Red Randal
05-19-2006, 02:17 PM
Since today is the big opening for the "non-ride" version of Mission:Space, I thought I would post my review of the original. Enjoy!
Mission: Space
Intro: Opened in 2003 to replace Horizons, Mission Space was Disney’s big attempt to return to the cutting edge of theme park attractions. Using the same technology as NASA, Mission Space is designed to show riders what real astronauts go through. Since people periodically die aboard this attraction, Disney has put up many many warning signs to dissuade guests with potential problems and added a second riding option for those who think the original might be too intense for them. As I understand it, the new version involves just sitting in the capsule looking at the ride film and not actually moving. Which makes it a lot like what I expeienced when watching a home movie to do this review.
Queue: Read warning signs. There are lots of them. Got’cha.
Preshow: Like most of these rides, an intro video to give you an idea of the module and the story of the ride. Everyone is positioned, by party, in front of televisions. There seems to be a lot of back and forth, walkie talkie style, announcements going on, there to do nothing but build tension. After what seems like an eternity, the video starts. Gary Sinese (!) joins us from the International Space Training Center. We are here to train for the exploration of deep space. (To TRAIN, keep that in mind.) He gives more warnings. We GET IT, it’s INTENSE. Everyone is going to get a job, you will either be navigator, pilot, commander, or engineer, but don’t worry, the jobs could not matter less. Apparently, everyone has to work as a team for the mission to succeed. The flight director gives us MORE WARNINGS (you know, just in case). From the first preshow holding pen, we go to another preshow holding pen. At least it keeps the lines down. I like the dramatic music. They play some warnings, because there have not been enough of those. This is your last chance to chicken out. It’s time to train for the first mission to Mars (good choice of words). Everyone gets a job and its time to enter the module, but not before some warnings.
Ride: Lots of fancy buttons and switches and panels inside the pod. A small screen is in front of you. They countdown and then launch. And this is officially the coolest thing ever! General thoughts during liftoff will be something like “wow…oh wow…..oh man, how are they doing this!?!?!” Then, we’re weightless! Amazing! We fly over Florida; go past the space station, and slingshot around the moon. Then it is time for hyper-sleep. Umm…okay. Don’t sleep too long though, because as soon as they darken the shuttle some sirens go off and it’s a METEOR STORM!! We have to maneuver our way through. Once we’re through it we have to land on Mars. However, we have overshot the landing strip and end up crashing into the barriers and almost falling into a crater. But in the end, we make it and the mission is accomplished.
Postshow: The “Advanced Training Lab,” which has some games and interactive areas and such.
Thoughts: Well, where do I begin? Rating it on the ride alone, it is hands down one of the greatest things Disney has ever done. The liftoff is intense and they have finally managed to make the space flight believable. You are always feeling movement (probably because you always ARE moving) and the graphics are amazing. This really felt like space. However, the ride has its problems. It seems like early on this was all about the training for an historic voyage. They did a great job designing the ISTC and played up the dramatic aspect of the “mission.” Lots of dramatic music throughout makes you feel like you are important and getting ready to become and American hero.
The trouble starts with hyper-sleep. Hyper-sleep is too science fiction sounding to go along with the very serious nature of this ride. But I will let that fly, because they DID need to get us from liftoff to Mars in a very short time span. But then the mission manages to miss the landing strip and everyone aboard almost gets killed. Yet, when the ride ends, the mission is deemed a success. I certainly hope this is not how success is measured at NASA. Wouldn’t it have made just as much sense to say that the mission failed and we should try it again? After all, we are not going to be astronauts, are we? The Advanced Training Lab can be explained by saying we need it since we CRASHED THE SPACESHIP! And, come to think of it, didn’t they say in the preshow that we were training for the FIRST mission to Mars? So, if we are the first people to get there, why have a landing strip or barriers in the first place?
I should also point out that, while I only rode it once, it seems like the kind of ride where the initial feeling of “ooh” and “ahh” wear off very quickly, leaving the ride to come up flat after too many times on.
For a great ride (especially the first time), this is one of the best, but keep in mind that Disney was counting on you forgetting the story and getting caught up in the ride, itself. But the awesome liftoff, alone, is worth about three stars, so it gets off pretty easy.
Overall Rating: **** (Regular Version)
Now, for those of you who are unable to enjoy the ultra intense launch sequence, I would imagine this ride is a whole lot of nothing. I have not seen the new version though, but if it is just sitting in the capsule watching the movie while not spinning, then it is about ** at the most.
