Uni/IOA Janaury Update (w/ Photos!)

[mousermerf]

Well, i finally went and did it - I got myself a Universal/IOA Annual Pass.

I had been hemming and hawing over it for a bit and finally decided to do it because I really had run out of things to do at WDW (at least for a while) since no major new attractions appear to being built or opening for a while.

So, here's the view as I entered Citywalk - freezing my butt off! The security checks at the garage hub had those big space heaters even. It was bitterly cold.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise01.jpg' >

The lines at IOA to get in were pretty long.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise02.jpg' >

Which gave me plenty of time to snap a photo of the wonderful trashcans in the port of entry area

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise03.jpg' >

I took some time to explore the Lost Continent and the soon-to-be-extinct Poseidon's Fury.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise04.jpg' >

This area really is beautiful and the attraction really was pretty nifty in its original format.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise05.jpg' >

A quick shot of the Suess Trolly Train ride.. (It's really fun)

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise16.jpg' >

And the Port of Entry..

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise17.jpg' >

I really like some part of Uni's offerings.. up next, a tour of JP and it's construction areas for Harry Potter - give me a few to finish uploading.

 

[mousermerf]

So, you know how Harry Potter is supposed to be built at IOA as an extension of The Lost Continent?

Well, umm, yeah.. no. It's really going into an expansion pad that makes up the right half of Jurassic Park. Essentially where, if they ever built it, the JP Jeep ride would have been.

So, as soon as you get past the big JP gate from Lost Continent, you run into wall-land.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise06.jpg' >

And it continues pretty much all along the outer loop of the land until you get to the JP River Adventure.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise07.jpg' >

I never really thought about how the JP area was offset to the left before, but it obviously is once you encounter the walls. The whole right portion toward Lost Continent has nothing. Oh, here's a backhoe.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise15.jpg' >

And since i was curious, i wandered down around the side of the Visitors Center on the right and managed to find the old abandoned boat dock (used for boats like Friendships or the AK cruises). From it, you can see how close to Lost Continent you are because it overlooks the Enchanted Oak Tavern.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise18.jpg' >

A few more random shots around JP..

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise19.jpg' >

Ever eat at Thunder Falls Terrace? It's pretty darn good I tell you.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise13.jpg' >

And it overlooks the splashdown for the JP River Adventure.

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And here's the outside seating area which gets splashed and thus no one sits in..

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise14.jpg' >

In a few minutes, the photos from Universal Studios.

 

[mousermerf]

Over at Universal..

They are still building the Simpsons ride - though i'm not quite sure how they intend to make this look very Simpson-y.

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise10.jpg' >

I didn't spend a whole lot o time in Uni, but i did hit some highlights, though major rides like Men in Black had way too long of lines:

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise11.jpg' >

Wonderfully grand and immersive desing going on though.. which is a bit ironic in that the least interesting exterior...

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise09.jpg' >

... for ET has quite possibly the most elabroate interior of any ride i've been on anywhere. Sure, Universal doesn't completely upkeep it and it looks worn, it's still a good ride and very immersive. It made me wonder what happened to this style of attraction - Disney nor Universal makes them anymore. Big huge elaborate sets and ride systems, what happened?

I did get to go on Disaster! which is the newest offering. It was neat, the rpeshow is better then when it was Earthquake though they need to work some of the kinks out. Here's a scary mutant bionic shark from the queue:

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise12.jpg' >

And finally, i went inside the Lucy exhibit, something i'd not done before. I rather enjoyed, considering it's jsut a gallery attached to a store - but a pleasent one at that. Here's the model of the whole setup for taping I Love Lucy infront of a live studio audience:

<img src='http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2006-5/1179349/unise08.jpg' >

And that's it from Universal for now - sure to update more in the future. Hope you enjoyed. It made me really think about what i like about Disney and what i dont.. and really wonder what happened to big elaborate/monumental rides.

In short, Disney does the spit and polish but lately has been lacking in big grand scope and scale. Even Everest sorta looks dinky and minimal in comparison to some parts of Universal. At the same time, Universal tends to not keep things up as well and lets their big grand attractions sort of rot away, and they certainly haven't done anything grand since IOA opened. Harry Potter might change all that..

 

[dxwwf3]

It's a shame that the great building at Poesiden's Fury is wasted on a terrible, corny attraction. The old show wasn't perfect, but it was much better, IMO.

