Originally Posted By davewasbaloo I preferred DCA on opening day to what is there today, I am not keen on what I see for tomorrow. I think I might take my vacation dollars elsewhere if this continues. I can stay at home and watch toons.
Originally Posted By WorldDisney What do you mean lemisfan, They decided to cancel the changes to the Screamin queue and carousel? And can someone tell me what were those changes suppose to actually be? I kept hearing about the queue to screamin, but all I hear is that i was suppose to be enclosed, the actual theming part is always vague.
Originally Posted By WorldDisney Like I said Dave, I feel ya. Even though I thought DCA basically sucked on opening day lol, the tone of the place never bothered me, it was just the overall and CHEAP execution of it mainly, but the adult vibe was fine for me. I'm not 12 anymore, I didnt mind a non-cartoon type park. But I think you should at least see the overall changes before you deem it a failure. I get its not your cup of tea in term of themes, but the stuff like Radiator Springs, WOC, the entrance etc really does say DISNEY for a change instead of having another Water rapids ride, an entire area full of carnival clones and more films then you would find at an AMC theater . I think this DCA will definitely be more sucessful at it being much more family orientated, another big complaint against the original park (hell, even my mother found ONE attraction to ride on opening day--SSL, the horror lol) and I think your kids will love all the changes as well . (Oh and got the pictures of you at DLP on FB a few days ago, very nice )
Originally Posted By lesmisfan well that was some of the stuff they wanted to do and that was the first model that they came up with. but i guess either they decided against it for budget reasons or something else im not quite sure. again this is just something told to me by someone close to the project.
Originally Posted By lesmisfan the themeing part was gonna look very similar to the style of architecture used for mania, it was going to cover the cue and the track until you got to the launch were it was going to be outside like it is now.
Originally Posted By jmuboy In terms of "Disney Dollars" and the amount of money they are spending, how much can a cover for the carousel and redesigned queue and station for an existing roller coaster really cost? If the parachute drop getas cut I'm not gonna be sad, but I really want to see the carousel and Screamin' changes happen!
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt “And Radiator Springs Racers is probably going to cost as much as Expedition Everest did…” And you know this because? Look, there have been no details released about this ride other than its name and a few drawings. We know nothing beyond that. You could be right, but until some details are released about what we’ll encounter on the ride your statements here are pure speculation. I’m sure that this ride and the others will be popular and fun. What I’m saying is that the stuff being planned doesn’t excite ME. “And although you may not like the story of it, or the theme, to not consider it an "ambitious signature E ticket attraction" is simply wrong.” How do you know? Like I said, it LOOKS like these things aren’t addressing the all the issues I think this park needs to work on. I’m not making conclusions, I’m only commenting based on the information that has been given. “NOTHING at Disneyland since Indy, nor ANYTHING EVER at DCA, gives us the kind of over the top bragging rights that Cars Land has the potential for.” These are parks owned by a billion dollar corporation. I can’t understand why someone would have theme park envy over this stuff. By the time Cars Land opens there will likely be some other attraction in the works for another park that will likely trump it. That’s the way it goes. “…it was just the overall and CHEAP execution of it mainly, but the adult vibe was fine for me.” And I think most people would agree with this. Thankfully Disney seems to be addressing this big time with the redo. From the drawings the park looks like it will be very beautiful.
Originally Posted By Skellington88 >>>Again, this stuff all looks pretty, but it doesn't really address DCA's biggest problem for me: the lack of an ambitious signature E ticket attraction.<<< Radiator Springs Racers is the most ambitious thrill ride e-ticket attraction in the anahiem properties history since the completion of Indiana Jones in 1995. Little Mermaid will also be an e-ticket although not a thrill ride. Although based on the 1989 movie, you can expect this ride to be every bit as immersive and grand in theming as The Haunted Mansion. I believe this will actually be the first BIG family ride since the 60s when Its a small world, pirates, and Mansion opened. There are also e-tickets planned for phase 2 including a possible richly themed flume ride for Paradise Pier and from what I have heard a reworked attraction from Tokyo coming stateside.
