Mickey's Silly Symphony Swings approaches completion at Disney's California Adventure

March 2, 2010 at 5:46 PM · The Band Concert is one of my favorite Silly Symphonies, but this still looks terrible. Epic fail, Disney.

March 2, 2010 at 6:07 PM · I like Waveswingers, but I like them at Herschend and Busch parks, not Disney parks where I expect something a little more imaginative. Don't misunderstand, this ride looks pretty, has nice touches, and fits the theme pf the pier, but at the end of the day, a Waveswinger by any other name is still just a Waveswinger.

On the other hand, it is a lot less of an eyesore than the Orange Stinger!

March 2, 2010 at 6:26 PM · I see two reasons to ride a waveswinger: 1) You're a thrill ride newbie and the swooping "flight" provides a nice introduction to theme park thrills; 2) The views.

Orange Stinger, encased in that orange peel skin, pretty much obliterated whatever views were available, curtailing the feeling of freedom you usually have on a waveswinger ride. So it was a fail on both reasons to ride.

Mickey's Symphony Strings fixes that problem, at least. I'm okay with a few classic carnival rides in Disney theme parks - the Magic Kingdoms have carousels, after all. But this waveswinger needs to be as gorgeous and as well cared for as the King Arthur carousel in Disneyland. Here's hoping that it will be.

March 2, 2010 at 10:44 PM · Fantastic!

I love this cartoon too! Its a Disney Classic and I could see this being a real fun ride! I loved the Orange Stinger, but this looks even better! I would have liked if they kept part of the peel to create the tornado and have the band members on the inside so you look like you are going to hit Goofy or Clarabell Cow!

I will be there opening day (if it opens on time!)

March 3, 2010 at 11:22 AM · I dunno... To me, it feels like the equivalent of spraying air freshener in a dirty outhouse.

March 3, 2010 at 1:17 PM · As mentioned on the Mummy discussion board, I just think that some rides just do not rub us the right way.

Joshua and I usually agree on many things and I respect his opinions highly, but I could not disagree with him more.

Its that whole DCA panning that happened when it opened. Maybe I went in there with really low hopes based on everything said on TPI, but I was very impressed and suprised that I enjoyed DCA as much as I did. Orange Stinger is one of them that I liked. I like swing rides and this is much better than any of the others I have been on!

Sorry for it seeming like a rant, but I am very excited for this ride like you wouldn't believe!

March 3, 2010 at 5:24 PM · It's just a swing ride with Mickey. I liked the Orange Stinger so i'm cool with this ride. The ride will look nicer and takes away the giant peeled orange which felt well out of place. I still won't wait more than 10-15 minutes for this but it's nice Disney is spending some time and money to fix this up, I guess Mulholland Madness is the next one to go under the knife.

March 3, 2010 at 7:16 PM · Robert has a good point that Disney has successfully worked basic carnival rides into the parks. In addition to the carousel, see also the Tea Cups. Then there are some not quite as good applications, like Dinoland at Animal Kingdom and the Orange Stinger and Sun Wheel at DCA. I think good theming and general design can make the difference. Either that or we just whitewash anything classic Disney parks in our minds.

March 3, 2010 at 9:59 PM · I think all the midway rides and carnival spinners (yes, Dumbo, too) at Disney parks should be moved to the nearest Six Flags, asap. I loathe them, and expect so much more from the creative geniuses at Walt Disney Imagineering.

I am totally in agreement with Josh on this one. The old, "lipstick on a pig" line comes to mind...

March 3, 2010 at 11:35 PM · What about the Mad Tea Party?

March 4, 2010 at 1:00 AM · What about Mad Tea Party, Anthony? One of my all-time favorite animated scenes, like The Band Concert, undermined with a terrible attraction. The theme doesn't even fit - at what point in Disney's Alice in Wonderland does Alice spin crazily in a teacup?

I've always disliked the Disney midway rides, even Dumbo, and felt that they were only put there because they were still uncommon and original at that time. