CDavid
Well-Known Member
So HP is (partially) responsible for this travesty? Excuse me, I have to go out and buy a new computer now.
Or under the Mission Space building.
Quoted just because I know how you feel.
-
Welcome to the WDWMAGIC.COM Forums!
Please take a look around, and feel free to sign up and join the community.
Horizons 94 question?
- Thread starter Figment632
- Start date
So HP is (partially) responsible for this travesty? Excuse me, I have to go out and buy a new computer now.
Or under the Mission Space building.
Quoted just because I know how you feel.
joel_maxwell
Permanent Resident of EPCOT
Just cut/paste for future posts.
Epcotian
Member
If we can dream it, then we can do it. Unless someone offers us cash to do something different.
shipley731
Well-Known Member
What???
I disagree completely with both those statements. SSE one most of all. You might as well say Peter Pan, Space Mountain and Pirates should be replaced because they've hung around too long.
I think comparing the proposed 94 upgrade to Horizons & an upgrade to Peter Pan, Space Mountain or Pirates is crazy. I can say that I rode Horizions back in the heyday; I remember the ride & I loved it. But looking back objectively, if I rode it now, I would complain how outdated & ridiculous it was. No matter what upgrades were made to the original ride, it would always be somewhat outdated. Look at the criticisms of MK's tomorrowland. Unless there was an unlimited source of funds (and even Disney has their limit), Disney would never be able to stay on the cutting edge envelope. As soon as a new idea came about, after the design & construction, by the time a "futuristic" addition or change got added, it would be out of date. I agree it was right to pull the plug on Horizions. I guess I'm in the minority in that I really like MS. (Although I do agree that orange has been calmed down - I swear it was more intense when I rode it during soft openings in July 2003.) There are some rides based on "classic" Disney stories / movies that will always be classics. That doesn't mean they can't be polished up & reburished, but some things will always be classic.
I don't always agree when WDW screws with attractions. I liked Alien Encounter; and even though I actually like Stitch (yes, I know it's a sin to admit this here), I think it was a horrible decision to make AE into a Stitch attraction. I am probably in the minority that I don't like the Johnny Depp figures in POC. Don't get me wrong, the figures are awesome looking, but up against the old figures, it doesn't work to me. Seeing a handful of 2006 new awesome animatronics against the ones from the early to mid 70's doesn't exactly work. It's still a great attraction, but I think I enjoyed it more when I rode it in the late 80's & early 90's. (Update more of the existing figures and I would probably change my mind here. I know giving even half of the existing animatronic figures updates would cost a fortune, but it would make the ride much better. I know this won't happen.) I still mourn Mr. Toad's Wild Ride leaving WDW. I've never been a fan of Space Mountain as I don't like roller coasters. I also got stuck on SM when the lights were on back in 1989 & after getting good look at the ride, I choose not to ride it anymore. DH loves it so I go & play video games in the aracde while he rides. He hasn't ridden since the newest changes, so I can't comment on the new elements.
Other decisions, I like. I like Soarin'; I like MS; I like the upgrades to HM. I am hopeful for the new Star Tours. Upgrades are necessary to keep things fresh. I think Epcot would benefit with some other upgrades - for example, either update WOL or tear it down & re-do it. (Using the pavilion for the festival center for F&G and F&W is sad.)
I know this post will irritate a bunch of people & I'm sorry. I generally lurk & post infrenquently, but I felt like I had to speak up. Flame away.
THEMEPARKPIONEER
Well-Known Member
I think they should of put the money that they wasted on imagination towards a better spaceship earth 07 and made a horizons 2000. How can someone be so ruthless to take away the most important ride in such a resourceful park. A space pavilion should of been built in 82 I have to admit but horizons is like the heart of Epcot.
Uncle Lupe
Well-Known Member
This seem like another great way to neglect my house chores, I did not know this existed.
misterID
Well-Known Member
This makes no sense. You don't know what upgrades Horizons was going to get, for one. So saying it would be outdated and ridiculous is completely... Ridiculous. And your saying that if you rode a ride that was straight out of 1985 in 2010 it would seem outdated... Well, yeah, that's why it was going to be refurbed! The whole point is the ride was GOING to be updated. Horizons was classic Disney.
And the whole "a ride about the future will be obsolete the moment it opens" is one of the lamest arguments I've read and it keeps getting stated over and over. SM still passes the future test. The ideas of Horizons, such as a space travel, moon colonies, space station, underwater cities, "holographic" communication, transportation, just to name a few are still "futuristic" and would really just need minor refurbs to make "more" futuristic. The whole point is to keep looking forward. We're not even close to the advancements we'll have in 50 to a hundred years.
It's much harder to keep "current themes" relevant than future themes.
Good it is a failure imo.
Thrill Seeker
Well-Known Member
I was just about to bring that up...
Essentially they wanted to do what GM did with Test Track to the Horizons building and gut the place, adding in only two bays for the flight simulator instead of four, which is what we have now at Mission: Space. They also wanted to add a post show section that featured a space station and the harness based ride that takes you around the station. Like what has already been said, the plan got scrapped when HP offered to pay some extra bucks for a new building. Plus, if there were only two bays for the flight simulator, it would have been about as slow a load as Soarin', if not slower...
I also uncovered an additional reason why Horizons was KIA... Apparently it was partially due to the fact that if there was an evacuation of the attraction, CMs had to go throughout the entire ride path, open each individual vehicle and have guests fallow them as they open every single one. It apparently took forever and wouldn't have been practical if the building had be evacuated due to a safety issue. Disney is huge on safety, so this was one of the reasons why Horizons had to go...
I have to admit that Mission: Space had grown on me as of late. I use to rag on the attraction a lot, but it is a bit better than I originally thought. Until the technology goes out of date or until HP desires to stop giving Disney money for it, I expect Mission: Space to stick around for a while.
I find this hard to believe imo it couldn't be any more difficult than evacuating SSE.
misterID
Well-Known Member
Or HM. Aren't Pirates and Splash Mountain the hardest rides to evac?
Thrill Seeker
Well-Known Member
btw... I'm watching the tribute video now. That scene of their demolition of Horizons almost made me tear up...
Thrill Seeker
Well-Known Member
The difference is that SSE has walkways throughout the attraction that people can walk through easily. Horizons didn't, so a CM had to evac guests using some kind of platform that had to be taken to each individual vehicle, throughout the ride.
Got ya.
Horizons1
Well-Known Member
Really? Watching the guys from Mesa Verde Times run around the entire ride showed a lot of areas where they could easily walk along the vehicles, stairs and all. It seems like the show-scenes had guest evacuation in mind.
Horizons1
Well-Known Member
How so?
Thrill Seeker
Well-Known Member
Oh... for those interested, here are some interesting tidbits that you might not know about Mission: Space.
It is very much inspired by the 2000 film Mission to Mars which was loosely based on the Magic Kingdom attraction of the same name.
The film stars Gary Sinise, who does all pre-flight communication at Mission: Space.
Several elements of the attraction's queue are actually props from the movie such as the front side of the Mission Control console, the gravity wheel (The Horizons symbol in the middle was added to pay tribute) and the shuttle model.
The attraction also originally had an actual lunar rover in the queue on loan from the Smithsonian, but they asked for it back so a full replica replaced it later on.
The ISTC, or International Space Training Center, was also taken from the film Mission to Mars.
When Green Team Less Intense Training was introduced in 2006, the single riders queue became the Green Team stand by queue.
The four flight bay are divided into two sides: Orion and Triton. Orion (Bays 3 & 4) are Orange team bays. Triton (Bays 1 & 2) are Green team bays.
Each of the four bays has a unique color left over from the original version of the attraction. Bay 1 is Gold, Bay 2 is Blue, Bay 3 is Red and Bay 4 is Green.
There are three tributes to Horizons in Mission: Space. The first is the Horizons symbol in the center of the gravity wheel. The second is a second Horizons symbol in the gift shop at the end of the attraction. The third is the stroller parking planter, which is the same one that use to house the Horizons sign.
There ya go. Some interesting info you might not have known.
It is very much inspired by the 2000 film Mission to Mars which was loosely based on the Magic Kingdom attraction of the same name.
The film stars Gary Sinise, who does all pre-flight communication at Mission: Space.
Several elements of the attraction's queue are actually props from the movie such as the front side of the Mission Control console, the gravity wheel (The Horizons symbol in the middle was added to pay tribute) and the shuttle model.
The attraction also originally had an actual lunar rover in the queue on loan from the Smithsonian, but they asked for it back so a full replica replaced it later on.
The ISTC, or International Space Training Center, was also taken from the film Mission to Mars.
When Green Team Less Intense Training was introduced in 2006, the single riders queue became the Green Team stand by queue.
The four flight bay are divided into two sides: Orion and Triton. Orion (Bays 3 & 4) are Orange team bays. Triton (Bays 1 & 2) are Green team bays.
Each of the four bays has a unique color left over from the original version of the attraction. Bay 1 is Gold, Bay 2 is Blue, Bay 3 is Red and Bay 4 is Green.
There are three tributes to Horizons in Mission: Space. The first is the Horizons symbol in the center of the gravity wheel. The second is a second Horizons symbol in the gift shop at the end of the attraction. The third is the stroller parking planter, which is the same one that use to house the Horizons sign.
There ya go. Some interesting info you might not have known.
EPCOT Explorer
New Member
Not flaming at all...It was a respectful, well thought, and calm post. I wish there were more of you.
However, I disagree. :lol:
I think Horizons and WoM and SSE, are PERFECTLY aligned with PPF or POTC or HM. It was EPCOT Center's classic. It was the ride that defined the park, it was what the legacy of today's Epcot came from. I know the parks are never supposed to become museums, but you have to regrard the classics, those first rides, with care. Keep them intact, update them, make them relevant, but don't kill them. Killing them is akin to ripping out POTC in 1980. :lol: