The Spirit Takes the Fifth ...

[WDW1974]

No WDW this season. Will have spent more days in TDR than WDW at the end of the year.

That is something to be quite proud of. Serious question time, if you could only return to TDR in the next two years by totally skipping WDW (no visits at all) would you?

Sarah is pushing for DCL, but thus far it hasn't worked out. I'm wholly unwilling to pay rack prices, and whenever I've found a fairly deep discount, the dates haven't worked.

DCL is a very high quality/premium product that commands a higher price than largely it should. BUT ... deals can be had. I would guess that without looking that the best deals in the near future would be on the Wonder out of Miami. I have done two 5-nighters this year from Miami (one on the Wonder, one on the MAGIC). The Wonder was obtained at a significant discount that actually made it a good value. The Magic ... well, it was a GREAT cruise, but we paid top dollar. ... If you can do January, you might get a really good deal.

I absolutely wouldn't take the newer ships out of Port Canaveral unless you have a CM pal that can go with you and get you a great rate because those are not being discounted in any significant way.

I don't have any interest in SeaWorld as of right now, but I really want to visit/photograph Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Universal Orlando, and have every intent of visiting both in the near future. Had the National Parks been closed for another weekend, I would've visited BGW this fall, but I drove down to Great Smoky Mountains NP that particular weekend, instead. My target is next year, second weekend in Oct. for BGW (+/- one weekend, depending upon the fall colors chart). Our target for Universal was this fall during HHN, but on-site hotel rates weren't discounted enough. Rather than waiting until next fall, I think we'll do early in the year as soon as a good rate is available--not totally sure, though. I've been looking.

SW and BGT and Aquatica (and I am sure Discovery Cove, although I have yet to go myself) are worthy parks to visit. I can't imagine wanting to go back to WDW to see new retro tees and meet and greets when these excellent parks are in the area. That's just me. ... I certainly think UNI/IOA and BGW are better options overall. You should definitely spend time at them and you can't grade them down to begin with because they aren't Disney. (I doubt you would, but that is what many Disney fans do)

As for hotels, I don't believe staying onsite at UNI is any more necessary than it is at WDW. That said, I did just that this year at both Portofino Bay (very high caliber) and Royal Pacfic, albeit at the great Team Member rate of a little over $50 per night. So my advice is, make a friend who works at UNI. They aren't any scarier than the average WDW CM. My friend is wonderful and I appreciate her kindness greatly.... But they have discounts anyway and even walk-in rates (just try and walk in at ANY WDW resort and go to the front desk and try and book a room on the spot even if they are half empty ... seriously, you've never seen such an absurd cluster-cluck as that!). In mid-October, the walk-in at Royal Pacific was about $250 a night (what is that now? rack at Port Orleans?)

 

[WDW1974]

Well it shows the clash of themes on Mickey Avenue and Disney Town (shopping district)

Carthay Circle Theater is at the bottom of the image. It might be the Broadway style theater.

I don't see a clash in the rendering. I see very little in it, like all SDL art.

 

[Bairstow]

Cheap 3D modeling, Beats paying an artist of course it generates c--p but Disney is brimming with C--p these days,

Oh please.
It's not always a matter of being cheap; sometimes it's a matter of being accurate and fast when there are investors and contractors who need to know what's going on.

You can find all kinds of Disney concept art from current and very recent projects that looks just as painterly as the old stuff, but if you insist on cherry-picking for the more rudimentary artwork so that you can justify sweeping generalizations about the direction of the company as a whole, be my guest.

 

[WDW1974]

Thanks for the heads up on that. I haven't seen pictures (or the site in person) in a while so I'm glad to see it's turing out so great. But will there be any point in riding the parachute drop after it's done?

DLP looks like it has nicer Xmas decorations than MK.

They have all new stuff this year and it really does look great. Even though I loathe giving his site clicks, Jim Hill had a columnist write about the new stuff of late (someone sent me the link, I don't read his site regularly) and it is a good read.

Oh forget that Spirit, did see WestJet's Disney wrap Magic Plane with Disney character cookies onboard? The whole thing was revealed earlier this week with LED ear wearing spectators and I'm sure you think it looks wonderful.

