jedimaster1227

I really am never going to live that one down...

I was fortunate enough to ride The Polar Express Experience this past Friday and I was pleasantly surprised at the overall attraction. I have always been a fan of Wild Arctic, and not so much a fan of the Christmas overlays (if any) that Orlando has recieved in the past. I have never seen The Polar Express before, so I didn't expect much on that front either. Walking through the entrance, billboards featuring the movie's train and its journey greet you. Though the wait for the attraction seemed to have increased since the overlay was complete (but it had been a while since I had last rode the simulator). Here is where the interested part began. Entering the building, I felt like I was in a cozy home, (ending up to be the main character's house). The pre-show theater has been transformed into the title character's bedroom, with new wallpaper and a window (the projector screen). The preshow video was a re-edit of the opening scene from the film (which was about 3-5 minutes long), putting you at the point where the simulator picks up afterwards. Exiting the pre-show theater, you walk into a completely redone loading station, painted to look like you are entering a train at the train station for the Polar Express. Instantly, I noticed the smell (I believe it was pine) throughout the station- a nice added touch to the overall atmosphere. After a new loading film, we entered the "train" and my amazement only grew. The insides of Wild Artic's simulators have been completely redressed, with new paint, new colors and new lighting effects. Rather than spoil it, I will just give a review of the film (as basic as can be). I feel that the new film was well synchronized with the simulator's motions, offering a much more tame, smooth ride than previously seen in the simulator's other versions. The film itself is only a recut of the original, with footage that can be used to simulate movement. The first half of the film was extremely well synced, with movements that felt right for such a film. The second half (arrival at Santatown) was a little less interesting, with far fewer motions made in the last minute and a half. My only real problem with the film (and it has been stated before) is that the video was partially in third person, taking away from the "you are experiencing" feeling that normally comes with a simulator. Exiting the train, we arrive in Santatown (a redressed Base Station Wild Arctic) where Santa is there ready to take photos with his loaded sleigh. Overall, the attraction impressed me for its unique theming and smooth motions, but I did feel that the 3rd person issue took a little away from my experience. I'm planning on going back to Seaworld again before they remove the attraction, so my review may change after this.

Whether or not I will be believed this time around, I will offer up what I know... The ride will close down soon (though after the holiday season is over) to undergo a complete refurbishment. The building will not be de-capped contrary to the above rumor. The entry queue and the station will not be upgraded much aside from some new safety gates, similar to the ones used for the other mountains. Effects-wise, that will be the most minimal aspect of the project, with the star-field projectors already having been upgraded over the last few months (and those new projections are currently in use). The most major aspect of the project is to replace much of the existing track with a new, thicker set of rails to support the weight that the trains will have when the speakers (which Imagineering did a short test of two weeks ago) are installed. With the new rails, the call for a smoother ride, as well as the on-ride audio are both to be answered. The current layout will remain completely intact. I have also been assured that since Magic Kingdom's VP is not too keen on the seasonal overlays, we won't be seeing any for Space Mountain (a la Ghost Galaxy or Rockin' Space Mountain) anytime soon.

^Sorry but you are misinformed... This coaster is called "The Passion of the Beast." The slogan goes as follows: "Reach the heavens. Embrace Greatness. Bless this ride."

After looking through the TR one more time I found this: I'm never gunna live that down... Hopefully, I won't be fooled by such statements on the East Coast Trip... Hey, at least it was memorable!

The Jiggidy Johnson's Jammin' DVD is a perfect DVD with music, typical TPR fun and nothing (at least that I saw) that could be deemed innappropriate for young children. Erik did an awesome job with that video!

That is quite a scary sight... Anyways, great TR! Its interesting to see how torn up the park really has become since they started the Nick Universe work...

^^I'm guessing Demon has been there long enough that it hasn't been an issue so far. If they had ever considered changing it for the above reason, they probably would have done it by now. But, the changes I keep seeing in the latest TRs of The Demon as The Emo do make me wonder...

Are there any limitations towards the year the video was made? I've been saving my 2006 coaster video for the next contest, so I'm hoping that I could still enter that.

22/25 for me isn't too bad!

As always, you know I loved the latest addition! Keep up the always-great work!

