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The Sorcerer's Apprentice Season 5 - ENDGAME
- Thread starter D Hulk
- Start date
AceAstro
Well-Known Member
Team Villains Presents...
Big news about four regional parks!! Find out more information below:
Big News for Four Regional Parks - Coaster101
Four regional parks all announced big expansions today. Find out all the details!
aceastro.ca
Pi on my Cake
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
“Mr. Kalnow, may I ask why all the heavy security and cloak-and-dagger secrecy around this meeting?” asked an older gentleman, identified only as “James G.” by the nametag he wore on his suit coat. “We had to pass through two metal detectors, were patted down by your security guards and even had sniffer dogs checking us for who-knows-what, and now we have to go by aliases instead of our real names. Why all the precautions? I don’t think any of us expected all this. All we’re here for is to present our proposals for improvements to our parks, not to plan the overthrow of the government!” The others seated around the massive oval conference table in the Dwight Eisenhower Hotel’s Gettysburg Conference Room shared his questions and concerns.
“You had it easy,” Douglas Hindley said. “Some of us had to give blood samples.” Everybody in the room chuckled a bit at that seemingly-humorous comment until Douglas, along with two of his Americana colleagues Jeff Elliott and Alex Chambers, held up their bandaged fingers as proof. The room got very quiet.
“I know you’re all confused at the unexpected level of security around this meeting,” Carl Kalnow said, “and if you just want to blame it on the eccentricities of a crazy rich man- that’s me- go ahead. Let’s just say that I have my reasons to be worried about security for this meeting. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you the whole story anyway, so just accept that there are people- I’ll call them people- who would do just about anything to hear what plans you’ve come up with for improving your parks.”
“Aren’t you the only person interested in our proposals?” asked a rather serious-looking young man with the name “Spacemnt354” on his badge.
“Actually, no. I’m the one fronting all the money, but after I approve your proposals they will be evaluated by a group of judges, hopefully impartial, that will make the final decision if your parks will be admitted into the Americana Entertainment Group.”
“Wait,” said ‘Pi on my Cake,’ “you’re offering to give to all of us a total of one billion dollars, but you don’t have the final say in the decision? No offense, but this is really strange.”
“Pi, you have no idea how strange it really is,” Carl said, remembering that evening when he was confronted by three very strange, very mysterious and potentially very dangerous- uh- what were they anyway? Since that night he had received several emails and texts from those three beings concerning this contest between their four theme parks and the four parks represented here, but even his best computer security experts couldn’t trace the origin of the messages or who- or what- had sent them. He turned away from Pi to address the rest of the theme park designers seated at the table, all of which looked both confused and troubled. “Ladies and gentlemen…” but before he could continue a young woman who looked to be somewhere between the ages of sixteen and twenty-six, appropriately called ‘TwilightZone,’ interrupted him.
“What about the other parks?” she asked.
“Wait, what other parks?” asked ‘Outbound Flight.’ “I thought it was just the four of us trying to join the Americana Entertainment Group.”
“I’ve also heard of other parks being considered,” said ‘Brer Oswald.’ “I heard that Lagoon out in Utah or someplace was working on a proposal. Are they here?” he asked, looking around the room. Nobody answered, but Carl realized that he was losing control of this meeting and needed to get it back quickly.
“There are other parks being considered,” Carl told them reluctantly. The cat was out of the bag and he needed to confront the rumors immediately. “Along with your four parks- Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk,” (he looked at the contingent from Santa Cruz, NateD1226 and TwilightZone), “Hersheypark,” (Spacemt354, PergronStudio, Outbound Flight and Fire Mountain), “Holiday World,” (Evilgidgit along with James G. and Brer Oswald), “and Silver Dollar City,” (Pi on my Cake, DisneyDad and DisneyManOne), “there are four other parks under consideration, and they’re also having renovation proposals done for them. They are Morey’s Piers, Lagoon, Kennywood and Dollywood.”
“They’re all good parks,” DisneyManOne stated. “Why not just let them into the association. Why not let all of us in?” DisneyDad, sitting next to him, gave him a good hard elbow to the side in a not-too-subtle warning. Carl just laughed a bit.
“That’s a good question. I wish I could give you the answer, but right now I can’t. Let’s just say that I have two-hundred-and-fifty million reasons for each of your parks to not ask too many more questions. I just want to assure you that the money is clean money, that I’ve got it to spend, and that once we get the Americana Entertainment Group established and organized, the movie guys at Universal and the Black Rat of Burbank Bob Iger will finally understand what real competition is. Your four parks are good parks, very good parks bordering on outstanding. So are the other four parks I mentioned. If you’ve done as good a job as I suspect you can with the money I’m offering, and if the judges that will make the final decision are as smart and as discerning as I think they are, they’re going to see that not only did your four organizations create the best, most imaginative plans for making your four small regional parks into multiday destination parks, they’re also going to award us the other four parks and the one billion dollars of investments that our competitors have put up. That means that my one billion dollars becomes two billion dollars, and that overnight the Americana Entertainment Group becomes the dominant theme park organization in the world. Here, let me show you something.” He turned to Alex Chambers, one of the Americana Senior Managers, and said, “Alex, let’s show them the promotional video we had made. Will someone turn down the lights, please?” Carl took his seat.
The lights in the room dimmed as Alex turned to his laptop. Everyone looked towards the large screen at the far end of the room.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is what we’re here for. Today could be the most important day in the history of the American theme park industry since Walt Disney opened Disneyland back in 1955, and you’re all a part of this. However, we have to do this right, and that’s what I need to know before we leave today. I need to see what you’re proposing to create with my billion dollars of free cash. If you’re ready, I’d like to see your proposals. Who goes first?”
“You had it easy,” Douglas Hindley said. “Some of us had to give blood samples.” Everybody in the room chuckled a bit at that seemingly-humorous comment until Douglas, along with two of his Americana colleagues Jeff Elliott and Alex Chambers, held up their bandaged fingers as proof. The room got very quiet.
“I know you’re all confused at the unexpected level of security around this meeting,” Carl Kalnow said, “and if you just want to blame it on the eccentricities of a crazy rich man- that’s me- go ahead. Let’s just say that I have my reasons to be worried about security for this meeting. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you the whole story anyway, so just accept that there are people- I’ll call them people- who would do just about anything to hear what plans you’ve come up with for improving your parks.”