 

[mousermerf]

Ditto on that - and notice the shop outside the attraction?

When i was at IOA for rpeviews it had awesome ocean/sea themed merchandise - now it sells generic junk no one really wants. Several shops at IOA and Universal were shuttered and the open ones had generic stuff, so it's not just a Disney problem.

IOA when it opened had the coolest things to buy.

 

[dxwwf3]

IOA when it opened had the coolest things to buy.

When IOA opened, it was a sight to behold. Now they keep adding amusement park stuff (the constant face painting places and the wall climbing thing and so on) and the current attractions aren't kept up the best. But the single biggest problem with the park is that nothing of any significance was added to the park after opening......until the new Harry Potter E-ticket opens. I used to go there every year, but I haven't been in a couple of years. I kind of doubt that Harry Potter alone will get me back on Universal property (I know nothing about Harry Potter as it hasn't interested me in the least), but add that new area with another decent attraction and I might go back. Taking away Back to the Future (my favorite attraction on property) isn't going to get me back any sooner either :lol:

 

[sillykid]

Merf...I'm not at huge Uni fan, but I am not a hater. I enjoy all you rupdates and look forward to seeing more of them on Uni.
Thanks

 

[cmatt]

i know what you mean about the design of ET - inside it is fully immersive, and extremely cool i dont know of any other ride left that allows for this... poseidon's poorly executed but it is kinda cool

 

[dandaman]

In short, Disney does the spit and polish but lately has been lacking in big grand scope and scale. Even Everest sorta looks dinky and minimal in comparison to some parts of Universal. At the same time, Universal tends to not keep things up as well and lets their big grand attractions sort of rot away, and they certainly haven't done anything grand since IOA opened. Harry Potter might change all that..

I'm really gonna have to agree with you on those points. If Universal had a bit better upkeep, the attractions would look even better than they already do. Disney needs to think in terms of grand attractions once again; I believe Everest was a great step in the right direction, though, and it's my favourite AK attraction. (OK, OK, so there isn't a lot of choice in comparison to the other parks... :lol: )

 

[JROK]

I believe Everest was a great step in the right direction, though, and it's my favourite AK attraction. (OK, OK, so there isn't a lot of choice in comparison to the other parks... :lol: )

What about Countdown to Exti--- errr, Dinosaur? That's still one of my favorite dark rides anywhere, second of course to Spiderman.

 

[Rufus T Firefly]

Thanks for the pctures, Merf. Good job.

 

[bennyw01]

i think universals great, ill be getting my annual pass shortly. you cant spend as much time there as wdw but some of the rides are childhood favourites aka ET

 

[kcnole]

Poseidon's Fury isn't going anywhere. It and Mythos will however be about all that is left of the Lost Continent once Harry moves in. I have heard several rumors that it will get a refurb to be a better attraction again.

 

[dxwwf3]

Poseidon's Fury isn't going anywhere. It and Mythos will however be about all that is left of the Lost Continent once Harry moves in. I have heard several rumors that it will get a refurb to be a better attraction again.

I still can't believe they are messing around with Dueling Dragons. It has a perfect queue and a great story. Not to mention a very nice preshow that unfortunately most people just walk by.

 

[sknydave]

What was Poseidon's Fury like previously? For some reason this is the one attraction my family never did back then.

 

[teebin]

What was Poseidon's Fury like previously? For some reason this is the one attraction my family never did back then.

Hmmm... the original show didn't use the same great illusion twice but only at the end (the illusion of appearing back in the original room that you started in before the water tunnel) It was a shocking and startling effect and I had to go right back on the ride in 1999 to figure out how they pulled it off. The actual big show used a ton more fire explosions and an equal amount of water. Now it is water water water and a couple of flames.

Can't really recall the actual story but it was rewritten and the weird preshow was lengthened ad-naseum to stretch the length (i assume) Jeremy Irons voice was that of one of the characters.

 

[bayoutinkbelle]

Thanks for the update, Merf!

I do hope the PF rumor is true. I love the theming there, but the show? Meh. I usually pass it up because the water tunnel fogs my glasses lol even though it's a cool effect.

DD is one of my favorite coasters and I love the theming. I could spend hours roaming the queue.

 

[nerdboyrockstar]

Thanks for the pics.

Mousermerf and NemoRocks updates from Universal? Score! Really looking forward to them.