Norway Pavilion Frozen construction - Frozen Ever After ride

[Shaman]

I completely agree. What is the overall message of EPCOT? All the different pavilions had a purpose. Bring back the education, it's not just about movie franchises.

I think some attractions can use movie franchises to educate. The perfect example is Turtle Talk. You have Crush talking to kids about turtles and the oceans they live in. The adults get a kick out of the exchange and the technology that may be behind it.

 

[sshindel]

Seriously though. I feel the same way I felt the day they announced the closing of the attraction. I still was never the worlds largest fan of Maelstrom, but what this does to the pavilion itself, and further, World Showcase, it's just maddening. This is my artists representation of the new pavilion, and it's impact on World Showcase:

 

[Shaman]

I have dreams that 1 day, Big Hero 6 and Inside out will be in epcot. Not sure how frozen fits but not a big institute about technology where baymax was built in epcot.

Science needs a big boost. A pavilion dedicated to inventors would be awesome. Maybe for Imagination?

I also think they should move update CoP (maybe even with screens) to Epcot and make it part of an SSE pavilion.

 

[Sped2424]

I now realize that this is NOT what some thought it would be ( a romp through the movie) but instead, we get something else(a), a huge Frozen hodge Podge. I still have yet to decide if this is better.

They are straying away from book report in this attraction. Well mostly.

 

[HairyLegPirate]

Look, no one complains that Aladdin makes appearances in Morocco even though he lives in the fictional city of Agrabah. Arendelle is the same vein, the difference being Frozen is absurdly popular. If they're putting the woman in charge of Cars Land (a subpar movie with a jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring land that's the best thing I've seen the Imagineers do in years) in charge of this project AND they're already promising the same animatronics that they have on SDMT, this isn't going to be a half-assed project.

I get it. I'm sick of Frozen too, particularly the forcing it on us from every aspect of the company. But at the end of the day, it's still a damn good movie that stands above a lot of Disney's more recent work. Would you rather wait twenty years and get The Little Mermaid ride? Disney's avoiding that same mistake and capitalizing on it. They're a business. It's what they do. But writing the project off as garbage before it's even off the ground is a pointless and unfair exercise. The money is in this, and (for now) it doesn't look like they're doing it on a nickel-and-dime budget, particularly if they're involving next-gen animatronics.

If you were expecting an E-ticket, you were either looking for disappointment/ material or you never rode the Maelstrom. But if they do this ride like they say they're going to, there's no reason this can't be a legitimately great attraction, one that Epcot desperately needs.

 

[misterID]

I completely agree. What is the overall message of EPCOT? All the different pavilions had a purpose. Bring back the education, it's not just about movie franchises.

At this point, I would really settle for a good ride produced at EPCOT. They can't even seem to get that right, let alone a cohesive theme or message.

They're going to have a ride geared to children with Frozen in WS during Boozefest, I mean, wine and garden. Have you seen the behavior of those people?... It would be one thing if they were young and attractive acting that way, but good God... Those poor children and their inevitably scarred memories.

 

[Mike S]

Look, no one complains that Aladdin makes appearances in Morocco even though he lives in the fictional city of Agrabah. Arendelle is the same vein, the difference being Frozen is absurdly popular. If they're putting the woman in charge of Cars Land (a subpar movie with a jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring land that's the best thing I've seen the Imagineers do in years) in charge of this project AND they're already promising the same animatronics that they have on SDMT, this isn't going to be a half-assed project.

I get it. I'm sick of Frozen too, particularly the forcing it on us from every aspect of the company. But at the end of the day, it's still a damn good movie that stands above a lot of Disney's more recent work. Would you rather wait twenty years and get The Little Mermaid ride? Disney's avoiding that same mistake and capitalizing on it. They're a business. It's what they do. But writing the project off as garbage before it's even off the ground is a pointless and unfair exercise. The money is in this, and (for now) it doesn't look like they're doing it on a nickel-and-dime budget, particularly if they're involving next-gen animatronics.

If you were expecting an E-ticket, you were either looking for disappointment/******** material or you never rode the Maelstrom. But if they do this ride like they say they're going to, there's no reason this can't be a legitimately great attraction, one that Epcot desperately needs.

Tokyo is capitalizing as well. It'll be open there by 2018.

 

[misterID]

Look, no one complains that Aladdin makes appearances in Morocco even though he lives in the fictional city of Agrabah. Arendelle is the same vein, the difference being Frozen is absurdly popular. If they're putting the woman in charge of Cars Land (a subpar movie with a jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring land that's the best thing I've seen the Imagineers do in years) in charge of this project AND they're already promising the same animatronics that they have on SDMT, this isn't going to be a half-assed project.

