The Spirited Seventh Heaven ...

articos

articos

Well-Known Member
pheneix said:
"State of the Universe" presentation this morning was light on future things but there are reasons for that and those future things are still going to be awesome when they arrive. Some of them soon. :D

Comcast and NBC taking proud ownership of these theme parks is energizing them all over again in so many ways. The Tonight Show coming to Orlando is a grand experiment that is paying off beautifully.

Btw, the "Universal Music Plaza" with Rockit as a backdrop has turned out to be one of the best music venues ever for TV filming. It is so astounding to see such an awful ride showcased in such a cool way night after night and knowing over 2.5 million people are seeing it. NBC is taking crap and turning it into an icon. I can't imagine the ego I'd have if I was 19 and worked at that ride right now...
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Tonight Show is just taking the park back to what was it was planned for, but hasn't been used for in a long time.
 
articos

articos

Well-Known Member
flynnibus said:
Holy cow... let's compare the Gringott's Dragon Fire.. to the new parade dragon.

Not even in the same league of intense!!

https://vine.co/v/MT70DB3YplO
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One was designed by the team from the movie in conjunction with the best in the themed entertainment business, the other was outsourced. Cheaply.
***I should amend this, though - it was outsourced to the main company which builds parade floats for everyone now, which is a company that also did work for Diagon. It's just a difference in the money spent, the intent and the oversight. Disney just didn't put the creative power into this, and then they didn't spend the money, and they were happy with what they got. On the other hand, Universal is just playing in a different league.
 
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Next Big Thing

Next Big Thing

Well-Known Member
articos said:
Tonight Show is just taking the park back to what was it was planned for, but hasn't been used for in a long time.
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Not really. This is only for a week. I know a Spanish version of The Voice tapes there and many other TV shows/commercials shoot there consistently.

It's not booming with production, but things get produced there fairly often.
 
Next Big Thing

Next Big Thing

Well-Known Member
articos said:
One was designed by the team from the movie in conjunction with the best in the themed entertainment business, the other was outsourced. Cheaply.
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Why does it always have to come back to comparing things though? Diagon is obviously superior to anything WDW has put out (on that type of scale) since EPCOT Center.

Comparing is pointless.
 
articos

articos

Well-Known Member
Next Big Thing said:
Not really. This is only for a week. I know a Spanish version of The Voice tapes there and many other TV shows/commercials shoot there consistently.

It's not booming with production, but things get produced there fairly often.
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I'm quite aware. Smaller productions or off-shore stuff keep the stages somewhat busy, but it was originally hoped that regular national shows would be rotating in and out, which rarely happens. At one point in the 90s, there was a booming tv/film industry making use of Universal's facilities with national exposure. Not so much now. It's nice to have a national high profile network show making use of the facilities as they were intended.
 
articos

articos

Well-Known Member
Next Big Thing said:
Why does it always have to come back to comparing things though? Diagon is obviously superior to anything WDW has put out (on that type of scale) since EPCOT Center.

Comparing is pointless.
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I respectfully disagree. Comparison is useful. Universal has regularly been kicking Disney's butt for a while, yes, and will continue to for a while to come. The comparison was made, and I responded. On one hand, if Disney had wanted to, they could have put more money and time into the parade dragon and made it much better. On the other hand, it's apples and oranges due to a number of factors. I was pointing out the main reason for the differences, though.

I would also say "since EPCOT Center" is reaching a bit. Diagon is a wonderfully themed land with 2 headline attractions, combined with heavily themed retail, entertainment and F&B, making all of them "attractions" as well. But it's not the same as an entire park. And don't forget about attractions like Indy or DAK's Africa section, both of which I would argue were groundbreaking at their time as well.
 
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Next Big Thing

Next Big Thing

Well-Known Member
articos said:
I respectfully disagree. Comparison is useful. Universal has regularly been kicking Disney's butt for a while, yes, and will continue to for a while to come. The comparison was made, and I responded. On one hand, if Disney had wanted to, they could have put more money and time into the parade dragon and made it much better. On the other hand, it's apples and oranges due to a number of factors. I was pointing out the main reason for the differences, though.

I would also say "since EPCOT Center" is reaching a bit. Diagon is a wonderfully themed land with 2 headline attractions, combined with heavily themed retail, entertainment and F&B, making all of them "attractions" as well. But it's not the same as an entire park. And don't forget about attractions like Indy or DAK's Africa section, both of which I would argue were groundbreaking at their time as well.
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The reason I went as far as the original EPCOT Center opening in 1982 was because what has WDW opened that has been as complete and on as grand of a scale as Diagon since then? I can't think of a single thing. The only thing stateside that comes to mind is Carsland (or the entire DCA project as a whole I guess).
 
Next Big Thing

Next Big Thing

Well-Known Member
articos said:
I'm quite aware. Smaller productions or off-shore stuff keep the stages somewhat busy, but it was originally hoped that regular national shows would be rotating in and out, which rarely happens. At one point in the 90s, there was a booming tv/film industry making use of Universal's facilities with national exposure. Not so much now. It's nice to have a national high profile network show making use of the facilities as they were intended.
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Oh, I absolutely agree. I wish there was this much attention on UOR and use of the soundstages in a high profile way more often. Sadly, with Potter just about ready to open, I don't see there ever being another media blitz for quite some time. I guess if they get LOTR or when the third park eventually comes maybe, but Potter is just such a draw that it really naturally creates a circus on it's own.
 
articos

articos

Well-Known Member
Next Big Thing said:
The reason I went as far as the original EPCOT Center opening in 1982 was because what has WDW opened that has been as complete and on as grand of a scale as Diagon since then? I can't think of a single thing. The only thing stateside that comes to mind is Carsland (or the entire DCA project as a whole I guess).
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Carsland, as a standalone. I'd put parts of DAK in the mix, as there's some wonderful environments/immersive attractions in that park.
 
Next Big Thing

Next Big Thing

Well-Known Member
articos said:
Carsland, as a standalone. I'd put parts of DAK in the mix, as there's some wonderful environments/immersive attractions in that park.
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As far as i'm concerned, Carsland doesn't really count in this conversation since i'm mostly talking things between WDW and UOR (I simply mentioned Carsland as the only thing I could think of stateside similar to WWoHP)

Although I do agree that DAK has some great theming in parts. And then there's Dinoland.
 
bhg469

bhg469

Well-Known Member
ParentsOf4 said:
Rhetorical question:

What's going to be the bigger seller for the next 12 months: MyMagic+ and SDMT or Diagon Alley?

There's more money to be made in Orlando if Disney simply would invest wisely. :)
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You mean to tell me that people packing 2 theme parks to get a glimpse of all the shops, and attractions, may spend money? Impossible! Everyone knows all the money is in 3 hour meet and greet lines.
 
culturenthrills

culturenthrills

Well-Known Member
articos said:
Tonight Show is just taking the park back to what was it was planned for, but hasn't been used for in a long time.
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It would be nice if they put the set into storage and made it a yearly or every other year thing for the Tonight Show to come to Orlando. The audiences have been so enthusiastic and it shows on TV. I have a friend who has worked on some of the shoots this week and everyone she has talked to from the show, even though they have been working there off, have had nothing but nice things to say about there stay this week. Just wish I could have gotten tickets to a taping.
 

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