“Aren’t you the only person interested in our proposals?” asked a rather serious-looking young man with the name “Spacemnt354” on his badge.
“Actually, no. I’m the one fronting all the money, but after I approve your proposals they will be evaluated by a group of judges, hopefully impartial, that will make the final decision if your parks will be admitted into the Americana Entertainment Group.”
“Wait,” said ‘Pi on my Cake,’ “you’re offering to give to all of us a total of one billion dollars, but you don’t have the final say in the decision? No offense, but this is really strange.”
“Pi, you have no idea how strange it really is,” Carl said, remembering that evening when he was confronted by three very strange, very mysterious and potentially very dangerous- uh- what were they anyway? Since that night he had received several emails and texts from those three beings concerning this contest between their four theme parks and the four parks represented here, but even his best computer security experts couldn’t trace the origin of the messages or who- or what- had sent them. He turned away from Pi to address the rest of the theme park designers seated at the table, all of which looked both confused and troubled. “Ladies and gentlemen…” but before he could continue a young woman who looked to be somewhere between the ages of sixteen and twenty-six, appropriately called ‘TwilightZone,’ interrupted him.
“What about the other parks?” she asked.
“Wait, what other parks?” asked ‘Outbound Flight.’ “I thought it was just the four of us trying to join the Americana Entertainment Group.”
“I’ve also heard of other parks being considered,” said ‘Brer Oswald.’ “I heard that Lagoon out in Utah or someplace was working on a proposal. Are they here?” he asked, looking around the room. Nobody answered, but Carl realized that he was losing control of this meeting and needed to get it back quickly.
“There are other parks being considered,” Carl told them reluctantly. The cat was out of the bag and he needed to confront the rumors immediately. “Along with your four parks- Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk,” (he looked at the contingent from Santa Cruz, NateD1226 and TwilightZone), “Hersheypark,” (Spacemt354, PergronStudio, Outbound Flight and Fire Mountain), “Holiday World,” (Evilgidgit along with James G. and Brer Oswald), “and Silver Dollar City,” (Pi on my Cake, DisneyDad and DisneyManOne), “there are four other parks under consideration, and they’re also having renovation proposals done for them. They are Morey’s Piers, Lagoon, Kennywood and Dollywood.”
“They’re all good parks,” DisneyManOne stated. “Why not just let them into the association. Why not let all of us in?” DisneyDad, sitting next to him, gave him a good hard elbow to the side in a not-too-subtle warning. Carl just laughed a bit.
“That’s a good question. I wish I could give you the answer, but right now I can’t. Let’s just say that I have two-hundred-and-fifty million reasons for each of your parks to not ask too many more questions. I just want to assure you that the money is clean money, that I’ve got it to spend, and that once we get the Americana Entertainment Group established and organized, the movie guys at Universal and the Black Rat of Burbank Bob Iger will finally understand what real competition is. Your four parks are good parks, very good parks bordering on outstanding. So are the other four parks I mentioned. If you’ve done as good a job as I suspect you can with the money I’m offering, and if the judges that will make the final decision are as smart and as discerning as I think they are, they’re going to see that not only did your four organizations create the best, most imaginative plans for making your four small regional parks into multiday destination parks, they’re also going to award us the other four parks and the one billion dollars of investments that our competitors have put up. That means that my one billion dollars becomes two billion dollars, and that overnight the Americana Entertainment Group becomes the dominant theme park organization in the world. Here, let me show you something.” He turned to Alex Chambers, one of the Americana Senior Managers, and said, “Alex, let’s show them the promotional video we had made. Will someone turn down the lights, please?” Carl took his seat.
The lights in the room dimmed as Alex turned to his laptop. Everyone looked towards the large screen at the far end of the room.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is what we’re here for. Today could be the most important day in the history of the American theme park industry since Walt Disney opened Disneyland back in 1955, and you’re all a part of this. However, we have to do this right, and that’s what I need to know before we leave today. I need to see what you’re proposing to create with my billion dollars of free cash. If you’re ready, I’d like to see your proposals. Who goes first?”
CLICK THE LINKS BELOW TO EXPLORE!
INTRODUCTION VIDEO
Santa Cruz Music
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
Hersheypark Music
Hersheypark
Silver Dollar City Music
Silver Dollar City
Holiday World Music
Holiday World
"They sat down, confident in their presentation. Everyone in the room turned and looked at Carl. He slowly stood up, thinking about what to say, what to tell them.
“I have to admit that I was a little bit worried about what I was going to see here today. Even for me, a billion dollars is a lot of money- okay, not really, but considering that I’m investing it into theme parks that I don’t own and that are potentially rivals to Americana I guess it IS a lot of money.” He paused and looked around the room- every eye was on him, every person focused on what he was going to say about their proposals.
“I’m no longer worried. These proposals are among the best I’ve ever seen, and that includes some of the early ideas that these four next to me came up with for some of the Americana Resort parks. You’re all going to get your money, regardless of what the judges say, and I am absolutely not worried that those yahoos at the other parks will be able to come up with ideas anywhere near the caliber of your proposals. By the end of the year the Americana Resort, along with your four parks and the other four parks that I’m going to win, will officially unite under the umbrella organization of The Americana Entertainment Group, and the Black Rat of Burbank will know what true competition is!”
The three villains had locked themselves in a ladies’ bathroom just off the Grand Lobby of the Eisenhower Hotel. They heard dogs barking on the other side of the door, along with Americana Resort Security Officers ordering them to “come out with your hands up!”, something that none of them intended to do (even the one that actually had hands and not just paws or purple things).
“Now what do we do?” the Villain with the plastic KISS mask demanded from the Hindley dog…uh…rat…uh…mouse (he was so angry that he kept changing shape, sometimes having a dog’s body, a mouse head and a rat’s tail, then…you get it).
“I don’t know! You’re the one who saw the dogs coming and brilliantly yelled, ‘Quick! Hide in here! They’ll never find us in here!’ That was just BRILLIANT!!”
