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robbalvey

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Everything posted by robbalvey

  1. Yes, please note this.... I only did it for CoasterBill because he's... well... "special." And it we didn't we'd never hear the end of his mentioning it. And that doesn't mean everyone else go be a squeaky wheel, just CoasterBill, because, for whatever reason I tolerate his stupid shit...
  2. In Japan rides simply CANNOT have accidents. Even when accidents have happened that were non-fatal, and would be considered "not a huge deal" here in the US, it will shut down a coaster for sometimes multiple years. Case in point, both Steel Dragon and Thunder Dolphin were both closed for many years due to a mechanical issue with the trains that resulted in a non-fatal accident. But it was enough to add several additional safety checks to ensure it doesn't happen again. So you can see, that minor injury caused the ride to be closed for 2 1/2 years. And that is why those nets all around the entire ride were installed after the accident.
  3. Ugh.... for you.... I *guess* we could add it....
  4. Same here. I liked Iron Reef, and didn't understand all the local hate, either. I get it. Even though I think it's silly. In SoCal theme park culture, EVERYTHING is compared to Disney, even if an attraction stands on its own just fine. Iron Reef opened too close to Toy Story Mania and was similar enough that it received a ton of hate for not being Toy Story Mania. I personally thought the ride was just fine and was actually pretty good, but that's also because not only did I like it, but I've been on a LOT of other screen based shooting dark rides that were terrible. Most people in SoCal don't really travel and have nothing else to compare it to. And if it "isn't Disney, it sucks..." I see that mentality far too often. The new ride will have a nostalgic factor, even though, I'm willing to bet that the majority of the people who will ride it, won't even know or remember the original attractions since it even pre-dated Kingdom of the Dinosaurs. But it's nice to see them pay homage to something that was a fairly original attraction for that Roaring 20s area of the park.
  5. This is exactly what I was expecting especially considering that Iron Reef is in the post of the old Bear-y tales ride.
  6. Why don't people use our YouTube video embed feature??? Coming into the forum and posting a link with one sentence is the most LAZY thing you can do. It doesn't do anything to create discussion, and it just looks like you're spamming the group with a link to content somewhere else. Thread closed and link removed. If you'd like you actually make a PROPER POST that would create discussion and embed the video, you're more than welcome to.
  7. Wow! Holy shit! I put this in the "batshit crazy" category. I'm going to pull any videos I had of their attractions off our socials. Don't want any part of this weirdness!
  8. I have seen Les Miserables about 100 times. Seriously! It's true! When I lived part-time in London, it was my "go to" show on the West End and I'd pick up single tickets 20 minutes before the show next to nothing. I fell in love with it early on in my theater going life and I still, to this day, hold Les Miz in my list of "top favorite shows!" Fast forward to 2019 where the current "anniversary" production has now been playing for about 10 years and I personally think it is the BEST production of Les Miserables ever! Yes, some of the "purists" will miss the turntable (let's be honest, every other Broadway show now uses a turntable in their staging so it's no longer unique) and many may not care for some of the newer, slightly more faster tempo arrangements of the music, but I personally LOVE IT. That combined with all the newer staging using more modern theater tech and dropping the "serious level" just a slight amount, this is a more "modern" Les Miz that plays perfectly to today's theater going crowd. The newer staging just blows me away with the use of projections, more larger set pieces and automation, phenomenal lighting, and at no point during the show do I ever miss the turntable in its staging, in fact I had seen the original production in London a couple of years ago AFTER seeing the Anniversary version, and honesty, the original just felt "dated." Do I need to talk about the story? I'm assuming by now most of you know that Les Miserables is all about Jean Valjean, his struggles with the law, a little girl named Cosette, and a French Revolution. And it all unfolds in one of the most epic, 3-hour long productions ever put on stage! This show pulls at every heartstring possible! Like I've said I've seen the show 100 times and I still laugh and cry all the way through it! If you don't know the full story, that's all you're gonna get it! Go see the movie or the show! The cast in the tour is simply wonderful. Every single member of the cast, from Jean Valjean to the ensemble just kills it! This is actually the 3rd time I've seen this cast and everyone is perfect for their role. I honestly have nothing bad to say about any of the performers! Les Miserables plays at the Dr. Phillips Center in Orlando through Sunday, October 27th. This show kicks off an amazing Broadway season in Orlando with shows like Miss Saigon, Mean Girls, Aladdin, and My Fair Lady. For information about tickets, please visit their website: https://www.drphillipscenter.org/
