The Spirited Back Nine ...

[Bolna]

Crappy German lager for export only.

Huh????

 

[wdisney9000]

You can only enforce so much....

Glad they are letting it happen though. The more of these tacky (possibly non-Disney approved) sing alongs I see, it makes me look forward to seeing a quality performance when the wife and I visit HS in a few weeks.

 

[tribbleorlfl]

At Cosmic Rays a month ago (I can make that burger taste good under piles of sauteed onions & mushrooms & packets of bbq sauce) I chose the 'cucumber' salad. Pretty decent side for a 'feed station'. Though I suspect people looking for 'alternative' sides is so rare that it came with the Cockerell Fries as well.

the broccoli is actually relatively decent at CHH, along with a relatively tasty piece of salmon (though it doesn't compete w/ the fishies I ate at Jiko or Artist Point, is it really supposed to?). IIRC, I think I saw several vegetable options at QSR's (I believe I saw Green Beans as a choice somewhere - wonder if it matches the quality of the broccoli offerings or are more akin to a school lunch quality).

Yes, you did- also at Cosmic Rays. They're served with the Rotisserie chicken, don't know if you can sub them as a side on other dishes. The food court in the land also has green beans with the grilled salmon dish. At both locations they were fresh and surprisingly properly-cooked (tender, but not school lunch-mushy). CR's were flavored with butter, garlic, salt and pepper while the Land's were in a spicy smoked paprika sauce.

For all of the grief WDW's QS food gets, it actually has improved over the past decade or so and is at the top of the list in terms of theme park food. In my opinion, with the DDP and 6 month ADR's taking over TS locations, people that normally would have eaten TS as walk-ups or last-minute ressie's in the past are now left out in the cold and are forced to either eat QS or leave the parks. As a result, I believe the F&B team had no choice but to improve the quality of its QS locations (ironic since the quality of the TS locations has largely gone the other direction due to the DDP. I really do wish they'd go back to the early days where there was a specific DDP menu as to not ruin the offerings for the rest of the normal-paying guests).

 

[Mickey_777]

According to a friend of mine, an Elsa and Anna led a Frozen SingAlong at the Winterfest Kickoff in Sevierville,TN last night

That's nuts. Almost as nuts as one of our local Fall festivals about a month ago where Ana and Elsa were taking photos with kids in an urban pumpkin patch type setting. Hay and everything. It would seem those girls are sticking around for a while no? My local Bed Bath and Beyond punched me in the face with Frozen goods soon as I walked thru the door too.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Huh????

wasser.

 

[GiveMeTheMusic]

Glad they are letting it happen though. The more of these tacky (possibly non-Disney approved) sing alongs I see, it makes me look forward to seeing a quality performance when the wife and I visit HS in a few weeks.

Don't get your hopes too high. It's pretty awful.

 

[Captain Neo]

Lucasfilm has announced their next film will be called Strange Magic and it is an animated musical fairy tale by Gary Rydstrom of Pixar fame. If it's a hit maybe we can get some content for it in WDW? It looks interesting
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=930901

 

[spacemt354]

I live in boston now....hate almost everything about it haha we plan to move to florida in a year or so.

Well, fall weather is why I love Boston. Days like today are so great...

Taken on Bay State Rd

Taken from the top of BU College of Arts and Sciences building. My bio class was analyzing CO2 emissions with a device on the roof...such a great day to do it!


(Though after this...it's all downhill )

 

[SirLink]

Disney get bashed for cutting costs at the parks and now you're criticising them for allocating big budgets to animation. If $200 million finances a film of such quality as Toy Story 3 then I hope they spend the same money on all of their animated features. Its not like the budgets have effected the profitability of the films; Toy Story 3 was a huge critical and commerical success, likewise Frozen while Big Hero 6 has just beaten the latest Christopher Nolan blockbuster at the box office.

Not too long ago David Stainton was sitting at the top table of Disney animation, critiquing Musker and Clements' Fraidy Cat and giving tips to Barry Cook on My Peoples. Unsurprisingly neither of those promising films ever saw the light of day having been effectively destroyed by a leadership that barely had two creative brain cells to rub together, that had no business being at WDFA let alone granted free reign over the division to cut costs, destroy morale and micromanage genuinely creative talents.

Lasseter has completely turned WDFA's fortunes around. Animation is his real domain, that is where he is best, that is the industry in which he has built a lasting legacy and that is where he, along with Ed Catmull, has instigated a huge upturn in quality and success at Disney.

Pete Docter might well be a long-term successor down the line because he and others like Andrew Stanton have been involved in the collaborative creative process that has defined Pixar's success and is now a major part of the creative process at Disney animation, having been implemented by Lasseter and Catmull.

The suggestion that Disney would be better off without "Skipper John" just doesn't hold any weight. Animation is where he will ultimately be judged and Disney animation is thriving in ways it hasn't since the "Renaissance" of the early to mid-90' under his creative leadership.

Long may it continue.

I honestly don't care about WDAS or Pixar related content, I find it generally all too sickly sweet for myself ... I would rather they save around $100million per animated feature and place that extra money into a money earner for the company like Parks and Resorts. Considering that DM2 and Toy Story 3 did similar numbers WW ... I wish they would spend less.

