SKYWAY'S SPACE MOUNTAIN REVIEW
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First of all, anyone who is familiar with my posts knows I roll my eyes at idiocy ("It looks like a fountain! What? It's a planter? They're so cheap because they cut the fountain!") I think WDW/DL refurb comparisons are ridiculous because they are two entirely different beasts, with different structural issues and different roles in the resorts' strategy. And without blindly defending Disney, I understand the tough financial decisions it must make to avoid being one of those Wall Street darlings that has crumbled.
I expected the WDW SM refurb to have minor cosmetic updates, with most of the work being behind-the-scenes. In other words, I did not expect much new, but was confident I would like the refreshed "classic" ride.
With all that said, I gotta admit... I was underwhelmed. More underwhelmed than I would have ever imagined. (I'd say "disappointed", but I don't have "feelings" for a theme park ride)
Here's my take, step-by-step.
THE QUEUE
When I first saw photos of the old SM logo above the "ball pit", I liked it. But seeing it in person, it hit me than they simply replaced some cheap plastic signs with new ones. Same with the new Star Tunnel "map". (If I could be a Disney subcontractor on this ride, I would have been the plastic sign maker. That company was kept busy, because I'd say 25% of this rehab was swapping out old rear-illuminated plastic signs with new ones.)
The second thing I noticed entering the building was the fresh black wall paint, free of gross spit drips.
But the third thing I noticed (and I promise, I was not trying to find fault!) was that the metal grill panels under the queue railings are the '75 originals-- dull, worn, dirty metal that could have been easily replaced, but wasn't. It was such a contrast to the clean, repainted walls.
The Star Tunnel is unchanged. The lighting is nearly identical to the old FedEx colors. The only difference I noticed (and it may have always been there) was an odd, square-shaped cutout in the center queue rail about halfway down, giving a small patch of extra space on the FastPass side. It looked like it could be a place for wheelchairs to turn around or allow others to pass.
The games were not working, so I didn't get to see them. But I was impressed with how many screens there are, and how large they are.
The "Pepper's Ghost" objects in the star windows are spectacularly lit, better than I could have imagined. And some even have very defined areas painted in different colors. In particular, I noticed that the SM rocket (with old glow stripes and nose) zooming in circles now has "tourists" sitting in it instead of astronauts, and it seemed like their clothing and hair was all different colors (not all white as the objects it was previously) This was one of only a handful of things that really impressed me.
I didn't catch the safety video, but if they went to the expense of a new screen, I'm certain it will eventually be replaced with a new video.
The final queue room was not as awe-inspiring to me as those first photos of it seemed a few days ago. Other than the blue neon ceiling lights, it really is quite similar to the previous look. I like they kept the original "ceiling window" idea. I have great childhood memories of watching those spooky green rockets streaking through the darkness above, but I'm fine with the new enclosure. However, since it is no longer that unique view of a coaster, but instead projections of stars and a space station, the atmosphere is significantly lost (I don't think there was music in here. That might help.) The "sparkle" sealant on the concrete floor is OK (what can you really say about a floor?), but the workmanship appeared sloppy. It looked unevenly applied with obvious blobs, especially along the load track.
Mr. Plastic Sign Maker was hard at work here too, replacing those panels behind the load area. I found the new sayings like "check invisible oxygen shield" mildly amusing and effective at setting the new "story" of a Space Port, and much better than the old "prepare to launch".
I was initially surprised not to see the neon-lit load gates that DL has (they're just plain metal here). But with the new queue configuration, others in line would not see the gates anyway until boarding (unlike DL, where the queue circles overhead, and the load area is a focal point for the room).
I'm probably wrong, but it seemed like the two load zones were pushed back farther from the "launch area" than before, creating an "on deck" area for a whole rocket before it rounds the corner. I may not be remembering the old version correctly.
THE RIDE
The plastic seats attached to the sled are brand new. The old ones used to have smooth, shiny armrests that almost had a handle for your fingertips. These are slightly different. They have an apparently removable seat cover. These must be easier to clean or replace damaged seats.
Finally! The pre-launch safety spiel is timed to play only once as a rocket sits there waiting to dispatch. No more endless loop!
Now, what in the heck were they thinking when they changed the "whoop whoop" entry tunnel music?? That just felt like they changed something for the sake of change. It isn't as loud or as excitement-building. And that old sound was a classic (in fact, DL stole the music and the blue tunnel during their 05 refurb).