  9. Translation: Be prepared to be annoyed anytime you want to ride a roller coaster.
  10. Ahh, yes! I was most certainly hoping there would be a trip report from your visit... and here it is! Well done....
  11. I've added a video of all the haunted houses at Queen Mary Dark Harbor:
  12. REGISTER an account on the TPR forum to post your comments below! ----------------------------------------------------------- Ok, so where did we leave off from the last update? Ahh, yes. ShellieMay and I were hanging out at Tokyo DisneySEA... We took many rides on Journey to the Center of the Earth... and now it's time to head to someplace a little bit different... The Arabian Coast! Quite possibly my all-time favorite Disney dark ride is Sindbad's Storybook Voyage. I'm going to post a video of it below, but I have to be honest, it's just one of those rides that doesn't seem as "special" watching on video, but it is just amazing when you are there! Around the corner we find... *gasp* ... A ROLLER COASTER!!!! But this is a report without riding roller coasters, so we will just LOOK at it but not ride it. LOOK! SEE!!!! Pretty? Yes? Honestly Raging Spirits is one of those coasters that *LOOKS* amazing... but rides just "okay." It's not rough or anything, it just is sort of "there." But people are having fun on it and that's all that matters, right? Oh yeah, it does one of 'dem loop-de-loopy things. Hello Tokyo Disney popcorn! How I love you so sooooo much! Can I just point out for a second that not only is a full bottle of Coke at Tokyo Disney only about .... ...but every bottle you get is wiped off and served to you nice and clean. I mean, why would you want a wet bottle, dripping with ice and whatever else the bottle was in when it is handed to you, right? (US parks... take notes here!) These Donald feet and Mickey hands headbands were new and all the rage during our visit. They finally did make it out to the US a few months later. They're cute! As far as merchandise goes, for years they didn't have a shirt that just said "DisneySEA" or "Disneyland" on it, but now they do! I do love the Tokyo Disney merchandise. It's so loud and obnoxious but I love it! If you are "Happy as a Rainbow" they've got a shirt for you, too! I never get tired of just looking at photos of this park. Everywhere you look it's just amazing! Hello, Aquatopia.... For years I've been calling Aquatopia the "most amazing POINTLESS ride ever made" but that's not true... it DOES have a point... ...and that is to make you HAPPY! It is IMPOSSIBLE to come off this totally pointless ride smiling and grinning as big as possible. It seriously is one of my favorite rides of the entire resort....and I have no idea why! lol When the line is 30 minutes for Aquatopia, running both sides, you know it's a busy day at the park! Hey! Look who we found!!! We love you ShellieMay! Let's go play with some toys.... There are some people who find this entrance to Toy Story Mania really creepy... I think it's awesome. I love the Disney-themed throwback to the classic "Luna Park" style entrances. And this area looking amazing at night! And yes, that says 150 minutes. Toy Story Mania is still CRAZY popular in Japan! Let's be honest, there is where the likes of Nintendo, Sega, Capcom, and Konami come from.... The Japanese LOVE their video games and this attraction is a perfect example of that! So when we do a "full day" at one of the Tokyo Disney parks, we normally will escape during the afternoon peak times and head out to one of our favorite local areas because the parks can get VERY busy and you sometimes need a break! I'm kind of intrigued by the "Human-Related Incident" that was causing a train delay today! About 15 minutes away from Tokyo Disney is a fairly large shopping area called LaLaPort. It's a great area to just chill at and has some of our favorite shops in Japan... such as.... The Disney Store!!! Yes. We left Tokyo Disney to go to The Disney Store. DON'T JUDGE!!!! They are cactuses. WHY ARE THEY CACTUSES!!! PLEASE! SOMEONE!!! TELL ME WHY THEY ARE CACTUSES!!!! They had a special line of Chip N Dale Rescue Rangers stuff and that's amazing! This now sits in our house. Gadget is so hot....and she has a roller coaster. So yeah... instant furry girlfriend material right there! Capsule machines will always be a part of Japanese culture that I love. You can just find the weirdest most amazing stuff in them. For example... HATS FOR CATS!!!! Hats for cats has been a "thing" in Japan for a couple of visits now. Do we think the cats like the hats? They never look that pleased to be wearing them in the photos.... Animal Crossing fans... tell us what this is! We took a quick look into Daiso to get Kristen some clay.... and poop. We may or may not have visited every single Pokemon Center in the country of Japan. I mean... gotta catch them all... right? "You want to buy a Tower Records, Eduardo?" Yes, they still exist in Japan! I love all the town mascots in Japan! I guess this is "Elderly Funassyi???" Did you ever see Lost In Translations where Bill Murray goes to Japan as a "washed up actor" to do ads for a beverage company? Well... that really exists! lol And while I know this George Clooney Nespresso ad was more than just in Japan, I don't know why but as soon as I saw it, it just made me think of Lost In Translation! *GREAT* film, BTW. If you haven't seen it, and you're interested in Japan, you NEED to see it! WHY. ARE. THEY. CACTUSES?!?!?!? We'll end this part of the trip report here! Next up we head back to DisneySEA for some night time, volcano exploding fun! Now.... POST YOUR COMMENTS!!!