‘How was I to know there would be a bunch of women in here already?” he demanded!
“THIS IS A LADIES BATHROOM!” screamed the purple lizard. “WHAT DID YOU EXPECT TO FIND IN HERE? THE DISNEYLAND BAND?”
“The way they screamed when they saw us I’m not surprised that we’re now trapped in here!” Hindley squeaked, now seeming to have his rat-mouse hybrid character settling down.
“They screamed when they saw you two,” KISS said. “One of them tried to slip me her phone number,” he claimed smugly.
“SHE HIT YOU WITH HER PURSE, YOU MORON!” Purple screamed even more angry than before.
“Will you stop screaming?” Hindley said.
“I’M NOT SCREAMING!!! OK, maybe I am, but do you have a better idea? How are we going to get out of here?”
“Maybe we could shift into insect form and sneak out under the door?” KISS suggested. They heard the dogs outside scratching viciously at the base of the door, earnestly trying to get at the three Villains.
“That’s a stupid idea,” Purple said.
“This whole thing is a stupid idea,” KISS announced. “What made you think we could sneak into the meeting that Kalnow guy was having with the other parks by pretending to be his three flunkies? He’d recognize us in a minute!”
“He’d recognize us because “Mr. Hindley” here kept growing his tail back out. When was the last time you saw a human with a tail?”
“All right, stop!” Hindley demanded. “We’ve gotta get out of here before they break in.” He looked around and saw their only way out- the toilet. The others looked at where he was looking, and in unison firmly said, “NO!”
“YOU GOT A BETTER IDEA?” Hindley asked. They didn’t. “We shift into something small enough to get through the pipes, and swim downstream until we get to the nearest river. It’s our only way out.”
“At least flush it first,” Purple said. Hindley walked over and flushed it.
“There. Happy? Fresh, clean water. Now we’d better be going, and fast!” They heard the sound of an electric saw being used to cut through the metal door, and knew they had no other choice. They crowded into the stall, stood around the toilet bowl, and somehow, on the first try, all managed to change into three fish, each bearing a faint resemblance to their “normal” shape. Each of them managed to fall into the water in the bowl.
“Wow! This water is freezing!” KISS managed to say in strangely-accented fish-talk.
“Better than warm and yellow,” the purple, slimy fish said.
“Yuck. Gross,” KISS said.
“They’re probably almost through the door,” Hindley said. “Let’s talk about this later.”
All three fish swim toward the deep, round opening at the bottom of the bowl, and when they all reached it at the same time, they got stuck. All three together, side-by-side- were too big to fit through the hole! They heard a “crash” from above the water’s surface and knew the guards and their dogs (who they somehow remembered seemed to love to drink from the toilet) would find them, stuck in the bottom of the toilet like three pieces of…Banishing that thought, Hindley suddenly managed just enough shape control to form an arm and reached up for the handle on the toilet’s tank. He pulled on the handle, and just before the extra water pressure forced them through the hole and into the water-filled pipes below he remembered to pull his arm back and reshape it into a fin. They had escaped!
The guard dogs raced to the flushing toilet, and one of the guards ran over to see what the dogs were looking at. He wasn’t sure, but for a moment he thought he saw a strange looking arm, resembling something like a long, harry rodent’s arm, disappearing into the hole at the bottom of the bowl. He never told a soul- he was too close to retirement.
**
“We made it!” KISS declared to his fishy fellow Villains as they swam through the pipes (single-file now) towards their freedom. They hadn’t gotten the information they wanted from Kalnow and the other four theme parks, but at least they had their freedom and wouldn’t be spending the rest of their lives on display in the WildAmericana Aquarium, probably as an example of how water pollution can cause some fish to mutate!
“Do you smell something strange?” Hindley asked the others.
“Yea, did you just fart?” asked Purple, who was swimming directly behind Hindley.
“No!” he insisted.
“Wait a minute,” said KISS with a sudden feeling of dread. “Isn’t there something between the bathrooms and the river? They don’t just dump raw sewage into the waterways?”
“OMG!” said Hindley, switching for a second into his native California “Valley Girl” accent, “I FORGOT ABOUT THE SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT!!” but before they could turn around, they were caught in the raging current and soon saw a part of the Americana Resort facilities that few guests ever saw- or would ever want to see.
“Now what do we do?” the Villain with the plastic KISS mask demanded from the Hindley dog…uh…rat…uh…mouse (he was so angry that he kept changing shape, sometimes having a dog’s body, a mouse head and a rat’s tail, then…you get it).
“I don’t know! You’re the one who saw the dogs coming and brilliantly yelled, ‘Quick! Hide in here! They’ll never find us in here!’ That was just BRILLIANT!!”
‘How was I to know there would be a bunch of women in here already?” he demanded!
“THIS IS A LADIES BATHROOM!” screamed the purple lizard. “WHAT DID YOU EXPECT TO FIND IN HERE? THE DISNEYLAND BAND?”
“The way they screamed when they saw us I’m not surprised that we’re now trapped in here!” Hindley squeaked, now seeming to have his rat-mouse hybrid character settling down.
“They screamed when they saw you two,” KISS said. “One of them tried to slip me her phone number,” he claimed smugly.
“SHE HIT YOU WITH HER PURSE, YOU MORON!” Purple screamed even more angry than before.
“Will you stop screaming?” Hindley said.
“I’M NOT SCREAMING!!! OK, maybe I am, but do you have a better idea? How are we going to get out of here?”
“Maybe we could shift into insect form and sneak out under the door?” KISS suggested. They heard the dogs outside scratching viciously at the base of the door, earnestly trying to get at the three Villains.
“That’s a stupid idea,” Purple said.
“This whole thing is a stupid idea,” KISS announced. “What made you think we could sneak into the meeting that Kalnow guy was having with the other parks by pretending to be his three flunkies? He’d recognize us in a minute!”
“He’d recognize us because “Mr. Hindley” here kept growing his tail back out. When was the last time you saw a human with a tail?”
“All right, stop!” Hindley demanded. “We’ve gotta get out of here before they break in.” He looked around and saw their only way out- the toilet. The others looked at where he was looking, and in unison firmly said, “NO!”
