Is Disney "Frozen Over"?

Mouse of Mystery · Mar 6, 2015

It's hard to fault Disney for recognizing and reacting to what people want. It's not my favorite by a long shot, but my kids love it and.. why not let them have fun with it? But at least the majority of the things they are doing aren't permanent.

Disney has done a few extra things to promote new movies in the past but they've never taken it to this extreme. It can be a little much if you're not on the Frozen bandwagon. I wonder if we'll see similar things in the near future with any upcoming hits?

Annchristine65 said:
I have to say I'm very bitter about the whole Maelstrom thing. lol, but really I am.

Maelstrom had a lot charm and it was certainly true to the spirit of the design of the park. But let's be honest -- it was was a great ride for an EPCOT WS building. It wasn't something you'd scramble to ride outside of that context. By the time it closed, it was looking a little aged.

Frozen, at least, is based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale, The Snow Queen. Being that he was born in the kingdom of Denmark and Norway, it's not entirely offensive. It's not exactly educational and it does alienate those experiencing the Frozen-backlash, but it does narrowly fit the bill. I'm sure Norway is pretty excited about getting an attraction with such a tremendous draw.

I'd actually like to see more of the WS infused with an element of the Disney movie catalog, but not at the expense of rides that educate as well as entertain.

drea21 · Mar 6, 2015

If the M&G's today were any indication at the MK, then it is at the very least dwindling, if not over. Cinderella and Rupunzel lines were never anything but 95-115 minutes when I past, and the most I saw A&E was 70 minutes.

Planogirl · Mar 6, 2015

Mouse of Mystery said:
Frozen, at least, is based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairytale, The Snow Queen. Being that he was born in the kingdom of Denmark and Norway, it's not entirely offensive. It's not exactly educational and it does alienate those experiencing the Frozen-backlash, but it does narrowly fit the bill. I'm sure Norway is pretty excited about getting an attraction with such a tremendous draw.

He wasn't actually born in Norway. Norway was absorbed by Denmark for a period of time but was IMO always its own country absorbed or not. Just clarifying since it almost appears that he was born in two countries but was just born when the two nations were joined.

I've read some blogs by actual Norwegians and while they seem to appreciate Frozen, many are uneasy about it replacing actual Norwegian culture in the Norway pavilion. While there are a few reminders of Norway in the film some elements are actually Danish and some are just fantasy. It'll be interesting to see how Disney handles it.

kbelle8995 · Mar 6, 2015

Actually for the most part, I was fine where they put Frozen. Put putting it in Norway doesn't make me happy for some strange reason. I understand that for many children it is a big draw and for the most part it is avoidable. Maelstrom needed to be updated but I think Frozen is connected to Norway by the slimmest of threads. It means that I will be skipping Norway when they turn it into the fictional kingdom Arendelle.

That is my opinion but I realize that I am in the minority.

tmbacon · Mar 6, 2015

We are not into Frozen. Like, at all. But that's most likely b/c we have two boys, ages 9 and 11. So it will be interesting this time around when we're at WDW next week, to see how they react to all the Frozen phenomenon.

MrsDuck · Mar 6, 2015

So SO over it.

MammerJammer · Mar 6, 2015

Frozen has turned my pink-loving 5YO into a blue and purple-loving 5YO--so I'm a BIG FAN!! (so over pink everything)

Disneylover99 · Mar 6, 2015

kbelle8995 said:
Actually for the most part, I was fine where they put Frozen. Put putting it in Norway doesn't make me happy for some strange reason. I understand that for many children it is a big draw and for the most part it is avoidable. Maelstrom needed to be updated but I think Frozen is connected to Norway by the slimmest of threads. It means that I will be skipping Norway when they turn it into the fictional kingdom Arendelle.

That is my opinion but I realize that I am in the minority.

I won't skip the new Arendelle Norway. I might actually love it. But I will ALWAYS miss Maelstrom. :sad1:

Missyrose · Mar 6, 2015

Sven said:
Do other people feel that Disney has WAY over done it with the Frozen stuff or am I being too critical? Frozen movie, Frozen short, Frozen Christmas Parade, Frozen taking over the castle, Frozen in every park - even Animal Kingdom, Frozen dresses everywhere, etc. This is apparently their cash cow, but has it just become overkill at this point or is this what people want to see?

