Better Late Than Never - A Tokyo Disney (And Japan) February 2019 Report (Updated 18th April - Arashiyama & The Temples!)

[grayquaza]

Before heading over to Pooh's, I did make a quick diversion over to Tomorrowland to grab a FP for Monsters Inc. The timeslot wouldn't open until 4:50pm so I had a bit of a wait for that. It turned out to be very awkward for me, time-wise, but I'll get to that later.

On the way back to Pooh's, I was talking to a friend of mine over Snapchat. We were originally hoping to visit Japan together but I jumped the gun a little and, ultimately, he couldn't join me in the end. Which was sad! But he lives in Florida and while I was in TDL, he was in Magic Kingdom. So I sent him a quick message to see if he wanted to do a video chat while I rode Pooh. After which, I got in line.

While the FP let me cut the majority of the queue, I did still have a bit of a wait. You go through this little workshop/garage room on the way.

And then the rest of the queue is similar to the other Pooh rides, with all the giant pages everywhere.

I checked my phone all the way up to when I sat down but, ultimately my friend didn't respond in time so he missed out. Then he tried to call me while I was on the ride but I had my phone in my pocket by that point! The struggles of time zones!

I tried getting back in touch once I was in the shop, and it worked for a brief moment. Except he was waiting in the queue for Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin and neither of us were properly prepared for it, so we had to abandon it for the time being...

I decided to move on to Westernland. I wanted to ride the Mark Twain Riverboat, but I had just missed it. I didn't think it'd take too long for it to come back, so I stuck around. Luckily, right outside of the riverboat entrance, I spotted a popcorn stand. Popcorn is one of Tokyo Disney's specialties, one of those things everyone says you have to try. It comes in many different flavours from the standard salted or caramel to the more unusual garlic shrimp or curry. I would look out for the carts but found that they always had a long queue, and I hate queueing when I could be not queueing. This time, however, there were only a few people waiting, and I had the time. So I hopped in line and bought a small box of milk chocolate popcorn!

Tokyo Disney is also known for its popcorn buckets. You can see the Chip & Dale bucket behind the Country Bear popcorn turner. (Also, a rare image of me!) There were a couple of popcorn buckets that I was hoping to buy, notably a Steamboat Willie bucket. But much like the popcorn, the bucket choice varies between carts and I never did manage to find one selling the buckets I wanted. A shame, really!

I returned back to the dock with my popcorn and waited for the boat to come back. As I did, I spotted some sort of machine where you could get a stamp on a sheet of paper celebrating the 35th anniversary. Here's a picture of the stamp. A cute little freebie.

I didn't have to wait long for the riverboat to come back around. I was one of the first to get on, and I had a good look about while everyone else rushed to get a seat at the front. I eventually sat down in a small room up top and ate more of my popcorn while I waited for the boat to leave. It was pretty tasty as far as I recall.

The Mark Twain goes around Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America, much like in Disneyland and Magic Kingdom. Although I don't know if it's called Rivers of America in TDL. Anyway, they have similar scenes set up like the Native American villages and the deer. There's still a burning cabin here, albeit no actual flames. Just a lot of smoke. The narration is all in Japanese, as you'd expect, so I'm not sure what's being said. All in all, it's a relaxing and slow-moving ride.

The top deck emptied pretty quickly once we docked! That small room is where I had my popcorn, which was now safely tucked away in my bag. Who needs a popcorn holder anyway? And as always, a little video of the ride.

I tried to get back in touch with my friend to show him the sights. I finally managed to get through just as I was getting off the boat. So we actually got to have a little chat! It was late at night in Florida at this point, while it was around noon in Tokyo. Magic Kingdom was open late, and he'd been visiting with a friend of his. I showed him a little of Westernland and Fantasyland, and of course the castle. And he showed me the castle in MK all lit up for the night. Very surreal since TDL and MK's castle are almost identical. After maybe 10 minutes, we had some connection problems and he couldn't hear me on my end so we had to wrap things up, but it was nice to share some of that Tokyo experience with him since he couldn't make it. Luckily, later that year, he came to visit me in London in the autumn and we both went to Disneyland Paris. So we eventually got those new park feels together!

I backtracked a little at this point, and I think I may have ridden the Western River Railroad? I can't seem to find a good enough gap to slot it in but I know I definitely did not ride it on my last day, and I would have been in the area at this point, so I'm going to assume it was here! So, I think I've already explained the whole train situation in Tokyo Disney. This ride was their way of including a train ride that only had one station and thus avoided an additional payment to use. Despite the name, the station is actually in Adventureland, and it circles through Adventureland, Westernland, and Critter Country. The entrance is above the Jungle Cruise, as you can see from this picture I took from Wikipedia.

I didn't have to wait long for the next train to arrive. I even had a whole aisle to myself. If it weren't for the track layout, you could assume you were on the usual Disneyland train tracks. There's the Native American village, passing by Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain, and they even have the Primeval World diorama you can see on the train in Disneyland! (Which I do not like one bit! Have I mentioned I hate dinosaurs? I was traumatised by the Back To The Future ride as a kid and never recovered...) And so many people stop and wave at the train as you go by, it's quite lovely. I wish I did it more than once. I was definitely planning on riding again but certain things got in the way, which is a shame... So here's a video instead!

I had a few more minutes to go before my Fastpass window opened, and checking the app, I saw that Big Thunder Mountain still had some remaining. So while I waited, I backtracked a little to the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse. It's more or less the same as the treehouse in Magic Kingdom as far as I can tell. Still, it gives you an interesting vantage point over the park.

There's the steamboat from the tree! I do love the 35th anniversary colours on it.

Hey, I think that's a lucky emblem!

You can see over to Space Mountain. Weirdly enough, it's the only picture I got of Tomorrowland's unique entrance, with those blue monoliths. In the back, you can see a few of the hotels. The one in awnings is the Grand Nikko Tokyo Bay, the round one is the Tokyo Bay Maihama, and the other one is the Tokyo Bay Maihama Hotel First.

And of course, the castle. I really didn't have much luck with the weather, did I? Such grey skies!

I didn't waste much time climbing up and down. Just enough time for me to enter that window and get back to Big Thunder Mountain for my final FP for 6:45pm. By now, it was coming up to 1pm, so I was feeling pretty hungry having only had a bag of popcorn since breakfast. So it was time for lunch!

