Toy Story Land expansion announced for Disney's Hollywood Studios

[mikejs78]

Just to add for those with little ones, I would categorize the level of thrill on this ride higher than Mine Train and Barnstormer. If your little ones have struggled with those this will be too much for them, IMO.

How would you rate it against BTMR?

 

[djkidkaz]

How would you rate it against BTMR?

I would consider it less intense than BTMR. Obviously shorter, so if little ones get on and its too much it will be over much faster for them. If I was to say that Aerosmith is a 10 and Space Mountain is an 9, I would put BTMR at a 7, Slinky at a 5, Primeval Whirl at a 4 and SDMT / Barnstormer at a 3, giving the slight edge to Barnstormer as the more intense of those two.

 

[danlb_2000]

http://blogmickey.com/2018/06/photos-new-reworked-toy-story-mania-queue-debuts/

 

[No Name]

VIDEO - Putting the finishing touches on Toy Story Land

So the first half of that video is basically explaining how they manage to blow $250 million on just this.

They could certainly cut down on some of that oversight and spend the money wisely. When you have a coaster with standard exposed gears, guardrails, track, and supports that are being passed off a toy, and when you have plenty of elements out of scale, I'm not sure why you should be paying so many experts. It's not like a Toy Story Land has never been done before either. Attention to detail is important, no doubt, but maybe spend more money on avoiding major flaws and less on people arguing over whether that block should be Love Red or Lava Red.

 

[djkidkaz]

Slinky Dog Dash Review

The Queue

Slinky Dog Dash has a queue that is VERY similar to what you have already seen inside TSMM for years. Large oversized props and artwork on the walls with Andys drawings. The entire queue is outdoors with no indoor moments to cool you off in the summer heat. There are fans scattered throughout but in those warm summer months you can expect to sweat it out the entire duration of your wait. Be sure to buy a bottled water before entering the queue as there are no opportunities to do so, nor are there water fountains ala Flight of Passage once you enter the line. There is a small portion in the beginning of the queue that is not covered at all but for the most part you should at least be under some semblance of ceiling to keep the sun or rain off while you wait. Personally, I didn't find the queue to be all that entertaining and quickly found myself looking at my cell phone while waiting in line. Definitely a good use of a Fast Pass as you probably won't feel like your missing Imagineering greatness like you do when you FastPass Flight of Passages Stand-By queue.

The Theming

Honestly, you've seen it in aerial photos and in Imagineering videos. Again its pretty much what we've all seen. Rex and Jessie make a brief appearance on Jenga blocks as does Wheezy and Mr Spell at the end of the ride. Wheezy sings as you wait to enter to station to exit your vehicle and I believe I heard Rex roar as you pass by which is a nice touch. There are also some "slinky" sound effects as you move about the track and Slinky himself has different phrases he says. Since there isn't much more to say than that I will touch on just a little of the theming of the area. I don't know if its because I've been looking at aerials for 2 years but everything definitely seemed bigger than I expected. My initial thought was "Wow, a child would really like this!" and thats what they were essentially aiming for, right? I found the land and its details to be more charming than I expected. There is always something fun about getting to view other people having fun and this attraction offers that in a few different "viewing spots". You can get pretty darn close to the track to hear and see peoples reactions. Near a bridge to the entrance of the attraction you can actually look over and see cars pulling into the second launch site with the riders preparing to take the second half of the coaster. It has a fun little countdown and off they go! Overall, I would say that I was hoping for more from the Slinky queue itself instead of just more Midway Mania, but the overall land and its execution exceeded my expectations.

The Ride

What you're all here for, how is the ride?! Well, better than I expected. For two years we've been comparing it to Mine Train and Barnstormer so I went in with that as my gauge. In my opinion, I would have to place it in its own category because I found it to be more thrilling than either of those two coasters. There are two launch sequences, the first which your car doesn't even slow down for, you just coast into it and then shoot off. The second your car actually comes to a complete stop, reverses just slightly and then after the countdown you shoot off. Neither of these are anywhere near the speed or adrenaline of Aerosmith but I found them thrilling enough to be enjoyable for an adult. I did not time the ride but to me, it felt longer than Mine Train, possibly due to the fact that your entire ride on Slinky is non-stop coaster while Mine Train only has two small coaster portions. Slinky has a couple of "air time" moments as well that I wasn't quite expecting. Again, I'm going into this with the belief that its meant for little kids and finding out that its more of a mid range coaster which is a nice revelation. If you have little ones that tend to struggle with Barnstormer / Mine Train, I think you will want to wait until they are a little older before tackling this coaster. Luckily, the land offers TSMM and Alien Swirling Saucers for them while they wait for big brother or sister to get off Slinky.

Overall

I have to say that I had low expectations going into this attraction but came out pleasantly surprised. Due to the queue being completely outdoors it is not something I will stand in line for but I would definitely not hesitate to use a Fast Pass for this attraction. I honestly think the most surprising element to me was the thrill factor, which means I can ride it with a group of adults and walk away with a slight adrenaline rush. Is it on the level of BTMR? No, its less intense than that but still a very fun ride and you won't feel weird riding it if you don't have children. I truly think this is a great addition to the park and look forward to hearing others thoughts on Slinky Dog Dash.