There isn't "Frozen in every park." There's a M&G at Magic Kingdom that has the teeniest photos of Anna and Elsa on the entrance sign (same as Cinderella and Rapunzel across the hall), they also appear in Festival of Fantasy... on the same float with the other princesses. Eventually, there will be a M&G and ride in Epcot. And there's the singalong at DHS, which is a much scaled-back presence from the Frozen summer fun last year.

If you are talking about Frozen merchandise in every park, then you must hate any of the princesses, Mickey, Minnie, Stitch, Lion King, Cars, etc. There's a lot of the same merchandise in every park.

lauradis said:
Disney crossed the frozen line when they allowed frozen to take over Cinderella's castle.

They had Elsa throw the ice on the castle, which might have been the most natural tie-in Disney has done. They didn't rename it Elsa's castle or anything.

For the people with trips coming up, there's no overly Frozen feeling in the parks. There's stuff, yes, but it hasn't taken over the parks by any stretch.

elaine amj · Mar 6, 2015

My kids enjoy Frozen and my DD loved all the Frozen references everywhere

I think it was smart of Disney to capitalize on it when the Frozen fever was high.

JanaDee · Mar 6, 2015

HopperFan said:
Okay, now I'll complain. I went to look at the Flower & Garden MagicBand thinking that would be my next one .................. nooooooooooooooooooooo!

From http://www.magicbandcollectors.com/disney-magic-bands/flower-garden-festival/

I never saw the movie, so excuse me if I'm wrong, but what do Anna and Elsa have to do with FLOWERS and GARDENING?!?

ModernArtist · Mar 6, 2015

Doesn't bother me at all and eventually it will settle down. As far as the Norwegians being upset with Frozen being added to the Pavillion...(and I'm not so sure this is the case..I've read otherwise)... Well they really don't get a say in the matter anymore since they ended their sponsorship 13 years ago. If they don't like the idea of Frozen in the Norway Pavillion, they can start sending the checks again.

It's not the Norwegians upset over Maelstrom....it's the Epcot fan base.

kbelle8995 · Mar 6, 2015

Disneylover99 said:
I won't skip the new Arendelle Norway. I might actually love it. But I will ALWAYS miss Maelstrom.

I think of it as giving up my place in line to young lady who really really wants to visit Arendelle

JimmyV · Mar 6, 2015

Mouse of Mystery said:
It's hard to fault Disney for recognizing and reacting to what people want. It's not my favorite by a long shot, but my kids love it

And here is where I think Disney needs to do a better job at line-drawing. Yes, there is an entire half-generation of little kids (girls?) who love "Frozen" and everything associated with it. And so there should be character meet and greets and cute little dance parties and dresses etc. But Disney has gone overboard with this notion that adults want "Frozen" woven into every fabric of WDW. The Flower and Garden festival is a great example. That is very much an "adult" event. "Hey kids! Want to go over to the pathways in Epcot and look at the newly cultivated species of roses?" Uh. No. Might kids like to see an"Frozen" topiary? Or adults even? Sure. But when the sisters become the year's symbol for the event, that is pushing the movie into the faces of adults in a way that is simply not very well thought out. Yes, little girls love "Frozen". But there are other demographics that pass through the gates.

think-like-tink · Mar 6, 2015

As a pre-school teacher YES......It needs to go fah fah away.

As a mom to my Frozen loving dd, I will join in in her excitement. We did most of the "Frozen Fun" stuff in July and had a blast. The fireworks at D.H.S. were awesome. I would love a Frozen Dooney!

JZCubed · Mar 6, 2015

--I'm OK with the Meet'n'Greet.
--We enjoy the Sing-Along.
--Re-theming Malestrom seemed a bit much, but it is not as if there weren't already Characters in World Showcase (Three Caballeros).
--Frozen Castle Lighting of Cinderella's Castle was a tipping point for me.
--We did consider the Frozen Dessert Party, but the value did not seem to match the price and we FP+ the Sing-Along.
--Oaken Trading Post did seem like a logical way to stock and sell Frozen merchandise in a space that was otherwise empty.

What will we have:
--There will be a Frozen theme to a ride (formerly Malestrom), and
--A likely permanent Sing-Along spot (formerly occupied by American Idol), and.
--Meet-n-Greet.
--I'd bet Character Meals too once ride re-opens.

Frozen was a blockbuster. A once in a generation event. So let's look at some comparisons......

Belle has:
--A Musical
--Enchanted Tales
--Meet-n-Greets
--Character Meals
--Gift Shop
--Beast Castle, Gaston's, and Gift Shop.
--A new live action movie with Emma Watson as Belle

Ariel:
--A Musical
--A Ride
--Meet-n-Greet
--Character Meals

Oddly enough, Olaf seems to be under-represented and he is simply lovable and huggable for children of all ages.