Mission: Space
Intro: Opened in 2003 to replace Horizons, Mission Space was Disney’s big attempt to return to the cutting edge of theme park attractions. Using the same technology as NASA, Mission Space is designed to show riders what real astronauts go through. Since people periodically die aboard this attraction, Disney has put up many many warning signs to dissuade guests with potential problems and added a second riding option for those who think the original might be too intense for them. As I understand it, the new version involves just sitting in the capsule looking at the ride film and not actually moving. Which makes it a lot like what I expeienced when watching a home movie to do this review.
Queue: Read warning signs. There are lots of them. Got’cha.
Preshow: Like most of these rides, an intro video to give you an idea of the module and the story of the ride. Everyone is positioned, by party, in front of televisions. There seems to be a lot of back and forth, walkie talkie style, announcements going on, there to do nothing but build tension. After what seems like an eternity, the video starts. Gary Sinese (!) joins us from the International Space Training Center. We are here to train for the exploration of deep space. (To TRAIN, keep that in mind.) He gives more warnings. We GET IT, it’s INTENSE. Everyone is going to get a job, you will either be navigator, pilot, commander, or engineer, but don’t worry, the jobs could not matter less. Apparently, everyone has to work as a team for the mission to succeed. The flight director gives us MORE WARNINGS (you know, just in case). From the first preshow holding pen, we go to another preshow holding pen. At least it keeps the lines down. I like the dramatic music. They play some warnings, because there have not been enough of those. This is your last chance to chicken out. It’s time to train for the first mission to Mars (good choice of words). Everyone gets a job and its time to enter the module, but not before some warnings.
Ride: Lots of fancy buttons and switches and panels inside the pod. A small screen is in front of you. They countdown and then launch. And this is officially the coolest thing ever! General thoughts during liftoff will be something like “wow…oh wow…..oh man, how are they doing this!?!?!” Then, we’re weightless! Amazing! We fly over Florida; go past the space station, and slingshot around the moon. Then it is time for hyper-sleep. Umm…okay. Don’t sleep too long though, because as soon as they darken the shuttle some sirens go off and it’s a METEOR STORM!! We have to maneuver our way through. Once we’re through it we have to land on Mars. However, we have overshot the landing strip and end up crashing into the barriers and almost falling into a crater. But in the end, we make it and the mission is accomplished.
Postshow: The “Advanced Training Lab,” which has some games and interactive areas and such.
Thoughts: Well, where do I begin? Rating it on the ride alone, it is hands down one of the greatest things Disney has ever done. The liftoff is intense and they have finally managed to make the space flight believable. You are always feeling movement (probably because you always ARE moving) and the graphics are amazing. This really felt like space. However, the ride has its problems. It seems like early on this was all about the training for an historic voyage. They did a great job designing the ISTC and played up the dramatic aspect of the “mission.” Lots of dramatic music throughout makes you feel like you are important and getting ready to become and American hero.
The trouble starts with hyper-sleep. Hyper-sleep is too science fiction sounding to go along with the very serious nature of this ride. But I will let that fly, because they DID need to get us from liftoff to Mars in a very short time span. But then the mission manages to miss the landing strip and everyone aboard almost gets killed. Yet, when the ride ends, the mission is deemed a success. I certainly hope this is not how success is measured at NASA. Wouldn’t it have made just as much sense to say that the mission failed and we should try it again? After all, we are not going to be astronauts, are we? The Advanced Training Lab can be explained by saying we need it since we CRASHED THE SPACESHIP! And, come to think of it, didn’t they say in the preshow that we were training for the FIRST mission to Mars? So, if we are the first people to get there, why have a landing strip or barriers in the first place?
I should also point out that, while I only rode it once, it seems like the kind of ride where the initial feeling of “ooh” and “ahh” wear off very quickly, leaving the ride to come up flat after too many times on.
For a great ride (especially the first time), this is one of the best, but keep in mind that Disney was counting on you forgetting the story and getting caught up in the ride, itself. But the awesome liftoff, alone, is worth about three stars, so it gets off pretty easy.
Overall Rating: **** (Regular Version)
Now, for those of you who are unable to enjoy the ultra intense launch sequence, I would imagine this ride is a whole lot of nothing. I have not seen the new version though, but if it is just sitting in the capsule watching the movie while not spinning, then it is about ** at the most.