Rumor Stitch's Great Escape Replacement— Don’t Hold Your Breath

montyz81

montyz81

Well-Known Member
yensidtlaw1969 said:
The most famous example of this type of closing is 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea, which went "down for refurbishment" in 1994 and never returned - this was especially shocking because it was so patently unlike Disney's practices at the time to let something fossilize in the park like that, and because it was, if I recall correctly, the first time Disney ever closed an E-Ticket Attraction -- certainly the first classic one, at least. It wasn't until two years later that it was finally admitted by the company the attraction would not be reopening.

EDITED TO ADD: For those who may not be familiar, the ride was left largely to rot from 1994, with the disappearance of the submarine ride vehicles from the lagoon being the only real removal done until 2004 when construction walls finally went up to actually remove the ride. I realized after posting that it may be a mistake to assume everyone reading automatically familiar with this legendary portion of The Magic Kingdom's history. The closing of 20,000 Leagues was a total watershed moment. No pun intended.
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I think Horizons falls into this category too. But, in this case, they actually did go down the road of designing the refurb only to be shelved at the last minute.. if I am remembering my history correctly.
 
larryz

larryz

I'm Just A Tourist!
Premium Member
Maeryk said:
Disney stopped doing announced closures when people tried to chain themselves to Mr Toad.
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Until they figured out they could boost attendance by announcing the end of an attraction -- The Osborne Family Lights, for example -- and keep boosting attendance by extending that "final show" date for a couple of days...
 
HairyLegPirate

HairyLegPirate

Active Member
Aaronardo said:
A sentiment a few others echoed in this thread, but I’m feeling a wild mix of emotions right now.

Stitch was always a pretty bad show, especially by Disney’s standards. But with its long lifespan came some dumb kids who tolerated the pitch black darkness and spooky special effects and just loved that a show involving Stitch and him wreaking havoc was in the parks. And I was one of those dumb kids. In fact, I recall a time where the #1 thing I couldn’t wait to do at the Magic Kingdom when we got there was SGE.

The amount of time I spent in this building should honestly be illegal. That chili dog smell that permeated the entire building, to my nose, became less of a sore and more of a familiarity. Ironically, something that let me know that I was at Disney. (Yes, some of you have the orange smell in Soarin’, I had the freakin chili dog burp). The amount of time I spent looking in awe at these animatronics, how fluidly they moved and how much of a spectacle they put on despite the script issues, it’s honestly devastating to see those pictures now.

We knew this was coming for years now, but I honestly naïvely thought we’d get a bit of a warning, that we’d get that final show, a bit of closure. In that time I’ve actually had DREAMS about this show, going into the building only to find out that it’s in disrepair with chewing gum on the floors and visible wood on the walls, nothing working. And now with these photos I can at least give those images some sort of base. That’s how it looked at a point in time, and they’re all gone now.

So I suppose just the same, while seeing “good friends” like that in such destroyed states has made me a little sorrowful, I’m also thankful they were leaked, and that even though Stitch wasn’t too glorious on his last escape, we at least get some closure through this. And I know I sound pretty silly sounding this emotional for a bunch of nuts bolts and metal, and especially for such a pathetic attempt at a cash-grab, but I swear, I LOVED this thing.

Thanks for the memories, Stitch. Most people would rather forget you, and maybe I’d like to forget your show as it is, but I won’t forget the joy it brought me.

(So does this mean Disney has a replacement? Or are they gutting this thing just for the funnies?)
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I wholeheartedly agree with your sentiment. My connection with this ride is similar to your's from a sentimental standpoint, but different. I wasn't at MK for the official opening (and the infamous TP castle), but I was in WDW in November 2004 around the time that it opened. It's one of the first rides I ever had the thrill of being among the first to get to experience. I also have really fond memories of that trip in general because my family was all just in a really good place to be going to Disney: my brother was 3, so he was just old enough to really be engrossed in the magic and the Red Sox had just won the World Series for the first time in 86 years. My family being diehard Red Sox fans, we were all just in an exceptionally happy state of mind. It was just a really special trip, and being there for the opening of SGE was a part of it.

As I got older, I recognized the issues with the script and the overall cheesiness of the ride, but I never minded it and always made a point to go and appreciate the animatronics whenever I was in MK. And oddly enough, I too had a strange enjoyment of the chili dog smell.

In the end, I recognize that this is a problematic attraction that WDW can survive without, but it will always have a special place in my heart as part of that November 2004 trip to Disney.
 
Cmdr_Crimson

Cmdr_Crimson

Well-Known Member
pasamike said:
HOLD THE PHONE!! There were TWO Skippys the whole time?!? :cautious:
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I like the fact that they even had a burned version as an action figure..
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The Pho

The Pho

Well-Known Member
Aaronardo said:
A sentiment a few others echoed in this thread, but I’m feeling a wild mix of emotions right now.

Stitch was always a pretty bad show, especially by Disney’s standards. But with its long lifespan came some dumb kids who tolerated the pitch black darkness and spooky special effects and just loved that a show involving Stitch and him wreaking havoc was in the parks. And I was one of those dumb kids. In fact, I recall a time where the #1 thing I couldn’t wait to do at the Magic Kingdom when we got there was SGE.

