jzoole

I suppose, in a way, three lower capacity rides sort of equal one higher capacity attraction. Just hypothetically (as I don't know the actual cost or RPH of their last three additions) if Lex Luthor, Green Lantern and Full Throttle combined cost the park around the same as a big people-eating B&M would have, and each have a capacity of somewhere in the 600/hr range, then these three attractions sort of even out with one big high-capacity addition. The benefit to the park, however, is that it gives them THREE big new attractions to advertise in three different years, rather than going a few years without a new draw. Again, I don't know what these rides cost and what their hourly capacity is. Just a hypothesis.

God it looks amazing. I can't wait to find out what it actually does after the tunnel!

BUT HOW MANY TRAINS WILL IT HAVE?? Just kidding It's not everything I could have hoped and wished for, but it looks fun and unique. It seems like the park is getting a pretty good bang for their buck, and I'm sure the GP will like it a lot. I think the nearest hope for an airtime machine in SFMM's future would be a Rocky Mountain Reno on Colossus.

^I suspect that some of the folks who write the little teasers and such for the park's Facebook might not even fully comprehend the difference, lol. I mean, it often seems pretty obvious that those folks don't really have an enthusiast's knowledge of the different rides and how to describe them.

I'm sure Flashback's removal serves two purposes: Giving SFStL a low-budget 2013 addition, and clearing the way for whatever the park has planned post-2013. Anyway, what does it have to do with National Roller Coaster Day? Not much to us, but for the GP, it won't really seem like some kind of horrible false advertisement to allude to National Roller Coaster Day in a teaser for a big giant thrill ride. A lot of them don't even know the difference between the two.

When I read the Screamscape update, this is exactly what I was picturing. I just spent ten or fifteen minutes trying to draw it (with no success) and then I saw your video lol. It would make a lot of sense. Premiere has recently experimented with the "non-inverting loops" with S:UF. I really hope it has a good-length layout and this loop element is just the "centerpiece" of the ride so to speak.

What I really just don't get is WHY they are so lazy about theming. If you already have a well themed western area, and you're putting a new multi-million dollar roller coaster in said area, is it SO hard to name it something western-sh, rather than "Medusa" or "Goliath" or "Boomerang"? How much can it possibly cost to trademark a new name and logo? Or hell, if they really want to reuse names and logos, they could pick one of their already-westernish names like Rattler or Raging Bull. Would it cost anything more for them to paint a coaster in the western section a rusty orange or yellow or something that fits, rather than bright purple or lime green? And I KNOW it can't be that expensive to plop down a few chuck wagons and decorate the place so it fits in with its surroundings. I just don't get it.

^Yeah, I didn't really get what he was trying to say either... Why should anyone care if they have to explain to their friend that Superman at one Six Flags park is different from Superman at another? How is this a big problem?

I might get made fun of for even bringing up AstroWorld, but once upon a time, they had some rides with pretty decent theming. Dungeon Drop was hella cool, walking through the castle with all the moving skeletons in the cages and creepy music and such. Was it Disney quality? Hell no. Did it make the whole experience more fun and exciting? I thought so for sure! Same with Mayan Mindbender. Was that ride anything special? Not really - it was a small Vekoma thing in the dark. But you walked through this jungle shrouded in mist, weaving in and out of ruins and crashed jeeps with the skeletons of explorers with eerie music playing all around you, then entered a big Mayan pyramid with giant cobras with glowing red eyes. It was really fun and pretty impressive for Six Flags. I also thought (as crappy as it was) that Batman: The Escape had excellent Batman theming, especially when the Batcave was still open. I loved how they had recordings playing throughout the queue that actually told a story about Gotham City Cold Storage being attacked by the Penguin and an escape vehicle being prepared by batman to launch you away to safety. It made a would-be lame ride seem a lot more exciting. The theming for these rides were simple, but pretty effective. I would like to see Six Flags make more of an attempt at theming, and actually keep up with, rather than letting it all get plastered over with gum. Of course Six Flags will never be able to compete with the major national destination parks in terms of theming, but they can at least offer a cool atmosphere for the regional visitors who don't all have the luxury of planning trips to expensive far-away parks.

I haven't experienced the Terminator pre-show, but I actually liked the Dark Knight pre-show experience lol. I know I'm in the minority! But I agree with your characterization of Six Flags theming as decoration.

^ I was wondering that myself! I think it could/should. They would have to re-theme Pandemonium, Crazy Legs, and Acme Rockin' Rocket. Maybe they could add some Justice League type in the Action Theater? I would be super happy with that addition.

Well he did say that there may be a Skyscreamer in there. I think expanding Gotham into DC with a Skycreamer would be a good addition.

Yes, I would care. I know for the most part, Six Flags fails at theming. But when they do try, it's really nice and I do really enjoy it. I think hands down the best theming in the chain is at SFFT. It has six clearly defined themed areas, and they are done pretty well. Crackaxle Canyon, Rockville, and Spassburg in particular. I also really appreciate that over the years, they have continued to attempt to keep with the theme in most cases. They could easily have called Goliath "Batman," but instead, they painted it colors to fit in with Los Festivales and surrounded it with a Mexican/Mayan feel. It's subtle theming, but it fits in with the themed area. I like it, and I would miss it if it were gone. I wish the other parks would revert back to trying harder with the theming.

