I am just curious but what about Harry Potter makes you so uncomfortable? Yes, I am a Potter nerd so yes that makes me biased but honestly I am just extremely curious about what it is that makes you so uncomfortable about what is basically young adult/children's fairytale book series.
I mean I could see if you were anti-magic due to religious reasons or the like but you go to Disney where there is magic, evil witches and basically the same fantasy background as Potter so that doesn't fit.
I guess I'm just confused because you've stated this in several posts but have given no reason and I can't for the life of me figure out why if it's not anti-magic thing and I'm really just curious to know the answer.
Hi, thanks for asking! Just to be clear, my reason for stating it is so that it's not a given that Universal has beaten the competition with its latest expansions. We liked USO before (BIIIGGG fans of MIB! what what!), and now we haven't been as interested in going back. I don't make a big deal of saying what I think about it (other than that is makes us uncomfortable) because it's only my personal preference and it does not reflect everyone's opinion, as I know.
But since you asked and since we are having a nice grown up conversation, and since you are sincerely interested in my point of view, than I don't mind sharing it. As long as you know that it's purely a personal point of view, and no cause for argument. Like I said, I have to be selective with Disney too. I walked out of Princess and the Frog.
So funny with the cajun fireflies, but too much with the voodoo so called friends on the other side. I still like the New Orleans part of the music and Tiana, but I can cut out the rest (including turning off the TV etc). I can do that easier with Disney than I can with a series whose premise is based on heroes at a school of witchcraft, making incantations and flying around on brooms. It does make it worse for me personally when the heroes are the witches, as opposed to the villains (its just a message thing there, I guess. Normally, the good triumphs the evil witch etc.) I won't be watching Maleficent, I haven't seen Powerful Oz, and I alter my
Disney cruise shows too to make sure I skip the parts that have underworld zombie spirits etc.
I feel equally as uncomfortable with LOTR stuff, I try to avoid Fantastia and sorcerer mickey as much as possible. That still leaves me a bit of leeway with Pocahontas, Mulan and Lion King (yes, I know they aren't perfect either), but I still feel like I can maintain a modicum of conscience with series like Bug's Life, Toy Story, Wall*E, Incredibles, Monsters Inc (basically all the Pixar stuff is less magicy and just fun!), all the EPCOT stuff, most of the MK stuff (throw out Haunted Mansion which is a big difference from the sci-fi creepiness of Tower of Terror 6th dimension stuff versus spirits sitting in your vehicle), just about all of the AK stuff (I can ride Everest without any conflict of conscience easily, Dinosaur too), and pretty much most if not all HS. I was glad when Fantasmic changed its tone to include a lot more of the Indians and canoes and princesses on floats and a lot less of the dragon.
I still intend to go to Universal Hollywood (they said HP won't arrive until 2016?) if I can next year, but as a person who loves rides, if a lot of the big rides are themed in a way that makes me uncomfortable, I have to decide if its worth paying the same as I would at Disney (Because they are all basically $99 a day now pretty much.) Do I go to Disney and ride an Aerosmith themed Roller Coaster or do I pay the same at USO only to possibly end up skipping a Harry Potter roller coaster so I don't feel bad about my choice later? I can tell you which makes me happier for
my dollar. On the other hand, out West, I can ride Simpsons, Minions, Transformers and more (at least in 2015) without having to either go on a ride that I feel bad bad about, or sitting it out. That's why I'd rather go to a park that isn't so HP focused. It doesn't mean I won't ever to go USO, it just means I will be conflicted when I get there.
On the surface, I know that it seems easy to compare Disney and HP, but to me, they are not the same. I have great happy music to sing about the Bear Necessities, or Rapunzel cleaning up her tower, or You Gotta Friend in Me. I have no such happy sing songs from HP? And even Frozen was less magic-y than other movies have been, with her basically being a Norweigian version of Storm (from Marvel). On the other hand, if Disney comes out with a Day of The Dead movie (as I heard rumors), well you know exactly where I stand there... but at least there will always be World Show Case, SSE and all the other Space Tie ins like Space Mountain and Mission Space, Nemo, Cars, so on and so on...
So I hope that helps? I know its not cut and dry and does have some grey areas, but my line gets drawn at vampires, kids killing each other in televised games, zombies, and heroic witches flying around on broomsticks.
I like the kid that plays HP though, he's a cutie!
At IOA it's the same way, you can completely bypass HP by taking the bridge from Lost Continent to Jurassic Park. There's still so much to enjoy at both parks without having to see things you don't want to.
