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Imagineer1981, the Disneyhaters Club(tm) here are being duplicitous.
cgriff: I have no issues with third parties taking over Disney restaurants. I have never blasted these decisions. However, you said this is Disney investing money in the resort. It's not. It is management's way of making the quick buck without seeing long term gain. Pleasure Island is a great example of how this tactic is failing. They close all their clubs with the ideas that they no longer have to shell money out to keep up the guest experience. They thought it would be easy to get 3rd parties into Pleasure Island. Guess what? Epic failure to this point. Instead of filling up the empty buildings with restaurants, we get: EMPTY BUILDINGS.Quote:
On one forum they will argue that 3rd-party restaurants serve better food and offer better service than do most of the Disney O&O outlets; but on another forum, when there is an announcement about a Disney O&O restaurant giving way to a third-party restaurant, they refuse to call this an "improvement".
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On one forum they lament the conditions of rides such as Space Mountain; but on another forum they refuse to recognize the refurbishment that is in progress on that attraction as an "improvement", nor that the money spent on said improvement is a "reinvestment".
Space Mountain needed a refurbishment BADLY. It is getting one. However, it is getting HALF of what it was originally going to get. Why? Well, we all know Phil Holmes HATES to close attractions for long periods of time. The refurbishment was due to last into 2010. Now, it is due to reopen in November. April to November. That is how long the refurb is going to last. HALF of what it was going to. Again, no new track. No on board audio. No new support structure. Why?? MONEY!!! COST!! You can say it is an improvement all you want. I hope it is. But, face it, it will be the same old ride with nothing new in it. Of course they are "reinvesting" money into the ride. But, they CUT the amount of money to be "reinvested." Now, we get a half-hearted refurb. I hope this refurb is a great improvement. And I am sure it will be. But, it could have been so much more. Let me put it to you this way: WDW's Space Mountain would have been the best Space Mountain in all the Disney parks. Now, it will continue to rank 3rd or 4th best.
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On one forum they opine for the halcyon days of when the Walt Disney World Skyway to Tomorrowland offered terrific views of the MK; but on another forum they pooh-pooh the idea of a brand new attraction that easily will trump the views from the old Skyway. "Not an improvement", they argue... or "Doesn't cost them enough money", they claim... or "I can see that same view at my local zoo"... (A view of the WDW resort from your local zoo?)
Is this your reasoning for the balloon ride in DTD? Disney used to be at the forefront of innovention. They used to be the standard bearer. Now, they are copycats. They have been surpassed, and are not even close to catching up. Pleasure Island is rotting and the only thing management can come up with is a balloon ride? Which is a copy of the ride in Disneyland Paris. And you misconstrue when people say they see the same view at their local zoon. They say they have the same RIDE at their local zoo. Again, Disney fails to take the lead on ride technology. Instead they rehash stuff already out there. I'll give the balloon ride a shot. The view will probably be amazing. But, nothing innoventive about it.
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Basically, the Disneyhaters Club(tm) are so invested in the concept of Disney doing wrong, that even when they run counter to their own previous arguments, they refuse to admit the possibility of Disney doing something even semi-decent.
No one here is a Disney hater. I venture to say, those of us who lay out what is wrong with Disney, actually CARE about Disney. A fan can enjoy the place and critique it as well. A fan can enjoy the parks, but also state their dissatisfaction with what is going on. TDO's attitude is people will come because, hey, we are Disney and gosh darn it, people love us. Their attitude is, they can cut entertainment and people won't care. They will still come. We will still get their money. Heck, let's shut all the effects on all the rides off, cancel all entertainment, and take all characters out of the character meals, and hey, people will come.
I venture to say, those of us who bring up the problems that need to be address are the ones who truly care. Those who see Disney as perfect, their management as perfect, and every decision made as perfect are blind to the problems. These are the people TDO want to appeal to. Those of you who say, "We are willing to give you $3000 for a week and get back only $500 worth of entertainment."
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My response to all of their hot air is that I have just purchased a second membership in D23 on my lunchbreak.
The hot air we are spewing is designed to get the attention of people who are sick of the status quo of Disney's Orlando do nothing management team. I still encourage everyone to write letters, emails and make phone calls to voice their displeasure.
As for D23, I am glad you joined a 2nd time. I want to see this succeed so joining twice is a good thing. D23 has a huge potential to be awesome. However, Disney failed to deliver the goods. I am going to join with the hopes that I help this succeed. But, they need to offer more. I do have a feeling more is coming.