Yeah, I saw it. But 737s are -- as my dearly departed grandfather would have said -- little puddlejumpers. But I am sure crazy Canadians (no, I won't tag Monty!) might find the plane MAGICal to fly to O-Town.

 

[ford91exploder]

Oh please.
It's not always a matter of being cheap; sometimes it's a matter of being accurate and fast when there are investors and contractors who need to know what's going on.

You can find all kinds of Disney concept art from current and very recent projects that looks just as painterly as the old stuff, but if you insist on cherry-picking for the more rudimentary artwork so that you can justify sweeping generalizations about the direction of the company as a whole, be my guest.

Sorry the piece shown was CHEAP 3D modeling, There is nothing fundamentally wrong with 3D model drawings I use them all the time before putting a piece into production or looking at an antenna pattern,

That being said using the 3D model instead of the hand drawn art which is usually done by WDI, is simply being cheap and nasty thinking the customers will not know the difference.

 

[ford91exploder]

They have all new stuff this year and it really does look great. Even though I loathe giving his site clicks, Jim Hill had a columnist write about the new stuff of late (someone sent me the link, I don't read his site regularly) and it is a good read.




Yeah, I saw it. But 737s are -- as my dearly departed grandfather would have said -- little puddlejumpers. But I am sure crazy Canadians (no, I won't tag Monty!) might find the plane MAGICal to fly to O-Town.

But they are more comfortable than a C-130 Hercules...

 

[ScoutN]

but I really want to visit/photograph Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Universal Orlando, and have every intent of visiting both in the near future. Had the National Parks been closed for another weekend, I would've visited BGW this fall, but I drove down to Great Smoky Mountains NP that particular weekend, instead. My target is next year, second weekend in Oct. for BGW (+/- one weekend, depending upon the fall colors chart).

I will keep in touch with you in regards to BGW. I would be more than happy to play guide for you and show the hidden gem view as I did for @WDW1974 a year ago. In the Fall some of the iconic buildings are done up entirely different for HoS than they are at regular season. Depending how many days I might be able to find some deep ticket discounts.

 

[HenryMystic]

Just a feeling, but if we hear any substantial theme park news this month I think it will be bad.

Nah, Universal is having a presser on the 12th.

 

[HenryMystic]

I guess I don't like them because today any/every one has one and 99% of the folks think they're doing Top 40 morning drive routines and they don't even have that 'talent' (yes, I don't think those people are generally talented at all).

Almost everyone can put words together to form sentences, yet that in no way makes everyone writers.

Just because someone has opinions and can talk into a mic doesn't mean they should!

Well, I like to think ours is better than what you describe. At the very least, it's 4 friends discussing something they're passionate about.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Well, I like to think ours is better than what you describe. At the very least, it's 4 friends discussing something they're passionate about.

I don't quite you've quite passed his second and third point. Passion has not yet coalesced into unique perspectives.

 

[jdmdisney99]

I don't see a clash in the rendering. I see very little in it, like all SDL art.

Just meant the shoehorning of a (most likely) copy of a popular restaurant and normal, seemingly unrelated shops.

 

[StageFrenzy]

Just meant the shoehorning of a (most likely) copy of a popular restaurant and normal, seemingly unrelated shops.

Most popular restaurants and shops are unrelated. I would hate to shop in a place that had the same thing in every shop at the same price.

 

[jdmdisney99]

Most popular restaurants and shops are unrelated. I would hate to shop in a place that had the same thing in every shop at the same price.

I'm saying unrelated to Carthay Circle. How I wish they would actually be what you descirbed instead of a mediocre mall.

 

[PeterAlt]

Just wanted to stop by here and let everyone know I went to see a special sneak preview last night of Saving Mr. Banks. It was very well done! Tom Hanks did a good job portraying Walt Disney. My sister saw it too and she cried up a storm with emotion. They have an interesting shot of Walt's office toward the end of the movie with a big map of Florida hanging on the wall (hmm, wonder what that's for...). Overall, the film was as solid as could be. Great screenplay, acting, directing. The film truly shines with Walt's spirit!

I'm convinced, after watching this, that the spirit of Walt Disney has been re-invigorated at the studio division! Maybe those same studio managers should take over and manage the theme parks and resorts? Because they, I think, "get it".