The sparkle effect at the end of that tunnel, while neat and unexpected, is totally unnecessary. The time and expense for that should have been put elsewhere. It's merely a one second flash.
Speaking of flash, next is the ride photo cameras. Awkward on many levels. It happens during a turn, so you don't get your bearings. The single flash is obviously from a camera (unlike DL's, which is hidden among several strobes in the reentry tunnel). And because the photo is snapped at a very dull moment of the ride, the faces of riders are pure emotionless! No smiles, screams, or even enjoyment!
The safety spiel booms once again as you start up the hill. But again, its thankfully not on a loop.
The lift hill props are well lit, although the sunglasses-wearing man in launch control now clearly looks like a mannequin because you can see him so well. I heard some spacey music while riding by on the TTA, but I didn't notice it while on the coaster. Also, this is the place where Mr. Plastic Sign Man gets his pay docked because he failed to put the replacement signs in properly, allowing light to leak out of the cracks.
The earth projection above the lift hill is missing. It gave a sense of depth to that scene, and is sorely missed. But it gives me hope that the mysterious black box on the ceiling in that same spot is some sort of video screen of earth that has not been activated yet.
At the top of the lift hill, you no longer see the lights of the queue opening below illuminating your rocket and the track structure in front of you.
However, that work of enclosing the queue is ruined by a new projection on the wall straight ahead of the lift hill. It's some kind of spinning galaxy or something. But it is so bright and so undefined, it looks like an unintentional spotlight shining on the wall...which illuminates your rocket and the track structure in front of you!
The other projections of galaxies on the ride are completely unchanged. Whoever said the projections seemed to be in HD must have much better eyes than me. They looked identical to before, possibly even using the same dim lightbulbs. This really unimpressed me.
The ride is much darker, no doubt. But it is not as inky black as I remember the DL coaster. Part of the reason may be the new star projector, that now illuminates the structure with bright stars (this isn't a bad thing. But from early reviews I imagined you would be absolutely blind. That's not the case).
The lift hill still provides a lot of light leakage. As before, the lift hill can be seen throughout much of the ride and gives you perspective on where you are in the mountain. The positive to this, though, is that you're reminded just how large and haphazard the track is.
The track is much smoother, but not like "brand new" track smooth. It feels more like the old track got a thick coat of hot grease. It feels faster and more out-of-control than ever before, yet oddly, much safer (my last few rides prior to the closure made me feel uncomfortably nervous). Unlike DL's new track, which has a friction noise and feel similar to riding a bike with the brake on, this one is much quieter now. So quiet, in fact, I got the impression that the structure is more rigid and vibrates less than before.
I gotta say, I forgot just how fun, widespread, and zippy SM's track is! And it was so much longer than I remember! The ride was great!
But after convincing myself that this SM would be OK with no on-board audio, I've decided I was wrong. Audio would help this thing immensely. It still feels like an old roller coaster (albeit a huge, exciting, fun coaster) in an immense warehouse.
As many have said, the old red reentry tunnel is inexcusable. At least they could have updated the sound effect on that, rather than the entry tunnel! If they could have done just one single thing to the ride, a memorable ending would have been it. Instead, it is as anti-climactic as it comes. (I never thought I'd say that.)
POST SHOW
Others have documented the post show quite well. Needless to say, that was my favorite part of the entire rehab, and the part that felt the most funded. They amazingly captured that "feel" of the original RCA display and Horizons, and yet modern! (Some other Disney attraction had a similar crystal dining room light, but I haven't had the chance to look at old photos yet. EDIT: I SEE SOMEONE FOUND IT JUST AS I WAS POSTING THIS! THAT'S IT!!!!!). The most surprising part of the Post Show is that NONE of us expected it would be done at all (or done that extensively, considering most people race by it on their way to another attraction).
FINAL THOUGHTS
Forget this was a 7 month rehab. Obviously most of that was used for operational upgrades. If you think of this as a quick 2 month refreshening (just as they did for CBJ recently), you'll have proper expectations.
Also, is it possible Disney still considers SM an attractive property to offer potential corporate sponsors? Sure, the economy stinks now. But once it picks up, Disney now has a refreshed attraction with plenty of places to plaster corporate logos (calling Mr. Plastic Sign Man!). Even more important, an infusion of corporate cash would allow them to finally add the on-board audio, enabling them to rebrand the ride as "new", and giving the new sponsor guaranteed publicity. Could this have been the plan all along????