 

[Jabroniville]

Good stuff- unfortunately the train was down when I went there, so I didn't get to see it. I'm still kicking myself for not going on the DL train ("this park is small; why bother going on the train?") because I didn't realize there was a Primeval World diorama on it! So I missed out on that, and again here!

It's been so long since I was in Tokyo I forgot whether or not the Twain was active. Thankfully I remembered seeing the Thunder Mountain bit from the boat so it came back to me .

Since the trains were down, I never checked out where most of the train stops are- it's curious how one's in Adventure Land, but then the park layout in Tokyo is very odd if you're used to the American parks. Tomorrowland's in the same spot but then it angles out funny and certain things look much different. Universal's even worse for that (I forget- did you go to Universal?).

I feel like next time I go to Tokyo I should make plans for winter- at this point, I was mostly going for a full Japan trip and not just Disney-related, so the fall was considered a good, cheap time to go! I had no idea Japan was so into Halloween, and most websites did NOT indicate that was a big holiday that absolutely jam-packed the parks. I think by now they have corrected that, but in 2015 or whenever, it was not that well known.

 

[grayquaza]

Good stuff- unfortunately the train was down when I went there, so I didn't get to see it. I'm still kicking myself for not going on the DL train ("this park is small; why bother going on the train?") because I didn't realize there was a Primeval World diorama on it! So I missed out on that, and again here!

It's been so long since I was in Tokyo I forgot whether or not the Twain was active. Thankfully I remembered seeing the Thunder Mountain bit from the boat so it came back to me .

Since the trains were down, I never checked out where most of the train stops are- it's curious how one's in Adventure Land, but then the park layout in Tokyo is very odd if you're used to the American parks. Tomorrowland's in the same spot but then it angles out funny and certain things look much different. Universal's even worse for that (I forget- did you go to Universal?).

I feel like next time I go to Tokyo I should make plans for winter- at this point, I was mostly going for a full Japan trip and not just Disney-related, so the fall was considered a good, cheap time to go! I had no idea Japan was so into Halloween, and most websites did NOT indicate that was a big holiday that absolutely jam-packed the parks. I think by now they have corrected that, but in 2015 or whenever, it was not that well known.

The layout did throw me off a few times, especially in Adventureland. I didn't go to Universal since I only had the one day in Osaka. But now that Super Mario Land has opened, it's a definite must-do for next time!

I think it's big in Disney because guests are allowed to dress up in costume. It's like MNSSHP but in regular park hours! Other than that, I know there's a big party in Shibuya for Halloween that can get out of hand. I don't know how popular it is elsewhere. I'm looking at going back in February with a friend who would prefer the winter. Otherwise, April is a great time to visit outside of Golden Week. The cherry blossoms are in full bloom and the parks are almost empty as the locals wait until Golden Week to visit.

 

[grayquaza]

There was one quick service restaurant that was high on my "to try" list, and that was Camp Woodchuck Kitchen. It's in Westernland and themed to the Junior Woodchucks from the Donald Duck comics, cartoons, and DuckTales. They actually used the restaurant as inspiration for the Junior Woodchucks camp in the recent DuckTales series, bringing it full circle! It mainly serves waffle sandwiches, which I'd say is pretty unique for Japan. But the main reason I was so eager to eat there was for the lunch bag.

Every restaurant in TDR has some sort of commemorative keepsake you can add to your order like a bag, a plate, a cup, etc. I think it's a great way to get something exclusive to the parks and not just generic Disney merch. Before my trip, I had made a list of all the places I wanted to eat and what they sold, and the CWK lunch bag was my number one get. But before I left, it was temporarily replaced with a 35th anniversary lunch bag. I was a little disappointed but I still wanted to try the food anyway, so into the line I went. It was maybe the end of the lunch rush, so it wasn't as long as I suspected. And as I neared the register, I noticed a plastic sign in front advertising the lunch bag that I wanted! I guess they'd already sold out of the anniversary bag and returned to the usual fare.

Here's my bag. I just love the design! It's a little small, but insulated so I've used it to store ice cold water for work in the summer. The last time I used it, I accidentally left it backstage and didn't realise until I was on the train home. I had to rush back to the studios before everyone left...

And this was my meal. Fried chicken maple waffle sandwich with some fries and a hot ginger lemonade. With the bag, it came to an even 2000 yen. Not too shabby! I enjoyed the sandwich, it came with some maple syrup to pour over the chicken. Definitely American inspired fare. And I loved the lemonade! It was one of those limited time things and it was wonderfully warming in the cold.

After my meal, It was coming up to 2pm and I figured it was time for a break. I'd had two long park days already, and I didn't really want to make it a third. I enjoyed a slow walk back to the park entrance. As I was leaving, I noticed there were a few characters hanging around just outside of World Bazaar. Goofy was there, which annoyed me because the previous day, I was wearing a Goofy T-shirt with his name spelt out in Japanese and I was hoping to meet him then. But I didn't see him until this moment! Ah well. I also managed to see Scrooge McDuck!

He had a busy crowd around him. I spent a few minutes trying to get his attention so I could get a proper photo, but it was not to be. I got a little impatient waiting and gave up.

As I left the park, I had an idea. Instead of getting the bus back to the hotel, I could get the monorail over to TDS and walk back. I knew the monorail would come in handy at some point so I decided to get a 2 day ticket, which I think was 800 yen?

The monorail station for TDL is right in front of Tokyo Disneyland Hotel. And check out that classic Mickey Mouse clock!

I don't know if you've seen the monorails in TDR but they are the superior Disney monorail system, hands down. Even if they're not free to use. The Tokyo monorails really amp up the Disney factor with Mickey shaped windows and holders and everything! Unlike other times I've described things I should have taken a picture of (I promise there's a good explanation for that!), I actually have a couple of photos but they're later on in the trip. For now, here's an interesting monorail video I found.

The monorail looped past all of the partner hotels and up to Tokyo DisneySea, which is where I got off. I left the station and headed towards the park exit. Except I couldn't find it! I walked the path I remembered from the previous day but ended up in front of a multi-storey car park. I wasn't the only one, I had a fellow Westerner who was lost as well. She continued into the car park while I was still struggling to figure out what was wrong. In the end, I gave up trying to leave and ended up entering Tokyo DisneySea so I could wrap my head around this anomaly.

