Jose
Well-Known Member
mk or dca?
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little mermaids wait times now like dca's.
- Thread starter Sped2424
- Start date
SJN1279
Well-Known Member
I guess the website I read had it wrong, is that an app? What is the Seven Dwarves wait?
Captain Chaos
Well-Known Member
Don't you just love when evidence and those pesky things called facts blows the trolling out of the water. Geez, I wish people would just report the trolls allowing Steve to rid the site of these pests once and for all instead of constantly engaging.
SJN1279
Well-Known Member
Didn't make anything, got the wait time from this site:
https://apps.facebook.com/disney-world-crowds/?fb_source=search&ref=br_tf
That's the official my magic + app from disney themselves. dwarves at the time when I was looking was 75 minutes
SJN1279
Well-Known Member
So 80 minutes must have been for the Dwarves, sorry!
erasure fan1
Well-Known Member
Last Saturday (26th) in the a.m. mermaid was a walk on. We walked through the line and rode the ride not seeing but one other person. I know the mine train is the shinny new toy but that was very odd for the park being open almost an hour.
JordanKing
Active Member
Never waited more than 5 mins for this, but on Saturday waited a solid 45 mins. I was amazed and kind of flustered.
Brad Bishop
Well-Known Member
As someone else said: It's an Omnimover and a lame ride.
I can think of days when the Peoplemover has a line but, normally, that's a walk on.
The problem with Mermaid is that there is little to no imagination in it. It being an Omnimover is nice because it's constantly loading/unloading. It's well themed both inside and out. It really feels like someone in a suit said, "We need a ride. Let's do Mermaid! Order an Omnimover and put some AAs around it. Done!"
The only thing on that ride that I think is clever is when you go backwards at the beginning to go "under the sea". It's a neat and well done effect. Everything else is generic Disney. It's certainly better than what you'd see at a Six Flags or Cedar Fair park in terms of theming but it's a let down in terms what they could have done with that site, Mermaid or not.
7DMT feels much the same, again like some suit in a meeting saying, "Order us a Vekoma family coaster. Put some Snow White theming around it. Done! I'm a freakin' genius!" Again, it's well themed inside and out but it really just feels like a well themed coaster and a generic Disney ride.
You could argue that this is Fantasyland and they had to stick to children's themes which meant some animated Disney movie but I'd argue back that if you look at other rides in Fantasyland, they're better done:
- Pooh, is probably the best. A lot of clever and neat things which make you feel like you're in the book.
- Peter Pan makes you feel like your flying over London. Yeah, it's a traditional dark ride but it does quite well.
- It's a Small World isn't based on a Disney movie at all. Not everything has to be a Disney movie. Why not have an original idea?
When I go to Universal and enter either of the Harry Potter areas, I feel like I'm in Harry Potterland. It's all well themed and the rides make you feel like you're in the movie. Not just some Omnimover taking you through various stages of the films with AAs singing at you, but you actually feel like you're experiencing it. That's pretty good.
I can think of days when the Peoplemover has a line but, normally, that's a walk on.
The problem with Mermaid is that there is little to no imagination in it. It being an Omnimover is nice because it's constantly loading/unloading. It's well themed both inside and out. It really feels like someone in a suit said, "We need a ride. Let's do Mermaid! Order an Omnimover and put some AAs around it. Done!"
The only thing on that ride that I think is clever is when you go backwards at the beginning to go "under the sea". It's a neat and well done effect. Everything else is generic Disney. It's certainly better than what you'd see at a Six Flags or Cedar Fair park in terms of theming but it's a let down in terms what they could have done with that site, Mermaid or not.
7DMT feels much the same, again like some suit in a meeting saying, "Order us a Vekoma family coaster. Put some Snow White theming around it. Done! I'm a freakin' genius!" Again, it's well themed inside and out but it really just feels like a well themed coaster and a generic Disney ride.
You could argue that this is Fantasyland and they had to stick to children's themes which meant some animated Disney movie but I'd argue back that if you look at other rides in Fantasyland, they're better done:
- Pooh, is probably the best. A lot of clever and neat things which make you feel like you're in the book.
- Peter Pan makes you feel like your flying over London. Yeah, it's a traditional dark ride but it does quite well.
- It's a Small World isn't based on a Disney movie at all. Not everything has to be a Disney movie. Why not have an original idea?