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt "Radiator Springs Racers is the most ambitious thrill ride e-ticket attraction in the anahiem properties history since the completion of Indiana Jones in 1995." I'm still curious to know where this assertion is coming from. Is Disney stating this, or is this Internet conjecture and rumor? To me this ride appears to be a nice adaptation of Test Track, which is nice, but not what I mean when I say "ambitious signature E ticket" attraction. "Little Mermaid will also be an e-ticket although not a thrill ride." Maybe so, but like I said either here or elsewhere, I don't really care about mermaids. Perhaps all this will be as you say and I'll be bowled over when it opens. At the moment I'm not enthralled with the roster of new attractions. It all looks pretty though.
Originally Posted By mstaft Even though I really liked the Epcot-ish vibe in some areas of DCA at opening, the execution of DCA was terrible. I loved Eureka, Seasons of the Vine, disliked Golden Dreams, and most of the rest of the park save Condor Flats and GRR area. The new plans give this park detail all over. Maybe Disney has finally learned their lesson? If this first phase strikes paydirt, maybe Phase Two will add back inmore of the original intent and vibe. California is way more than the cheap Sunshine Plaza, half baked wharf, tacky carnival of the current pier, andshoddy backlot of opening day. This isa step in the right direction- ven if Disney initially uses toons to bring in the crowds and justify more additions. Mark www.insightsandsounds.blogspot.com
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt "This isa step in the right direction- ven if Disney initially uses toons to bring in the crowds and justify more additions." Yes, you're right. It's a step in the right direction - actually a huge leap. Still, I think it's worth commenting about first impressions.
Originally Posted By ArchtMig Hans, based upon your comments and arguments in posts #27 and 29 above, it's clear that you and I don't think about these parks in the same way. Which is fine, but to deny the immense scope of what Cars Land is all about is to be stubborn and shortsighted. Anyone who has an understanding of artist's renderings and has a feel for the cost of a proposed attraction based upon the scale of it would have no problem comparing RSR to Expedition Everest in terms of scope and cost. Clearly, they are comparable. I don't have to wait for Disney to announce what it will cost, which they never do anyway, to see that. This is not a cheap overlay job like Monster's Inc. or even an expensive one like Nemo Subs. This is in a whole nuther stratosphere. You can legitimately state that you don't care for its theme, story, or that it's not a "grown up" kinda Epcot kinda thing. But to state that this new land is not totally upper echelon on par with anything ever added to any existing park, or that RSR as an attraction will not be a totally top of the line signature E Ticket attraction is pure blind stupidity. What with the interior show building component, the exterior portions, and the shear massive size and scale of the thing, this is BIG TIME for DCA or any other park anywhere INCLUDING Tokyo. The only thing that would make it not so is if they don't do it at all. Which would be their only alternative to doing it up as promised because if they slash and burn the thing and wimp out and only do it 1/4 of what they are showing the public in all of these fancy renderings and models, then they risk losing the trust and good will of their loyal customer base, and they know that.
Originally Posted By Hans Reinhardt "Which is fine, but to deny the immense scope of what Cars Land is all about is to be stubborn and shortsighted." No one is denying the scope of the land. What I am saying is that the content isn't doesn't impress me. Two spinners (or whatever they are) doesn't qualify as a change in direction as far as attractions are concerned. I don't know enough about the headlining raceway attraction to even judge if it will be good or not. It LOOKS cool, but again, I don't know from what they've told us if it really WILL be. Follow me? "You can legitimately state that you don't care for its theme, story, or that it's not a "grown up" kinda Epcot kinda thing." And I've said that. "But to state that this new land is not totally upper echelon on par with anything ever added to any existing park, or that RSR as an attraction will not be a totally top of the line signature E Ticket attraction is pure blind stupidity." So now my opinion is stupid. Okay fine. In any case it all looks lovely, and there is no question that there is a lot to look forward to. Nevertheless, I'm not blown away by any of this.
Originally Posted By Skellington88 >Perhaps all this will be as you say and I'll be bowled over when it opens. At the moment I'm not enthralled with the roster of new attractions. It all looks pretty though.< It's always good to keep your expectations low.
