Wand Lovers

[goofyfan13]

Hopefully now we`ll get a full cutting edge Silvania lighting package for SSE that`ll put the 1982 one to shame.

-something the wand would have made difficult.

Here here! I can't wait to see the colors actually change again on SSE. Thats been one of the biggest things I've missed.

 

[DMC-12]

:lookaroun


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UB5brM_EHaY


:lookaroun

 

[Sherrybaby]

Lets face it the geosphere is boring to look at. I have been going to Disney for a long time. I've been to epcot with and without the wand. The wand hating thing comes from all the Epcot "nerds" that hate change. Dont miss undersatnd me I'm no trying to be mean. I am "nerd" myself. There is nothing more that I love then hiting the turnstyles at Epcot and hearing that futuristic music then heading straight for my most favorite ride of all time SSE. I dont mind the wand, it adds a little spice to the geosphere which frankly by itself is dull.

I could not agree more!!! I first visited WDW the year it opened and usually twice a year since. So I guess I'm a "Disney purist" in the truest sense of the statement. However, I believe the wand brought some much needed color and excitement to the entrance of Epcot. And as I stated in another post--the wand helped people "find" Epcot. I spoke to several people from out of the country who did not know where Epcot was until they saw the wand. For me and my family it will be truly missed.

Sherry

 

[aeromike]

I moved to florida when i was 9- march 5th 2000, I lived there for 3 years and left august 13th, 2003. I'm used to seeing the wand, and looking back on videos of it bald, the wand makes it look better. The first time I went to florida was in 1997 and sse didn't seem like much. The wand makes sse more pleasurble to look at and make it more colourful and it stands out when the wand lights are on.

 

[dixiegirl]

I could not agree more!!! I first visited WDW the year it opened and usually twice a year since. So I guess I'm a "Disney purist" in the truest sense of the statement. However, I believe the wand brought some much needed color and excitement to the entrance of Epcot. And as I stated in another post--the wand helped people "find" Epcot. I spoke to several people from out of the country who did not know where Epcot was until they saw the wand. For me and my family it will be truly missed.

Sherry

I could'nt agree more!! I was afraid to say anything about my LOVE and I'll say it again, my LOVE for the wand..I just did'nt want to get bashed..BUt I realize everything needs to change sometime.....I still don't like the fact that Dixie Landings had to change the name to POR, but what you gonna do?!

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Mmmmm having lived all my youff near proper castles I just cant get worked up over a plastic one.

 

[3girlswdwdreams]

I started going to Epcot from when it opened. I remember going for the 1999 holiday season through new years... DH and I saw the wand with the 2000 and thought "WOW"... We loved it.....It was something on a grand scale for celebrating the millennium and it seemed appropriate at the time.

I thought the thing would be long gone... having not been able to keep up with Disney stuff the last 7 years I just assumed it was taken down after the year 2000... didn't even know EPCOT had been added to it.

So though I'm not a wand "hater" by any means.. I think it was a great symbol for what I believe was its original intent in 1999... but sounds like their biggest mistake, knowing it was temporary, was leaving it up for years to let people get used to it. Had they taken it down in say 2001 I don't think there would be SO much discussion about it... people would have accepted it was a millennium thing and been done with it.

I do feel very badly for people with little ones that have gone on several visits and parents have to explain where it went.... I am sure kids love it!! and they don't take things like that very well..... kids will show concern about it... and it's not something small that you can "scoot" by them. I am sure there will be many tears... so that aspect is a little sad.
I am selfishly happy it will be gone before we get there in Dec.... so I won't be in that predicament.

 

[tiggerzgirl83]

I have been visiting Walt Disney World since 1992, and I must say...I will miss the Wand and sad to see it go. It gave SSE a good look in my opinion. It gave it that UUMFF!!

 

[cindy'smom]

It all depends on when you started visiting DW. If you were there pre-wand, you prefer it without the wand, if you were there post-wand, you prefer it with the wand. And yes, there is going to be a minority that disagree with that, but the majority of people have a problem with change. It forces them out of a comfort zone.

YOUR opinion, of course. Personally, my first visit to Epcot was in '83 and I happen to think the wand was a fabulous addition. Now it will just be a graveyard (leave a legacy) with a sphere.

I also hated the birthday cake castle and the MGM hat, but I think the wand really highlighted the sphere. I will always be glad I have my pictures of the Y2K and Epcot versions of the wand.

