Originally Posted By dshyates OK, a lot of folks have been comparing the recently announced Fantasyland makeover with Universal's The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. So I thought I would make a thread breaking them down and comparing the components. On the face they seem to be quite comparable. 1 Major NEW E-Ticket (Ariel's Adventure, Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey). 2 redone existing attractions ( Dumbo/ Goofy's Barnstormer, Dueling Dragons/ Flying Unicorn) 1 highly themed table service restaurant (Be Our Guest, The Three Broomsticks) 1 Tavern/Pub (Gaston's Tavern, The Hog's Head Pub) Then there is the plethora of Meet and Greets in Fantasyland and shopping at TWWOHP. THE E MAJORS Both are going to be highly detailed AA filled immersive dark rides. Ariels' Adventure- Utilizes the old school Omnimover system and retells the familiar story from The Little Mermaid. They are promising lots of music, and special FX. We know that there will be at least one very impressive Ursula AA. But little has been said about the queue. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey- Utilizing a first of its kind mobile Robocoaster ride system. It should have the ability to really get you up close to the AAs such as a car sized spider or a 60' snake. It has also been rumored to use a combination of fully realized sets in combination with 3-D projection backgrounds to give the scenes a depth never before achieved in an indoor dark ride. Imagine a forest that appears to go on forever. Also it is a brand new story (rumored to have been writtin by JK herself) that somehow incorperates a Time Turner. Now here is the kicker. The queue is an extended walk thru preshow taking you to 8 different locations inside of Hogwarts Castle (Dumbledore's Office, Gryffindor's and Slytherin's House Common Rooms, Defense Against The Dark Arts Classrooms, the moving staircases (even though we are not sure if they will actually move), etc. All of the sets are being designed by the same guys that did the set design for the films so they should be quite convincing and detailed. THE KIDDIE COASTERS Casey Jr's- Goofy's Barnstormer is rumored to be rethemed to the Casey Jr Train from Dumbo and be similar in appearance to the Casey Jr. ride in DLR. Flight of the Hippogriff- The Flying Unicorn is being rethemed to Flight of the Hippogriff. And is supposed to have a preshow explaining how it is a enchanted machine that Hagrid built to train young wizards how to ride a Hippogriff. The only special thing about this redo is there is supposed to be a full sized Hippogriff AA in the queue, that will bow to you if you bow to it. DUELING DUMBOS/DRAGONS Dumbo- The redo is pretty impressive in scope and concept. They are adding a second Dumbo spinner to cut the wait times in half. And utilizing a new virtual queue system that allows the guest to wander around the circus tent and play interactive games while waiting. Dragon Challenge- The Dueling Dragons twin inverted coaster being rethemed to Dragon Challenge based on the Tri-Wizard Tournament and is rumored to have a stop and watch pre-show similar in style to RnR. There is also rumored to be a blue flame filled Goblet of Fire added to the queue. THE RESTAURANTS Be our Guest- Little is known about this concept, but it is rumored to have an AA based show. I would imagine similar to the old Micky Mouse Review show. The Three Broomsticks- No AAs here, but it is going to be highly themed and atmospheric. Universal sent a team, including their head chef, to Scotland to research theme appropriate menu items. They have also mentioned that they have developed Butterbeer and Pumpkin Juice beverages for the restaurants. Gaston's Tavern- Little is known about this place except that it is going to be a counter service location. The Hog's Head Pub- It hasn't been announced if they will serve food, but they will be serving alcohol. So I expect to see Mead and Fire Whiskey. THE MEETnGREETS The popular Meet-n-Greet concept is being kicked up a knotch with these. Belle's MnG will include many of the interactive elements from Disney Animation at DCA like Beast's Library. Shopping I am sure there will be PLENTY of Princess/Pixie merchendise to be found in the new Fantasyland Potter has several Potter specific merchendise locations that has been announced. One thing that hasn't been discussed much is Ollivander's Wand Shop. It is rumored that it is the base for an extensive (all over the island)interactive game based on the MagiQuest Technology (similar to Kim Possible). Now I will tell you why I think that Potter is going to kick the crap out of the Fl redo. First Potter VS Princesses. Potter is the most popular intellectual property out there. Many have defended the Fl redo saying that it will appeal to everyone, not just little girls. But I think they are just high on Pixie Dust. This redo is without a doubt aimed at little girls. Potter appeals to a MUCH larger demographic than the Princesses. Secondly, whle I am sure Ariel's Adventure is going to be a GREAT ride. The best dark ride Disney has produced since probably Pirates. But I think the Potter ride is going to be AMAZING. But all in all I think it is fantastic that BOTH Disney and Universal are building state of the art dark rides. I LOVE dark rides. I think it is fantastic that both Disney and Universal are building HIGHLY themed large areas in their parks. Man I love immersive themeing. And I don't really care which you guys like better. There is some really cool stuff coming to Orlando. Not to mention we just got one of the best themed coasters ever built. And who would have thunk that Sea World would kick the crap out of both Disney and Universal. Manta is an amazing effort in themed coasters. It has a fantastic queue, and a smooth and thrilling coaster.