I get it. I'm sick of Frozen too, particularly the forcing it on us from every aspect of the company. But at the end of the day, it's still a damn good movie that stands above a lot of Disney's more recent work. Would you rather wait twenty years and get The Little Mermaid ride? Disney's avoiding that same mistake and capitalizing on it. They're a business. It's what they do. But writing the project off as garbage before it's even off the ground is a pointless and unfair exercise. The money is in this, and (for now) it doesn't look like they're doing it on a nickel-and-dime budget, particularly if they're involving next-gen animatronics.

If you were expecting an E-ticket, you were either looking for disappointment/******** material or you never rode the Maelstrom. But if they do this ride like they say they're going to, there's no reason this can't be a legitimately great attraction, one that Epcot desperately needs.

Are you kidding? EVERYONE complained about Aladdin. They complain about Aladdin in Adventure Land and his spinner with spitting camels ride.

Ramming a new theme into an existing ride isn't giving EPCOT something new or something it needs. It's a terrible placement, imo. No one was expecting an E ticket. They wanted something that makes sense.

 

[Sped2424]

Look, no one complains that Aladdin makes appearances in Morocco even though he lives in the fictional city of Agrabah. Arendelle is the same vein, the difference being Frozen is absurdly popular. If they're putting the woman in charge of Cars Land (a subpar movie with a jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring land that's the best thing I've seen the Imagineers do in years) in charge of this project AND they're already promising the same animatronics that they have on SDMT, this isn't going to be a half-assed project.

I get it. I'm sick of Frozen too, particularly the forcing it on us from every aspect of the company. But at the end of the day, it's still a damn good movie that stands above a lot of Disney's more recent work. Would you rather wait twenty years and get The Little Mermaid ride? Disney's avoiding that same mistake and capitalizing on it. They're a business. It's what they do. But writing the project off as garbage before it's even off the ground is a pointless and unfair exercise. The money is in this, and (for now) it doesn't look like they're doing it on a nickel-and-dime budget, particularly if they're involving next-gen animatronics.

If you were expecting an E-ticket, you were either looking for disappointment/******** material or you never rode the Maelstrom. But if they do this ride like they say they're going to, there's no reason this can't be a legitimately great attraction, one that Epcot desperately needs.

Good post, but a little misdirected. The difference here is while Aladdin may meet in morocco there is no ride in morocco devoted to Aladdin. His influence stops at the little meet and greet in the back of the pavilion. Where in this situation they have decided to use Frozen to kill a ride about norway and then make the attraction. The animatronics may be well and good, but the problem is always going to be this is a move that should have never happened. There is only so much they can do/tell in the limited space they have chosen. Take for example what tokyo is getting, a world class eticket and an entire land.

They were fully capable of bringing us the same land here, we have the space at MK and DHS, and we aren't short on the Money either. The only reason it didn't happen was because this was very much a decision made to save money by closing one old ride down and adding a ride to Epcot that had no business being there. I LOVE/ADORE frozen, it's one of my favorite new revival films. But I know full well that what is happening now is a mistake.I would gladly wait a little longer for an attraction if it meant they would do it right. Because what we have right now is just their half assed attempt at Frozen. What we could have had was something so much better.

 

[RSoxNo1]

A few things... first and foremost - it's not a book report ride, which is good. I don't know what we were all expecting, but so many of us were expecting the absolutely worst thing imaginable. As a ride concept it seems more than sufficient, the issue is and always be the placement of the attraction in World Showcase.

 

[HairyLegPirate]

Good post, but a little misdirected. The difference here is while Aladdin may meet in morocco there is no ride in morocco devoted to Aladdin. His influence stops at the little meet and greet in the back of the pavilion. Where in this situation they have decided to use Frozen to kill a rode about norway and then make the attraction. The animatronics may be well and good, but the problem is always going to be this is a move that should have never happened. There is only so much they can do/tell in the limited space they have chosen. Take for example what tokyo is getting, a world class eticket and an entire land.

They were fully capable of bringing us the same land here, we have the space at MK and DHS, and we aren't short on the Money either. The only reason it didn't happen was because this was very much a decision made to save money by closing one old ride down and adding a ride to Epcot that had no business being there. I LOVE/ADORE frozen, it's one of my favorite new revival films. But I know full well that what is happening now is a mistake.I would gladly wait a little longer for an attraction if it meant they would do it right. Because what we have right now is just their half assed attempt at Frozen. What we could have had was something so much better.