 

[Ducky_Love]

I didn't hate the wand at first.. when they put it up I thought it was pretty. It was at about the three year point I wondered if they would ever take the thing down. By five years I was a card carrying wand hater. And now a days when I walk in the park I can't get through the gates without grumbling something about that Vegas tacky wand.

I think it is the same with the mirror on the castle. They took it down after a set period to reveal the park icon. I think all of these celebration overlays should have an expiration date!

Just my 2 cents...:wave:

 

[Sherrybaby]

I could'nt agree more!! I was afraid to say anything about my LOVE and I'll say it again, my LOVE for the wand..I just did'nt want to get bashed..BUt I realize everything needs to change sometime.....I still don't like the fact that Dixie Landings had to change the name to POR, but what you gonna do?!

Hi Dixie:

I know what you mean about getting bashed. I have been lurking on this site for so many years I lost count but didn't register before now because I just did not want to deal with the stress of the flaming and bashing. But try to speak your mind when you can because if YOU have an opinion you can be sure that at least one other person here has the same one somewhere and will hopefully speak up and defend you. I think the people here who are in the minority of "liking the wand" have a lot of courage to speak up because the bashing and flaming that goes on here is sometimes a little hard to take.

Sorry for your loss and mine. Back to boring grey I guess!

Sherry

 

[Timmay]

Eh, some people love to hate. Some people cant be happy without misery. And some people like to think that through the internet, they can play their own epic version of Rollercoaster Tycoon by criticizing ever move Disney makes. They'll never be happy because the parks were never quite the way they remember them, because they never were.

As for the wand, eh? who cares.

Pure genius!!!!:sohappy:

And as someone else said, most of the gripes (and now glaoting) are simply lemmings following a few others.

 

[Krimedog]

been visiting since a year or two before the wand, and i must say i love it with the wand more than without. U know spaceship earth is a key icon in the park, but its just so bland. It amazing to look at and think, wow, how they did it. But with the wand it gave it color, sparkle and all that.

either way the wand coming down is okay, but i will miss the wand.

 

[Epcot82Guy]

Hi Dixie:

I know what you mean about getting bashed. I have been lurking on this site for so many years I lost count but didn't register before now because I just did not want to deal with the stress of the flaming and bashing. But try to speak your mind when you can because if YOU have an opinion you can be sure that at least one other person here has the same one somewhere and will hopefully speak up and defend you. I think the people here who are in the minority of "liking the wand" have a lot of courage to speak up because the bashing and flaming that goes on here is sometimes a little hard to take.

Sorry for your loss and mine. Back to boring grey I guess!

Sherry

While I can't speak for everyone, I hope you don't find the boards attacking for personal opinions. There is a large distinction between disliking something done at/to the parks and disliking those who enjoy it. The think with Disney is that the Parks mean a lot of different things to different people. In fact, "you" (meant with all due respect) were the reason the wand went up in the first place. It was an attempt to offer something for everone at each of the parks, a homogonization of sorts. Unfortunately, that destroyed what many of us who grew up with EPCOT Center as a wonderful place loved about the park and WDW as a whole. For the amount I'm spending, I don't feel the need to compromise on what I want (nor should anyone).

If you feel it was a mistake, speak up. You can and should defend your position. Flaming and bashing only comes from those that are not articulate or responsible enough to have an appropriate debate. Who knows, something you may say may help someone understand something new and vice versa. Imagination and communication are some of the best things we have as people. I learned that at EPCOT Center. :wave:

 

[Buried20KLeague]

Hopefully now we`ll get a full cutting edge Silvania lighting package for SSE that`ll put the 1982 one to shame.

-something the wand would have made difficult.

This has been my whole guess ever since they announced the wand being gone.

If you think about it for a minute, they had to have motivation to spend the money to take that thing down. There had to be a reason. And as much as I'd love to think it was them listening to those of us that hated the thing, common sense dictates that has very little to do with it.

My guess is that they want to use SSE as a platform to showcase some major lighting tech that they can attribute to Sylvania... A division of Siemens. They want to, essentially, put up another sponsorship ad.

That being said... I'm okay with that... If they do a killer lighting package. That'd be much better than the wand.

 

[JimboJones123]

Yesterday I mentioned to one of my friends (who goes to WDW almost every year), "Oh guess what! They're taking the wand down from Spaceship Earth at Epcot!" I said it in a happy voice, like it's a good thing. He turned and looked at me as if I had just said they were tearing down Cinderella Castle, and said, "What?! Why?" Several other friends have had the same reaction.