It wasn't until I went through the turnstiles and noticed that everything was flipped around that I figured out what was wrong. There are two entrances, each on opposite sides and connected by the TDS monorail station! The way to my hotel is from the north entrance, while I had ended up at the south entrance... But since I'd already entered TDS, I figured I'd stick around. I even had a little plan in mind. I had remembered the lottery ticket system that I hadn't utilised yet, so I went to give it a shot. I looked it up on my app (since I still hadn't picked up a park map!) and walked past one of the Pixar Playtime shows that was happening. The Incredibles were leading everyone through an exercise routine. Or attempting to anyway. Needless to say, I did not stick around...

The Palazzo Canali Biglietteria contains a bunch of steampunk-like machines. You choose a show to try and score tickets for, scan your park tickets, and hope that you win. I wanted to try and get priority seating for Fantasmic but no luck. I did, however, manage to get a ticket for the hottest show in Tokyo DisneySea, Big Band Beat! I knew it was an insanely popular show so I was pretty dang glad. Except the show started at 3:15 so a break from the parks suddenly went down the drain.

Nevertheless, I persevered! There were entire areas of TDS I hadn't even seen yet, with one of them just around a stone's throw away from the lottery room. Down a side alley, you come across a delightful Venice-like canal, along with gondolas. Luckily there was no queue, so I climbed aboard the next boat.

They paddle the gondola under a few bridges and out into the lake before looping back to the dock. There's also a running commentary by the gondoliers which I'm sure adds to the experience if you're fluent in Japanese.

All in all, it was a lovely ride. The weather was starting to clear again and, if it wasn't for the cool weather (and the Pixar show on the sidelines), you could almost believe you were in Italy. In fact, the most surprising moment was when our lead gondolier started to sing in Italian for some reason!

This would be a nice addition to the Italy pavilion in Epcot, if they had the space of course. I'm sure they could stand to lose a restaurant to make it happen! And here's a video.

Big Band Beat is located in the American Waterfront, so I decided I would stick close by while I waited for the show to begin letting people in. Other than a brief pass through the previous day, I hadn't spent any time in this area. It's themed to a turn of the century New York, and very nice.

I may have visited the McDuck's Department Store that's located here which, despite the name, exclusively sells Duffy merchandise. Although given how popular the bear and his friends are, I imagine Scrooge made the right move! And while Duffy isn't particularly a big draw to me, I can certainly see the appeal. Most of the merch is just a little out of my price range.

I didn't hang around the store for long. I made my way towards the plaza in front of Tower of Terror, and came across none other than Cruella De Vil. She was posing by one of the vintage cars and had gathered a sizable crowd. I think this was my first (and only?) time seeing a face character outside of the shows so I was a little surprised to see that Cruella was only speaking in English but I suppose it makes sense. I watched for a little while but didn't stick around. She was very fun, very animated!

I mainly left because I wanted to see the S.S. Columbia ship. You can find Turtle Talk With Crush here, which I didn't visit for, you know, language barrier reasons. But the ship itself is also explorable. There's a table service restaurant called the S.S. Columbia House, and there's a bar called the Teddy Roosevelt Lounge. I don't drink alcohol but I'd seen pictures and thought it looked like a wonderful place to visit. Plus, they offer an ice cream sundae with a collectable glass. I didn't have the time to visit then but I hoped to visit the following day (spoiler alert: I did not!) Other than that, there isn't much to do except look around and get a view of the ocean.

Up on the deck, I heard a whole bunch of noise. It was very loud, like a roaring. And I watched as Mount Prometheus actually erupted! I fumbled with my camera and tried to get a good shot but...

Yeah, I missed the main event! The only time I saw it erupt on my trip as well. It really was something. It was also incredibly loud! The upper deck of the ship was pretty dull, enough so that I didn't think to snap a shot... It wasn't long before it was time to leave the ship, and made my way over to the theatre for Big Band Beat in the hopes it would be as good a show as I'd heard.

 

[Jabroniville]

Cool stuff! Nice to see some good pictures of the buildings and Italian area- my old BlackBerry didn't take the greatest ones, lol.

The gondolas is one of the few things I skipped entirely- I looked at them but didn't know how long it would be, nor did I speak the language. Seems like it might have been kind of neat, though. I actually didn't know that about the Junior Woodchucks place- that's pretty cool! I can't remember if I even saw the joint, or considered stopping in. My only real memory of Westernland was the Country Bears Jamboree.

It's cool that you saw Cruella! I did when I went, too- she was over at the American Waterfront in the narrow street, also with a big line of people, and doing that EXACT scowl, haha. Interesting that it's usually a 20-something English-speaking girl playing her- the typical age range of a face character.

I had a similar experience as you with the face characters- I saw absolutely none except Cruella the entire time I was there. I was rather surprised when I looked years later at pictures and found people doing a processional where you met all the Princesses & Princes, and various CMs talking about performing roles in Tokyo. I was like "Where the heck were THESE people?". I think Ariel has a Grotto where you can meat her at DisneySea, but I actually assumed it'd be a Japanese person speaking Japanese so didn't go, haha.

 

[grayquaza]

Cool stuff! Nice to see some good pictures of the buildings and Italian area- my old BlackBerry didn't take the greatest ones, lol.

The gondolas is one of the few things I skipped entirely- I looked at them but didn't know how long it would be, nor did I speak the language. Seems like it might have been kind of neat, though. I actually didn't know that about the Junior Woodchucks place- that's pretty cool! I can't remember if I even saw the joint, or considered stopping in. My only real memory of Westernland was the Country Bears Jamboree.

It's cool that you saw Cruella! I did when I went, too- she was over at the American Waterfront in the narrow street, also with a big line of people, and doing that EXACT scowl, haha. Interesting that it's usually a 20-something English-speaking girl playing her- the typical age range of a face character.

I had a similar experience as you with the face characters- I saw absolutely none except Cruella the entire time I was there. I was rather surprised when I looked years later at pictures and found people doing a processional where you met all the Princesses & Princes, and various CMs talking about performing roles in Tokyo. I was like "Where the heck were THESE people?". I think Ariel has a Grotto where you can meat her at DisneySea, but I actually assumed it'd be a Japanese person speaking Japanese so didn't go, haha.

Depending on when you went, Woodchuck Kitchen may not have been open. I think it opened in 2016/2017? It's relatively new in the grand scheme of things.