That's a good point, and to a large extent I completely agree. I definitely think that Frozen would be better suited for a different park and I would definitely prefer to have Norway be just Norway. I was approaching it from the standpoint of just looking at the ride itself in the sense that accepting it as what is definitely happening regardless of whether I agree with the location or what Tokyo is getting. For what it is, it looks like a solid attraction, but I totally see where you're coming from as well.

 

[MotherOfBirds]

It feels more like a retheme of LM and I'm expecting similar quality

 

[FettFan]

I also feel the need to say once again that the original tale of "The Snow Queen" wasn't even Norwegian....it was Danish.

 

[Andrew C]

A few things... first and foremost - it's not a book report ride, which is good. I don't know what we were all expecting, but so many of us were expecting the absolutely worst thing imaginable. As a ride concept it seems more than sufficient, the issue is and always be the placement of the attraction in World Showcase.

My thoughts as well. I expected the ride to be like this. It actually may turn out a bit better than I expected.

No problem with the ride...just the location as always. So this release of information on the attraction does not give my anything new to complain about.

 

[Rinx]

I have a prediction...when this opens most other attractions in Epcot will start having more frequent show and maintenance problems. However, Frozen Ever After will continue to operate flawlessly. Basically I'm saying all energy and resources will go into making sure Frozen operates perfectly at all times. If not, I can see parents flooding Guest Relations with screaming kids because Elsa wasn't moving her arms or if it simply went down for a few hours. It will be pure chaos.

 

[OvertheFalls]

I lament the demise of Maelstrom as much as anyone. Being an engineer I also believe in buildings one’s knowledge as much as possible. While going as a kid I never remember feeling enlightened by visiting Epcot, though a few tidbits of information probably made their way through. WDW would also not be where I bring my kids to learn, we have some great places in Boston for that. I really have two issues, first being frozen deserved a much larger experience with how popular it is (I would have been ok with a big brand new SECOND ride added to Norway). Is the architecture of the buildings staying the same? The food? Are they still going to sell Helly Hansen? If the only difference is the ride/movie itself I am not quite yet jumping over the falls for the loss of the entire pavilion.

 

[imagineer boy]

Look, no one complains that Aladdin makes appearances in Morocco even though he lives in the fictional city of Agrabah. Arendelle is the same vein, the difference being Frozen is absurdly popular. If they're putting the woman in charge of Cars Land (a subpar movie with a jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring land that's the best thing I've seen the Imagineers do in years) in charge of this project AND they're already promising the same animatronics that they have on SDMT, this isn't going to be a half-assed project.

I get it. I'm sick of Frozen too, particularly the forcing it on us from every aspect of the company. But at the end of the day, it's still a damn good movie that stands above a lot of Disney's more recent work. Would you rather wait twenty years and get The Little Mermaid ride? Disney's avoiding that same mistake and capitalizing on it. They're a business. It's what they do. But writing the project off as garbage before it's even off the ground is a pointless and unfair exercise. The money is in this, and (for now) it doesn't look like they're doing it on a nickel-and-dime budget, particularly if they're involving next-gen animatronics.

If you were expecting an E-ticket, you were either looking for disappointment/******** material or you never rode the Maelstrom. But if they do this ride like they say they're going to, there's no reason this can't be a legitimately great attraction, one that Epcot desperately needs.

I personally don't mind meet n greets taking place in the countries. They're unobtrusive. But whole rides really cheapen it for me.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Yep most people are going to be happy I'm sure.

Maelstrom has a low capacity, and a short ride time.

Big issues though will be FP+ availability and a horrendous standby wait. Those who have issues with those two aspects will not have exuberant smiles.

It does seem odd that in the same park where a very popular attraction is now receiving a much-needed capacity boost, they are now building a new attraction that is sure to be the most-popular attraction in the park next year with no effort made to increase capacity. I thought they had learned their lesson on building low-capacity marquis attractions.

 

[rioriz]

Never been a big fan of this, but I will give them credit for not just re-telling the movie like they did with Little Mermaid. At least it appears they are building an original story for the ride. It's a small thing, but credit where credit is due.

Agree wholeheartedly.... the one complaint everyone had about SDMT was that the show scenes while great, were too short...it appears that we are going to get SDMT show scenes for an entire ride and I for one am looking forward to seeing how this turns out. No I am not happy of the placement and shoehorning, but in the end I think the ride will be nice and adequate.

 

[rioriz]

Also to add about capacity, Disney is doing something to help it out....they are building a Meet and Greet next door that will more than likely have a longer line that the actual ride!