how unobtrusive these mermaid additions are?
I'm just happy they erred on the side of too little.
IMHO, it appears to be a nice addition to help plus up what had historically been a rather lackluster scene. I can't wait to see it in person in a few weeks.
I'm just happy they erred on the side of too little.
IMHO, it appears to be a nice addition to help plus up what had historically been a rather lackluster scene. I can't wait to see it in person in a few weeks.
StageFrenzy
Well-Known Member
The last thing they want is an overly excited pumbas on pirates.
Brian Noble
Well-Known Member
This is WDWMagic. Most won't even wait to see the video.