Cmdr_Crimson
Well-Known Member
IMO......It's just this scene...They could have made this better...
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Why the hate for Little Mermaid ride?
- Thread starter geekza
- Start date
Tom Morrow
Well-Known Member
Yeah, the ride makes it seem as though Ursula helped Ariel and then was punished just for helping her.IMO......It's just this scene...They could have made this better...
aliceismad
Well-Known Member
I agree. I wonder if it was the "scare factor" or space limitations that pushed Disney away from including it.IMO......It's just this scene...They could have made this better...
I think the ride overall is fine. The plastic-y ness of it is mildly disappointing. I always feel like the Prince Eric animatronics imbibed too much in some sort of adult or only-legal-in-some-places substance.
MickeyLuv'r
Well-Known Member
I think the ride is decent. Obviously not a showstopper though, or the waits would be longer. By biggest peeve is the number of flash photos, especially in the Ursula scene, which tends to be blinding. Luckily, the craze of taking tons of flash photos seems to be dying down just a tad, as people get used to smartphones.
In my opinion though...I remember when the DVD of the movie came out. More or less, a preview of this attraction was included in the DVD special features for ride that was planned long ago but (at that point) not yet built.
On the Disney boards, Disney fans were not at all happy that the ride had not been built. I saw many posts begging Disney to build the ride that was on the DVD. In my opinion, Disney (mostly) built the ride that Disney fans asked them to build.
There were quite a few years between when the ride idea began, when the video was made, when that video was released (on the DVD), and when the ride was finally built. I daresay, in this one case there's a little bit of Disney not being able to please all of the people all of the time. Fans would have been unhappy if LM was never built, and many would have been unhappy if the actual ride was much different from the video. The DVD video even has the clamshells! And of course some fan aren't happy because it is very similar to a ride concept that was developed many years before the actual ride.
In my opinion though...I remember when the DVD of the movie came out. More or less, a preview of this attraction was included in the DVD special features for ride that was planned long ago but (at that point) not yet built.
On the Disney boards, Disney fans were not at all happy that the ride had not been built. I saw many posts begging Disney to build the ride that was on the DVD. In my opinion, Disney (mostly) built the ride that Disney fans asked them to build.
There were quite a few years between when the ride idea began, when the video was made, when that video was released (on the DVD), and when the ride was finally built. I daresay, in this one case there's a little bit of Disney not being able to please all of the people all of the time. Fans would have been unhappy if LM was never built, and many would have been unhappy if the actual ride was much different from the video. The DVD video even has the clamshells! And of course some fan aren't happy because it is very similar to a ride concept that was developed many years before the actual ride.
erasure fan1
Well-Known Member
I said back when it opened, it felt like they put the majority of the budget into the queue and then said, oh crud, we still need a ride! And maybe that was the plan, they wanted something to draw crowds and eat a lot of people, and having this epic queue would attract them.
Professortango1
Well-Known Member
The problem is the ride doesn't have much drama or central idea. Snow White is based upon fear with it being a traditional spook house. Peter Pan has an elevated beauty (no pun intended) and plays up the soaring above aspect (even if the 2nd half of the ride falls a little flat), Pinocchio is a more carnival-like horror show where we enter a stage at the start and learn how grotesque the world behind the circus can be. Alice is a whimsy inspired ride with tons of winding, discovery, climbing, descending. Toad is a madcap runaway car ride with a sense of reckless adventure.
All of these are more focused on a feeling and a theme than on retelling the story itself. These ideas could become tangible and physical in the ride. We are also DOING something in these rides. We are running from the witch or crashing through buildings, or being caged in, or flying above Neverland. We are IN these stories.
With Mermaid, they tried to apply a vague theme of "music" to the attraction with no emotional hooks or themes. Music is also hard to physicalize when your characters are fixed animatronics. If the ride vehicles could bounce and dance a la Pooh, it might have helped some, but you still are trying to create a lively atmosphere out of scenes which are mostly static.
We also have no purpose in Mermaid. We watch. We float past things happening. Ursula doesn't welcome US into her lair, her tentacles reaching for us as she tries to entice us to make deal. No, she sings to an unseen Ariel and we have no interaction. Mermaid is just too safe/middle of the road to be successful. Had they played more loosely with the story or ideas to create a personal experience rather than a book report, people would have a lot of interest in this ride. That's why I love Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin. It perfectly embodies the world of Roger Rabbit with familiar characters, but a whole new experience centered around us. Mermaid is static fish and pretty music.
All of these are more focused on a feeling and a theme than on retelling the story itself. These ideas could become tangible and physical in the ride. We are also DOING something in these rides. We are running from the witch or crashing through buildings, or being caged in, or flying above Neverland. We are IN these stories.
With Mermaid, they tried to apply a vague theme of "music" to the attraction with no emotional hooks or themes. Music is also hard to physicalize when your characters are fixed animatronics. If the ride vehicles could bounce and dance a la Pooh, it might have helped some, but you still are trying to create a lively atmosphere out of scenes which are mostly static.
We also have no purpose in Mermaid. We watch. We float past things happening. Ursula doesn't welcome US into her lair, her tentacles reaching for us as she tries to entice us to make deal. No, she sings to an unseen Ariel and we have no interaction. Mermaid is just too safe/middle of the road to be successful. Had they played more loosely with the story or ideas to create a personal experience rather than a book report, people would have a lot of interest in this ride. That's why I love Roger Rabbit's Cartoon Spin. It perfectly embodies the world of Roger Rabbit with familiar characters, but a whole new experience centered around us. Mermaid is static fish and pretty music.