“YOU GOT A BETTER IDEA?” Hindley asked. They didn’t. “We shift into something small enough to get through the pipes, and swim downstream until we get to the nearest river. It’s our only way out.”
“At least flush it first,” Purple said. Hindley walked over and flushed it.
“There. Happy? Fresh, clean water. Now we’d better be going, and fast!” They heard the sound of an electric saw being used to cut through the metal door, and knew they had no other choice. They crowded into the stall, stood around the toilet bowl, and somehow, on the first try, all managed to change into three fish, each bearing a faint resemblance to their “normal” shape. Each of them managed to fall into the water in the bowl.
“Wow! This water is freezing!” KISS managed to say in strangely-accented fish-talk.
“Better than warm and yellow,” the purple, slimy fish said.
“Yuck. Gross,” KISS said.
“They’re probably almost through the door,” Hindley said. “Let’s talk about this later.”
All three fish swim toward the deep, round opening at the bottom of the bowl, and when they all reached it at the same time, they got stuck. All three together, side-by-side- were too big to fit through the hole! They heard a “crash” from above the water’s surface and knew the guards and their dogs (who they somehow remembered seemed to love to drink from the toilet) would find them, stuck in the bottom of the toilet like three pieces of…Banishing that thought, Hindley suddenly managed just enough shape control to form an arm and reached up for the handle on the toilet’s tank. He pulled on the handle, and just before the extra water pressure forced them through the hole and into the water-filled pipes below he remembered to pull his arm back and reshape it into a fin. They had escaped!
The guard dogs raced to the flushing toilet, and one of the guards ran over to see what the dogs were looking at. He wasn’t sure, but for a moment he thought he saw a strange looking arm, resembling something like a long, harry rodent’s arm, disappearing into the hole at the bottom of the bowl. He never told a soul- he was too close to retirement.
**
“We made it!” KISS declared to his fishy fellow Villains as they swam through the pipes (single-file now) towards their freedom. They hadn’t gotten the information they wanted from Kalnow and the other four theme parks, but at least they had their freedom and wouldn’t be spending the rest of their lives on display in the WildAmericana Aquarium, probably as an example of how water pollution can cause some fish to mutate!
“Do you smell something strange?” Hindley asked the others.
“Yea, did you just fart?” asked Purple, who was swimming directly behind Hindley.
“No!” he insisted.
“Wait a minute,” said KISS with a sudden feeling of dread. “Isn’t there something between the bathrooms and the river? They don’t just dump raw sewage into the waterways?”
“OMG!” said Hindley, switching for a second into his native California “Valley Girl” accent, “I FORGOT ABOUT THE SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT!!” but before they could turn around, they were caught in the raging current and soon saw a part of the Americana Resort facilities that few guests ever saw- or would ever want to see.
Team Heroes, thank you for your submission!
Our volunteer Guest Reviewers should be providing feedback for both projects over the next 24 hours and change. Your affably evil co-hosts will also be providing review feedback for Team Heroes. Everyone on Team Heroes is invited to review Team Villains' project if you feel so inclined.
Meanwhile, Stanza VI should be appearing fairly soon (tomorrow), even before all the reviews are turned in. Some faster rounds are coming up, and it'll be a real sugar rush!
Our volunteer Guest Reviewers should be providing feedback for both projects over the next 24 hours and change. Your affably evil co-hosts will also be providing review feedback for Team Heroes. Everyone on Team Heroes is invited to review Team Villains' project if you feel so inclined.
Meanwhile, Stanza VI should be appearing fairly soon (tomorrow), even before all the reviews are turned in. Some faster rounds are coming up, and it'll be a real sugar rush!
NateD1226
Well-Known Member
Wreck it Ralph Stanza Comp CoN4RiMeD
Pi on my Cake
Well-Known Member
- In the Parks
- Yes
James G.
Well-Known Member
I only have time to comment on two of your proposals right now- I'll attempt more soon. The idea of Wasteland in Dollywood could be very tricky to pull-off without it appearing so jarringly different from what is there now as to be an unpleasant experience for visitors. I understand that it is supposed to be exposing them to an unpleasant possible future, one that can happen if we don't stop our current ecology-trashing ways, but it seems a rather heavy-handed educational experience. Would people going to Dollywood want to be almost lectured to at a park that is so- happy? The presentation is excellent, as is throughout the entire submission, but the subject matter is perhaps too ambitious, too "in-your-face-hug-a-tree" lecturing to be a fun, happy experience.
Morey's Piers were across-the-board an excellent way to retheme these three parks into something magical and unique, something that perhaps has only been attempted (more successfully) by the creators of Americana 1900. While it would be easy to say that much of your inspiration was from that magnificent park and resort, the truth is that both Morey's and Americana drew from the same historic well (or at least water table). Your retheming and additions were well-thought-out, but I wonder if you made the three piers too pretty, too clean and lost some of the inherent seediness of a seaside pier amusement park. They would be beautiful to the point of breathtaking, but how would the current audience react to it? Would you be changing one demographic for another? Both the seedy and the spectacular have their merits. Perhaps capitalizing on their separation could have been exploited better, having three separate themes united under an umbrella organization, rather than having three variations of the Coney Island theme (which most people would not appreciate anyway). Perhaps one pier rethemed to the Coney Island concept, one to perhaps a Magic City concept and the third having the current seaside seediness exploited and sanitized, keeping the gaudiness while cleaning up the crappy bathrooms!
The biggest weakness I saw in the Morey's Piers proposal was a glaring ignoring of their biggest liability- the separation of the three piers. Something is needed to unite them into one unified whole, and a boardwalk, while integral to the entire "feel" of the piers, is not enough. Some sort of unified transportation system, be it monorail, minirail, skyride, tram, something should have been added to bring three different parks together as one. You know about the old "the whole is greater..." thing. Here you missed the most important thing you could have done to unify these parks. You could have spent much less money on the hotel, still have had a great hotel head-and-shoulders above what they have now, and unified these three piers into one major theme park experience.
Hopefully I can get the other two proposals look at soon.
mickeyfan5534
Well-Known Member
Imma be the Simon to the Villains because I have things I need to do and nothing about it captured my fancy all that much. Here's my review.View attachment 351593
Team Villains Presents...