Originally Posted By HMButler1979 ""Also it is a brand new story (rumored to have been writtin by JK herself) that somehow incorperates a Time Turner. Now here is the kicker. The queue is an extended walk thru preshow taking you to 8 different locations inside of Hogwarts Castle (Dumbledore's Office, Gryffindor's and Slytherin's House Common Rooms, Defense Against The Dark Arts Classrooms, the moving staircases (even though we are not sure if they will actually move), etc"" OK. WHAT? and... WHAT?? The Time Turner thing is not the greatest story arc she made. I'm afraid this will just confuse us, but we shall see. So the rooms are going to the Q? Intresting. I guess thats one way of not having people tear it up ala Mickey/Minnie's house if they were just allowed to walkthrough. ""The only special thing about this redo is there is supposed to be a full sized Hippogriff AA in the queue, that will bow to you if you bow to it."" GET OUT. Is this true? Is this on the scale of say, the Tric, from Triceratops Encounter where it interacts with you? Im suprised something like that hasn't been cut. ""Be our Guest- Little is known about this concept, but it is rumored to have an AA based show. I would imagine similar to the old Micky Mouse Review show."" I CANNOT imagine Rasulo allowing new AAs to be built for a musical show. We shall see. I agree with everything. Also, Wizarding World will be opening next year when the first half of Deathly Hallows opens, followed by the 2nd hald of it in 2011. Universal simply has the advantage of allowing WB to say "want to experience this world? Go to Universal", all the while there are TWO new Potter movies.
Originally Posted By dshyates "OK. WHAT? and... WHAT?? The Time Turner thing is not the greatest story arc she made. I'm afraid this will just confuse us, but we shall see." I believe it was a very Harry Potter way of being able to go back and revisit many of the scenes from the movies especially since some of the characters are already ded such as Aragog. There is also supposed to be a life sized version of the Wizarding Chess scene from Sorcerer's Stone using the Pepper's Ghost Effect, and The Basilisk from The Chamber Of Secrets.
Originally Posted By dennis-in-ct dshyates - what a good read. Thanks for the breakdown and observations. I enjoyed that. I love that the beast library will have a new home here versus that gawd awful space at Disney Studios. One of the things that truly wowed me at DCA was the animation building. I am psyched for both projects. I laughed hard at the dueling dumbo/dragons quote. Good one. Do you know when the Harry ride will open? Is the land opening in the spring of 2010 and the ride will be later? I am not clear on that.
Originally Posted By dshyates The contract with WB says it all has to be open by June 30th, 2010. As of now the ride system is done and cycling ride vehicles and they are already installing scenics. But they aren't even CLOSE to staring on the inside of the queue.
Originally Posted By sjhym33 I agree about Manta. A highlight in Orlando theme parks this summer...and it opened early.
Originally Posted By dennis-in-ct thanks for the info .... I was really hoping to see this during my gay days visit (first weekend in June)
Originally Posted By Sport Goofy I'll be interested to see how the HP dark ride brings the fantasy elements of the movie to life. I think the hardest thing of recreating the world of HP is trying to bring all of the rendered parts of the movie into the real world without it coming off as cartoony and fake. It's a lot easier to make a dark ride based on a story that's already been adapted as a cartoon or stylized animation. I suppose they could use a ton of projections and film to pull of the trick, but I think that will come across as fake and not an experience where someone will ever believe they have actually been transplanted in the world of HP. Of course, if the ride system is thrilling enough, fast paced, and full of effects, I doubt most people will mind whether the scenery is too fake or cartoony looking.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 I pretty much agree with the breakdown as well as the fact that almost regardless of what DIsney did - Harry Potter during a time when the last 2 movies will be coming out is a hard to beat combination - at least for some period of time. However I am glad Disney made a decent effort to do something to improve an area of MK that badly neeeded it. Short of doing something with LotR - there is little intellectual capipal as valuable as Potter. Now maybe Disney can capture some improvements for the Studios based on the LotR - Tolkien adventures since the Hobbit has now been greenlit after settled all who owes who billions claims between all entities. LoTr I believe can compete with Potter - even though LotR a much tougher read than Potter- the $1B in receipts for 3 movies still is pretty damn impressive- and the Hobbit could prove to be the biggest of them all- and would lend itself to some awesome Studio rides/ attractions ( think what could be done with the back stage tour - think Helm's Deep ( Catastrophe Canyon) -
Originally Posted By vbdad55 Remember Disney os one of a few studios who passed on LotR- ooops I was actually hoping they'd keep the CS Lewis stories going - I enjoyed them- but they are out of that now also.
Originally Posted By Sport Goofy << Remember Disney os one of a few studios who passed on LotR- ooops >> Disney actually retained a nice little royalty for passing the script and rights along to New Line. I think they earned tens of millions of dollars for doing absolutley nothing.