 

[ptaylor]

VIDEO - Putting the finishing touches on Toy Story Land

So the first half of that video is basically explaining how they manage to blow $250 million on just this.

They could certainly cut down on some of that oversight and spend the money wisely. When you have a coaster with standard exposed gears, guardrails, track, and supports that are being passed off a toy, and when you have plenty of elements out of scale, I'm not sure why you should be paying so many experts. It's not like a Toy Story Land has never been done before either. Attention to detail is important, no doubt, but maybe spend more money on avoiding major flaws and less on people arguing over whether that block should be Love Red or Lava Red.

This problem has plagued WDI for the last few years, specifically with New Fantasyland. The new breed of Imagineers are so eager to try and make things "Disney", that they seem to miss the real purpose of building new attractions.

 

[marni1971]

Looking at the pics of the land I noticed this little form backstage. Anybody have any idea what it is for?
View attachment 291015

Backstage utility. Remind me later and I’ll let you know in detail.

Noted. And don’t think we’ll forget. So get that 20-page description of the dumpster shelter ready!

It will be a trash compactor. A real one, not a Death Star one.

 

[JohnD]

It will be a trash compactor. A real one, not a Death Star one.

WDWMagic, where no detail goes unnoticed, including trash compactors.

 

[wannabeBelle]

It will be a trash compactor. A real one, not a Death Star one.

Marie

 

[matt9112]

I’m hearing around 65-70 seconds.

ewww

 

[matt9112]

So now that we're seeing the land almost in operation, I'm starting to get concerned over lighting. Between the Tinker Toy spotlights and the Christmas lights above the paths, will there really be enough ambient light in this area at night?

It's something I really disliked about Flik's Fun Fair when I visited DCA - for a "kid's" sections of the park, it felt woefully underlit and almost uninviting/sinister at night. Frankly, I feel the same about the Fantasyland Forest at MK too - it's about the least inviting part of the park after dark.

Here's to hoping that they've focused everything well, but I've not been impressed with similar offerings in the past. Anyhone have any insight into other TSLs on how dark/light they are at night? Do they feel as seedy as Flik's or Fantasyland?

i find most areas of the theme parks are too bright. it really pulls away from the atmosphere of night. i dont want to feel like im on a football field. but it looks like it will be bright to me.

 

[matt9112]

I remember when it opened we were talking about adding seasonal overlay games etc. Like the long awaited Star Tours changes, there is often a lack of funding to do these things once the thing is open and operational.

lack of funding? you know they wanted to buy fox for north of 50 billion? but holiday overlay of digital elements is too much? its not like they need to decorate anything like DLs haunted mansion they just need to code and create a set for a few holidays once....and than every year push a button or something no? its just upsetting that little things dont matter.

 

[matt9112]

And for each 'fun little ride' that gets added, the usual WDW elitists will complain about fairground rides...

i agree. but there is a fine line....for example Aladdin's carpets placement os grotesque but i have NO ISSUE with small basic rides (for climate purposes i would argue they SHOULD all gst canopies but alass)

 

[twebber55]

im just gonna judge the land at after it opens
this seems like a topic we cant answer until we actually see what s going on no use of guessing

 

[djkidkaz]

i find most areas of the theme parks are too bright. it really pulls away from the atmosphere of night. i dont want to feel like im on a football field. but it looks like it will be bright to me.

In regards to Toy Story Land at night, recently while driving down World Drive late in the evening I noticed lighting on what appeared to be the entire Slinky track. Granted it was late and I was viewing this through trees but it appeared the entire track had lighting. Also, concept art shows a “night club-esque” light show going on inside Alien which should add color to the area.

 

[matt9112]

Kathy Mangum is the lead on this I believe. That’s your veteran.

oh....so nobody.....

 

[MisterPenguin]

Not one CM thought to time a complete ride? Sheesh, no wonder we can't trust CM rumors.

Kathy Mangum is the lead on this I believe. That’s your veteran.

Ah, the one who likened this to Carsland.

Well, at least she recognized something good to aspire to...

 

[homerdance]

All new games inside TSM would have been a nice change to make for its rebirth.

Yet another HUGE miss for lack of magic band integration.

 

[TJJohn12]

i find most areas of the theme parks are too bright. it really pulls away from the atmosphere of night. i dont want to feel like im on a football field. but it looks like it will be bright to me.

I think there's a distinction between "football field" and "seedy side of town," though. The lighting in Liberty Square near the Mansion is moody and immersive, without being "dark."

Flik's Fun Fair and Fantasyland Forest alike could use some subtle blue Par 54 washes across the paths and scenes to A) emulate moonlight and B) make it feel less like someone's going to pop out from an alley to mug me. That's all. I don't want halogens - I would love something just a bit more inviting.

 

[flyerjab]

I am most interested in what this land feels like at night. I remember reading somewhere that there are lighting effects on the slinky dog coaster cars themselves, aside from the lighting of the track. I bet that visually this land looks really neat at night.