Synonymous
I know all about it, see?
- Joined
- Sep 6, 2000
- Messages
- 1,119
We were at WDW 11/2-11/7 and got to experience the new attractions that recently opened. I thought I'd share my thoughts on each:
Wishes- We saw this twice, once from the observation deck at California Grille and once from Main Street, just outside the castle hub. First- the show is great, as others have reported. It started off kind of slow, but got better and more exciting as it went on. One of the best parts is the lighting effects done on the castle. I particularly love the "evil" colors during the villain portion of the show. It's a wonder that they found a way to make beautiful Cinderella's Castle look evil! This part of the show actually reminded me alot of Fantasmic. "Be careful what you wish for" has the same ring as "But beware, there's nothing more powerful than the imagination."
It was fun from CG, but definitely better on Main Street. You need to see the flares shooting up on either side of the castle for full effect. If you do watch from CG, though- use this tip we got from our waitress- go to the rear observation deck (follow the corridor that goes past the elevators.) Fewer people go out there, so it's much more relaxing. But be sure to go all the way to the end. We heard a couple people turn back and go to the front deck because they thought the view was blocked. It isn't, but you have to go out to the end.
From Main Street, don't be too close to the castle. We were near the popcorn vendors, and the trees around the hub blocked a little bit of some of the flares.
Mickey's Philharmagic- Wow! This one is a home run for Disney. The audience actually cheered during the show. Donald is at his classic best,and the interaction between him and the movie characters is priceless. As Dave Letterman says, "We laughed, we cried, it became a part of us." We went back 4 times and I enjoyed it just as much each time. Needless to say, DD6 was thrilled. If you love Disney movies, this will make your heart swell.
People are saying there's nothing scary in this show, which generally is true. But I did notice a couple young kids getting upset at the beginning when the instruments first come to life and attack Donald. If your youngster is frightened by attractions, you might want to explain this part beforehand and let him/her know that Donald is fine and Lumiere will be singing in just a minute. From that point on it's pure fun.
I do have one big complaint about this show. We never waited more time than it took for the next showing to start, but the design of the waiting area is atrocious, IMHO. There is a holding area outside the theater doors, and they pack people in there like cattle. There is nothing to see, nothing to do, and once you're in, good luck if you need to get out. Any little ones sitting on the floor are very likely to be stepped on. Once the doors open, there is no guidance, and it's a mad dash for seats.
The ramp into the waiting area creates a terrible bottleneck- it should be taken out, or people should be given a choice of directions to go, instead of everyone being channeled in the same direction to then have to fight back through the crowd towards a door. They also need a pre-show, like in Muppets or HISTA. This is an area where your kids are very likely to get impatient and uncomfortable while you wait.
Mission:Space- My most anticipated attraction. First, the queue area is spectacular. An achievement in its own. Even if you're afraid to ride, go through this area once so you can see it.
I understand why they do it, but they need to cut back on all the warnings. Anyone who is nervous about going on this ride will be driven to distraction by the multiple times they tell you all the people who shouldn't be riding it. It's on signs, it's in the pre-show video, it's announced over speakers. My poor wife got so freaked out that she bailed out after we got into the cockpit. Of course, that was too much for DD, and she went with.
It's a shame, because the ride is not that intense. I was quite keyed up for it myself, given the hype that's out there, but, IMHO, if you can do Star Tours you can do this. I think ST is more intense. I expected to be crushed into my seat, cheeks flapping with the G-forces, and no such thing happened. You feel pushed back, sure, but I never found it at all uncomfortable. In fact, the asteroid sequence (another direct link to ST) is far less rough than the one in ST.
I was very careful not ot look to the sides at all, and I must admit I did feel the slightest bit of something in my stomach as I left the ride. It was certainly nothing that would have made me hesitate to go back on again. Just a strange feeling. It went away by the time we got to Test Track.
But I did not go on again. I had a set of Fastpasses, anticipating that we would want to rush right back on. But DW and DD were so freaked that they wouldn't try it and, frankly, it wasn't good enough to make me want to go back and do it again alone. I gave the FPs away.
Judging by the fact that M:S had a much shorter line than TT, it seems alot of other people feel the same. I'm very disappointed for Disney- I know this ride is very important for Epcot and alot of people obviously put a ton of work into it (not to mention the money.) But it doesn't seem, to me, to be the blockbuster everyone hoped for. Maybe they can crank it up a notch.