Ariel does have a grotto but I don't think I ever saw the entrance to it at all! Maybe I just wasn't looking hard enough for them, characters were generally low on my must-sees. Then again, one face character I wish I did see was Jack Sparrow who, I believe, hangs around the fortress in front of the volcano? I think he would've been fun to come across.

 

[grayquaza]

So Big Band Beat! Like other shows in TDR, you are banned from taking any pictures or videos of the show so my camera was firmly stashed away in my bag. I think I had an aisle seat on the right side of the theatre, part-way from the stage. So a pretty decent spot for a last minute ticket pull. I had actually gone into the show blind, I didn't know much other than Mickey Mouse playing the drums, which seems to be the thing they advertise the show with.

The show is essentially a performance of swing and jazz hits from the 30s through 50s. It Don't Mean A Thing, Take The A-Train, Bye Bye Blackbird, and many others I found on the Disney Wikipedia page. There's also a live band and live singers which is great to see. But what really surprised me was that the entire show was in English. Not just the wonderfully talented band and singers either. Mickey and the gang all have their English voices! I think that's the only place in the park you can hear that since, obviously, they use their Japanese voices everywhere else. It makes you wonder if this was ever planned to be shown in the American Disney parks at some point. It would be a welcome hit too, it would fit quite well in Hollywood Studios.

It certainly lives up to its hype! And while there's no full performance on YouTube, there is this highlights reel so you can get a feel for what the show is like.

When the show was over, I really needed to go back to the hotel to free up some memory on my camera. So I headed back to the Mediterranean Harbour. But as I walked towards the passage to the park exit, I spotted the "hidden" entrance to the Miracosta hotel. It's not really hidden, it's clearly signposted, but it's a little unassuming tucked away in a corner of the main plaza. I wasn't sure if you could enter or leave without being a hotel guest but I gave it a shot and nobody stopped me, so I suppose not!

It's a beautiful hotel indeed, and the fact it's actually within Tokyo DisneySea itself is pretty amazing. It would be a dream to spend the night, especially with a theme park view. And with TDS getting another hotel within the park by 2023, it might make it easier to book a room.

I didn't stay long, just long enough to see the lobby and the shop. The shop had this cute sculptor's workshop theme to it. There wasn't a lot of hotel exclusive merch, however. And I think it's literally exclusive to hotel guests only...

Outside of the hotel, they have this pretty spectacular fountain. Very dramatic indeed!

By the time I got back to the hotel, I think I only spent half an hour there. Enough time to upload my pictures to my laptop and clear up some space before hightailing it back to TDL so I wouldn't miss my FP window for Monsters Inc. I don't know if there's a time blessing thing like in other parks but I didn't want to find out! I must have made it with a minute to spare.

This is something I don't think I picked up on until rewatching a ride-through, but Boo's room is three dimensional with no way to hide a room behind the door and it's blowing my mind! How do they do it!?

I may have mentioned before but there is an on-ride photo and, as far as I'm aware, they don't actually sell or distribute it. There's just a row of screens at the exit for funsies, I guess. They caught me taking pictures...

I returned to World Bazaar because I hadn't actually looked around. I was always passing through to get elsewhere. It didn't help that it doesn't have quite the same charm as Main Street U.S.A. I get that it's covered because Japan has a lot of rain, but it doesn't do it any favours. The majority (maybe even the entirety) of World Bazaar consists of shops and restaurants. I'm not much of a shopper, even on vacation, so they were never much of a draw for me. Still, I did want to see what was available.

The first shop I went into was Town Center Fashions which was handily on the corner to Tomorrowland. A lot of the souvenir clothes in TDR are very bold and obviously made to wear inside the parks. That's why there are loads of novelty hats and bags and stuff. I did, however, spot a couple of shirts that I was interested in.

The first was this Donald Duck "happy as a rainbow" shirt. The other was Tokyo Disneyland spelled in katakana. They weren't too expensive, definitely under 2,000 yen each. In fact, I think the TDL shirt was 1100 yen? Pretty decent! Important note for upcoming travellers to Japan (whenever that may be!), Japanese clothing tends to come up small compared to Western sizes, so you should always buy the next size up to be on the safe side.

I did take a look around the other stores but I'm afraid I can't quite remember what was about... There was one shop that sold a bunch of household items and kitchenware I wish I had the money and luggage space to purchase. And of course, there's always the candy store. Which is separate from the chocolate crunch store that I somehow missed entirely.

I suppose I also returned to the entrance at some point? Hmm...

I found another Mickey statue along the path to Adventureland.

A little artsy shot! In the background, you can make out the Mickey Anniversary Tree (for lack of a better term) that was in the middle of World Bazaar. However, I will talk about that later on...

And then I found another statue... Somewhere? I'm going to guess somewhere near the mini New Orleans part of Adventureland since he's playing the trombone!

Eventually, I made my way over to the Enchanted Tiki Room. Which is different from its American counterparts in that it's taken over by Stitch. The full attraction title being The Enchanted Tiki Room: Stitch Presents Aloha e Komo Mai! Now my introduction to the Tiki Room was actually when it was Under New Management, which I know was widely despised. I don't actually remember it but I do recall the Friend Like Me parody that Iago sings. And somehow, I know more of the lyrics to that than the original song...

In the waiting area, you'll find some posters that Lilo stuck up. Stitch has gone missing! But if you look around, you'll spot some blue footprints, and a broken wall by the Tiki Room entrance. So he hasn't strayed that far.

While waiting to get inside, a CM came up to me and asked if I wanted a translation device, which is what I was after when I was at the Little Mermaid show! So I happily accepted that, and we had a little chat because I was wearing my Enchanted Tiki Room shirt. And of course, being an ETR CM, she really liked it. I knew I wore it for a reason!

I think I might have just missed a performance since it took a while for the doors to open. Once they did, I managed to grab a decent spot at the front and started playing with my camera settings. The background music is all from Lilo & Stitch, so I started singing along. Only for the person next to me begin to applaud once I finished, which was nice! She told me that the Enchanted Tiki Room was her boyfriend's favourite, but he was sat elsewhere because the theatre had filled up quickly. So just before the show started, I showed her the design on my shirt, which she seemed to like.

Since I had the translator, I was paying more attention to that than the actual show. But basically, Stitch gets up to mischief and constantly interrupts the birds trying to perform. A few of them think it's the work of the Big Kahuna, and Stitch even pretends to be the Tiki God at one point. But he comes clean and says he just wanted to be a part of the show, so the birds allow him to join them in the closing number. It's interlaced with a few songs from Lilo & Stitch.