Mermaid is the ultimate "book report" ride. A report done at the last minute by someone who didn't see the whole movie.
Figments Friend
Well-Known Member
Yes, it was the scare factor that made those involved in the project cut it, as well as the budget constraints.
The original intent was a far scarier encounter with Ursula for the climatic battle at sea that was to take place prior to the 'happy ending' scene.
If you have not viewed it already, have a look at this pre-visualiation video of what the Attraction was originally intended to be.
I recommend viewing the entire video, but if you don't have the time skip ahead to 2:30 to see the original epic 'sea battle' with Ursula -
This, in my opinion, would have been a far better ride experience.
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danyoung56
Well-Known Member
I have that video on dvd, but I haven't dragged it out yet - thanks for posting. The biggest thing that version does for me is the feeling of going under water. The current effect is fine, but if they could have figgered out a way to do it as originally envisioned, that would have been really cool!
Dunston
Well-Known Member
I think they should have put transparent scrims above you or something, anything more than those plastic swirls to make you feel like you're underwater and not in a warehouse with studio lights overhead. And yeah yeah the climax stinks but that point's been overdone.
I personally don't really like the DVD extras version of the ride people always reference, because the story doesn't make narrative sense. Why is Kiss the Girl after giant Ursula, which should be the ride's climax?
I personally don't really like the DVD extras version of the ride people always reference, because the story doesn't make narrative sense. Why is Kiss the Girl after giant Ursula, which should be the ride's climax?
Paper straw fan
Well-Known Member
I agree with why people don’t love it, but I still like it. I’m mostly looking for a relaxing ride, and it provides. The story though...
Mermaid wants to be girl
Mermaid becomes girl
Romantic boat ride!
Oh no bad stuff oh it’s cool never mind
Fin.
Mermaid wants to be girl
Mermaid becomes girl
Romantic boat ride!
Oh no bad stuff oh it’s cool never mind
Fin.
danheaton
Well-Known Member
I really enjoy the queue and the first half despite the book report nature of it. The transition to the water is well done, and the early scenes work. Beyond just being short, the ending also has really bad animatronics. The scene with Ariel and Eric waving at us is super creepy and also just dull. It's become a running joke at home about that scene. It's a B for me overall, especially with the lower lines, but it could have been a lot better.
JustAFan
Well-Known Member
The bad animatronics at the end are ironic because the Ursula animatronic is one of the better ones on property.
danheaton
Well-Known Member
Right. I think that's what frustrates some fans even more than if it was just okay throughout. There are moments of brilliance and then just head-scratching ones. There's no consistency.
disney4life2008
Well-Known Member
Out of curiosity, on magic Kingdom worst day. How long is the wait? I'm trying to understand the que.
Animaniac93-98
Well-Known Member
Expectations were high for this ride.
It was the long awaited replacement for 20,000 Leagues, and the first major new ride in the park since Splash Mountain. The potential for an AA heavy Omnimover dark ride was fantastic and fans had been waiting for a Little Mermaid ride ever since it was first announced for Disneyland Paris back in 1992 and showed in a simulated form on the 2006 DVD release of the movie.
In California, the ride replaced Golden Dreams, a low budget California-specific variation of The American Adventure that was a one and done for most guests. Combine that with shorter waits and a more modest facade/queue and the disappointment wasn't as high.
In both cases though, the ride lacks the pacing and storytelling of Disney's better dark rides. It's both too long and too short. It features both complicated AAs and poorly staged props and characters with limited animation. The sum is less than its parts. Fans of the movie wanted more and felt they deserved more after such a long wait.
One of Disney's most popular movies got a much hyped new ride that was just OK.
It was the long awaited replacement for 20,000 Leagues, and the first major new ride in the park since Splash Mountain. The potential for an AA heavy Omnimover dark ride was fantastic and fans had been waiting for a Little Mermaid ride ever since it was first announced for Disneyland Paris back in 1992 and showed in a simulated form on the 2006 DVD release of the movie.
In California, the ride replaced Golden Dreams, a low budget California-specific variation of The American Adventure that was a one and done for most guests. Combine that with shorter waits and a more modest facade/queue and the disappointment wasn't as high.
In both cases though, the ride lacks the pacing and storytelling of Disney's better dark rides. It's both too long and too short. It features both complicated AAs and poorly staged props and characters with limited animation. The sum is less than its parts. Fans of the movie wanted more and felt they deserved more after such a long wait.
One of Disney's most popular movies got a much hyped new ride that was just OK.
Brer Panther
Well-Known Member
I think @MattFrees71, @Professortango1, and @Animaniac93-98 summed up very well why the ride isn't very good... as for me, I'll just say that the whole thing is just so blah. We're not getting involved in the story like other dark rides, we're just off to the side watching things go on. Many of the animatronics in the ride are just as primitive as those on Peter Pan. It's so glaringly obvious that they ran out of money halfway through building the ride, with the cardboard cutout Ursula being the most blatant example.
Good things about it? Well, Chris Edgerly does do a great Scuttle. That's pretty much it.
Good things about it? Well, Chris Edgerly does do a great Scuttle. That's pretty much it.
Walt_Disney
Active Member
What ride did the Little Mermaid replace at Disney Land?