 

[lebeau]

OK, been long enough. Walking Dead was very weak in its mid-season finale. Killing both the Governor and Herschel and making folks think that Baby Judith was also consumed was just weak all around by Kirkman and Company. If the show is going to just turn into a giant gorefest where characters are slaughtered weekly for shock value, then many people are going to turn their backs on it. Sorry, but I didn't even get a chance to decide whether I liked the Gov's new family before they were part of the bloodbath. There is no shock value when that is all you do. It's weak writing. I don't see myself sticking with it to find out in five years that Carl restarts the human race on Hilton Head Island. ... I do like the implicit threat that Norman Reedus has given the showrunners about killing his character off.

I wrote a lengthy piece on the Walking Dead mid-season finale. It also serves as my overall thoughts on the first half of the fourth season. Lots of comparisons between the show and the source material.

My reaction, having read the comic book, is the exact opposite of yours. I suspect it is because I knew how the story ended. To my mind, the gory finale was not the travesty. I always saw that as inevitable. The bad writing was the way they stretched a single season storyline into a season and a bloated season and a half.

The show tells the story out of sequence which completely changes the context of events. Sometimes the changes make sense and sometimes I really wonder how people who haven't read the comic book are even following things. For example, the entire sequence with "the Governor's" new family" actually occurred prior to him becoming the Governor. He met them on his way to Woodbury. Also, Penny was still alive. Meghan was invented for the show as a stand-in for Penny. armed with that knowledge, I knew she was a goner from the second she appeared on screen and wasn't remotely disappointed when that plot thread was quickly wrapped up.

The Governor greatly outlasted his welcome. This is how season 3 should have ended. I breathed a sigh of relief to be done with the prison and the Gov forever. Shame about Hershel though. He was a bit player in the comic book who wound up taking over other character's story lines on the show because he was played by such a dynamic actor. I'm less bummed about losing the character than I am about losing Scott Wilson. He will be missed.

There is still a lot of room for improvement on the show. But the first half of season 4 was a huge step up from the disater that was the last half of season 3. So, I'll take it. I'm cautiously optimistic that Gimple can do better with a clean slate in the second half of the season.

 

[RSoxNo1]

I am not convinced that there needs to be ANY podcasts at all. Seems like society did just fine before them. But maybe I'll give a listen one of these days.

Podcasts are a sign of the times. Everyone is now empowered to self produce and self create. I don't view this as a bad thing provided the listening public is able to recognize the source of the opinions or information. You know as well as anyone that for niche news, fan communities, blogs and twitter often have more information than a major media outlet. Again though, it points to who is presenting that information. They're not held to the same broadcast standards. I don't think television is that far behind in this as well. Internet shows are becoming increasingly popular and I think cable companies will have to allow lower barriers to entries for new stations. There was a comment that Adam Carolla made earlier this year (on the most popular podcast in the world): We're getting close to a time when there will be more people on TV than people watching.

I have no opposition to more choices for media. Gone are the days of 3 television channels being our sole source of information and entertainment, everything is specialized now.

 

[RSoxNo1]

I guess I don't like them because today any/every one has one and 99% of the folks think they're doing Top 40 morning drive routines and they don't even have that 'talent' (yes, I don't think those people are generally talented at all).

Almost everyone can put words together to form sentences, yet that in no way makes everyone writers.

Just because someone has opinions and can talk into a mic doesn't mean they should!

That points to the barriers to entry. But those that are good at it can excel and be self creators. It's why nearly every comedian on the planet has a podcast.

 

[Funmeister]

Not sure why but reports suggest yesterday was a much heavier day at the guest relations complaint department (in the parks) regarding MyMagic+!

 

[flynnibus]

I am not convinced that there needs to be ANY podcasts at all. Seems like society did just fine before them. But maybe I'll give a listen one of these days.

I've told you before - it's not the format, but the content you are exposed to. If we shared more in common I'd point you to some incredible 1on1 interview series... or great insight/story telling podcasts. Really good podcasts keep you yearning for the next episode like your favorite TV show but can be informative and not just entertainment. I have yet to find a disney podcast that I could stomach for more than 1-3 minutes.

 

[rael ramone]

Most popular restaurants and shops are unrelated. I would hate to shop in a place that had the same thing in every shop at the same price.

Like....say.....the MK?