It's an alright show for what it is, and I'm sure it's quite popular with the Japanese crowds. But if you were expecting the Enchanted Tiki Room, it's likely to be a disappointment! But of course, see for yourself.

After the show finished, the woman next to me got my attention and asked if I could show her boyfriend my shirt. So we tracked him down and met up outside. He was very excited to see my shirt and then he showed me this cowboy Mickey Mouse toy that was attached to his bag. He was a very big USA fan and we were all generally excited about the American Disney parks! It was nice to actually have a chat about with someone, even with a bit of a language barrier. I waved them goodbye after a few minutes and started walking towards what I thought was Westernland, since my FP for Big Thunder Mountain had opened up. However, I only ended up in that blasted dead end by Jungle Cruise again...

 

[BaymaxForever]

Just got caught up on your report. Great information! Looks like a good trip, overall. Would love to go there someday!

 

[Jabroniville]

ah, so that's what their Tiki Room is like! That's another one I never went on when I was over there- I had never even heard of translation devices or anything like that, so that and the big Little Mermaid one are things I never visited. And yeah, Ariel's Grotto (the meet & greet) is sort of shoved off to the side in a pathway by Triton's Castle. I'm not even sure if it was open when I was there, but it's literally this fairly little sign and a pathway where you can't see anything else.

And yeah, I was not in Japan by the time that restaurant opened, which would explain why I didn't see it, haha! Big Band Beat was fun- I was so impressed I actually went on both days I was at DisneySea (I don't think there was a lottery thing for it- I never won any of the lotteries I went on during my trip). It was here I learned that the Japanese really liked the girl cat from The Aristocats. One of many interesting cultural differences with foreign Disney love compared to ours (see also: Duffy).

Cool stuff with the hotel and the Goofy statue! I'm not sure if I ever saw that fountain- is that on the outside of the hotel, or within the parks?

It's neat meeting up with people like that in foreign countries who share your fandom. I only ever really had brief conversations with a couple of clerks when I was there.

 

[grayquaza]

Just got caught up on your report. Great information! Looks like a good trip, overall. Would love to go there someday!

Thank you! Hopefully you get the opportunity, 2023 looks to be a great year to visit as Fantasy Springs opens at Tokyo DisneySea.

ah, so that's what their Tiki Room is like! That's another one I never went on when I was over there- I had never even heard of translation devices or anything like that, so that and the big Little Mermaid one are things I never visited. And yeah, Ariel's Grotto (the meet & greet) is sort of shoved off to the side in a pathway by Triton's Castle. I'm not even sure if it was open when I was there, but it's literally this fairly little sign and a pathway where you can't see anything else.

And yeah, I was not in Japan by the time that restaurant opened, which would explain why I didn't see it, haha! Big Band Beat was fun- I was so impressed I actually went on both days I was at DisneySea (I don't think there was a lottery thing for it- I never won any of the lotteries I went on during my trip). It was here I learned that the Japanese really liked the girl cat from The Aristocats. One of many interesting cultural differences with foreign Disney love compared to ours (see also: Duffy).

Cool stuff with the hotel and the Goofy statue! I'm not sure if I ever saw that fountain- is that on the outside of the hotel, or within the parks?

It's neat meeting up with people like that in foreign countries who share your fandom. I only ever really had brief conversations with a couple of clerks when I was there.

Marie I can understand because of the kawaii culture in Japan. But there certainly some surprising and obscure characters that appear. Like Clarice, the lady chipmunk that only appeared in a single Chip & Dale cartoon! I noticed recently that Disney Store Japan released a whole collection of merchandise themed to a single episode of the Winnie the Pooh cartoon from the 80s. I mean it's Cowboy Pooh but it's still very cute and obscure!



The fountain was outside of the hotel, in front of the entrance to the lobby.

 

[grayquaza]

Ah, the Tiki Room again...

I did not watch another show, but here's a fun fact I recently found out. The Stitch overlay is actually the third Tiki show at Tokyo Disneyland. There was the original Enchanted Tiki Room, performed in Japanese of course. Then there was a show called The Enchanted Tiki Room: Now Playing Get The Fever where it became more of a Vegas nightclub setting, even replacing the main birds with lounge hosts called Danno, Scats, Buddy, and Lava! It lasted almost 10 years until it was replaced with Stitch, and they even recorded a demo for an English version, which I'll link to here. Just think, there's an alternate universe where Under New Management became Get The Fever. Wonder how that would have gone down...

I did manage to find my way out of Adventureland, turns out I walked in the opposite direction and it's just around the corner from the Tiki Room, go figure. At least Big Thunder Mountain wasn't too far away.

This was another nighttime ride on BTMR, I never did see it in the daytime. But honestly, I prefer it at night anyway. I think it benefits from being ridden in the dark. Not just in Tokyo, every BTMR. It feels more alive with the added lighting.

Ahh, Splash Mountain... It's a darn shame that it was the only ride closed during my visit. However, it was cold enough that it was probably a blessing! At the moment, Tokyo's Splash is unlikely to receive the Princess & The Frog overlay that's happening in the USA so that's something to keep an eye on in the upcoming years.

It was getting late now, and I wanted to make sure I got over to Tokyo DisneySea once more. I did stop for another ride on Pirates of the Caribbean, it never seemed to have a queue. But once getting off, I was feeling a little peckish. Opposite Pirates, there's a restaurant called The Gazebo. I may have mentioned it way back on the first day. Well, they were selling one of the more unique snacks you can find in the parks.

On first glance, it looks like ice-cream, right? Well it's actually a chilli cone! There was chilli within, topped with a ball of rice and béchamel sauce. Plus, unlike the cones you can buy in Cars Land at DCA, these aren't bread cones but actual waffle cones. So crazy! And it actually tasted quite decent to boot. I think they mix it up every now and then, but it's always served like an ice cream cone.

I believe the electrical parade was passing by at this moment, so I had a little time to rest and eat before heading back to the entrance and to the monorail station.

The Mickey handles on the monorail are just so cute!

And there it is again, Mount Prometheus. It's almost like I never left Tokyo DisneySea!

So the reason I actually rushed back to TDS is because Fantasmic was almost due to start. I think I arrived half an hour beforehand to see if I could nab a spot, since it had been a generally quiet day. But the entire lake was surrounded by those sitting down, those standing up, it was like everyone had the same idea as me!