The amount of time I spent in this building should honestly be illegal. That chili dog smell that permeated the entire building, to my nose, became less of a sore and more of a familiarity. Ironically, something that let me know that I was at Disney. (Yes, some of you have the orange smell in Soarin’, I had the freakin chili dog burp). The amount of time I spent looking in awe at these animatronics, how fluidly they moved and how much of a spectacle they put on despite the script issues, it’s honestly devastating to see those pictures now.

We knew this was coming for years now, but I honestly naïvely thought we’d get a bit of a warning, that we’d get that final show, a bit of closure. In that time I’ve actually had DREAMS about this show, going into the building only to find out that it’s in disrepair with chewing gum on the floors and visible wood on the walls, nothing working. And now with these photos I can at least give those images some sort of base. That’s how it looked at a point in time, and they’re all gone now.

So I suppose just the same, while seeing “good friends” like that in such destroyed states has made me a little sorrowful, I’m also thankful they were leaked, and that even though Stitch wasn’t too glorious on his last escape, we at least get some closure through this. And I know I sound pretty silly sounding this emotional for a bunch of nuts bolts and metal, and especially for such a pathetic attempt at a cash-grab, but I swear, I LOVED this thing.

Thanks for the memories, Stitch. Most people would rather forget you, and maybe I’d like to forget your show as it is, but I won’t forget the joy it brought me.

(So does this mean Disney has a replacement? Or are they gutting this thing just for the funnies?)
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I got some serious enjoyment out of it over the years. I know it wasn't the best thing in the park, but it was something different. And I think its also one of the more quotable attractions Disney has ever made (and that is something Disney isn't really good at anymore, so losing one makes it worse). I love tossing out a "not the donut guy again", "Cinderella, your prince is here", or a "my chili dog!" out of the blue. I also loved that he showed up by trashing the castle, perfectly in character. I seriously hope that Stitch returns to the park in some capacity beyond a character meet and merchandise, he deserves an E ticket. I've always imagined him getting a Stitch's Wild Ride, where an animatronic Stitch jumps and hijacks one of the dinosaur style vehicles.
 
Tavernacle12

Tavernacle12

Well-Known Member
scud said:
In other news, Skippy arrived a few days ago!
View attachment 319546
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I had a chance to grab one of these back while Alien Encounter was around and I still kick myself for not getting it.

I'm glad to see SGE go, assuming we do get something better there soon, but I don't understand why Skippy wasn't saved for the Archives. I'm not sure if both Stitches are gone now, but it's baffling they didn't save at least one for further use as is.
 
CoasterSnoop

CoasterSnoop

Well-Known Member
The Pho said:
I love tossing out a "not the donut guy again"
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As bad as the script was, that line never ceased to get a laugh out of me. Just the thought that Sarge has gone through such a debacle with that alien that he just refers to him as "the donut guy" on top of the delivery by the VA gets me every time.

DisneyExpert said:
Stitch's Great Escape! was the first attraction I ever worked on and I have so many amazing memories from my time there. I know a lot of people are celebrating, but those pictures are honestly a little heartbreaking.
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What was that like? I was always interested in the goings-on behind this thing, even if it wasn't horribly complicated.
 
Cmdr_Crimson

Cmdr_Crimson

Well-Known Member
The Pho said:
I got some serious enjoyment out of it over the years. I know it wasn't the best thing in the park, but it was something different. And I think its also one of the more quotable attractions Disney has ever made (and that is something Disney isn't really good at anymore, so losing one makes it worse). I love tossing out a "not the donut guy again", "Cinderella, your prince is here", or a "my chili dog!" out of the blue. I also loved that he showed up by trashing the castle, perfectly in character. I seriously hope that Stitch returns to the park in some capacity beyond a character meet and merchandise, he deserves an E ticket. I've always imagined him getting a Stitch's Wild Ride, where an animatronic Stitch jumps and hijacks one of the dinosaur style vehicles.
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There were plans to make Space Mountain revolve around Stitch...From the trains it looked as it would have been for DL's Version...
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Castle Cake Apologist

Castle Cake Apologist

Well-Known Member
Aaronardo said:
What was that like? I was always interested in the goings-on behind this thing, even if it wasn't horribly complicated.
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It was enjoyable, but you definitely had to make your own fun sometimes. There wasn't a ton of backstage to it though, since it isn't a ride. We weren't even allowed up in the catwalks in the chambers, which used to be an on-stage role for a Cast Member when it was Alien Encounter.

It was its own rotation because it had so many roles, so that was always nice to not have to move between attractions. A lot of the positions were indoors, which was a plus. Not to mention you got to sit down during the shows and relax a little if you were on a theater role. Plus our breakroom was in the same building as the attraction, so that was convenient too.
 
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Maeryk

Maeryk

Well-Known Member
The Pho said:
I got some serious enjoyment out of it over the years. I know it wasn't the best thing in the park, but it was something different. And I think its also one of the more quotable attractions Disney has ever made (and that is something Disney isn't really good at anymore, so losing one makes it worse). I love tossing out a "not the donut guy again", "Cinderella, your prince is here", or a "my chili dog!" out of the blue. I also loved that he showed up by trashing the castle, perfectly in character. I seriously hope that Stitch returns to the park in some capacity beyond a character meet and merchandise, he deserves an E ticket. I've always imagined him getting a Stitch's Wild Ride, where an animatronic Stitch jumps and hijacks one of the dinosaur style vehicles.
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He will. They announced a live action L&S film. Though he may be getting a "whole new look".
 

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