Whoa, whoa whoa whoa.....wait a minute.
"Make him stop speaking english"
"Make him refer to himself as 626"
"Chris Sanders wasn't in his right mind"
Sigh. Okay....here's where I'm going to do something bad an actually offer a dissenting opinion:
First, about Chris. Chris went on the attraction, helped in its development, and stated that the way the show is now, is the way he would have done it too. He called the show a success. Whether you folks like it or not, the way stitch behaves in SGE is exactly the idea that Chris had of Stitch prior to Lilo meeting him: Playfully destructive, a nuisance, and mischivious. What he does with the audience, is exactly what 626 would have done. It's not a dumbed down or kid-safe script meant to make the idea of 626 less scary. It's a script based in truth on what Sanders' idea for Stitch was.
I'm sorry if you don't like that, and you feel that Stitch should somehow be scarier and more intimidating...but I could not disagree more.
Next, it has to be said: "They should shut down Stitch and bring back AE"
No, as much as you miss AE, they shouldn't shut down Stitch and bring AE back. While you'd make the AE fans happy with that, you would then have legions of disappointed Stitch fans. And to say "Well, who cares about them?" would be hypocrisy, because we are supposed to care about your loss of a ride. But we can't be allowed to love THIS ride without someone telling us that we're actinjg like our opinion is the only one that counts.
The fact is, a lot of people are being selfish about SGE, and it's happening on BOTH sides. I posted a subject a long time ago about the growing cultural war over AE. People agreed with me that it was getting too hot and people needed to cool down. Apparently, that isn't going to happen, and that's a real shame.
Next, have him stop speaking english? Well, I was surprised that there wasn't any tantalog used in the ride, but, can you imagine guests fully enjoying it if he doesn't utter a single word in english throughout the entire ride? People would come out of there with blank expressions "What did he say? What was that about? I don't get it". No offense intended Stitch79, but can you see the feasibility of turning it into a non-english ride? It wouldn't work. Disney would receive complaints, and have to re-script it yet again. It just doesn't make sense.
Next, calling himself 626 might be accurate, but there is a reason they refer to him at Stitch, and he calls himself Stitch, and that reason is called recognition. The ride is popular for 2 reasons: The strength and popularity of the Stitch character; and because the ride is new. Those are the two main reasons. "626's Great Escape" just doesn't have the same ring to it...nor will it be recognized by as many people.
Everbody knows who Stitch is. Not everyone knows who 626 is, or the story behind how he came to be named. Not everyone in the world has watched the movie. But disney's goal is to get as many people visiting the MK, to go see Stitch's great escape. That makes it a successful attraction. "Stitch" has more staying power, than "626".
Now think of the line...."Not impossible...for Stitch!" change it to "Not impossible, for 626!", can you imagine him saying that?
Case point: Stitch never refers to himself as 626 in the movie or in the series. Never. The only time he refers to himself as such, is in one of the versions of the screenmate. With this in mind, I can't imagine him calling himself 626. That's what Jumba calls him, and the GF. But not Stitch himself. And why is this such a sticking point anyway? Why is this bugging people?
To make everyone happy, Disney can simply remove the lines where stitch refers to himself at all. "Stitch has to boogie", "Not impossible for Stitch", get rid of them. Don't ever have Stitch tell you who he is. Then everyone is satisfied...those who think of him as Stitch, and those who think of him as 626. No complaint. But I think it's real sad that disney would have to do that to satisfy people.
I stand by an argument I have begun to form within the last two days.
We're being selfish.
And darn it, somebody has to say it. I'll risk my reputation by doing so. I want to see this ride succeed. I really do. Why do people have a problem with that? Some of y'all seem intent on making sure this ride fails or that people don't like it. I don't think it's fair. It's made me consider taking up another board for news on SGE because here it's tainted by so much negativity. You guys are tired of Stitch being popular? I was there from the beginning when he wasn't. I was there before it was cool to love Stitch. I'm no fair weather fan, and it disappoints me greatly, to hear such things, but I respect your opinion. But sometimes, a spade is a spade. The demands are too high.
Stitch is not AE, and will never be, and if Eisney and co. try to make it AE, there will be hell to pay. The ride will fail. Stitch is not a scary alien, and to make him one, because you think "adults want scary rides", would destroy his character. Parents would take their kids on it, kids would be scared out of their minds, and hate stitch. Parents and teens who love stitch FOR WHO HE IS, not based on some aribtrary standard set by AE, would also be very turned off by this.
We like Stitch's antics...his sillyness...is un-politically correct ways. WDW is transforming into Stitchland. This is very apparent at MGM studios and now MK. Some people, are overjoyed to see it. When I go to Disneyland, Stitch is almost nowhere to be seen or heard. It's like he doesn't exist over there. In WDW, Stitch almost IS the park. He's even the mascot of the Polynesian! You know how great it feels to see him come this far, when 2 years ago, I never knew if he'd have a future at all?
This character is very very dear to me, ver important in my life...whether you find it ridiculous or not, I couldn't care less. I know how I feel and I'm not changing it for some measure of acceptance in any society. I love Stitch. I'm glad to see his success. I find that this makes WDW an even more enjoyable place to visit, but I RESPECT that there are people who do not. But this little war needs to end before it becomes even bigger.
And now, bring on the bashing. Shield up.