I'd read that a unique vantage point for the show was actually in the Fortress Exploration part of Mysterious Island. You could get a birds eye view over everything because you're high up. So I made my way over. It was my first time actually entering this area, and it was hard to find the "right" tower to watch from. Every time I thought I found a place, I noticed a taller tower! There were definitely fewer people around here, so I did eventually find a spot where I could watch from.

Not too shabby, right? You get a great view over the entire lake. However, the big disadvantage is that you're essentially at the back of the stage. Like if you watched the fireworks from somewhere that wasn't Main Street. It's all played towards Mediterranean Harbour.

Maybe five minutes before Fantasmic was due to begin, tragedy struck. Okay, that's a little dramatic, but it started to rain. It was a light drizzle, but I hadn't brought anything waterproof with me into the park. Well, I think I had an umbrella though I couldn't exactly hold that and my camera at the same time. Luckily, my new camera lens came with an attachment that somewhat protected it from raindrops getting onto the lens, so I quickly stuck that on before the show began...

Sadly, Fantasmic actually ended last year to make way for a new show called Believe! Sea of Dreams. It didn't even get a proper closure as the parks had to shut down at the very start of the pandemic. They did livestream a performance on the final night when it was due to end. I do wish they had given it a proper send-off, however.

Fantasmic more or less follows the same plot as the American versions of the show. Mickey has a dream that becomes a nightmare that he ultimately defeats with his imagination. But there are some differences, notably taking place in a large lake with a 360 degree view.

The main bulk of the show, and the centrepiece of the whole thing, surrounds this giant hat made up of screens. Mickey does most of his stuff from the top, plus there are fountains and fireworks as well.

The show starts off with the Sorcerer's Apprentice, all those little brooms getting up to mischief. You can see how rainy it was in those spotlights!

This leads into a sequence about underwater creatures, and Pinocchio. Barges with fountains come into play and there are projection screens made of water ala World of Color.

And then... I will continue in the next post as I still need to edit some pictures!

 

[Jabroniville]

Sweet deal! Fantasmic looks cool in the rain! For some reason, I was not that taken with Tokyo's 360 version of the show. But I think the only Fantasmic that really astounded me was the California version (which I had mostly ignored, figuring I wasn't gonna watch "stage shows" on my trip, until I randomly walked by and was like "hey, this is pretty awesome" and watched the second show that day, haha).

Do all the villains show up in this version? I forget. I also wanna see if the big boat is used for all the characters like in the American parks. It's been a while since I've seen it, haha.

My one regret: Only riding Big Thunder once each in Tokyo & Paris. For whatever reason it's my least-desired of the E-Tickets and so I often only ride it once because the lineups can get HUGE. So I barely remember one version to the next, even though Paris's has the thing go under the lake.

 

[grayquaza]

Sweet deal! Fantasmic looks cool in the rain! For some reason, I was not that taken with Tokyo's 360 version of the show. But I think the only Fantasmic that really astounded me was the California version (which I had mostly ignored, figuring I wasn't gonna watch "stage shows" on my trip, until I randomly walked by and was like "hey, this is pretty awesome" and watched the second show that day, haha).

Do all the villains show up in this version? I forget. I also wanna see if the big boat is used for all the characters like in the American parks. It's been a while since I've seen it, haha.

My one regret: Only riding Big Thunder once each in Tokyo & Paris. For whatever reason it's my least-desired of the E-Tickets and so I often only ride it once because the lineups can get HUGE. So I barely remember one version to the next, even though Paris's has the thing go under the lake.

I'm not much of a Fantasmic fan myself, I don't really know it well enough. I think only a few villains appear. Maleficent for sure, and Ursula. I can't remember who else... I didn't ride BTM much in Tokyo but I must have ridden it 4 or 5 times in Paris. It's certainly the superior version of the ride.

 

[grayquaza]

We move onto the next act, which is based on The Jungle Book and The Lion King. Each boat has a few inflatables and dancing monkeys.

Don't forget Kaa swimming through the waters!

The biggest, and unique, difference in the show appears next. It begins with the Circle of Life, which is interrupted by none other than Stitch! He leads a fountain display to Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride as Angel rides about on a jet ski. It was so abrupt, this was the only picture I got!

The boats around the lake gain these inflatable domed screens, and Genie appears for Friend Like Me.

This is follows up with the princess montage. A great moment is when the hat float turns into Cinderella's dress, and she appears up top!

Things were going so swimmingly, but now is the time for the villains to take over. That is a giant Magic Mirror, yes.

And here's Maleficent!

This is the biggest disadvantage of being at the back of the lake. You don't get a good view of the dragon, just the back... It's pretty cool how her wings are created using the fountains though.

Of course, Mickey manages to defeat her in the end and we get a happy ending for all.

Instead of a steamboat filled with different characters, they appear on each of the four separate floats.

And some fireworks to finish up!

I really do wish I'd watched the show from the front of the park instead of behind, but I did still enjoy it. If I'd known at the time that they were going to end it within the year, I would have made an effort to get a better view. Still, it was fun. And here we are, Fantasmic's final performance. It was filmed by TDR themselves since the show closed while everyone was in lockdown.

 

[grayquaza]

The hat stays illuminated for a while after Fantasmic ends. Not sure how long though...

There was probably about an hour before the park was due to close at this point? So I tried to make the most of it. I opened up the app and went to the nearest ride with a short queue.

That ended up being Nemo again! Despite being a pretty tame attraction, it had variation so I kept coming back.

Where next? You guessed it. I went back to Indiana Jones Adventure using the single rider's line. I think I saw more of that Port Discovery - Lost River Delta - Arabian Coast corridor than I did any other part of the parks! I also did Raging Spirits again, single riders. They actually had a separate queue for the single riders, unlike IJA which is mostly the FP queue. It was pretty good at night. Something about roller coasters in the dark just elevates the experience. And of course, the pathway isn't complete without another ride on Sinbad. That hour flew by quickly!

Checking the clock, I found that I had just enough time to get on Journey To The Centre Of The Earth. So I walked back to the boats. There's a dock on the opposite side of the water to IJA. Downstairs, there was also a meet and greet area.

Of course at this time of night, the M&G had closed and was empty. I always assumed based on the decorations that it was a place to meet Donald, Panchito and Jose. The Three Caballeros. Who I really would have loved to meet but didn't see them outside of the parade. Fortunately, I looked it up recently and it's actually another area to meet Duffy! Still, I wish I had come across Panchito and Jose somewhere...

