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Walt Disney World Epcot Discussion Thread

p. 118 - EPCOT Destination D23 news roundup!

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It sounds like Malestrom was a better ride the Mexico one (don't even know what it's called) but a Frozen ride would be very out of place in the Mexico pavilion so Disney made the right call. 26 years is a pretty good run. Now Disney needs a hit movie to take place in Mexico / the Aztec period / Yucatan peninsula so they can replace that ride as well.

 

The Norway pavilion is very well done overall, with the exception of the very boring Maelstrom queue (just a bunch of flags on a wall).

 

I agree, I think Norway is my favorite even without the ride based on its looks, Food, and of course the Norwegian girls.

 

Also back to the waterfall thing, that is the most impressive thing about the ride. From the outside the ride looks cooler than in really is (was). Also I never understood how at the best part of the ride, you are actually facing the wrong way! If you're not paying much attention or not sitting in the back of the boat you would not even notice the huge hole in the wall. It would would have been way cooler if you were facing forwards at that part.

 

I was wondering which was the part of the ride where you could see the outside. I figured it was when the boat was backwards right before the final drop. Looks like I assumed correctly.

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I will be honest and say that I'm not really going to miss Maelstrom as much as I am going to not like having Frozen. That being said, I'm not a huge fan of the movie, so of course I'm not going to want a ride!!! I'll be the first to admit that I am being completely biased about the decision, and I know its stupid because I really didn't care about Maelstrom until like a months ago, and I can't do anything to stop them, so lets just go with the flow. And, props to Disney for seeing the opportunity and taking it, because I know that once the Frozen ride opens, I will probably forget all about Maelstrom, and they will probably (actually, I know they will) do an AMAZING job on the new ride.

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Just took my first trip ever to WDW & I'm glad I had the chance to ride this when I did (almost got passed). I'm excited to see how the Frozen ride will take over, as I feel it can be pretty epic since it is a huge deal. Singing along to Let It Go a little buzzed will be tons of fun. Malestrom was pretty dated, short, and when it ended my mom and I were like "WTF, oh okay." haha. Just glad I rode it to be able to say I rode it, as I remember being a little kid watching WDW videos on youtube being excited to ride one day. I totally wanted to skip the video room & I looked at my mom in total shock/gasp as she sat down. I followed, so I guess I got that checked off too...

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I will be honest and say that I'm not really going to miss Maelstrom as much as I am going to not like having Frozen. That being said, I'm not a huge fan of the movie, so of course I'm not going to want a ride!!!

This Anti-Frozen stuff is what totally baffles me. IMO, a real "Disney fan" should be celebrating the fact that Disney Feature Animation has turned itself around from the garbage it's been pumping out over the last ten years and are now producing films like Tangled, Wreck-It Ralph, and Frozen that are deserving once again of the Disney label. Regardless if you are personal fans of those movies are not, you should be excited to see that Disney Feature Animation is "back" again.

 

There are plenty of Disney attractions based on movies I don't like, Cars comes to mind, and you don't see me around being all anti-Cars Land because I didn't like the movie. IMO, that's just so incredibly stupid. I don't like Winnie the Pooh either, but I'll gladly wait an hour for the ride at Tokyo Disney.

 

People hating on Disney and the decision to close Maelstrom because of Frozen are, IMO, the dumbest, most bottom-of-the-barrel stupid Disney fans in existence. So what if you don't like the movie. You should be happy for DIsney regardless, because that movie being a success is going to make it so they might end up funding another ride you might like.

 

I wish more people could pull their heads out of their assholes and understand this concept.

 

--Robb

Edited by robbalvey
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^Speaking of Cars, it's absurd how selective Disney fans are with how/when characters can be mixed into a park.

 

Carsland is a perfect example. It's pretty much the EXACT same thing as what is happening to Norway. Yet Carsland is the best thing ever. Despite the fact the only loose affiliation Radiator Springs has with California is the fact Route 66 ran through California.