  13. Right. This exactly. I'm not saying it wasn't due to poor maintenance or even a design flaw. I am not skilled or educated enough either. But what I'm saying is that you shouldn't make posts saying that "I've looked at pictures of roller coasters on the internet so that makes me qualified to say it is poor maintenance." I will be very interested to see what the report after the investigation shows, if we ever get such a report.
  14. Can you please explain to us all how much experience you have maintaining amusement park rides that you can make that assessment looking at a photo & video?
  15. I don't think Anton Schwarzkopf is to blame for the accident. I believe the park aren't taking care of their rides very well. Look at how rusty the track, and that amusement is sketchy at best. It just bothers me why would anyone in their right mind to go to that park when Six Flags Mexico, a superior park to La Feria is 8 miles away. Edit: Grammar. Two very similar rides seem to derail the same way and that doesn’t make you wonder? I mean I don’t know for sure but I’m a fairly educated person in the theme park world and that would be my best guess. You are aware that “rusty track” is actually NOT a sign of poor maintenance, right?
  16. So it derailed just like the Edmonton ride did? Makes me think Mr. Anton might have had some design flaws in his trains...
  17. I have uploaded a higher quality video of the 35 Happiest Celebration Street Projection Show. This show seriously was FANTASTIC! And they ran different projections in World Bazaar throughout the night. In this video there are three different shows: 1. "Celebration Street" (Brand New Day) 2. "Goodnight" 3. Classic fairytales. I also included a slightly longer version of Brand New Day at the end because the show and the song is awesome!
  18. Tokyo Disney does an "after 6pm" pass on the weeknights or "After 3pm" pass on the weekends. So outside of the "official days" when we have a 4-day ticket, I'll just go and buy the after Xpm tickets to spend a few hours. It's usually about $40 - $45 for the after 6pm pass, and the park is usually open until 10pm. That being said, I do treat my bonus nighttime visits much like I do my Annual Pass visits at Walt Disney World. I normally go in just to "walk around" and take photos, see the shows and *maybe* ride something. For example at Disneyland, I'll most certainly watch Dream Lights every night I'm there, walk around a bit, and then a few minutes before park closing get in line for Pooh (which is never more than about 25 minutes at that time.) At DisneySEA I'll just spend that time walking around taking photos, and usually taking a ride on Aquatopia & Sindbad... maybe the Indy single rider line as well. I will probably watch Fantasmic! at least once or twice this trip because it's ending, but honestly, I usually don't watch it because I've seen it many times before, and it takes time away from just exploring the park. But that is my usual typical night at these parks, and is exactly why we ended up staying a week in Japan without riding any roller coaster! The lines for Space Mountain & Thunder Mountain were just too long for attractions we basically have the same versions of here in the US.
  19. ^ Yep. I'll be buying all that stuff! I will be bringing an extra bag just for Duffy costumes and characters!
  20. They didn't do any classic Halloween costumes this year, but they have some AMAZING "fall" costumes that I am going to pick up not long after we land in Tokyo! Basically, the plane will land, and as soon as I can, I'm heading to Tokyo DisneySEA and then right to the Duffy store to pick up the new costumes! Gotta have her ready for her Tokyo Disney Halloween Season premiere! Also, Duffy is currently in the Lost River Delta area wearing a sombrero, so there is that!
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