I think I had just missed a boat but another one quickly appeared. It takes you past Mermaid Lagoon and Mysterious Island before docking close to the Fortress Exploration area.

Once getting off the boat, I hightailed it to JTTCOTE, only to find it was roped off. Turns out they close the queue early to anyone without a FP to make sure the ride closes when the park does, which would explain why it had a short wait time on the app...

Disappointed, I sort of wandered around Mysterious Island for a few minutes.

I even came across another Mickey statue.

Then i noticed 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea was still open, with no wait. It was better than nothing!

Funnily enough, this was the first time one of the CM's warned me not to take pictures when on the attraction. I promptly put it back in my bag...

It was a nice enough way to close the evening. The park was closed when I got off, but the shops were still a little busy. I decided to take a look inside, since I promised my mum I'd buy some Minnie ears I spotted earlier in the day.

The pink ones, to be exact. They looked like the pink ones sold in WDW at the time that everyone was gaga for. Millennial pink, was it? They were only 1500 yen as well, or about $15. Bargain! My sister also wanted the traditional Minnie ears since her pair had broken the year before. Luckily I managed to find both of them in store, and that most people were in the candy part of the shop.

At the time, they were selling these cute sakura themed items as it was coming up to spring. Since I was there in Februrary, I missed out on seeing the cherry blossoms. But it was peak plum blossom season and that's just as good really!

After buying the Minnie ears, I left the park and caught the monorail over to Maihama Station so I could get the bus back to the hotel. Of course, I went to bed straight away since the next day would be my last day in Tokyo Disney, and my last full day in Japan overall! I was hoping to make the most it, even if I wasn't ready to head home just yet.

 

[Jabroniville]

Yay, more Fantasmic! I remember almost none of that show except the giant floating cylinder, lol.

I wonder who plays the characters on the floats. Like if you looked closely enough would you find most of them to be Japanese or would they hire Westerners like they do for meet & greets? I find stuff like that absurdly fascinating.

Late-night park-going is amazing, especially in very crowded ones when you can find dead spots. WDW has a fantastic spot around the Liberty Square area where you can be utterly alone in a park filled with thousands of people. I'd imagine the River Delta & American Harbor would be similar at DisneySea.

It's interesting that you spent a lot of time around Lost River Delta- as I stated before, I think... I actually missed most of the area until the next day! I was like "Wait, where did THIS come from?" even though I think I must have gone on the Indy ride earlier (maybe I missed a corner to show more of it?

I think the color of ears everyone was going crazy for was "Rose Gold", then they tried to mimic that unexpected success with a billion other colors (Belle had brown; there was also "Arendelle Aqua").

 

[grayquaza]

Yay, more Fantasmic! I remember almost none of that show except the giant floating cylinder, lol.

I wonder who plays the characters on the floats. Like if you looked closely enough would you find most of them to be Japanese or would they hire Westerners like they do for meet & greets? I find stuff like that absurdly fascinating.

Late-night park-going is amazing, especially in very crowded ones when you can find dead spots. WDW has a fantastic spot around the Liberty Square area where you can be utterly alone in a park filled with thousands of people. I'd imagine the River Delta & American Harbor would be similar at DisneySea.

It's interesting that you spent a lot of time around Lost River Delta- as I stated before, I think... I actually missed most of the area until the next day! I was like "Wait, where did THIS come from?" even though I think I must have gone on the Indy ride earlier (maybe I missed a corner to show more of it?

I think the color of ears everyone was going crazy for was "Rose Gold", then they tried to mimic that unexpected success with a billion other colors (Belle had brown; there was also "Arendelle Aqua").

I would think they hire Westerners, especially since some Disney Japanese fans have crazy good cameras. The M&G face characters may also do the shows? It would make sense to, anyway!

I think I spent a lot of time in that LRD/AC corner because I kept hitting up Indiana Jones and Sinbad, the best rides in the park! Often to the detriment of other areas like American Harbor.

Yeah, it was the rose gold ears that started it all! I got a pair of Arendelle aqua from DLP. I think the ones I got in TDR were an exclusive sakura pink colour? I could be making that up, however...

 

[grayquaza]

DAY 16 - And The Rain Rain Rain Came Down Down Down

It was a bittersweet morning. I had a full day of Disney fun ahead of me, but it would also be my last. Sad times! I was mostly packed, mainly because I tend to live out of my suitcase on vacations. But I still had a few things I needed to do. I was up a little earlier since I wanted to start the day at Tokyo Disney Sea, which opened half an hour earlier than Disneyland. Breakfast was more or less the same, except I had a little slip-up. I grabbed a bowl of cereal, and didn't realise until I was eating it that I'd poured soy milk. Which I'm somewhat allergic to... Luckily, I didn't have that bad of a reaction, just a scratchy throat which cleared after 15 minutes!

I was actually making good time for once, and was on track to TDS at a reasonable time. When I stepped out of the hotel, I discovered it was raining. No big deal. However, after 5 minutes, I decided it was too much rain for my flimsy hoodie to handle. So I reluctantly turned back to the hotel to get my proper coat. While it cost me a bit of time, it proved to be a wise decision because the rain did not stop at all. Never. It literally rained from the moment I left the hotel, to the moment I returned. And it was still raining the following morning on my way to the airport!

Since I had done so much over the previous three days, my initial plan was a flat-out photography day, but the rain washed that plan away... And also why I've missed out on some much needed photo moments throughout the report. It really should have taught me not to leave these kinds of things to the last minute. Then I did the exact same thing when I went to Disneyland Paris. I was going to take photos of the cool halloween decorations in Frontierland but decided to wait until the evening, only to discover they'd closed Frontierland for one of those RunDisney marathons...

When I reached TDS,I noticed the rain seemed to have an effect on the crowds. I felt closer to the gates than on previous days, but I did still have to wait in the rain for 45 minutes, so not the best... When the gates opened, I thought I would risk attempting Toy Story Mania. I knew it was one of the most popular attractions but the quieter crowds could be beneficial. I rushed as fast as I could without running and soon came to a halt in a queue. I don't know if it was for the ride itself or the FPs, but it was too far back for my own comfort. I couldn't even see the ride from where I was standing. Because I'm impatient, I only waited a few minutes before admitting defeat and high-tailing it over to JTTCOTE for a quick FP!