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People hating on Disney and the decision to close Maelstrom because of Frozen are, IMO, the dumbest, most bottom-of-the-barrel stupid Disney fans in existence. So what if you don't like the movie. You should be happy for DIsney regardless, because that movie being a success is going to make it so they might end up funding another ride you might like.

--Robb

 

I have to say though Robb, that a lot of people who are displeased at Maelstrom's removal (myself included) are not 'hating'. I'm displeased, but not ranting and raving about the change...there does seem to be a reasonable portion of people who simply have a different opinion and still don't think it's the end of everything at EPCOT.

 

If anything I'd rather have a new Frozen attraction in Magic Kingdom AND then improve existing Maelstrom, as it's flawed but not beyond repair.

 

I'm eager to see what happens now, but needless to say I shall respectfully miss the Maelstrom ride.

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If anything I'd rather have a new Frozen attraction in Magic Kingdom AND then improve existing Maelstrom, as it's flawed but not beyond repair.

This is what is just so irritating. I hear you, really I do. But you say this as though you are thinking this and Disney has totally overlooked it. Like as though someone in a development meeting never said "Hey, what about the idea of putting a Frozen ride at Magic Kingdom?"

 

And this is why I say that I wish Disney fans would pull their heads out of their assholes and have a better understanding. Have you bothered to look around the parks and see just how many Anna & Elsas are wandering around the parks versus kids dressed up like vikings?

 

I get what you're saying. But it just doesn't make any sense. It's probably a good thing you aren't in charge of designing theme parks or figuring out what rides to put in to help boost revenue.

 

I would absolutely *guarantee* if the survey people stood out front of Epcot and asked every single guest that walked out "Would you rather have a Frozen ride or an updated Maelstrom ride in Norway" what the heavily weighted response from your average guest would be.

Edited by robbalvey
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I just overheard one of my co-workers talking to another co-worker today mentioning how he & his wife had their 6 year old granddaughter and several of her friends over this past weekend. He said that they could not believe it when they all begged to watch Frozen (for like the 100th time) and how they all knew the words/songs and were just hypnotized by the movie in general...he said that he had never seen anything quite like it.

 

So to put it into perspective (as Robb has done in previous pages)...I think Disney knows what they're doing here.

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Case in point - Backlot Tour closed at Hollywood Studios and no one seemed to care. That ride at least was an original ride from the park and arguably represented the core reason for that parks existence! You probably also got more educational value out of how movies are made from Backlot Tour than you did learning anything about Norway from Maelstrom (yes, I realize that's not saying much.) But that ride closed to very little fanfare, if any at all.

 

I just simply don't *get* the fanaticism over Maelstrom. I guess I'm just missing something here. *shrug*

 

I don't think you are missing anything, people choose to get nostalgic over different things. I am a huge movie buff, and almost finished with college with a degree in film production and studies. I myself was more upset over the closure of the Backlot Tour more than Maelstrom even though Backlot Tour was a dead husk of itself. Why? because I identified with the ride because it is what I am interested in. The ability to see how movies are made is something that I am all about experiencing and the tour was an opportunity to show people that movies today still do stuff practically instead of all in a computer. It was unfortunate that the star attraction of Disney MGM Studios was basically mutilated and treated like California's Great America during the Kinzel Era, but it still was the theme of the park. I think alot of people are being stubborn that a attraction based on a "actual location" is being replaced by a fantasy location, although the inclusion of trolls in that ride makes me question this... Saying all that I am excited to see the expansion and rebirth of DHS that we all know is coming, and I am looking forward to Frozen because I know Disney will make it a great attraction.

 

End Rant

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Carsland is a perfect example. It's pretty much the EXACT same thing as what is happening to Norway. Yet Carsland is the best thing ever. Despite the fact the only loose affiliation Radiator Springs has with California is the fact Route 66 ran through California.

 

I totally agree! Cars Land is the closest thing to DisneySea-levels of quality I've seen in a stateside Disney park.

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So if Disney truly wants to convert EPCOT from its original plan in the 1990s when I first visited it, let's add more rides to each world pavilion based on the corresponding character. Let's have a Mulan themed ride in China, a Ratatouille ride in France, maybe an Alice in Wonderland ride in England. As a fan of Japanese culture it's a shame that the Japan area doesn't have an attraction there.