24/30. I too fell prey to the tendency to read too quickly.

This. Exactly this. I think Six Flags has finally figured out how to add things to the parks as needed without running themselves into the ground financially.

oh, I grew up in Houston (even went to UH for a couple of years before transferring up to UT). but Houston is a big city with some Colleges (notably University of Houston, Rice, and possibly Stanford). Austin is really classified as a College town (that also happens to be the State Capital). Seriously, we have four big colleges here: University of Texas St. Edwards Concordia University Huston-Tillotson (all within City Limits, and that's not counting Austin Community College, the Texas branch of University of Phoenix, and a local branch of LeCourdon Bleu Culinary Academy). and if you go just up I35 to San Marcos - another Biggie: Texas State University but yeah, glad to hear others have found the discounts too! we just wait until we see the local ad, and then go to HEB and purchase! Just sayin: Houston has plenty of big colleges too (UH, HBU Rice, St. Thomas, Texas Southern, and a few huge community college systems.) If you add up the enrollment of colleges in the Houston and Austin areas, Houston has about 96,000 more college students than Austin. Austin definitely has more of a "college town" vibe. It just has far fewer actual college students. Anyway, oh my god I love that Expedition GeForce fantasy!

I'm pretty sure the deal is that if you live a certain number of miles away from any Six Flags property (according to your driver's license) there is a discount on a season pass.

^^^^^ Hahahahaha! That was hilarious!! You should write for the Onion Anyway, it's kind of ridiculous to think that the park "doesn't get crowded" because of the large number of clones in the park. The GP has absolutely no idea that the rides are clones, nor do they care. Most of them probably rarely or never even visit other regional amusement parks outside the area they live in. SFFT has a Batman clone that is identical to one five miles down the street at SeaWorld that had been added ten years earlier, and the GP hardly notices if at all. The line still fills up. The GP doesn't care. Only enthusiasts care.

I LOVE MS Paint coaster! Yes, they need to keep the tunnel, maybe they will just make it a disco tunnel like NTAG tunnels. And yes it is a small world after all. I did not think I meet any others from the land of the Pear on here. I think the tunnel is too small for an inversion, although a Hades-like extreme banked turn could go in there... As for Pearland: The Judy's, one of the most epic bands of all time, were from Pearland. In fact, you're the right age that if your parents are even slightly cool, "Washarama" was probably playing when you were conceived. I love the idea of a Hades-esque banked turn in the tunnel. Also, I've asked my mom before about the Judy's and she doesn't remember them, but my best friend's dad is a die-hard fan! I've listened to some of their stuff. They're pretty good I guess. Maybe you had to be there.

^Haha! That's awesome Anyway, I loved the tunnel. Somehow the combination of the darkness and the feeling that the ride is literally tearing itself apart just made me laugh every time.

^Hmm. I wonder if that would work. The tunnel isn't really in a straight line, so it might be kind of difficult to make a barrel roll work inside there. I'll just be happy if they keep the tunnel at all! By the way, Mrlittle, we apparently went to high school together. Small world!

I understand. Again, my comments were really not much more than an extrapolation upon the sarcastic grumblings of Cal1br3tto and Mrlittle. I think I was just misunderstood (or perhaps a victim of "selective reading" on your part? )

Please read the article, it's not $1.2 Billion for an amusement park it's for an entertainment hub including a race track, casino, convention center, hotel, wine tasting center and amusement park. I'm not sure $1.2 billion is enough, but then again I've never built any of those businesses. Nor am I certain that Houston and Portland need all those businesses. I would be curious what other large scale projects this guy has led (I couldn't find anything online through a quick search) before I totally dismiss this (even though over 90% of ideas never come to fruition). Also, it appears he has a long range timetable to open in 2024, so I wouldn't expect a lot of progress updates. Lastly, it appears the environmentalists (Sierra Club) are already calling the project a non-starter. If you're going to dream, dream big. Even if it has failure written all over it. Thanks, but I did read the article. My point was that if someone had $1.2 Billion to invest in an entertainment destination, why would they spend it building a complex in some funky little town far outside of a metropolitan area which already offers plenty of entertainment options and two amusement parks? If I had all that money to invest, I wouldn't blow it all on one overambitious project in a bad location. I would build a few smaller, more scaled back and feasible projects in markets where there is less competition and more demand. I mentioned Portland and Houston, because those were brought up by others. Anyway, my comment was mostly sarcasm, with a little bit of truth behind it.

I... kinda like it? Well... I don't HATE it. I don't think. Hmm. Yeah, okay.I like it. It's growing on me... slowly...

Well of course you think that. Me, though, I vote for Portland! Hell, if you've got $1.2 Billion, you could build a decent park in Houston AND in Portland. You could start a new chain! Not that I believe for a fleeting moment that this cat will gain access to $1.2 Billion...