Little Mermaid has grass on rock work (someone post pics.)

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Pixiedustmaker

Well-Known Member
sshindel said:
I kind of understood (while not agreeing with) when Pixiedustmaker was flying off the handle with long postings on how terrible the interior of TLM was, using DCA's version as a comparison. When it moved along to the exterior work though, that is when the ignore function finally got pulled out. That poster just has some deep dark hatred of TLM, and no matter what someone may think of the interior, I just can't imagine how someone can look at the exterior and not be impressed. To each their own I guess, but I think the rockwork (looks just like eroded sandstone or similar to me), the grass, the trees, everything looks fantastic.
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I don't have a "deep hatred" for Little Mermaid, I like the film a lot. Just that Disneyland hasn't gotten a major E-Ticket since Indiana Jones, and DCA was so, so lame when it opened. I was hoping that Mermaid would really be the grand slam we've been waiting for, and I think it missed the mark on several points. I figured that WDW wouldn't make the same mistake, obviously that colored my appraisal of the exterior of the ride, and I apologize for that, though I do think I have legitimate concerns.
 
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Pixiedustmaker

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
So use those gardner skills and research what seashore grasses in Europe may be like.. and not compare them to Splash which isn't trying to be same environment.

Again.. consider what they are trying to build, not what you think they should build...
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I understand what they are trying to do, certainly, but the visual impact is not nearly as instantaneously gorgeous and recognizable as BoG, and how 7DMT will probably turn out. With Mermaid's exterior as is, there is some puzzlement concerning what is being communicated. Is it grass or plants which are supposed to be "read" as being a long distance away?

The concept art for Mermaid's exterior looked great, but what was produced is different given there are now palm trees everywhere and less greenery on the rocks, IMHO.

Anyway, I'll refrain from any more Mermaid comments so that folks can enjoy the attraction without a very negative review. Though I eagerly await the videos of the ride so I can compare it to DCA's version.

Cheers,
 
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dman1373

Active Member
Original Poster
Pixiedustmaker said:
I do give the imagineers points for making a good chunk of the queue inside, which will help guests stay cool.

The trees in the Mermaid queue are palm trees, which have a very small canopy, and hence provide much less shade when compared to other types of trees, such as pines.

Disney has done a lot of rockwork recently, and I would guess they will do much more in Shanghai, but it is a pretty standardized process as the bulk of it is designed in a computer and they have rockwork artists. Inevitably, some rockwork will be better than others.

Given that I feel that west coast fans got burned by Disney with a lackluster Mermaid in DCA, I think it is perfectly reasonable to look at every detail of Mermaid in FLE as it is revealed. You can bet I'll be the first to watch the ride video and look for differences, or the same old cheapness, when compared to what guests have in DCA.
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dont feed the troll
 
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Ignohippo

Well-Known Member
Pixiedustmaker said:
I understand what they are trying to do, certainly, but the visual impact is nearly as instantaneously gorgeous and recognizable as BoG, and how 7DMT will probably turn out. With Mermaid's exterior as is, there is some puzzlement concerning what is being communicated. Is it grass or plants which are supposed to be "read" as being a long distance away?

The concept art for Mermaid's exterior looked great, but what was produced is different given there are now palm trees everywhere and less greenery on the rocks, IMHO.

Anyway, I'll refrain from any more Mermaid comments so that folks can enjoy the attraction without a very negative review. Though I eagerly await the videos of the ride so I can compare it to DCA's version.

Cheers,
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I'm much more concerned that Eric's castle is half the size of Belle's cottage. I've tried to remain silent, and will reserve judgement until seeing it in person (I'm sure it'll look great), but the thing looks absolutely puny compared to everything else around it. If it were off in the distance then it might work but you actually walk under the archways to get to the ride.

The grass is the least of my concerns.
 
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Ignohippo

Well-Known Member
I'm looking forward to seeing the Beast's castle with the trees on the cliffs around it. They were testing the effect (with what looked to be plywood trees on a stick) about a year ago and I've been excited to see how this would look when the real miniature trees are put in place ever since.
 
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Pixiedustmaker

Well-Known Member
Ignohippo said:
I'm much more concerned that Eric's castle is half the size of Belle's cottage. I've tried to remain silent, and will reserve judgement until seeing it in person (I'm sure it'll look great), but the thing looks absolutely puny compared to everything else around it. If it were off in the distance then it might work but you actually walk under the archways to get to the ride.

The grass is the least of my concerns.
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Didn't plan on commenting again, but I will say that I also thought that Eric's castle was too small because if they made it more life size then Eric and Ariel could walk out on that "bridge" thing and wave to the crowd or something like that, though obviously there will be a Meet & Greet.

This Prince Eric's castle in Storybook Land Canal boats is definitely too small for facebook characters to make appearances on ;-)

DSCN3847.jpg
 
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Pixiedustmaker

Well-Known Member
Ignohippo said:
I'm looking forward to seeing the Beast's castle with the trees on the cliffs around it. They were testing the effect (with what looked to be plywood trees on a stick) about a year ago and I've been excited to see how this would look when the real miniature trees are put in place ever since.
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Me too. The artifical trees on RSR in DCA look spot on, and I think small little miniature trees will look fantastic on this part of FLE. I can't help but think that holiday decorations would look great in this area of the park as well.
 
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Pixiedustmaker

Well-Known Member
^ I believe that concept art was made after this:

tumblr_llrrsiQpLY1qi7900o1_500.jpg


Which . . .

. . . doesn't have a ton (any) of palm trees (like the film)
. . . has gorgeous little red plants
. . . the castle is taller than the hills/bluffs (I think this works better, think they should have sunk showbuilding into the ground to hide it)
. . . has no plam trees which tower over Eric's Castle, allowing the forced perpective to do its job
. . . is more beautiful than what we have, IMHO.

There aren't palm trees in the film save for some potted palm trees at the castle. The palm trees and bare rockwork reminds me more of Pirates of the Caribbean than the Little Mermaid. Also, palm trees aren't going to provide much shade, and they grow so tall that it will mess with the forced perspective, should the palm trees really be as tall as the castle and planted right next to it?!?
 
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Pixiedustmaker

Well-Known Member
Littlemermaid_490.jpg


Here's a drawing of Eric's Castle, there is a little bitty palm tree in a pot up on a balcony, but this part of the world is not tropical. Maybe a castle off of France/Spain or something like that . . . not a deserted desert island in the Caribbean, with few plants besides the palms.
 
unkadug

unkadug

Follower of "Saget"The Cult
Pixiedustmaker said:
Didn't plan on commenting again, but I will say that I also thought that Eric's castle was too small because if they made it more life size then Eric and Ariel could walk out on that "bridge" thing and wave to the crowd or something like that, though obviously there will be a Meet & Greet.

This Prince Eric's castle in Storybook Land Canal boats is definitely too small for facebook characters to make appearances on ;-)
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Facebook characters? :D
 
danlb_2000

danlb_2000

Premium Member
Patricia Melton said:
Can someone answer this?

1. Is grass going everywhere this is currently white on the rocks (always wondered what that white was going to be, as it didn't look like sand)?

2. Is it real grass or is it astroturf?

3. If real grass, how in the heck are they going to maintain it or is it meant to grow tall like Karl Forster grass?
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Some new pictures of the grass installation here that confirm that it is not real grass:

http://orlandoparksnews.blogspot.com/2012/08/new-fantasyland-update-princesses-grass.html
 
jjharvpro

jjharvpro

Active Member
The "grass" is being "stuck" on those white platforms. You can see little holes that seem to be where the squares of "grass" are laid. If you remember, a few months back, where the fake grass is being installed now was where it almost looked like the rock work was shaded green. Clearly, WDI didn't like that and took another approach - therefore, installing this fake grass, which I think looks much, much better.

While those trees behind MK bother me, I'm withholding judgement and concern until they let us into FLE to see Mermaid up close. Also, the land won't be 100% cohesive until 7DMT in 2014 (which I still am having high hopes for a late 2013 opening -- work is progressing SO FAST). So we can't criticize all the sight lines until the ENTIRE land is complete and open.
 

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