Big news about four regional parks!! Find out more information below:
Big News for Four Regional Parks - Coaster101
Four regional parks all announced big expansions today. Find out all the details!
Evilgidgit
Well-Known Member
Well, I'm not even technically reviewing anything, but I think Team Villains' presentations were put together very well. And I'm not just saying that because the first part of my username is Evil.
TEAM HEROES
I’m in an awkward position this week as your reviewer/co-host, since we playfully pretended to be your rivals as Team Villain. That’s a Sorcerer’s Apprentice tradition to get the players’ hearts pumping. We asked a lot of you all in this round, with the unfamiliar parks and the team-up and the subthreads. Everyone stuck in there, figured it out, and delivered. You developed new abilities. Be ready for more variations on the game format going forward!
Up front, of course, big kudos to @James G. for managing the whole shebang. This might be the toughest challenge to manage – though I’m biased, having managed the Season 4 equivalent – particularly since James is a noted iconoclast. With a little help from seasoned players (and utilizing their abilities in a smart managerial way) you pulled your herd of cats together with aplomb!
Moving on to the various park projects…and a more free form peace meal review than normal…
PREAMBLE & POST-SCRIPT
This challenge has the potential to feel disconnected, so a wise call to unify everything. The writing from James is unsurprisingly topnotch, even if the entire story is pure anti-Hindley propaganda. You’ve angered your hosts going forward!!!
!!!No, I’m just kidding, it’s cool, everything is cool…
INTRO VIDEO
Brilliant work! @Outbound (nee Flight), right? This feels like something these four parks – if they were to unite Avengers-style – would actually put out. Games like Sorcerer’s Apprentice allow an omnidisciplinary multimedia approach, and this is a fantastic example of that.
Limiting yourselves to slideshows and reading music is a good simple presentation format. There will be chances for more elaborate presentations…verrry…soonnnn…
SANTA CRUZ BEACH BOARDWALK
The rapport between @TwilightZone and @NateD1226 was tremendous. Best mind-meld of the season! You two both live in California, yes? You should meet up!
Pier parks are a tricky prospect, with limited space and a distinct (sometimes seedy) atmosphere which is a big part of their charm. Your approach is to basically retheme the Boardwalk into 3 immersive lands. A strong “statement of purpose” at the start would give better context. I know Santa Cruz, so I know what you’re going after, though I doubt a newcomer would. That’s the downfall to your brainstorming shorthand: some ride descriptions assume we know what you’re converting. Something like a modified map would do wonders. Presentation-wise, homemade visuals like the octopus should be featured more prominently.
There is a ton of passion and energy in this! As an attempt to force immersive theming onto a cramped collection of carnival rides, it’s admirable. Things like Professor Cruz or the haunted Ferris wheel have real personality! I’m not sure how these changes would impact the pier park vibe, but it’s an ambitious idea. Hold onto your boundless creativity, you two, it’ll prove invaluable very soon!
HERSHEYPARK
Oh Hersheypark! They have tremendous potential. The Hershey Factory is world class, yet something generally feels “off” with everything else. Their former Tudor entrance was quaint and lovely, almost Disney-esque, so to me the park’s announced Chocolatetown expansion replaces that with corporatized, homogenized piffle. It’s a huge unforced misstep.
Adorable
Soulless
Your ideas are honestly better than Hershey’s. Since you're stuck with Chocolatetown, I salute modifying it into Hershey Commons. Incorporating a resort into the entrance can do wonders to improve a park’s overall feel and energy. Look at Disneyland Paris or Tokyo DisneySea! Details like the chocolate waterfalls are precisely what you’d expect at Hershey, and something which outside of Chocolate World they steadfastly refuse to do at present. Great detailing there, and great general idea to do a hotel. There IS an old-timey hotel way up on a hill and accessed by tram, but it doesn’t benefit average coaster tourists while this…this would be a welcome and classy respite from a hot unshaded park.
I also applaud correcting ZooAmerica. The existing attraction is simply depressing. @PerGronStudio with his animal care expertise rightly identified a major Hersheypark failing and addressed it. The 3D video is great content – much more digestible than an essay. I’d like to see more species listed, especially with all that ferret talk your brainstorm.
On Team Villains we erred too long with our slideshows. You maybe went too short here! One or two more pages alone could flesh this out. The other slideshows nailed that tough balance.
SILVER DOLLAR CITY
Of the parks Team Heroes tackled, SDC is the only one I haven’t been to. Your presentation quickly captures the park’s essence (largely with visuals and music). You quickly establish a mission statement (more family attractions). Good setup.
I like the premise behind Devil’s Dead. Local myths is a little like Rainier Ridge, but it fits. Not knowing the park’s layout (except that it’s really hilly), I dunno if expansion space exists. It seems a shame to remove ThuNderaTion, by reputation one of the best mine train coasters out there, particularly when The Howler is a modernized, better-themed version of the same. From ride videos, this area looks pretty steep. Could a land be placed here without bulldozing the mountains?
I’m a big, big fan of Gearloose Gulch! Time Traveler is a great launching pad for a new SDC mythos. It could be Hershend’s S.E.A. (an idea Team Villains toyed with for Dollywood). Both dark rides sound very appealing, the overall land is carefully balanced, the level of details leave me salivating for more. My favorite part of any project this week!
Trail’s End Hotel & Spa. A good use of remaining budget. A hotel resort can turn a regional park into a travel destination. This sounds remarkably relaxing. But you couldn’t find a woodsy hotel pic that wasn’t Disney?
HOLIDAY WORLD
Like Hersheypark, Holiday World has a largely unrealized theme with great potential. Their limitation is entirely budget-related (the existing park is amazingly, charmingly quaint!), so hooray for improving and “Disneyfying” what’s there! And kudos to the phased plan. It’s the right approach for this park!
(Side note: The Voyage rivals El Toro and Steel Vengeance for my favorite roller coaster!)
Holiday Hotel – Again with the hotels! By now you know my feelings: I approve. Props to @Brer Oswald for the custom art. Keep it up!
