Universal Epic Universe (South Expansion Complex) - Opens May 22 2025

[MisterPenguin]

I honestly expect HTTYD to be a bit of a sleeper hit,

I concur. Seems like the most complete and fun land of the group.

 

[ToTBellHop]

The two settings in Ministry of Magic will be disjointed. And that's the way it is.

The original 'lands' in Disneyland were an amalgam of different times, settings, universes. And that's the way it is.

Is a unified adherence to the theme and setting of a 'land' something to aspire to? Sure. But sometimes, you need a junk drawer full of unrelated stuff for the sake of expediency.

We've been having this argument with MK's Frontierland, which was one of those junk drawers of time and geography. Some people seem intent on claiming a pure geographical and chronological thematic adherence that it had in its past (which it didn't) and how that pure thematic adherence must endure into the future (not unless you make everything else thematically pure, thank-you).

This is all a long way to say: I don't care if Ministry of Magic has two separate settings. It is what it is. I'm not going to boycott it for its lack of thematic purity.

But those who say that it's OK if it has two disjointed settings should also give a pass to other parks when they also have disjointed settings in one 'themed land.'

Frontierland isn’t a single IP land. They would not build a Hoth spinner across from a Tatooine dark ride with a Mustafar diner around the corner.

If there were a Magicland that looked oddly Parisian where we could meet Harry Potter and then Frodo Baggins followed by a character meal with Voldemort and Saruman, I’d be fine with that.

But a Middle Earth land set in Des Moines with Young Bilbo and Frodo together at the same time?

 

[Brer Oswald]

Harry Potter fans will care. And the WWoHP largely saved Universal Orlando because its ravenous fanbase were satisfied.

What was the best selling video game in the USA in 2023 and why?

Yes and no. I’m sure Potterheads will be more than happy to know that the ride is based on the Ministry of Magic they care about and not the one from Fantastic Beasts. I’m also sure that most park guests will be entranced by the Parisian Streets they can explore. It’s the best of both worlds and will make for a more compelling land.

 

[SplashJacket]

I concur. Seems like the most complete and fun land of the group.

Only land without a major expansion space / a diverse attraction line-up for all ages.

3 rides, 1 major show, kinetics and animation throughout the land, and various fun surprises.

The entry reminds me of Treasure Cove in Shanghai.

 

[celluloid]

Frontierland isn’t a single IP land. They would not build a Hoth spinner across from a Tatooine dark ride with a Mustafar diner around the corner.

Galaxy's Edge is. Toy Story Land is. Both feature the same kind of mental hoops you claim are in this.

 

[celluloid]

It has been said for a long time in the planning that there is a philosophy that people will come for the Potter and Mario, they will come back after being in love with Monsters and Dragons. The regulars will be inspired and find thrills and food in Celestial Park.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Galaxy's Edge is. Toy Story Land is. Both feature the same kind of mental hoops you claim are in this.

Sorry—where in those lands do the settings or timelines clash? SWGE, in particular, adheres to its timeline and setting to a fault.

 

[Mike S]

DH and me, too!

We'd been married for almost 10 years before we happened to have a conversation about books we enjoyed as kids. I told him there was this series of black-and-white monster movie books in my elementary school library, that I loved so much, and checked out so many times, that by the time I hit 6th grade, the check-out cards for each of them were filled almost exclusively with my name. He said that was weird, because there was a similar series in his school library that he used to check out and reread repeatedly, as well.

It turned out it was the very same series -- occupying the shelves of 2 elementary schools, 60+ miles away from one another, being obsessively adored by two little nerds who'd meet and fall in love 15 years later. The first time we went into Monsters Cafe at Universal Orlando, we were like kids in a candy store!

As you can imagine, we are irrationally excited for Dark Universe.

View attachment 765917

This is the first time in my life I’ve seen that Murders in the Rue Morgue isn’t just an Iron Maiden song.

 

[Chef idea Mickey`=]

Aside from that, kind of wished they would have built an area themed to Shrek's Far Far Away instead of an area based on a spin-off of a beloved movie franchise like Fantastic Beasts where the third movie flopped like crazy, yeah, I know Shrek isn't the biggest animated franchise anymore(especially with Shrek the Third(and to some, Shrek Forever After) being a cinematic afterthought to moviegoers) and the Dragons series was the more constant of the DreamWorks bunch, but that franchise suddenly had a resurgence lately thanks to Puss in Boots: The Last Wish being a hit with pretty much everyone, as for Fantastic Beasts, that is on pause indefinitely, but that won't stop Universal(and the license holdovers to the Wizarding World franchise) from giving us Ministry of Magic

PS: I've heard that it was rumored to sit alongside Diagon Alley at Studios, so I hope the space that used to be Fear Factor Live(where the Fantastic Beasts land was rumored to be) will eventually see more love or redevelop it to finally get a Floridian clone of the Pets ride from Hollywood after Epic Universe opens(probably not)

Once Knowing Universal was expanding with another park on epic lands I assumed there would be one land based for kids, HTTYD seems more a little older up to teen driven? Far Far Away from Singapore was a definite and a Pets clone if the reason the wait was to go to Epic. Trolls and Madagascar would suit in this same land to add to Shrek.