Wishes- We saw this twice, once from the observation deck at California Grille and once from Main Street, just outside the castle hub. First- the show is great, as others have reported. It started off kind of slow, but got better and more exciting as it went on. One of the best parts is the lighting effects done on the castle. I particularly love the "evil" colors during the villain portion of the show. It's a wonder that they found a way to make beautiful Cinderella's Castle look evil! This part of the show actually reminded me alot of Fantasmic. "Be careful what you wish for" has the same ring as "But beware, there's nothing more powerful than the imagination."
It was fun from CG, but definitely better on Main Street. You need to see the flares shooting up on either side of the castle for full effect. If you do watch from CG, though- use this tip we got from our waitress- go to the rear observation deck (follow the corridor that goes past the elevators.) Fewer people go out there, so it's much more relaxing. But be sure to go all the way to the end. We heard a couple people turn back and go to the front deck because they thought the view was blocked. It isn't, but you have to go out to the end.
From Main Street, don't be too close to the castle. We were near the popcorn vendors, and the trees around the hub blocked a little bit of some of the flares.
Mickey's Philharmagic- Wow! This one is a home run for Disney. The audience actually cheered during the show. Donald is at his classic best,and the interaction between him and the movie characters is priceless. As Dave Letterman says, "We laughed, we cried, it became a part of us." We went back 4 times and I enjoyed it just as much each time. Needless to say, DD6 was thrilled. If you love Disney movies, this will make your heart swell.
People are saying there's nothing scary in this show, which generally is true. But I did notice a couple young kids getting upset at the beginning when the instruments first come to life and attack Donald. If your youngster is frightened by attractions, you might want to explain this part beforehand and let him/her know that Donald is fine and Lumiere will be singing in just a minute. From that point on it's pure fun.
I do have one big complaint about this show. We never waited more time than it took for the next showing to start, but the design of the waiting area is atrocious, IMHO. There is a holding area outside the theater doors, and they pack people in there like cattle. There is nothing to see, nothing to do, and once you're in, good luck if you need to get out. Any little ones sitting on the floor are very likely to be stepped on. Once the doors open, there is no guidance, and it's a mad dash for seats.
The ramp into the waiting area creates a terrible bottleneck- it should be taken out, or people should be given a choice of directions to go, instead of everyone being channeled in the same direction to then have to fight back through the crowd towards a door. They also need a pre-show, like in Muppets or HISTA. This is an area where your kids are very likely to get impatient and uncomfortable while you wait.
Mission:Space- My most anticipated attraction. First, the queue area is spectacular. An achievement in its own. Even if you're afraid to ride, go through this area once so you can see it.
I understand why they do it, but they need to cut back on all the warnings. Anyone who is nervous about going on this ride will be driven to distraction by the multiple times they tell you all the people who shouldn't be riding it. It's on signs, it's in the pre-show video, it's announced over speakers. My poor wife got so freaked out that she bailed out after we got into the cockpit. Of course, that was too much for DD, and she went with.
It's a shame, because the ride is not that intense. I was quite keyed up for it myself, given the hype that's out there, but, IMHO, if you can do Star Tours you can do this. I think ST is more intense. I expected to be crushed into my seat, cheeks flapping with the G-forces, and no such thing happened. You feel pushed back, sure, but I never found it at all uncomfortable. In fact, the asteroid sequence (another direct link to ST) is far less rough than the one in ST.
I was very careful not ot look to the sides at all, and I must admit I did feel the slightest bit of something in my stomach as I left the ride. It was certainly nothing that would have made me hesitate to go back on again. Just a strange feeling. It went away by the time we got to Test Track.
But I did not go on again. I had a set of Fastpasses, anticipating that we would want to rush right back on. But DW and DD were so freaked that they wouldn't try it and, frankly, it wasn't good enough to make me want to go back and do it again alone. I gave the FPs away.
Judging by the fact that M:S had a much shorter line than TT, it seems alot of other people feel the same. I'm very disappointed for Disney- I know this ride is very important for Epcot and alot of people obviously put a ton of work into it (not to mention the money.) But it doesn't seem, to me, to be the blockbuster everyone hoped for. Maybe they can crank it up a notch.