I knew that was you I saw on Friday! In line for Nightmare on Elm Street I was across from you in the passing line as you were closest to the fence while I was closer to the Twister queue. I hesitated asking if you were Jarvis from TPR because, if I were wrong, it would have been awkward for this random guy, myself and my friends. I should have followed my initial instincts and introduced myself... When I return from France, I will upload a photo I took at the place and time I saw you that night.

Before I leave for France (in ten minutes), I wanted to give a small update on my return to HHN last night. It was much more busy last night with wait times for the Mummy reaching 75 minutes and Dead Silence reaching 90 minutes. The only new house I was able to do was Nightmare on Elmstreet: Dreamwalkers. I thought the house was particularly scary, but they went a little overboard with the strobe effects, making it almost impossible to even see Freddy at certain points of the house. I redid The Thing, Dead Silence, and PsychoScareapy but wasn't able to get into any of the shows, as they all filled up 45 minutes before they started. I wasn't nearly as scared this time around for any of these, so I had more time to look around and see the scenery. I take back what I said about Scareapy, because the theming was truly great! The experience this time around was much better (for the house) and I had a great time specifically that night. I might take my cousin back one more time before Horror Nights closes for the year, so I might have another update after I return.

JT3000: I was so focused on what was in front of me, I'm sure I missed alot. I will be going back with my friends tomorrow night so I should get to see it in a better light this time around. Then, it is off to France! JimmyBo: Glad I impressed you with my kissing Jack! ^^ and ^^^: The lines were fairly short at the beginning of the night with MIB at 5-10 minutes and the Mummy at 25-45. We only rode MIB though as we wanted to get as much of HHN done as possible, since we were all either team members or passholders. As for the houses, I loved the Thing! The theming was great and it was a perfect extension of one of my favorite horror movies! Camp Blood and Vampyr weren't anything special in my eyes... ^ The bumper car does move around and the guy inside of it started to sobb a little (I'm guessing to add to his acts of insanity). I only saw one of these during the entire night, but its definitely possible that there were more. Tomorrow, I will see if I can find any extras...

^ It could be that I was so focused on not flipping out that I missed some details, and since I am going back on Thursday, I will do what I can to form a second opinion on each house to see what I think. Here are the next set of photos from my first HHN experience... Do you notice the small rings coming from this light effect? Bravo Universal, for intense levels of quality in this amazing event! Jack's Back! My first time seeing Mel's Die In open was nice! Dead Silence was probably the best house overall due to its perfect thrills, amazing quality theme and story and well used effects... This animatronic figure sang songs like "Superstition" and a few others, setting the mood of the carnival midway. Jack was even taking pictures during the night while he was running his Carnival of Carnage. To think that he could be in two places at once, Jack really is amazing! The wait time was a little less than 45 minutes, but the house was worth it, as it was so random, it was scary. Hearing some psycho yell "Turkey" over and over again was just icing on the holiday-flavored cake! They had some sort of chair-balancing act going on near the entrance of Psychoscareapy. This was eerily entertaining to watch... I ran into this lady of the night when heading towards the front of the park. They used the Fear Factor theater to its fullest for the show. I loved the Back to the Future/Deloreon tribute in the show as well! We sat my friend down next to this seat during the show, resulting in her near-death experience with Rocky Balboa and his uncontrollable bowels... Excellent! Its a shame you can't ride this... Jack is such a great character! Though I didn't get to do Dreamwalkers this time around, I had to get my hands on this Freddy mask for a quick photo. While the outside theming is minimal, the inside is so vivid, you can't tell what is flat or what is floating due to the 3-D effects used... Jack's Funhouse was so much fun (really, it was)! Do you see a face in that sheet? The ghost of Back to the Future makes an appearance at Halloween Horror Nights 17... This looked so strange sitting here... I would have thought that they could have dressed it up to give it that "traveling carnival" feel. I still think its weird that they grabbed the Jurassic Park/ InGen truck for The Thing. So tempted to walk further towards this entrance, but I resisted such urges after seeing the cops nearby... I don't want to be the next "Don't tase me bro!" guy...

