Storytime with Belle...That's it?!?

[devoy1701]

Lumiere looks amazing.

Maybe they can fix the CoPs animatronics now.

Case and point.

 

[Skyway]

Such a waste...

So kids shouldn't be allowed to see cool things...only you?

Or to put it another way: kids (who Walt supposedly implied should be on equal footing as adults)don't deserve to be able to walk through Beast's castle and hold court with their favorite Disney princess in an intimate setting?

So Disney shouldn't attempt this at all because not EVERYBODY would be interested?

(And lest there be any question, if you're a single dude standing by yourself in the back of that room, parents ARE watching you with a close eye. And probably a plainclothes Disney security worker, too)

 

[Pixiedustmaker]

Belle's cottage looks great from the outside, the inside is good too, and the mirror effect and the talking wardrobe and Lumiere also look good . . . but this is probably the first Meet & Greet/attraction for little kids that I would clearly want to experience myself. I haven't plopped myself down in a chair at the bibbidi bobbidi boutique and ask for "the Ariel" as I'm a middle age guy and not at all interested in dressing up like a princess, first, and secondly Disney security might show up!

If it is just me in the park with adult friends . . . do we just slide in the back?

Face characters at Disney do a lot to humor guests, even adult guests who need a picture of themselves and their adult friends with Pooh, but I'd have a hard time seeing the CMs do the show with just adults AND keep a straight look on their face.

There's a five year old girl in our family, so I'm safe, and she'll love this attraction, and it is several steps above Ariel's Meet & Greet in DCA which is awful from an adult perspective, so I guess I like the attraction. Though I do feel strangely very jealous, wishing that a B&B dark ride or stage show & dinner was also done . . .

Also, while Lumiere and the wardrobe look good initially, if you spend too much time in the room the magic probably fades away and your just waiting for the show to end at some point . . .

 

[GoofGoof]

I say from now on, whenever someone is extremely negative and being downright unpleasant, that everyone should just post pictures of puppies in response to them...they definitely cheered me up!

Sadly, we would run out of puppies.

 

[danlb_2000]

Lumiere looks amazing.

Maybe they can fix the CoPs animatronics now.

I'm trying to figure out how they did Lumiere, especially the arms, they just seem to small to be able to contain the mechanics to do that kind of motion. My only thought was that they are controlled by rods from behind, but I can't see anything like that in the video.

 

[flynnibus]

I'm trying to figure out how they did Lumiere, especially the arms, they just seem to small to be able to contain the mechanics to do that kind of motion. My only thought was that they are controlled by rods from behind, but I can't see anything like that in the video.

It's not that foreign.. think of the tools they use for minimally invasive surgery...

There is also a lot of tricks you can fool you with through simple rotation of the whole arm

 

[danlb_2000]

It's not that foreign.. think of the tools they use for minimally invasive surgery...

There is also a lot of tricks you can fool you with through simple rotation of the whole arm

Good point I didn't think of that. Not really much different then the way an endoscope works.

 

[GoofGoof]

Simple solution. If you don't like the looks of the attraction, don't bother with it. There are plenty of rides and attractions I skip every trip. Some may be favorites for other people. Just a matter of preference. There is nothing stating that adults cannot take part in this so I don't see this as Disney building something that is not accessible to everyone. When they build new thrill rides with height restrictions the "Walt wanted a park with something for everyone" crowd goes silent. If they can't put an attraction geared towards children in the fantasyland section of the MK where can they put it.

 

[yeti]

So kids shouldn't be allowed to see cool things...only you?

Or to put it another way: kids (who Walt supposedly implied should be on equal footing as adults)don't deserve to be able to walk through Beast's castle and hold court with their favorite Disney princess in an intimate setting?

So Disney shouldn't attempt this at all because not EVERYBODY would be interested?

What's that idiomatic expression people use....lipstick on a pig? Point is, meet and greets have clearly reached a technological and innovative peak...but how sophisticated does it need to get? Using next-gen to get rid of the lines is smart. But to allow a juvenile craft-making fun stop to wander anywhere close to the budget of a real attraction is a joke.

Of course I'm being selfish. But I also happen to speak for a vast minority of the guests who frequent the Magic Kingdom. It also happens to be the case that every new addition to this theme park in the past several years have been for the very age group you're defending. How's that for equal distribution among demographics? What's old Walt got to say about that?

Personally, I think giving the kids the chance to meet a character isn't something you should ever have to line up for. It's too late to turn back now, but I yearn for the day when dressed-up characters are merely an enhancement to the atmosphere, not an excuse for more switchbacks and gift stands.

(And lest there be any question, if you're a single dude standing by yourself in the back of that room, parents ARE watching you with a close eye. And probably a plainclothes Disney security worker, too)

Good to see you've pinpointed why exactly I won't be bothered to experience this adventure. You understand why its so frustrating then?

 

[the.dreamfinder]

Lumiere looks amazing.

Maybe they can fix the CoPs animatronics now.

That would make too much sense.

