Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid closing for month long refurbishment Feb 2-Mar 6

[orlando678-]

So are there any announcements about what is going into the ride?

 

[RSoxNo1]

At least Peter Pan's Flight has some of the finale in there and doesn't feel like it deliberately skips things... Mermaid? Quite easy to tell that they're skipping the scary bits for the kiddies.

The cardboard cutout and wedding for Little Mermaid is better than Mr. Smee in a rowboat and Captain Hook on the Crocodile. Peter Pan is a 90 minute movie in a 2 minute dark ride, and you're telling me that it's more thorough?

 

[Figments Friend]

View attachment 79843 View attachment 79844
If you look carefully at the model you can see that the room prior to the finale had a very different plan. It almost looks like a storm made by Ursula scene...

Nice photos of that later model.

Yes, there was supposed to be another, later encounter with a 'giant' Ursula.
Originally,when the ride vehicles ascended up from 'underwater' you found yourself on the surface in the middle of a ferocious storm at sea.
The scene was designed to mimic the climatic battle between Prince Eric and Ursula near the end of the film, with her creating huge waves and stirring up all the sunken ships.
Ursula is dispatched in the ride scene via a projection animation, and a bolt of 'lightning'.
The ride vehicles then moved on to a version of the 'Kiss The Girl Scene' that is very similar to the version we see in the built versions.

So the climatic battle with Ursula was scrapped, and the 'Kiss The Girl' scene moved up to take it's place when the vehicles ascend.

To be honest, i can understand why the 'Ursula Battle' scene was cut.
As much as i would LOVE to have seen it included ( and in reality, would have preferred the version of the ride that Tony shared..) it probably would have been considered 'too scary' for today's overprotective parents.
As much as i hate to think of it, i am willing to bet that this was a concern to certain parties and had a influence on getting that particular scene cut.
You have to remember that projects at WDI have to jump through MANY different hoops before it can get to a point where it can actually be green-lit and then actually built.
Legal and Marketing seem to have a far stronger influence on things now then in years past.

Without a 'climax' in the Attraction however, it kind of falls flat.
I think some folks forget that kids LIKE to be scared sometimes...and seeing Ursula get dispatched means it will be a 'happy ending' in the end.
So i hope the talk that has been going on about re-introducing something along these lines does indeed actually happen.
Would be great to have that scene back.

 

[dstrawn9889]

Random question about this version of the ride: Why did they build it with such a high ceiling? California's ceiling matches up with the top of the entrance mural, while Florida's is about twice as high...? I know it's not important but I was just wondering if there was a reason for it.

i would say it has to do with the freakish hot summers, the larger mass of cool air keeps the roof from heating the air volume so quickly... IMO

 

[Sage of Time]

The cardboard cutout and wedding for Little Mermaid is better than Mr. Smee in a rowboat and Captain Hook on the Crocodile. Peter Pan is a 90 minute movie in a 2 minute dark ride, and you're telling me that it's more thorough?

I wouldn't say thorough, but I would say that it does feel like it covers the high points of the film a bit better.

Mermaid feels like it lacks a large part of what makes Mermaid, Mermaid. That final sea battle with Ursula is captivating.

 

[RSoxNo1]

I wouldn't say thorough, but I would say that it does feel like it covers the high points of the film a bit better.

Mermaid feels like it lacks a large part of what makes Mermaid, Mermaid. That final sea battle with Ursula is captivating.

Obviously a true battle with Ursula would be better than what's their now, but saying it's better than Pan is ridiculous. The only movement on Captain Hook are his legs, and the animatronics on Pan are primitive at best.

No amount of black light on Pan will solve it. It needs significant animatronic and show scene updates.

 

[orlando678-]

Well probably in a few years after Disneyland's refurb, you will see that they upgrade the rides in WDW too. Unless WDW thinks that having a good queue is the key to succes( which I think is partly true, but the ride has to be really good too).