Once securing my FP, I decided I would check out something else nearby instead of getting in the standby line. The previous night, I watched Fantasmic from Fortress Explorations, but I didn't actually look around. The fortress is a sizable play area with mini activities to do. Think Tom Sawyer Island but "science" themed. Because the fortress is actually the base of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers, or S.E.A. It's a name that has become more prominent in recent years. It started in Tokyo DisneySea and has since spread elsewhere. From newer attractions like Mystic Manor in HKDL, to retroactive additions to older rides like Jungle Cruise and Big Thunder Mountain. There's a Disney Wikipedia page about it (because of course there is!) if you want to learn more about it. I believe Disney is planning a Disney+ series based on the society, so it could be worth the look!

They provide little leaflets for the fortress with a map and what to expect. Throughout, you can find little experiments and playful features. But annoyingly, one of the areas I was excited for, the Navigation Centre, was closed for some reason. It's a sizable pool with model boats you can steer around for 100 yen. It looks fun from the pictures and videos I've seen, so I was a little disappointed! Instead, I moved onto the next room.

Here, you'll find a 3D painting of Mount Prometheus erupting. It's painted onto the walls, ceiling and floor. When you look into the viewer in front of it, the pieces align into a seamless painting. It's pretty cool!

Also in this part of the fortress, you can find something called the Focault Pendulum that shows the rotation of the earth in effect. A pendulum swings forwards and backwards and, as the earth rotates, the direction the pendulum swings moves ever so slightly to knock down pegs. It's not exactly thrilling, especially since it'd take a full day to knock over all the pegs...

There was a corridor which I think had a timeline of scientific discoveries or something? I thought it was about S.E.A. itself but, according to that Disney Wiki, the society didn't form until 1538.

Upstairs on the higher levels of the fortress, there was a far more interesting experiment which showed how a camera obscura worked. There was a pinhole camera at the very top of the room which looked out over the park, and was projected onto a circular screen in the middle. You could spin the camera around and watch as it gradually formed an image of what was outside.

Outside, I found this little fella plodding along. I felt sorry for the guy since it looked like he wasn't able to fly. I imagine the rain had grounded it. I followed him around for a little while not really sure what to do to help...

The next room had a real wow factor to it. There's a working planetarium, and it's marvellous! I started moving all of the planets around because I wanted to align them all for a photo. And just as I was moving the last one, a kid came into the room and ruined it! Ah well, it wasn't meant to be.

Elsewhere around the fortress, I found this room with potions behind a bar. It looked like you could interact with it in some way but I couldn't figure it out.

I believe it's part of the Leonardo Challenge, which is a game you can play around the fortress. Except it's entirely in Japanese so even if I managed to join it, (it always seemed to be closed whenever I went by,) I wouldn't understand it anyway. I saw a few other rooms with the same mechanics, but the only one I remember involved the volcano.

Here's a top-down view of that pendulum experiment I mentioned earlier.

This was the top of the camera obscura. You can just about make out the mechanism above the dome.

It really was a grotty morning...

I think this dome housed the planetarium. Likely, since I went back in!

At the bottom here, you can see one of Leonardo Da Vinci's flying contraptions, based on some of the sketches he made. Another thing I learned from the Disney Wiki, Leonardo Da Vinci wasn't a S.E.A. member since he died before it was founded, but his ghost haunts the fortress!

Along the top of the fort, there are several cannons pointed toward Mediterranean Harbor. You can yank on the string and they'll blast out a puff of smoke along with a loud bang.

On the top of them, you'll see the S.E.A. crest.

Lastly, I visited the ship that's docked outside of the fortress.

It's pretty neat, you can go below decks where there are a few beds, a kitchen, and a study. I think there were a few interactive elements on the ship itself. You know, outside of spinning the wheel.

Oh, what's this familiar pattern I spy...

And with that, I had thoroughly explored the fortress. So here's a video that was filmed with much better weather than I was having! You'll also see the intricate boat room which wasn't open when I visited.

 

[Jabroniville]

LOL, the "Kid ruins the planetarium" thing literally happened on my trip, too- some other white guys were doing it and some Japanese girl ran in and moved one. I was a bit perturbed when they guy shouted "NOOOOO!"- he was laughing as he did it, but I think he startled the kid. I mean, it was LOUD.

That section is indeed pretty interesting- I think I only checked it out on my first day, but the trick with the sphere making the painting look like one image was INSANE and I can't believe it's such an old invention! The time required to do that must be incredible!

The S.E.A. thing now spreading across the resorts is kind of interesting. It's SUPER nerdy (I thought it actually got founded with the Adventurer's Club, but I might be wrong- it could have been linked to it afterwards) and maaaaaaybe wraps up all the resorts with a little too neat a "bow", but I can dig it.

Did the rain at least keep the lines down? I've heard that when it rains in Tokyo, the annual passholders just don't bother going, so the parks kinda empty out a bit.

 

[grayquaza]

LOL, the "Kid ruins the planetarium" thing literally happened on my trip, too- some other white guys were doing it and some Japanese girl ran in and moved one. I was a bit perturbed when they guy shouted "NOOOOO!"- he was laughing as he did it, but I think he startled the kid. I mean, it was LOUD.

That section is indeed pretty interesting- I think I only checked it out on my first day, but the trick with the sphere making the painting look like one image was INSANE and I can't believe it's such an old invention! The time required to do that must be incredible!

The S.E.A. thing now spreading across the resorts is kind of interesting. It's SUPER nerdy (I thought it actually got founded with the Adventurer's Club, but I might be wrong- it could have been linked to it afterwards) and maaaaaaybe wraps up all the resorts with a little too neat a "bow", but I can dig it.

Did the rain at least keep the lines down? I've heard that when it rains in Tokyo, the annual passholders just don't bother going, so the parks kinda empty out a bit.

I suppose it's a popular photo idea since those guys in the video tried it as well! It is a really interesting area. I think the Adventurer's Club was retconned to be a part of the S.E.A. storyline like Jungle Cruise, but they may have been inspired by it when creating the S.E.A. concept?

I was certainly hoping the rain would keep the lines down, and I do think it was quieter. But the big rides still had big lines. The actual noticeable thing was that a few of the shows were closed so I imagine, given how the Japanese crowds love the parades and shows and anything involving the characters, any lack of crowds from the rain was cancelled out by those who'd usually watch the shows.