When I go to Universal and enter either of the Harry Potter areas, I feel like I'm in Harry Potterland. It's all well themed and the rides make you feel like you're in the movie. Not just some Omnimover taking you through various stages of the films with AAs singing at you, but you actually feel like you're experiencing it. That's pretty good.
backinaction
Well-Known Member
Agree about the 7DMT. I got off thinking that's it? We waited all that time for that? Avatarland better be a game changer IMHO.
the-reason14
Well-Known Member
I think its clear that people just expect too much sometimes and will never be pleased no matter what. I get what the poster above said about "experiencing" rather then just "observing" but TLM fits perfectly in the land that it's in alongside the other rides there like PPF and Pooh. The que is the biggest misstep because it can lead people into believing they're about to do a pirates type adventure, but I feel TLM took a modern day approach without making it drastically superior to other fantasyland rides. Imagine a DL Indy style mermaid ride. It would be great, and immersive but would overshadow the other dark rides in the land. Of course had they made it like that, you people still would complain and find fault in it regardless. While it could be better, it will never be up to par.
erasure fan1
Well-Known Member
While I agree with it fits perfectly into fantasyland, The rest not so much. The big complaints are the fact that the ride is completely disjointed once you hit 3/4 through and they didn't put the care into hiding the duct work, ceiling... And I agree with those complaints. Its not just people on these boards either. The middle of the summer, an hour after park opening, the ride was a walk on like I have never seen. We walked through the queue, rode the ride, walked off and the whole time, we saw 1 person. It was very odd.
the-reason14
Well-Known Member
In the past Ive seen the same thing for other rides. An hour after park opened and space mountain is posted as a 15 minute wait but is nearly a walk on. Of course this depends on the time of year and such, but mermaid is the only omnimover in fantasyland, I understand why the line is short.
Brad Bishop
Well-Known Member
I think that the problem is that Disney has fallen into a trap, perhaps due to Michael Eisner or perhaps due to just regular corporate thinking that gives us sequel after sequel at the box office instead of interesting new movies, of:
- Put the guest in the movie, which is precisely what TLM does
or
- We need a thrill ride. Buy a coaster from someone and theme it heavily. 7DMT is an example of this where, I think, it's done poorly. Everest is an example where it's done quite well.
Everest exists because they needed a thrill ride at Animal Kingdom in order to compete. That's what it's about. They did a fantastic job on, and I'm not complaining about it. It is, though, just a roller coaster with heavy theming.
If you look at some of the other rides at the parks they really tried to be unique with what they did. Most of these worked really well and are classics. They took time to think through what the story/idea was that they were trying to get across:
Pirates was an original idea. Wouldn't it be fun to put the guests into the Caribbean with a bunch of Pirates. It's basically a boat dark ride but you never think of it like that. You think of it as Pirates of the Caribbean. A unique place/adventure.
The same is true for It's a Small World. Something unique and different. The theme is simple enough: A bunch of kids from around the world all getting along and singing in harmony. It's another boat dark ride but, again, you don't associate it with that. You only think of it as "It's a Small World" and all of the kids singing that song that gets stuck in your head.
The Haunted Mansion is filled with all sorts of neat effects / tricks that set the mood. All of it was painstakingly thought out. You think of it as "The Haunted Mansion" not some spooky Omnimover ride at the park.
Each of these things have a kind of life of their own.
Soarin' is a good example where they tried something different and it worked really well.
Test Track (I preferred the non-Tron version) works well for both being a unique thrill ride as well as trying to convey what goes into the testing of cars.
The Little Mermaid really feels like you're riding an Omnimover through a warehouse filled with Little Mermaid animatronics. It's a bit like when a place like Six Flags orders another coaster and you ride it and you think, "It's OK," instead of, "Wow! That really is a great coaster!!" The former is one you'd ride if there were no line and you were somewhat bored at the park. Kind of like, "May as well ride it.." The latter is one you go to the park for. You'll stand in line to ride that one. You'll tell your friends about it.
7DMT was better with the theming, like when the train climbs the hill and the shadows of the dwarfs are climbing along with you -neat idea, and all of that and I think the roller coaster does work with the obvious mine train connection. The problem is that you get off and you feel like you had half a ride. I remember a coaster like that a Busch Gardens Williamsburg: Drachen Fire. It sounded great. In fact, the first half of that coaster was pretty good. Then you hit this bat wing and it feels like you're going faster than the coaster and the rest of it just drug on (it's long gone). I suppose with Drachen Fire you felt like you had a full ride but the first part was pretty good (not great) and the second part was pretty crappy. Someone looking at it could point to all of the specs and advertising and say, "But it's a coaster! Some of you are never going to be happy." It really wasn't a good coaster.
When someone gets off of a ride they have had, hopefully, some kind of memorable experience:
- worst case: perhaps it wasn't so great and not memorable
- disappointment
- meh (It's OK)
- pretty good
- glee/happy (it was a great/fun/entertaining freaking ride)
I think TLM comes off as "meh" and 7DMT is more in the "pretty good" territory with a secondary thought of, "that was it?"
With the other rides I mentioned above as examples, they don't leave you thinking, "that was it?," or, "meh" but, I think, fairly/fully entertained. I think a lot of that is due to the thought process and imagination that went into those rides.
I think with Walt, and the original imagineers working on those original rides, had more of the thought process of, "...wouldn't it be neat if...," whereas today it seems more like you have some corporate guy thinking in terms of, "..We need a New Fantasyland to compete! Omnimovers are great for capacity - get one of those. Fantasyland... Little Mermaid! Let's do that. Get some animatronics in there! Theme is up! The kids are going to love being in the movie!" It's the difference between a chef being creative and someone at a generic restaurant following a well known recipe. "The kids will love this pizza with the pepperoni and the cheese..."