On Friday, I had the pleasure of trying Halloween Horror Nights out for my first time ever with a few friends. The results were great and my overall experience was quite memorable! On Friday, we did 6 of the 8 houses and 3 of the 4 shows along with riding Men in Black once before we left. Here are my writeups of the attractions I saw during my first visit: Friday the 13th: Camp Blood- Our first house of the night which took place in the extended queue for Jaws. The house was a great warm up as it was still light out when we did it, making it easier to see the "pop-out" characters. The house seemed to end too soon though, and Jason appeared to closely to himself (at least 7 times in 4 rooms) to seem like a realistic chase. Vampyr: Blood Bath- A pretty simple scarehouse with a few alley-way transfers between buildings... The scares were the lightest here and it didn't do all that much for me. The Thing: Assimilation- One of my most anticipated houses of the evening partially because I loved the movie when I was younger. I was not disappointed, with this house being my favorite of the first three we did. The scares themselves didn't bother me much, because the effects are very similar to the movie, but the quality of the attraction was only paralled (if not surpassed) by Dead Silence's house. Jack's Funhouse in Clown-O-Vision- My favorite house of the night, since it was in fact, Jack's house. This was my first ever 3-D house and I was surprised to find that some of the negative comments didn't coincide with my thoughts. The scenery and actors popping out at you really worked well together with the strange colors and effects mixed into the house. Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure- My first time seeing the Bill and Ted's show came with alot of laughs and some great pokes at Disney, making it a really enjoyable experience. I didn't laugh at every joke (and I didn't seem to think Britney was portrayed well enough to make her the villain), but it still was a well done show that I would see again if I went back. Psychoscareapy: Home for the Holidays- A pretty wacky house (at least for me). I thought the actors really made the house, as the scenery was somewhat average. I did get a kick out of the Santa in the fireplace joke... Jack's Carnival of Carnage- This show's Jack was portrayed by the actor that normally plays Beetlejuice for the Graveyard Revue, so I knew he could pull it off! The show was alot of fun and worked well with the character, showing how insane Jack really is! I really think after see his show, I now "know Jack!" Dead Silence: The Curse of Mary Shaw- The best themed house of the night seemed to be the longest as well, working very well from start to finish. The effects used in the house were extremely innovative and their use of sets really worked perfectly. Mary Shaw popped up in some many places inside of the house, it was great! If there were one house that I would consider perfect, it would be this one. Freak Show- A very fun guest star event taking place near E.T. I recognized the guest star from a video I saw at Ripley's Believe It or Not years ago, so it was nice to see the "Regurgitator" again! After that, it was time to leave, but I did take photos of the event during my visit... One of the portables on the backlot (near Jack's House) has Simpsons photos on each window. The Thing was such a great house! Jack's show was really fun! Vampyr wasn't too bad of a house- but it wasn't amazing either. This attraction time sign wasn't working when we passed it... I miss the Back to the Future Store... They really are getting a head start on selling the Simpsons merchandise! Kwik E Mart is now open! This year's rat-lady wasn't too interesting... I only saw a few of the "freaks" listed as a part of the Carnival of Carnage this time... During the day, this scarezone was dull, but at night, it was somewhat more scary... Even more strange than the last... Weird. I love this 300 shirt! Me calling my doctor to check if my heart can handle this. (No, not really...)

It would have to have: An aquatrax coaster A live Making of Me show hosted by Barry Hom Dueling Escalator rides The Dan-Douser Flume ride Donkeys Expedition: Yetiball A Magical Hoodie 4D movie and gift shop and a darkride themed to the Little Robby Robb Comics by Flipdude.

This is a really impressive project! Keep up the great work!

^^^ I thought the fireworks show was really great! Illuminations: Reflections of Earth is by far my favorite fireworks show and seeing that extra tag on the end was really special. The sound created by the finale of the tag was near that of a fighter jet fly-over! I've watched my video countless times since I ripped the footage off of my tape. ^I did think of you when I passed the Making of Me's theater... In fact, it was something like "Barry is going to flip when he finds out that they replaced it with a lame film about wine..." This is my last photo update before I do my full write up on the weekend. Our group photo to end on. Our group readying for our photo... John readys his camera for the Illuminations tag. The parking lot now features these new symbols- a nice new touch for the park. imaginationc25groupphoto.bmp Everyone during our Journey into Imagination with Figment meet! Just a small note: we actually created a small wait time for the attraction... Jeff Pepper and his family enjoyed our [wet] Illuminations Dessert Party! Our group during our Soarin' Last Ride of the Night meet. DebandI.bmp Deb Wills and I posed for a photo. Matthew Paul and I on Soarin' Sunday night.