 

[Brer Oswald]

The two settings in Ministry of Magic will be disjointed. And that's the way it is.

The original 'lands' in Disneyland were an amalgam of different times, settings, universes. And that's the way it is.

Is a unified adherence to the theme and setting of a 'land' something to aspire to? Sure. But sometimes, you need a junk drawer full of unrelated stuff for the sake of expediency.

We've been having this argument with MK's Frontierland, which was one of those junk drawers of time and geography. Some people seem intent on claiming a pure geographical and chronological thematic adherence that it had in its past (which it didn't) and how that pure thematic adherence must endure into the future (not unless you make everything else thematically pure, thank-you).

This is all a long way to say: I don't care if Ministry of Magic has two separate settings. It is what it is. I'm not going to boycott it for its lack of thematic purity.

But those who say that it's OK if it has two disjointed settings should also give a pass to other parks when they also have disjointed settings in one 'themed land.'

In general, I agree with this point. Though I still think there needs to be some sort of thematic link between the attractions within a land (whether it be aesthetic, setting, IP, etc) which MoM has.

 

[celluloid]

Sorry—where in those lands do the settings or timelines clash? SWGE, in particular, adheres to its timeline and setting to a fault.

Dude, Toy Story Land can't even get its scale consistent. Timelines would give you a headache.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Dude, Toy Story Land can't even get its scale consistent.

I don’t recall mentioning scale.

 

[Weather_Lady]

This is the first time in my life I’ve seen that Murders in the Rue Morgue isn’t just an Iron Maiden song.

The original story is well worth a read, if you like Poe! (FWIW, the films that have been based on it have all made significant changes to the story.)

The Murders in the Rue Morgue - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[SplashJacket]

Strange none of the Moana JoW splash pad crew have started gloating about Astronimica splash pad.

 

[celluloid]

I don’t recall mentioning scale.

Is scale not a part of thematic consistency? A pretty darn important one if that is your main bragging point on a land of toys where in theme you are the size of one.

Timelines are really ugly there too, but are not adhered to, so that it can keep fun.

 

[Chef idea Mickey`=]

Indeed. The New EPCOT Hub has become a park in the traditional sense of a park. It seems like Celestial Park will be of a similar vein.

Maybe this will be an impetus to bring back plans for an EPCOT Entrance Hotel!

Traditional for Epcot lol
Celestrial at least remains the same since it's 1st conception art foundation and looks unique and very new. Epcot's earlier concept art looked so exciting it had such elevated elevation walking paths that decended and one going back up towards the festival building.. now today everything is flat, even worse it's Grey flooring..hard and dull and sad..

 

[UNCgolf]

I honestly expect HTTYD to be a bit of a sleeper hit, and a lot of the Nintendo issues stem from an expectation mismatch regarding MK. With time, once expectations adjust, I fully expect MK to be more Universally loved.

IMO, MK somewhat feels like a Runaway Railway but with better execution. MK >> MMRR. For me, it's an instant classic.

Every land should have really good kinetics and be very nice places to hang around / have more depth beyond the headlining attractions.

HTTYD displays the problem with single IP lands -- if you don't care about the IP, it needs to be truly excellent to function as a draw. Pandora pulls this off, but I think it's a lot easier to do that when it's basically just beautiful scenery (and it has two quality attractions, which helps). I think Diagon Alley does too, but hard to know there because HP is such a massive franchise that most people have familiarity.

The visual style and what I remember reading about the supposed attractions for HTTYD aren't interesting to me on their own, and since I don't have an attachment to the IP, I have a feeling it's going to be a whole section of the park that I can basically skip.

I also think the Mario Kart ride is very bad -- not just as a terrible fit for the IP, but as a poor attraction on its own merits -- but that's obviously subjective.

I want more information about what is in the monsters and HP areas.

All that said, I really do love the whole look/style of the Celestial Park area.

 

[MisterPenguin]

The original story is well worth a read, if you like Poe! (The old black-and-white film upon which it was loosely based made significant changes to the storyline, however, changing it from a closed-door murder mystery, to a mad scientist story.)

The Murders in the Rue Morgue - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

And noted for being the first "detective genre" work, preceding Sherlock Holmes. (It's not even in the Horror genre.)

 

[MisterPenguin]

now today everything is flat, even worse it's Grey flooring..hard and dull and sad..

It's not all grey flooring. There's weathered iron, light-up walkways, and other outdoor flooring options.

 

[Chef idea Mickey`=]

It's not all grey flooring. There's weathered iron, light-up walkways, and other outdoor flooring options.

I know..but it drives me nuts that it looks my college campus state park than the old colored floor which felt you were in an amazing park. I wouldn't of mind a mix of the two.. need to look how California Adventure's floor is.