- Put the guest in the movie, which is precisely what TLM does
or
- We need a thrill ride. Buy a coaster from someone and theme it heavily. 7DMT is an example of this where, I think, it's done poorly. Everest is an example where it's done quite well.
Everest exists because they needed a thrill ride at Animal Kingdom in order to compete. That's what it's about. They did a fantastic job on, and I'm not complaining about it. It is, though, just a roller coaster with heavy theming.
If you look at some of the other rides at the parks they really tried to be unique with what they did. Most of these worked really well and are classics. They took time to think through what the story/idea was that they were trying to get across:
Pirates was an original idea. Wouldn't it be fun to put the guests into the Caribbean with a bunch of Pirates. It's basically a boat dark ride but you never think of it like that. You think of it as Pirates of the Caribbean. A unique place/adventure.
The same is true for It's a Small World. Something unique and different. The theme is simple enough: A bunch of kids from around the world all getting along and singing in harmony. It's another boat dark ride but, again, you don't associate it with that. You only think of it as "It's a Small World" and all of the kids singing that song that gets stuck in your head.
The Haunted Mansion is filled with all sorts of neat effects / tricks that set the mood. All of it was painstakingly thought out. You think of it as "The Haunted Mansion" not some spooky Omnimover ride at the park.
Each of these things have a kind of life of their own.
Soarin' is a good example where they tried something different and it worked really well.
Test Track (I preferred the non-Tron version) works well for both being a unique thrill ride as well as trying to convey what goes into the testing of cars.
The Little Mermaid really feels like you're riding an Omnimover through a warehouse filled with Little Mermaid animatronics. It's a bit like when a place like Six Flags orders another coaster and you ride it and you think, "It's OK," instead of, "Wow! That really is a great coaster!!" The former is one you'd ride if there were no line and you were somewhat bored at the park. Kind of like, "May as well ride it.." The latter is one you go to the park for. You'll stand in line to ride that one. You'll tell your friends about it.
7DMT was better with the theming, like when the train climbs the hill and the shadows of the dwarfs are climbing along with you -neat idea, and all of that and I think the roller coaster does work with the obvious mine train connection. The problem is that you get off and you feel like you had half a ride. I remember a coaster like that a Busch Gardens Williamsburg: Drachen Fire. It sounded great. In fact, the first half of that coaster was pretty good. Then you hit this bat wing and it feels like you're going faster than the coaster and the rest of it just drug on (it's long gone). I suppose with Drachen Fire you felt like you had a full ride but the first part was pretty good (not great) and the second part was pretty crappy. Someone looking at it could point to all of the specs and advertising and say, "But it's a coaster! Some of you are never going to be happy." It really wasn't a good coaster.
When someone gets off of a ride they have had, hopefully, some kind of memorable experience:
- worst case: perhaps it wasn't so great and not memorable
- disappointment
- meh (It's OK)
- pretty good
- glee/happy (it was a great/fun/entertaining freaking ride)
I think TLM comes off as "meh" and 7DMT is more in the "pretty good" territory with a secondary thought of, "that was it?"
With the other rides I mentioned above as examples, they don't leave you thinking, "that was it?," or, "meh" but, I think, fairly/fully entertained. I think a lot of that is due to the thought process and imagination that went into those rides.
I think with Walt, and the original imagineers working on those original rides, had more of the thought process of, "...wouldn't it be neat if...," whereas today it seems more like you have some corporate guy thinking in terms of, "..We need a New Fantasyland to compete! Omnimovers are great for capacity - get one of those. Fantasyland... Little Mermaid! Let's do that. Get some animatronics in there! Theme is up! The kids are going to love being in the movie!" It's the difference between a chef being creative and someone at a generic restaurant following a well known recipe. "The kids will love this pizza with the pepperoni and the cheese..."
Anders Limpar
Well-Known Member
Disney hyped both TLM and 7DMT as being e-tickets and they simply are not. The bar was raised pretty high by Disney's marketing campaign before the ride was even opened. So, it's only natural to expect too much. Disney used to consistently deliver on the fans having high expectations.
The ride fits perfectly in the land. But the execution is poor. What sense does it make to build a ride that is inferior so it doesn't overshadow existing rides?
We haven't had anything close to Splash or TOT in recent times. Is that expecting too much or holding Disney accountable for not being nearly as good as they used to be? It's the latter for me.
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Brad Bishop
Well-Known Member
I agree with you but my only argument would be context.
TLM or a like ride at a Six Flags or Cedar Fair park would be fantastic.
At Disney it's just mediocre. Disney commands premium ticket prices and we expect premium attractions in return. TLM and 7DMT aren't premium attractions. They're well done, in a global sense, attractions. They are not premium Disney attractions.
It's like the difference between some young adult balancing their checkbook (not that people really do that any longer) or some accountant balancing their checkbook. Young single adult: fantastic! We're all very proud of you. Accountant: Yeah, you ought to be able to balance your checkbook. Show me something else!