 

[wdw47]

Obviously a true battle with Ursula would be better than what's their now, but saying it's better than Pan is ridiculous. The only movement on Captain Hook are his legs by he animatronics on Pan are primitive at best.

No amount of black light on Pan will solve it. It needs significant animatronic and show scene updates.

Is there any reason to believe this type of update is happening?

 

[orlando678-]

Well Disney wants WDW to be the best of the best and so probably the dark rides will get the updates from for example Disneyland's dark ride updates and so Disney will probably do the same in WDW

 

[Brer Panther]

Obviously a true battle with Ursula would be better than what's their now, but saying it's better than Pan is ridiculous. The only movement on Captain Hook are his legs by he animatronics on Pan are primitive at best.

No amount of black light on Pan will solve it. It needs significant animatronic and show scene updates.

I agree that Peter Pan is in need of an update, but at least it has the excuse that it was made in the 1970s. We had much better technology in 2012, when the Little Mermaid ride opened.

 

[orlando678-]

Still I don't think the Mermaid ride is bad, I only miss a better ending and some small things through the ride itself could be improved yes, but I still think the audio animatronics and so are pretty neat.

 

[CJR]

I agree that Peter Pan is in need of an update, but at least it has the excuse that it was made in the 1970s. We had much better technology in 2012, when the Little Mermaid ride opened.

All the more reason to upgrade it. I'm so jealous of DL.

 

[Mike S]

All the more reason to upgrade it. I'm so jealous of DL.

You're not alone.

 

[matt9112]

You're not alone.

my two cents...pan needs a major redo but i really hope they would look at the capacity issue. possible separate load and unload? or redone load area.

 

[Tim Lohr]

View attachment 79843 View attachment 79844
If you look carefully at the model you can see that the room prior to the finale had a very different plan. It almost looks like a storm made by Ursula scene...

The finale scene is different as well, in this model it looks like the moment before Triton turns Ariel human for the last time, and what was built is her in the wedding dress with Eric. But both of the Finale and the Ursula scenes look deeper in this model in the finished ride

 

[lazyboy97o]

Well Disney wants WDW to be the best of the best and so probably the dark rides will get the updates from for example Disneyland's dark ride updates and so Disney will probably do the same in WDW

Plenty of other updates have sailed past Walt Disney World.

 

[RSoxNo1]

I agree that Peter Pan is in need of an update, but at least it has the excuse that it was made in the 1970s. We had much better technology in 2012, when the Little Mermaid ride opened.

The fact that it was made in the 70s is a convenient excuse. The Haunted Mansion was made in the 70s but has received necessary upgrades and is among the best Disney has to offer. Peter Pan looks like a carnival fair attraction compared to Mermaid, and as you said Mermaid wasn't anything earth shattering. We exist in 2015, so do both rides. I'm judging both by today's standards, and with that in mind, Mermaid is the better attraction.

 

[flynnibus]

Well Disney wants WDW to be the best of the best and so probably the dark rides will get the updates from for example Disneyland's dark ride updates and so Disney will probably do the same in WDW

.. except... your premise is not true. Less you forget Disneyland's Fantasyland was rebuilt in 1983... and WDW never got the same upgrades from them even 30+ years later. There is no pride to ensure WDW is the pinnacle.. that is fantasy.

 

[lazyboy97o]

.. except... your premise is not true. Less you forget Disneyland's Fantasyland was rebuilt in 1983... and WDW never got the same upgrades from them even 30+ years later. There is no pride to ensure WDW is the pinnacle.. that is fantasy.

Not doing the 1983 upgrades can probably be forgiven given the cost of EPCOT Center, time spent on Tokyo Disneyland and the Studio still floundering. But the Magic Kingsom also did not receive the 1992 updates from Euro Disneyland despite the early-to-mid 1990s often being cited as great years for Walt Disney World.

 

[orlando678-]

Well then we just have faith with a little bit of pixie dust sprinkled on it.