 

Absolutely! This should happen! We have Frozen in Norway, I'd agree with Mulan for China and Ratatouille for France, would prefer a 101 dalmations attraction for UK or even better expand for a Scotland section with a "Brave" attraction!

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So if Disney truly wants to convert EPCOT from its original plan in the 1990s when I first visited it, let's add more rides to each world pavilion based on the corresponding character. Let's have a Mulan themed ride in China, a Ratatouille ride in France, maybe an Alice in Wonderland ride in England. As a fan of Japanese culture it's a shame that the Japan area doesn't have an attraction there.

 

The upcoming Big Hero 6 is half Japanese, and I doubt Universal holds the rights to those characters. Or the planned but cancelled bullet train attraction would be cool... maybe with a tie in with Godzilla?

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Carsland is a perfect example. It's pretty much the EXACT same thing as what is happening to Norway. Yet Carsland is the best thing ever. Despite the fact the only loose affiliation Radiator Springs has with California is the fact Route 66 ran through California.

 

I totally agree! Cars Land is the closest thing to DisneySea-levels of quality I've seen in a stateside Disney park.

New Fantasyland is closer to DisneySea quality than Cars Land is.

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It's probably a good thing you aren't in charge of designing theme parks or figuring out what rides to put in to help boost revenue.

 

I know my personal wishes don't match what's economically reasonable, I am not stupid

 

It would be financially irresponsible for Disney not to utilise Frozen, and I know that, but you can't stop a man from having an opinion that includes wishes for things that won't happen haha.

 

I also wished they didn't remove Jaws from Universal Studios too, but also recognised how fantastic Diagon Alley turned out to be and how sensible it was for Universal to add it. I still miss Jaws though regardless, it's a fairly reasonable reaction.

 

EDIT: I'm not trying to argue, I just feel you're perhaps thinking I'm a bit dim from what you said above.

 

On a slightly different note, are there any ideas on what's going to happen to the space currently occupied by the film?

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I will be honest and say that I'm not really going to miss Maelstrom as much as I am going to not like having Frozen. That being said, I'm not a huge fan of the movie, so of course I'm not going to want a ride!!!

This Anti-Frozen stuff is what totally baffles me. IMO, a real "Disney fan" should be celebrating the fact that Disney Feature Animation has turned itself around from the garbage it's been pumping out over the last ten years

 

Not sure if you don't think I'm happy for Disney, so I'm going to clarify, just in case. I am THRILLED that Disney is making movies of such high quality, and there is no doubting that they have something special with Frozen, I get that. Compared to other movies that Disney has made in the last decade, it is really good. I have just never been that big into the princess movies, so that's why Frozen isn't my thing. And, like I said, I'm not all that happy with the new ride now, but I know that what the make is going to be FANTASTIC, because its coming from a movie with a storyline that is loved by millions of people, so there is no doubt in my mind that they are going to do a great job.

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I'm speaking as someone who unfortunately hasn't been to WDW in 15 years (don't remember riding Maelstrom when I was there), but am in the beginning phases of planning my next trip there, so I've been looking into everything at the parks recently. But here's a thought I had...

 

I would think the new Frozen ride will bring way more people to the Norway pavilion than Maelstrom did, and that that will result in more people going to and spending their money in the shops and restaurants in the pavilion which are probably more authentic to Norway than Maelstrom was. So to me this seems like a win-win.

 

I'm excited to see what they do with the ride, and hope that it'll open the doors to more rides in the World Showcase.

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I think partially what people are afraid of is they are thinking the ride is going to be like the Little Mermaid ride or something.

 

They can still stay true to what EPCOT is supposed to be and tell the history of Norway and whatever, while at the same time make it a bit more entertaining by having the characters from the film. Sorta like what they did with he Mexico ride, but hopefully way better than that.

 

As someone that went to EPCOT as a kid, the rides and movies n stuff of world showcase just aren't that interesting. So I totally get it.

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I think partially what people are afraid of is they are thinking the ride is going to be like the Little Mermaid ride or something.