Refurbishing Christmas is a great call. It’s where Holiday World feels the most dated. A perfect entry land, I keep yammering on, frames everything to come. Wherever you got that concept art, it’s perfect. The attraction additions in Santa’s Grotto – plus those listed for the rest of Phase One – would all strengthen Holiday World as a themed family destination. Nothing but praise for these.
Budget-wise, no issues. Altogether, this is the most realistic proposal of the four. It would get me back out to Indiana, and it would give new energy to a lovely underseen park.
In total, great work guys! With a challenge as spread out as this one, there will be some hiccups (like varying quality across four presentations), but that’s no big deal. This was meant as a break from the bigger parks and the blue skies. I hope you all had fun with it!
michmousefan
Well-Known Member
Heroes Guest review:
Wonderful stuff, overall. A few things that stood out to me:
Santa Cruz: Very unique concept for a "haunted ferris wheel" (High Impact) - could be fantastic as some people are scared of heights anyway... very impressive how so many of the Tropical Oasis attractions/rides all tell parts of a common story, well done.
Hersheypark: The weakest of the bunch. but the hotel sounds really nice.
Silver Dollar City: All the additions look intriguing, complimentary and well-suited to the existing attractions in the park. Any kind of coaster with indoor parts is fun, looks like another winner there. The bus-bar attractions look great too... the Flying Machine could be as iconic as Perter Pan's Flight.
Holiday World: Big win here. It's great emphasizing the "original" holiday, as Christmas has gotten short shrift over the years and the other holidays have been added. Great to have Christmas as a headliner again. Once item I'd be a bit concerned about is that while there are lots of great additions, given the other major coasters that are in the other theme areas... I'm not sure the Rudolph's kiddie coster is enough. I'd keep it, for sure... but I'd also see if there was a way to add something a bit more major in terms of a coaster. Maybe at the expense of losing something else, like one of the two new holidays. The Legends of America is a great idea for a dark ride. Also appreciated the detailed budgeting for this part of the project. It's all laid out very nicely.
Great job, everyone! Far nicer than that head-scratcher of a sci-fi wasteland in Dollywood. Still wondering about what's going on there.
Wonderful stuff, overall. A few things that stood out to me:
Santa Cruz: Very unique concept for a "haunted ferris wheel" (High Impact) - could be fantastic as some people are scared of heights anyway... very impressive how so many of the Tropical Oasis attractions/rides all tell parts of a common story, well done.
Hersheypark: The weakest of the bunch. but the hotel sounds really nice.
Silver Dollar City: All the additions look intriguing, complimentary and well-suited to the existing attractions in the park. Any kind of coaster with indoor parts is fun, looks like another winner there. The bus-bar attractions look great too... the Flying Machine could be as iconic as Perter Pan's Flight.
Holiday World: Big win here. It's great emphasizing the "original" holiday, as Christmas has gotten short shrift over the years and the other holidays have been added. Great to have Christmas as a headliner again. Once item I'd be a bit concerned about is that while there are lots of great additions, given the other major coasters that are in the other theme areas... I'm not sure the Rudolph's kiddie coster is enough. I'd keep it, for sure... but I'd also see if there was a way to add something a bit more major in terms of a coaster. Maybe at the expense of losing something else, like one of the two new holidays. The Legends of America is a great idea for a dark ride. Also appreciated the detailed budgeting for this part of the project. It's all laid out very nicely.
Great job, everyone! Far nicer than that head-scratcher of a sci-fi wasteland in Dollywood. Still wondering about what's going on there.
Suchomimus
Well-Known Member
James G.
Well-Known Member
Kennywood- probably my least favorite renovation of the four. I saw what you were aiming for, going for the rich history of Pittsburg, but for some reason the whole was less than the sum of its parts. It wasn't any one glaring problem, but several little things that, I feel, held this back from its full potential. Some of it was technical- the writing was irregular, with several sentences having no and one ending_____. See what I mean? Someone doing a careful proofread would have caught all of these issues. Your map showed the arrangement of the individual attractions in Iron City, and using a grid layout for the streets was a good, historically correct choice, but there were several areas that were labeled but that I didn't find in the description (Hotel, Facades). They looked like fairly large features that would have warranted mention ( unless I missed it, then my bad!). The inclusion of Exposition Park was an interesting choice, but a musical? I know, I know, it's been done before with "Damn Yankees" but here it seemed a bit of a stretch. I loved the idea of the coaster and dark ride being integrated, but the name "Twisted Iron" seemed a bit forced, like you were trying to force its way into the Twisted Coaster family (Wicked Twister, Mister Twister, Tidal Twister). The name "Molten Iron" jumped out at me. This section had potential but needed further thought and more proofreading.
Lagoon- This one probably took the most "willing suspension of disbelief," but if everything would work it would be magnificent! I'll ignore the joke about how we have about a half-dozen movies showing us what a bad idea making a theme park with dinosaurs roaming around is. This would be tremendous fun to experience, and once Lagoon settled the lawsuits from Universal this expansion would make it one of the premier theme parks in the nation. I only have one major complaint about this presentation:
WE MIGHT CUT THIS PAGE- LOTS OF INFO
What? You guys are too good to let something like this slip by. Be that as it may, this was a very strong proposal, even if it was on the border of unrealistic. Someday I hope it actually happens.
Now, did I seem a bit harsh and critical of parts of your proposals? Yes, but at the level of competition each of you are capable of you both deserve and can handle constructive criticism. You might be dirty, lousy, rotten, stinkin' Villains but you're also great competitors and exceptionally talented...BUT..you're never too good to learn.
TwilightZone
Well-Known Member
And so, I shall. Mwahahaha.
In segments!
Main Page
Coaster 101 as the main page is clever! Then again, I'm a sucker for using other websites as inspiration, even though I've seen it about a million times by now.
Lagoon
When I saw wild west dinosaur, I immediately wondered if some clever villain snuck into our Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk writing session. Maybe this was a just me problem but I feel like you guys spent too much on Prehistoric Prairie vs. Lagoon as a whole. I was kind of disappointed to be honest. With a name like Lagoon and a logo as aesthetically pleasing like that, I was expecting a bit more.
Also like @James G. said, the note is a bit unprofessional. And the page after it with the text overlaying the dinosaur photo is bugging me.
Morey's Piers
I really like this! Retro appeal is always great to keep in mind for a park that already has it. Not much else to say here.
Kennywood
A great start, but really, really short. What happened here? I like lots of detail if you can tell. I prefer the whole park to be covered if you are imagineering one. But maybe that's just me. After all this round was supposed to be a shorter one.
Dollywood
Like other judges said, Post Apocalypse and Dollywood don't mesh well. I think a big fix would either be:
A. Rebrand Dollywood into something else
B. Have a more fitting land, like superstar land or wild west land or something.
I already said my preferences about doing the entire park above so I won't go into it again. : P
And so, this was Twilight's first review on this site ever! Hope you enjoyed!
And remember, all toasters toast toast!
AceAstro
Well-Known Member
TEAM HEROES
Another Villainous review! I think this was a tougher challenge but everyone on your team certainly knocked it out of the park.
I want to say congrats to @James G. for doing very well as the PM on a challenge that could've easily fell apart very quickly but everyone stayed strong together!
INTRO VIDEO
I loved this video! It was an amazing piece of detail that really helped put it all together!
SANTA CRUZ BEACH BOARDWALK
The only park of the four your team had that I've been to. That definitely helped me.
I think the idea of making the boardwalk haunted is unique and challenging. It is definitely not something I personally would have thought of doing. I like the idea of High Impact. It seems like a simple flat ride but would be a lot of fun!!
That being said, I feel like we really need a map. Much like what Doug had said, a map or some other sort of visual like that would have been very helpful as that is a lot of attractions and with a paragraph description, I don't know where most things went.
Overall, the presentation was laid out very nicely and I liked the inclusion of the reading music.
HERSHEYPARK
Probably the park that had the highest potential (at least in my opinion). And I think you took that potential and ran with it!
I think your take on the new entrance area is PERFECT!! It is way better than what was announced. This at least feels true Hersheypark.
I also love the video in this area (is that Zoo Tycoon? I haven't played that game in years!) as it works better than just a few simple paragraphs. This way I know exactly what you were thinking so there is no loss in translation!
SILVER DOLLAR CITY
SDC is the park (out of all eight) that I knew the least about. That being said, from the start, you knocked it out of the park about what needed to be done.
The Howler seems like a very fun attraction. After riding SDD, family-based launch coasters are quickly becoming a favourite of mine and an attraction like The Howler would definitely be one I would love to ride. The Gearloose Gulch area looks like a nice dark ride area. It seems like a nice addition to the land that would be very successful.
Trails End is a very nice hotel addition. It is a good use of budget to round out the park.
HOLIDAY WORLD
I like the overview on the opening slide. It allows me to know exactly what is going to happen in the rest of the slides. I like the Santa's Grotto expansion. It has a good mix of attractions for kids and families alike I really hope Rudolph's Flight is similar to the Steeple Chase coaster at Knott's!).
The rest of the Phase One expansion looks great! I like the idea of the Legends of America attraction and almost wish there was more info on it and the rest of phase one!
Phase Two and Three are great additions! I think both lands fit very nicely into that overall theme of Holiday World. Both the construction timeline and overall budget breakdown both look fantastic.
Overall, it is a great expansion and probably my favourite of the four!
****
Overall, I think these four park improvements are absolutely incredible. It was amazing work for such a large team up.
There should be more reviews coming in later. @kmbmw777 is super busy with his education until this weekend. Our Guest Reviewers are also dealing with weird schedules. Let's not pause as we wait for their feedback. Instead let's continually follow that advice from Meet the Robinsons and KEEP MOVING FORWARD!
Team Heroes
What Heroes did well: Everyone stepped outside of their comfort zones to research and explore unfamiliar parks. There was lots of creativity, good communication across the combined teams, and continued personal improvement and adventurousness from our Imagineers.
What Heroes did poorly: Despite solid efforts, a little discontinuity between four projects is inevitable. With four very different parks available, some solutions were more effective than others.
What Heroes did poorly: Despite solid efforts, a little discontinuity between four projects is inevitable. With four very different parks available, some solutions were more effective than others.
This week there will be NO ELIMINATION! (The losers on Team Villains will be punished with light spankings.) Stanza VI will be starting very soon.
Congratulations! You are one star closer to completing Yen Sid’s hat!
Cheers to our heroes for outwitting Brer Fox 'n' Brer Bear!
WE’RE GOING TO DISNEY WORLD!
Victorious against villains, everyone gathered together in Dollywood. Mickey Mouse greeted them.
“Team Heroes, you’ve just conquered four regional parks! What are you going to do next?”
“We’re going to Disney World!” @TwilightZone hollered back.
She was correct! Mr. Incredible explained that while they were imprisoned, he caught a glimpse of Maleficent’s map. “A huge assortment of Disney Villains are infesting Walt Disney World. That’s where we’re going next.”
“But I just got back from there!” said @PerGronStudio.
With @Disney Dad 3000 generously paying for a fleet of luxury Ubers, our players made the trek from Tennessee to Florida, where they stopped at Disney Springs to compare it against Tokugawa Village. They paused for drinks in Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar.
“Listen up, everyone!” announced Prince Philip. “We were so impressed with your cooperation in Stanza V, we’re doing something big…”
“The teams are switching up.”
“Here are your Value Resort room assignments and team rosters. The new Team Princes is staying at Art of Animation.”
Team Princes
Disney Dad 3000
Evilgidgit
FireMountain
PerGronStudio
Pi on my Cake
Outbound
Robin Hood stood up next. “The new Team Warriors is staying at All Star Music.”
Team Warriors
Brer Oswald
DisneyManOne
James G.
nateD1226
spacemt354
TwilightZone
Lastly, Mr. Incredible speaks. “And to keep Team Villains in check, we’ll be imprisoning them at the Pop Century Resort.”
“When will we find out who we’re facing next?” asked @Evilgidgit.
As if on cue, a hulking villainous figure strolls into the bar. He picks up a stool and smashes it over @spacemt354 's head! Everyone else immediately leaps to their feet. They all battle against this new villain in a great big spectacular fracas!
“I won’t be joining you guys,” says @Pi on my Cake nonchalantly, “I gotta record a podcast with Tiki right now.”