Regardless, Frozen outsold Barbie last year. The marketing will not stop until people stop buying the products. Disney merchandising profits are doing well, just like the Theme Parks and corresponding hotel occupancy rates. This stuff is 'firing on all cylinders' at the moment and there is no reason to believe it will stop any time soon.

richmo · Mar 6, 2015

I'm kind of in the middle on this one. On the one hand, it does seem like overkill. But I am glad to see Disney reacting in a timely manner. In contrast, I think of attractions that went in after the popularity of the subject "jumped the shark". A couple examples: Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Good attraction, but it opened long after its peak in popularity... Same with American Idol Experience. While the show was still (and is to some extent) popular, the attraction opened several years after its peak. I wonder the same with Cars Land out at DL. I hear the attraction is great, but how much staying power does the Cars franchise have? Not sure on that. The same argument could hold for the Avatar land coming up at AK. The movie was successful, but it was a long time ago and I'm not sure of its staying power. I know there are sequels coming up, but their success remains to be seen.

Frozen was a huge success for Disney. It seems to be this generation's Lion King. I'm sure some of the attractions/shows/meet and greets will fade away, but I think we'll be left with at least the Maelstrom replacement for years to come.

Artax · Mar 6, 2015

Honestly I feel that the only people that seem to be overloaded with Frozen are the people that go to Disney multiple times a year, or look for all the latest news about whats going on.

Our last trip in may (10 months ago) there was hardly any of this frozen hoopla going on. Yes there was a meet and greet but other than that nothing really nothing else other than possibly some sold out merchandise. We have another trip coming up in May of this year and I have been praying that its not all gone before we get there, haven't they already shut down the ice skating and trading post? Hoping sing along doesn't get shut down to make room for star wars weekend (nothing against SWW since thats why we chose the dates).

Basically if you haven't been this year, you haven't seen any of it. I think its a little unfair to the families that can't go multiple times a year to just say stop with Frozen and get rid of it all.

worm761 · Mar 6, 2015

We went last summer and to be honest, it was only supposed to be a 2 day add on to our St. Augustine trip. But then Frozen Summer Fun happened and I ended up staying for 4 days instead of the originally planned 2. We had a blast and DD loved it all. While DD5 likes Frozen, she is not in love with it. She actually likes Tangled better but is really really into all the Fairy movies. We never got to see Pixie Hollow and I know she would have loved that. I don't think that Frozen has taken over the parks and I am not bothered by what is there either. I am on the fence about Maelstrom. We haven't ridden it in years and it has needed a refurbishment for years.

JimmyV · Mar 6, 2015

richmo said:
I wonder the same with Cars Land out at DL. I hear the attraction is great, but how much staying power does the Cars franchise have?

More staying power than Dumbo. And that ride has done pretty well for WDW. I see your point in terms of timing though, but consider that Beauty and the Beast came out in 1991, and all of the Beauty and the Beast tie-in at the Magic Kingdom opened in 2012. And look how long it took Ariel to get a ride in the Magic Kingdom. Frankly, the whole conversion of Norway to "Frozen" is rather rushed in comparison to the way Disney usually does things. (And ill-advised because of it. Now that Ariel has her own ride in Fantasyland, it would have been far better for Disney to convert the Little Mermaid Theater in DHS over to a Frozen theme with some really cool 4-D special effects. Live actors and computer graphics. Could have visually turned the entire theater into an ice palace.)

Artax said:
Our last trip in may (10 months ago) there was hardly any of this frozen hoopla going on.

I actually agree with this. Take the merchandise away and all you are really left with an obscenely popular meet and greet. And that's pretty much it. As JZCubed points out above, Frozen can be considered to be underrepresented in terms of major attractions. It would be nice to see the old Hunchback Theater put back into use, and add a new Frozen stage show. Or, as noted above, it would have been nice to see a major Frozen attraction put into the Little Mermaid Theater. I suspect, (given size constraints), that Epcot's treatment of Frozen will be compressed and disappointing. I would have absolutely no problem with WDW expanding the presence of Frozen far beyond what it has done already. But I would much prefer if they did it in a way that involves major attractions and shows and not merchandising and tie-ins in our faces all the time.

Is Disney "Frozen Over"?

Too Much Frozen

Enough with the Frozen already, kill it

I really like Frozen, we need more of it.

I am somewhere in the middle

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