Originally Posted By ArchtMig >>>So now my opinion is stupid. Okay fine.<<< Maybe we're both dancing around a complete understanding of what each other is saying. You keep saying there is no legitimate E Ticket planned, and I say that is completely wrong. Just because you don't approve of the theme or the storyline does not mean it is not an E Ticket. >>>Nevertheless, I'm not blown away by any of this.<<< That's fine, and I support you on that. And it's not a "stupid" opinion to have whatsoever. But that's not the same as saying it's not an E Ticket, and if you claim that it's not an E Ticket simply because you hate the theme of it, then that's where the argument verges on stupidity.
Originally Posted By ArchtMig >>>Two spinners (or whatever they are) doesn't qualify as a change in direction as far as attractions are concerned.<<< I didn't care for the direction this park was going in on the day it was conceived. I didn't care for what it was on the day it was opened. I didn't care for the direction it went toward for the first few years of its existence. And yes, I can think of things I'd do differently with the direction that they seem to be heading in, now. But compared to DCA 1.0, DCA 2.0 is a heck of an improvement, cartoons and all. And given the choice between accepting the cartoons vs. keeping the more refined and "grown up" experiences that were there on opening day and have since been throw out the window, I'll take the cartoons if it means that I am going to have more fun at the park in the future than I did in the past, and if it allows them the green light to beautify the depressingly ugly parts that always made me feel eager to get the heck out of there and immerse myself in the beauty that is Disneyland. And by the way, the Mater ride is going to be a version of the old "crack the whip" type of rides, but instead of simply going around and around an elongated oval, it looks like the whips are going to snake around the entire attraction surface. And the Luigi's Flying Tires ride is a modern day version of the old Flying Saucers ride at Disneyland, and this might be as eagerly anticipated by Disneyland history buffs as much as anything so far proposed. Both of these rides are examples of C Ticket type experiences that every park should have to be well rounded. And both of them seem to have the potential to appeal to every age demographic as opposed to everything they added with Bugs Land which appealed only to the very very young. And hopefully provide longer and more fulfilling ride times than Heimlick's, where you spend more time stuck in the train stacked up behind the one at the station as it unloads/loads than the time it takes for the train to actually run the entire track.
Originally Posted By Mort2 >>There are also e-tickets planned for phase 2 including a possible richly themed flume ride for Paradise Pier...<< hmmmm.....hmmmmmm.....HMMMMMMM!
Originally Posted By disneywatcher After looking over the various plans for the revamped park (and I'm still hoping the provincial "California" theme and name finally will be toseed out), it's obvious there are so many layers of flaws in DCA 1.0, that it becomes a question of whether the DisCo has enough skill and enough money to take care of them all properly and successfully. For example, I was looking at the following illustration: <a href="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v647/dustysage/FridayVisions/2008/10-17-08/swings.jpg" target="_blank">http://img.photobucket.com/alb...ings.jpg</a> ...and beyond not being too confident in the artistry of the person who did the image -- the figures of the little girl and woman are drawn in a hokey way, and the style of the image in general is sort of schlocky -- the remodeled Orange Stinger, at least based on the artist's interpretation -- while improved, still looks shaky. The circular wood-framed structure around the new "Silly Symphony" seems a bit too flimsy, still too Anypark USA. And do the cheap Jumpin' Jellyfish towers depicted in the background suggest one of DCA 1.0's layers of mediocrity won't be eliminated? And I hope the walkway's main light fixtures (which, again, based on what's shown in the illustration have a cheap, flimsy look about them) attached to the gate around that part of the lagoon will look a whole lot better than indicated in the drawing. However, there are promising and long overdue signs of change, such as the ugly structure of King Triton's carousel finally being torn down and replaced with something more professional. That and similarly lazy original elements, including the amazingly cheap concrete queue of the Sun Wheel, are among the many things that need to be exorcized from the park ASAP, like a ghost from its past. Still unanswered is what will be done, if anything, to areas like the Grizzly Rapids attraction -- the addition of audioanimatronics? -- and whether some of the half-hearted features of Flik's Fun Faire (including the ridiculously cut-sized, cut-rate Heimlich's Chew Chew Train Chew Chew train) ever will be stripped out or remodeled into something more inspiring. That's one of many reminders that should the park finally be done up correctly -- as it always should have been done from 2001 -- its existing features will require so much chopping, slashing and rearranging, that, in effect, the planners (and their budget) are starting from square one.