 

Partially this, but let's face it. The attraction will be based on the movie, and references

to Norway will be there ( or not?), but as background to the back story for the attraction.

 

EDIT to add: For myself, it would be awesome if they created an entirely new track

layout, dry and/or wet, for this attraction, now. One can hope a little.

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There have actually been several photos floating around today that they have already removed all the boats from the ride. Here's one not taken from backstage, but of one heading down the interstate:

 

This brings up many questions...

 

- Are they being hauled away to be destroyed?

- Are they being hauled away to be re-designed?

- If the new ride isn't using these boats, is it using boats at all?

 

If there is one thing I know about my years working for Disney is that they don't ever throw anything away unless they have to. I'm hoping the next pictures that show up are of these boats being shredded to pieces because that will give a bit more hope to possibly maybe it will be a totally new ride system?

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They have to get wood for the number lumberjack show somewhere...

 

I liked Maelstrom. Always rode it. It wasn't by any means amazing, but it had that quirky charm that a lot of things in the Showcase have. When my wife rode it on our honeymoon in March for the first time, she got nothing out of it.

 

Replacing it with ANYTHING that will bring more people to that area is a no-brainer. Frozen? Massive no-brainer. I love Frozen way more than a 33 year old guy should, but it is the top grossing movie with one of the most successful soundtracks since Titanic for a reason. This movie is big. This movie is the one that got my three year old to sing along, to want that My Size Elsa at Target, to be obsessed. Kids had no reason to visit Norway besides take part in the lame Kidcot thing. Now? Kids are going to want to go to World Showcase. The attraction will, if recent history shows, look amazing. Nothing but win. My two hopes are that they rework the area for the sudden mass of people in the area and that for adults, it isn't as boring as the Mermaid ride. And the hot Norwegian women stay.

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Out of curiosity, why does Frozen the movie get such a huge backlash as being over milked by Disney? I don't remember anywhere this amount for Stitch, I was a huge fan of that movie but even I started to get sick of him somewhere around a 4th movie/2nd tv series. He's around at a lot of parks at the expense of old attractions (with more on the way) and I don't see people complaining about how overused he is yet Frozen with only one movie is. I mean in Hong Kong Disney a few pieces of the merchandise that comes in groups of 4 is Mickey, Minnie, Donald & Stitch, and I don't see people going crazy about him being in what would probably be Goofys spot to Disney purists.

 

I wonder how the Disney purists would react to Japan's Fantasmic when he pops out of the hat instead of Mickey and his girlfriend goes round on her jet-ski and gets one of if not the biggest cheers from the crowd, even more so than the mouse.

Edited by Garet
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So if Disney truly wants to convert EPCOT from its original plan in the 1990s when I first visited it, let's add more rides to each world pavilion based on the corresponding character. Let's have a Mulan themed ride in China, a Ratatouille ride in France, maybe an Alice in Wonderland ride in England. As a fan of Japanese culture it's a shame that the Japan area doesn't have an attraction there.

 

Absolutely! This should happen! We have Frozen in Norway, I'd agree with Mulan for China and Ratatouille for France, would prefer a 101 dalmations attraction for UK or even better expand for a Scotland section with a "Brave" attraction!

 

It would be sad for a brave ride to be installed, as I feel it would have a better plot then the movie. I think a Ratatouille darkride would be nice though, but don't they actually have one in disneyland paris or whatever?

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It would be sad for a brave ride to be installed, as I feel it would have a better plot then the movie. I think a Ratatouille darkride would be nice though, but don't they actually have one in disneyland paris or whatever?

 

That they do, but it wouldn't surprise me if Epcot got one. Park-goers over there wanted Soarin' (God knows why), and they got it. Although, after seeing videos of it, I'm kinda disappointed with how it turned out. Definitely could have been better, IMO. Then again, I've never ridden it, so who knows.

 

Speaking of Soarin', maybe they could replace that O (Crap), Canada! movie with some flying Smell-O-Vision seats, replacing the smells of golf and El Centro with the lovely fragrances of poutine and lumberjacks.

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