 

[Magenta Panther]

Well, the AAs of the Wardrobe and Lumiere are just amazing, and the sets look great. All in all, it seems like a very elaborate meet-and-greet, and a cute experience for parents and kids.

But for me, someone who doesn't even have a picture of myself with Mickey Mouse (and don't want one - I love Disney, but even I have my limits), this is a bit disappointing. What if the kids chosen to portray Phillipe or the Footstool or whatever act up or cry or have tantrums? Whee! What fun! I don't know *shrug*. Bit of a letdown, I guess. But naturally, I hope this new attraction is a smashing success nonetheless.

But I have to ask...we have AAs of the Wardrobe and Lumiere...is there ever going to be an AA built of the Beast? The Beast costume is pretty lame, detailed as it is. A full-sized AA of the Beast would be fantastic, truly an impossible creature brought to life. If this Storytime had such an AA in it, I'd sit through all the crying and fussing and lame playacting to see it.

Or perhaps there's a Beast AA lurking in Be Our Guest...?

 

[GoofGoof]

Just out of curiosity, for everyone who is disappointed that this is just a meet n greet what exactly were you expecting? Wasn't this always supposed to be pretty much exactly what it is?

 

[JustInTime]

Guys, this is what was always planned and if you expected more, shame on you. Look at the concept art. This is the SAME thing in the pictures. Only they greatly improved the effects.

 

[tdpolo26]

1. How is it better than expected? no one has experienced it yet, and "better than expected" is relative. (Strike one)
2. most of the comments have been that it's seems a waste to have such great AAs and other tech (mirror) at an attraction that can't be enjoyed by everyone. I agree, and think that if this was just a simple walkthrough like Sleeping Beauty Castle, it might be better received. That is all. (Strike two...just because I can )
3. Cardboard cutouts (or polyethelyne boards or coroplast boards or whatever they may or maynot be made from) are cheap no matter what. (Strike three)

I just wasted 5 minutes responding to your nonsense...I should give myself a few strikes for that one.[/quote

how can this not be enjoyed by everyone??

 

[sshindel]

But I also happen to speak for a vast minority of the guests who frequent the Magic Kingdom.

What is a "vast minority"?
Edit: I mean in reference to this comment.

 

[juan]

Guys, this is what was always planned and if you expected more, shame on you. Look at the concept art. This is the SAME thing in the pictures. Only they greatly improved the effects.

Exactly.
This is just the small part of the area that isn't taken up by the restaurant and shops.

The alternate was a small path with Belle at the end signing autographs.

 

[ZipADeeSarah]

It's Storytime with Belle, not Speed Dating with Belle. I never expected this to cater to adults, since it didn't in its previous form. I'll skip it unless the kids are with me, just like I skip the Speedway in lieu of driving a real car. The technology looks amazing-it's quite the meet and greet.

 

[CJR]

To an extent I understand where the OP is coming from. My wife and I have little interest in the actual FLE for this reason, it's almost entirely geared toward kids, but will also be the excuse for raising our admissions ticket next summer (just wait and see). It's not a selling point for everyone, as a lot of you pointed out, but 10% increase in ticket price will be applied to everyone regardless if they care about this or not.

I don't think there is anything wrong with the attraction itself, but as a big fan of BatB, it would have been nice for adults to be more included than they will be. My wife and I grew up watching BatB (not together obviously) so we love the film and were disappointed when the ride got axed. My thoughts are that this is better than nothing at all, but it's really not worth us paying more to get in. Perhaps next year Disney should only raise the cost of the child's ticket?

Another note is that Story Time with Bell already existed before this and was taken up with a Tangled M&G/show. Then, they removed SWSA for PFH. It's just a little overkill. I would love to see them remove the Tangled show after PFH opens and put in a small dark ride. As a big Alice in Wonderland fan, that would be so awesome, and with the right architecture Disney could do it. I mean, they squeezed it into Disneyland. It's really a tiny space. I'm not saying that they would do it, but that I, personally would love it. AND let's be honest, kids would too.

An easy solution here is for them to pick a dad to play Beast while the rest of the cast is kids. I think kids love seeing their parents up front as much as parents love seeing their kids. It would certainly mix things up a bit and take away this argument some.

The truth is they're spending an awful lot of money on this expansion for two new rides. The rest is shops, (much needed) restaurants, and meet and greets (which a lot of people already think there are too many of). This will all raise the ticket prices for everyone, but as pointed out, not everyone will be "into" this. Then again, Disney would probably raise prices (although probably not as substantially as rumored) anyway.

 

[GoofGoof]

My wife and I grew up watching BatB (not together obviously) so we love the film and were disappointed when the ride got axed.

There was supposed to be a ride? First I heard of it. Was it part of the original plans? A dark ride like LM?

 

[danlb_2000]

There was supposed to be a ride? First I heard of it. Was it part of the original plans? A dark ride like LM?

I was going to say this to, I never heard of any plans for a BatB ride in MK, especially not in the FLE.