Originally Posted By leobloom >>""Be our Guest- Little is known about this concept, but it is rumored to have an AA based show. I would imagine similar to the old Micky Mouse Review show."" I CANNOT imagine Rasulo allowing new AAs to be built for a musical show. We shall see. >> I, too, don't expect this to be an AA revue in the CBJ/MMR sense. I think the AA component is going to be more like the Living Character stuff (oh joy) in the style of the Remy at the French restaurant. I do find it interesting that this restaurant is rumored to be counter service by day and full-service by night. I'm not sure what the says about the AA stuff. Will it only be visible at night?
Originally Posted By Bob Paris "Secondly, whle I am sure Ariel's Adventure is going to be a GREAT ride. The best dark ride Disney has produced since probably Pirates. But I think the Potter ride is going to be AMAZING." That would be par for the course for IOA. It already has THE BEST attraction in the world. I would expect them to follow up again with a winner.
Originally Posted By Bob Paris """The only special thing about this redo is there is supposed to be a full sized Hippogriff AA in the queue, that will bow to you if you bow to it."" GET OUT. Is this true? Is this on the scale of say, the Tric, from Triceratops Encounter where it interacts with you? Im suprised something like that hasn't been cut." Why would it be? This is NOT Disney, ya know!!!
Originally Posted By MPierce Great thread Dave. I'm going to have to take the easy way out on this one. I'm just going to have to see the final product to decide who is going to be the winner. For the time being I think HP has the edge with all the hype that has been, and is surrounding it. I think Disney made a big mistake waiting so long to counter punch. They still seem to rely to heavily on their past reputation. Regardless of who wins this battle, we the fans of theme parks are the real winners.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 Neither set of attractions is gong to cause any majoe defectons from one 'camp' to the other. I absolutely will go see the HP attraction next year- am looking forward to it - however it does not change my impression of the overall package Uni presents vs Disney. Will I go see HP every year ? Don't know yet - have to see how well it all comes out I too am looking forward to the atmosphere but I have one angle I haven't seen brought up here yet. A lot of HP (movies) is done in English weather - and a fair share in winter ( school year ) - and this will be in 90-100 degree heat much of the year. Will that take away from the 'atmosphere' at all ? Just a thought. And no Uni fan is going to come running for more princess meet & greets and one new E ride. If Everest didn't cause people to cross over more- what will ? So I am happy for HP and think it will be pretty cool - but most of my time will still be @ Disney. All I ask of Disney is do this thing right - high quality across the board- worthy of Fantasyland - not like the piece of Poo playground put in. I have no issue with some things being geared to little ones only- but make them quality- And although I have no use for meet n greet any more ( kids are 15 and 24)- I remember when my girls loved the meet n greets and looked forward to filling their books with signatures and pictures every year ( although neither were princess fans- )
Originally Posted By Bob Paris "Neither set of attractions is gong to cause any major defectons from one 'camp' to the other." See this for me is part of the problem. Why should there be two camps? I visited Orlando and spent time at both WDW and Uni and loved BOTH! Personally, I feel the WDW fans who totally disregard Universal(not referring to the quoted poster)are the losers here. They are missing out on great experiences in world class theme parks.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 I know it wasn't directed at me but just had some random thoughts on 2 cams-- There are two camps like there were John fans and Paul fans with the Beatles -- there were Beatles fans and Stones fans....Mary Ann or Ginger ? Cubs or Sox ( here ) ....Star Wars or Star Trek ? doesn't mean one doesn't partake in the other- but preferences are normal. I grew up on Disney - including the OLD MMC on TV - and really enjoy their work. It is a passion for me -- I like many things at Uni and have gone- but would not spend 7-10 days there as I do @ Disney. I'd be bored out of my gourd. We go to Seaworld every 3-4 years and trust me that holds me--I like it but don't love it. If I want coasters and such I live 30 minutes from Six Flags Great America that has some awesome coasters - annual pass $60 on discount. We take advantage of that. I will agree that anyone who avoids Uni just because they are the 'other guys' is missing out.go see Harry Potter, it should be very cool. I went to my Museum to see the Potter traveling display, it was a lot of fun...but I don't see the two experiences as being close to the same level overall
Originally Posted By wahooskipper Agreed with the last couple of comments. I'm a Disney fan but I certainly enjoy the occasional trip to Universal. I'm heading there next month as a matter of fact. (The downside to Universal for me right now is the limited number of attractions for my 6 and 3 year olds. Fortunately I have the one day, two park passes so we will likely go in both parks and hit the stuff they want to do.) And, I do like the fact that Disney-MGM was a response to Universal arriving in Orlando and the New Fantasyland seems to be a response to the new Potterland. Competition seems to be rewarding those of us who like theme parks in general and aren't tied to one or the other.
Originally Posted By leobloom >>And, I do like the fact that Disney-MGM was a response to Universal arriving in Orlando and the New Fantasyland seems to be a response to the new Potterland. Competition seems to be rewarding those of us who like theme parks in general and aren't tied to one or the other.>> MGM was a half-assed rush job meant to beat Uni to the punch. Since a ticket to MGM was the same price as MK and Epcot, that didn't seem to reward the guests. It seemed to rip them off. I'm not suggesting FL will be a rush job like MGM was. But it does bother me that Disney apparently needed Potterland to encourage them to make substanial changes to MK.