The truth is, the average guest's opinions are frequently quite different from those of us die-hard fans on WDW message boards. But your average guest also isn't as concerned as we are about things like whether the theme is consistent or whether SSE looks "majestic."

My friend, for instance, goes to WDW every summer for one reason: a certain unofficial, very "happy" event where lots of people wear red. He's there for the company and the overall environment much more than for the specific attractions. Sometimes he doesn't even remember which rides he went on or whether or not he went to a certain part of the parks; he just lets it all wash over him. He's the kind of guest who could ride the new Haunted Mansion when it's all done and not even realize that it's changed.

Thankfully, Disney doesn't make decisions just to please guests like him; they know that by striving for excellence and going above and beyond on tiny details most guests will never notice, they can create a destination with a reputation for excellence, even though many guests will have no idea how much effort and money it takes to do so.

-p.b.

Isn't this a counter to your whole arguement. Not all WDW guest think the same -- but WDW Fans on message boards all think the same??? I could give a flip about it -- and lean a bit more toward the wand being there. Fun over underthemed I say.

 

[WDWFigment]

I don't really see the point of trying to convince people who liked the wand that SSE is a piece of art that is degraded by the presence of a wand. If they don't understand that on their own, they're probably the type of people who would wear gym shorts that say "princess", "b****", etc across the rear. I have come to expect tactless people in the world as the norm; I don't think the rest of us should pander down to those people just because they are the majority.

So the majority liked the wand? Big deal. Not everything is an exercise in the rule of the majority or capitalism. People aren't going to stop taking vacations to Disney because the wand is gone, so the only money Disney needs to worry about losing is that which they spend to tear down the wand. That amount probably is roughly equivalent to annual maintenance of the wand, so it looks like a wash. In this case, Disney can focus on something other than money or majority opinion--artistic integrity of the parks. I know it's something that many of us think is long gone, but with the wand coming down, it looks like that integrity may be back.

 

[JimboJones123]

Wow the people that are very "uppity" (to say it nicely) about how "important" a wandless SSE can really get much more DOWN AND DIRTY (Filthy even) to put down the other side. Isn't it the Chronic? Don't you think?

 

[JimboJones123]

I don't really see the point of trying to convince people who liked the wand that SSE is a piece of art that is degraded by the presence of a wand. If they don't understand that on their own, they're probably the type of people who would wear gym shorts that say "princess", "b****", etc across the rear. I have come to expect tactless people in the world as the norm; I don't think the rest of us should pander down to those people just because they are the majority.

So the majority liked the wand? Big deal. Not everything is an exercise in the rule of the majority or capitalism. People aren't going to stop taking vacations to Disney because the wand is gone, so the only money Disney needs to worry about losing is that which they spend to tear down the wand. That amount probably is roughly equivalent to annual maintenance of the wand, so it looks like a wash. In this case, Disney can focus on something other than money or majority opinion--artistic integrity of the parks. I know it's something that many of us think is long gone, but with the wand coming down, it looks like that integrity may be back.

Wow -- which side are you talking about again??? Is this Bizzaro Happiness Fans World???

You with the sad eyes
Don't be discouraged
Oh I realize
It's hard to take courage
In a world full of people
You can lose sight of it all
And the darkness inside you
Can make you feel so small

But I see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow

Show me a smile then,
Don't be unhappy, can't remember
When I last saw you laughing
If this world makes you crazy
And you've taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I'll be there

And I'll see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful,
Like a rainbow

 

[Eyorefan]

Well, I have a couple of comments.

Since so many people are talking about what "average guests" think about the wand I'll share with you the reaction of my family when I told them the wand was coming down...

My sister, "Oh, is the wand a big deal? I haven't really thought about it."
My mom, "I kind of liked it. Oh well."
My dad (who just went to Epcot with me in May) "Wand? What wand? There's is a wand on the golf ball? When did they put that there? What does it look like?"

From that I am lead to believe that the average guest could careless.

Now if we are talking about why some people think it is the worst example of the cheaping of Epcot I will share an anlagy that I thought of while I was talking to one of my Star Wars geek friends.
Putting the wand on SSE is just like if Lucus had added a big red glittering sign that said, "DEATH STAR" to the Death Star when we went and re-did the earlier Star Wars episodes.

Just my thoughts on the subject.