^^^ Glad you all have enjoyed the updates so far! I've still got a number of photos left to upload, with more being sent in to me from our members, so expect some more updates to come. Lets continue... After our dessert party was moved indoors due to a count of rain, we moved out to the Italy Isola for our viewing of the special version of Illuminations: Reflections of Earth! I had the pleasure of meeting Alex Wright (the author of the Imagineering Guide to ____ [Park] books)! One of the couples attending our event had had their wedding earlier that day, and rather than go directly on their honeymoon, they decided to join our Dessert Party! Afterwards, I caught up with him one last time to thank him for seeing me the day before and for all of his hard work! I had met the Disney Legend the day before at my Epcot Gallery preview, but it was a pleasure to hear from him again! Time for "A Conversation with Marty Sklar!" It really was a beautiful lounge! One window even provides a view of the Maelstrom's waterfall! The windows overlook the pavilion's main path. George Bush even came to this lounge some time ago! They have a beautiful grand piano and a lovely tiled fireplace in the lounge as well! The walls of the main room were adorned with display cases with items of interest to Norway's past. I thought this carving was pretty cool and it matched the rest of the lounge's theme. We had several different members of the media attend the event. We did an open question format and afterwards, we had time to take in the atmosphere of this VIP lounge. Directly after our gallery visit, it was time for our Celebration 25 Media Event taking place in the beautiful Norway Loft (complements of Disney). They even had a video montage of all that made up EPCOT Center. Each of the [former] pavilions had a panel like this with some great concept art, construction pictures and information. Remember these? I believe they are the jumpsuits worn by the dancers at the grand opening of Epcot... Werner Weiss even stopped by to say hello! Simon and Susan Veness (authors of the Brit's Guide to Orlando and WDW) were two of our event's VIPs. The Spaceship Earth model from One Man's Dream turned up here, at the entrance to the Epcot Gallery! The old EPCOT Center logo has gotten some recognition again. Everyone in the group enjoyed the gallery as it had alot of recognizable memorabilia and some items that we hadn't seen before! After the group photo, most of our group went on to check out the new Epcot Gallery... Though I had gotten a preview with Marty Sklar and Jim Macphee the day earlier...

^I've got another photo for you in this next update, but again, it was my pleasure to have you join us, and make more memories at Epcot! So, onto our next update... Oh, and the Orlando Sentinel featured our group in their 25th Anniversary update... I'm the one talking to the camera. National Treasures is a truly interesting exhibit, though a little smaller than I expected. I grabbed a funny photo at the Pear Festival at the American Adventure pavilion... Jim Macphee and I up on the Fountain of Nations stage... I was in so much shock at the time! OOH! Lamb chops from Australia! Yum! Cast Members were wearing buttons congradulating WDW on its 36th anniversary... My how time flies! I had to take a few funny photos during the day too... Tradition, I guess. Our was listening attentively as we moved on... The cool LED strip at the entrance of Mission:Space wasn't working properly today. The Disney events official (not pictured above) that was assigned to supervise our History Walks was quite impressed with John's (pictured above) wealth of information. Our History Walk group over at Test Track... The old Wonders of Life sign has been removed, and the fountain base has had a new Festival Center sign crudely welded to its top. Notice that the fountain isn't even on. The DNA structure was removed last month in preparation for the Festival Center's opening. As I said before... Still empty. The mobile is still here. The Anacomical Theatre has been tree'd off... Dave Smith (Disney Legend and author of the Disney Encyclopedia A-Z) actually remembered me from our last encounter and congradulated me on the event! After the ceremony, I ran into Joel, which was a great surprise! Marty Sklar is escorted by Minnie as he prepares to make his speech. By the time of the ceremony, most of our group members had picked up their limited edition Figment plushes... If you couldn't tell, I was excited- even more than I was for Blue Man Group! (Yes, that was a joke...) We waited patiently for the rededication ceremony to take place... Spaceship Earth's refurbishment walls have been given new decor to celebrate the park's anniversary. Ricky Brigante holds up his limited edition 25th anniversary shirt. I bought for before they sold out, along with three figment plushes (a fourth was a gift from Jim Macphee, number 1 of 1200). Earlier that morning, we got to see more people at the sign in tables. Marcus had his opening day ticket and his new Marty Sklar session ticket. Jim Macphee and two of the Disney Ambassadors took part in our photo as honorary guests! On Monday, after the rededication ceremony, our entire group took some photos... Notice Abraham Lincoln's famous top hat in the center of this display case. I caught up with Jim Hill (of Jim Hill Media) after the ceremony as well, and took a quick photo before I had to move on... Dave Smith and Martin Smith (producer of some excellent online Disney documentaries) took a nice photo with me after the ceremony.