And while his teammates engage in a tightly-choreographed fight sequence, Pi checks his laptop. His eyes grow wide with terror. “HEY, WHO THE F@%& BROKE THE INTERNET?!”
WHICH VILLAIN STARTED THIS BAR BRAWL? AND WHY CAN’T PI GET INTERNET? FIND OUT NEXT TIME ON ENDGAME!
Victorious against villains, everyone gathered together in Dollywood. Mickey Mouse greeted them.
“Team Heroes, you’ve just conquered four regional parks! What are you going to do next?”
“We’re going to Disney World!” @TwilightZone hollered back.
She was correct! Mr. Incredible explained that while they were imprisoned, he caught a glimpse of Maleficent’s map. “A huge assortment of Disney Villains are infesting Walt Disney World. That’s where we’re going next.”
“But I just got back from there!” said @PerGronStudio.
With @Disney Dad 3000 generously paying for a fleet of luxury Ubers, our players made the trek from Tennessee to Florida, where they stopped at Disney Springs to compare it against Tokugawa Village. They paused for drinks in Jock Lindsey’s Hangar Bar.
“Listen up, everyone!” announced Prince Philip. “We were so impressed with your cooperation in Stanza V, we’re doing something big…”
“The teams are switching up.”
“Here are your Value Resort room assignments and team rosters. The new Team Princes is staying at Art of Animation.”
Team Princes
Disney Dad 3000
Evilgidgit
FireMountain
PerGronStudio
Pi on my Cake
Outbound
Robin Hood stood up next. “The new Team Warriors is staying at All Star Music.”
Team Warriors
Brer Oswald
DisneyManOne
James G.
nateD1226
spacemt354
TwilightZone
Lastly, Mr. Incredible speaks. “And to keep Team Villains in check, we’ll be imprisoning them at the Pop Century Resort.”
“When will we find out who we’re facing next?” asked @Evilgidgit.
As if on cue, a hulking villainous figure strolls into the bar. He picks up a stool and smashes it over @spacemt354 's head! Everyone else immediately leaps to their feet. They all battle against this new villain in a great big spectacular fracas!
“I won’t be joining you guys,” says @Pi on my Cake nonchalantly, “I gotta record a podcast with Tiki right now.”
And while his teammates engage in a tightly-choreographed fight sequence, Pi checks his laptop. His eyes grow wide with terror. “HEY, WHO THE F@%& BROKE THE INTERNET?!”
WHICH VILLAIN STARTED THIS BAR BRAWL? AND WHY CAN’T PI GET INTERNET? FIND OUT NEXT TIME ON ENDGAME!
GASTON’S BAR BRAWL 2019
LeFou
And you’ll have to be quick too as Act II gets into full swing.
Not content to settle for a single challenge, that macho musclebound man’s man Gaston welcomes one and all to his Stanza-spanning Bar Brawl 2019. Grab a frothy mug of beer and prepare for a series of super-fast mini-challenges hosted by everyone’s favorite lunkheaded lothario.
This will be a series of shorter timed challenges beginning with Stanza VI and ending with Stanza X. They are designed to be small-scale projects, lasting from 24 to 48 hours. The Stanzas in the Brawl are designed to promote small group work. If you miss a Stanza or two in this segment – particularly due to expected Real Life™ distractions – it’s not the end of the world. (That comes later.) There will be plenty of project opportunities coming up.
The Cursed Courtroom will not be meeting during the Brawl. But be warned…following Stanza X, everyone in the competition will head to the Cursed Courtroom where our judges shall analyze everyone’s progress so far. They shall then pass judgment on who moves on to Act III and the final projects.
Not content to settle for a single challenge, that macho musclebound man’s man Gaston welcomes one and all to his Stanza-spanning Bar Brawl 2019. Grab a frothy mug of beer and prepare for a series of super-fast mini-challenges hosted by everyone’s favorite lunkheaded lothario.
This will be a series of shorter timed challenges beginning with Stanza VI and ending with Stanza X. They are designed to be small-scale projects, lasting from 24 to 48 hours. The Stanzas in the Brawl are designed to promote small group work. If you miss a Stanza or two in this segment – particularly due to expected Real Life™ distractions – it’s not the end of the world. (That comes later.) There will be plenty of project opportunities coming up.
The Cursed Courtroom will not be meeting during the Brawl. But be warned…following Stanza X, everyone in the competition will head to the Cursed Courtroom where our judges shall analyze everyone’s progress so far. They shall then pass judgment on who moves on to Act III and the final projects.
STANZA VI – TURBO BREAKS THE INTERNET
So far this season, and in seasons past, our players have created some wonderfully creative concepts. Now it’s time to show them off! Now it’s time to break the internet! Yes, the time has come for the traditional Sorcerer’s Apprentice ad campaign challenge.
Your task is to create a viral marketing campaign for an earlier Sorcerer’s Apprentice project.
- This is a quick 48-hour challenge. Think fast!
- There is a 20-sentence maximum limit for your project.
- Pick your team’s favorite Sorcerer’s Apprentice project. It doesn’t have to have won, but use your viral campaign to convince us that it should have.
- The project doesn’t have to be from Season 5. Here is a list of all former Sorcerer’s Apprentice projects should you wish to go old-school.
Project Managers
Warriors - @TwilightZone
Princes - @FireMountain
Individual Reviewers
Warriors - WowFactor, EricsBiscuit, El_Tomato, 21stamps, Magic Feather, mickeyfan5534, Fox&Hound, michmousefan
Princes - Magicart87, GlacierGlacier, jt04, Figments Friend, PaisleyMF, mimitchi33, CreateDisney, Zootopia Dude
This Project is due Sunday, February 24th, at 11:59PM EST
Time Zones
Pacific Standard Time - 8:59 PM
Eastern Standard Time - 11:59 PM
Barbados Party Time - 12:59 AM
Greenwich Mean Time - 3:59 AM
Central European Time - 4:59 AM
One final note: As the winning project manager on Team Heroes, @James G. has earned the Immunity Idol for Stanza VI. If Team Warriors loses, he/she cannot be nominated to the Cursed Courtroom.