 

[NearTheEars]

At Cosmic Rays a month ago (I can make that burger taste good under piles of sauteed onions & mushrooms & packets of bbq sauce) I chose the 'cucumber' salad. Pretty decent side for a 'feed station'. Though I suspect people looking for 'alternative' sides is so rare that it came with the Cockerell Fries as well.

the broccoli is actually relatively decent at CHH, along with a relatively tasty piece of salmon (though it doesn't compete w/ the fishies I ate at Jiko or Artist Point, is it really supposed to?). IIRC, I think I saw several vegetable options at QSR's (I believe I saw Green Beans as a choice somewhere - wonder if it matches the quality of the broccoli offerings or are more akin to a school lunch quality).

On another note, saw Jack Ma (Alibaba CEO) on CNBC just now: "Customers first, employees 2nd, stockholders 3rd'... wonder if the weatherman is taking notes... IIRC he also said something about viewing the employees as smarter than you are (which is certainly true in certain areas, like, say, front line CM's knowing more how Mouse Arrest bands will/won't work then a 'sharp pencil boy' sitting in front of a spreadsheet would).

From recent posts here I think the consensus has been Employees first, Customers First ........ Stockholders 50th

EDIT: Meaning the preferred ranking.

 

[FrankLapidus]

I honestly don't care about WDAS or Pixar related content, I find it generally all too sickly sweet for myself ... I would rather they save around $100million per animated feature and place that extra money into a money earner for the company like Parks and Resorts. Considering that DM2 and Toy Story 3 did similar numbers WW ... I wish they would spend less.

Disney has more than enough money to finance as many money earners as they want for the parks without cutting animation's budgets. Its not Lasseter and the animation division's fault that those in charge of the parks have in recent years been more interested in cutting costs than using their own budgets to improve their existing attractions and add new, quality attractions. Nor did Lasseter and the animation divison spend a couple of billion dollars on creating and implementing MM+ rather than on attractions.

 

[NearTheEars]

Off topic, but I thought this thread would the best place to ask this question. I have seen a few places doing "Frozen" events around Atlanta. Our local roller skating rink is advertising Frozen party once a week, Piedmont Park in the city had a banner up recently promoting a Frozen event as well, I even saw something related to Frozen at what appeared to be a day care center. Funny thing was that none of the banners/signs had a Disney trademark. They DID have the official Frozen and/or Anna, Elsa, Olaf on them though. Is this illegal? Does anybody else see anything like this in there area?

I saw back in my hometown in Ohio, they are doing a for-profit Frozen party at a country club.

 

[NearTheEars]

Since when did we start referring to an arctic low-pressure system as a polar vortex?

It bugs the living **** out of me when where marketing terms are suddenly felt into meteorology with the intention of scaring people so they can get advertising dollars or page clicks.

See also http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polar_vortex

We have used Polar Vortex, but made it a strict rule to never use the stupid Weather Channel storm names.

 

[mahnamahna101]

I get what your saying. What toys? GI Joe? What else that isn't snapped up. Nick has their own properties and license agreements.

Music has plenty to fill a park, it doesn't have to be themes lands. That's the Disney coming out. But you could do lands if you had to. 60s London Scene, hippie peace scene, hairspray 80s LA just to name a few. That place had an awesome dark ride based off The Moody Blues' Knights in White Satin. A mine train coaster to the Eagles. The music and artist lended it all it needed but location and 08 killed that place.

But those settings are too similar to Universal Studios Florida (London, LA, etc). Whatever the 3rd gate is, it can't involve urban locales since people would automatically call it a knockoff of USF.

 

[VulcanCafe]

Lucasfilm has announced their next film will be called Strange Magic and it is an animated musical fairy tale by Gary Rydstrom of Pixar fame. If it's a hit maybe we can get some content for it in WDW? It looks interesting
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=930901

Seems to be dumped in January, but then again, last time they did this Disney released the $36 million budget Gnomeo and Juliet (as a Touchstone film) in February 2011 and it made $200 million.

 

[SirLink]

Disney has more than enough money to finance as many money earners as they want for the parks without cutting animation's budgets. Its not Lasseter and the animation division's fault that those in charge of the parks have in recent years been more interested in cutting costs than using their own budgets to improve their existing attractions and add new, quality attractions. Nor did Lasseter and the animation divison spend a couple of billion dollars on creating and implementing MM+ rather than on attractions.

If your competition is spending the less and delivering better results ... that should be the motto for TWDC these days.

 

[the.dreamfinder]

Spoiler: Big Hero 6

http://ryanlangdraws.tumblr.com/post/102379911924/some-artwork-from-freds-house-in-big-hero-6

 

[ThemeParkJunkee]

We have used Polar Vortex, but made it a strict rule to never use the stupid Weather Channel storm names.

I have been summarily chastised for using a Weather Channel storm name and will never do so again. Where I live, we run out of descriptors for the latest snowstorm though.

 

[FrankLapidus]

If your competition is spending the less and delivering better results ... that should be the motto for TWDC these days.

It would be if the competition was delivering better results than Disney and Pixar animation. But it isn't, both divisions are thriving with Lasseter at the helm. The parks are another matter.

 

[71jason]

Don't get your hopes too high. It's pretty awful.

I disagree. I thought the humor in the show works well for adults. It was written (in mere weeks) by a veteran of the Bill & Ted show, and I think that definitely helps it. Some talented comedic performers, as well--a lot of Comedy Warehouse/Adventurers Club alumni.