^I trusted that you would be the first to post here, so I'm going to skip ahead just for you to our rainy experience, then we will be back to our regularly schedule photos... Another memorable TPR Member meet! Since I felt partly responsible for Joel being so wet (no, not an acceptable amount of wetness), I took one our dessert party group's complimentary ponchos and gave it to Joel, so he wouldn't have to walk in the rain over to Mexico. We actually filmed a little message for Theme Park Review, but I don't know when my friend will send me that footage... Joel and I walked all the way from the American Adventure to Odyssey (towards Canada, then towards Odyssey- a longer walk) in the rain... This is what happens to TPR members that walk, talk and meet in the rain.

This past weekend was Epcot's 25th anniversary and my previously mentioned fan event, Celebration 25 was there to celebrate this momentous occasion. With over 1200 attendees and several surprises provided for our group by Jim Macphee and the rest of the management at Epcot, we all had a great time! The video of Jim Macphee joining us for the first time is at the bottom of this first post and can be downloaded in ZIP format. I will do a full write up on the event once all of the photos have been uploaded... So, let the story begin... (To Erik, I told you I would put those photos up! Barry, I've got bad news about your favorite Epcot film... And to Chrissie, I hope you enjoy the photos of Wonders of Life in its new state!) I just found that the Orlando Sentinel featured our group (and myself) in one of their video segments for their 25th coverage here. Mr. Ridgway tells us a story about his earlier days at Epcot! Our entire team got to the sign in tables early to help set up. The original three staff members of Celebration (from left to right) are myself, Jason and Jenn. The old map has been replaced to show the different areas of the festival center, including a preview center for the Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas. At least this is still here... The old Wonders of Life sign has been covered by a simple sign declaring this pavilion as the festival center. I ran over to the Festival Center at the Wonders of Life pavilion before our first "History Walk" began. Before the festivities began, Stephanie, my parents and I went to Seasons to grab a quick breakfast. Spaceship Earth is getting a new color scheme and a new, curvy design for its supports. While the rest of the park was adourned in 25th anniversary decor, the entrance planter was themed for the Food and Wine Festival with Ratatouille. During our final History Walk, Jim Macphee decided to visit us, and take me up on the Fountain of Nations stage to take a few photos! Jenn, John (our History Walk leader), Matt (our videographer) and I take a photo after the first session of our History Walk ends. The weather was perfect for us on Sunday! Our History Walk group was quite large! Celebration 25 Jim Macphee Appearance.zip Jim Macphee interrupts our History Walk to pay our group a visit! Charlie Ridgway was a VIP guest of ours at Celebration25, and we were honored to have him join us for the History Walk. The exit to Body Wars has had all signs removed, making the hallway even more bare. Not much has changed here since last December, considering the only difference is that the wall covering the former Frontiers exhibit is now red, rather than white. Cranium Command's "look-in" entrance has been covered with curtains... Cranium Command's main marquee is still intact, but all notations of the theater's former occupants are gone. I remember having a hot dog from this former location... It was almost worse than my elementary school's food... Much of the former Wonders of Life pavilion has been kept intact. There was still a small number of people brought into the pavilion for the Food and Wine Festival... Just like last time, it was dead. Since they planned on opening the Epcot Gallery in Innoventions West's small basement/cellar, they put the new wine racks in the Festival Center at the Wonders of Life Pavilion. Notice that the old MET sign in the front of the queue is gone, along with all of the peeling art that was there last December... The Body Wars queue has been abandoned... The old mural is now gone, but the Body Wars sign remains, oddly enough. It looks so out of place as of right now. Sorry Barry, but the Making of Me has been replaced with a movie on the making of wine. I guess this film still indirectly has to do with "The Making of Me..." Coach's Corner is covered by trees and more red velvet curtains... The old MetLife computers are still there, covered over with new plastic plates.

Extremely accurate! Great work!

^I was just wondering the same thing...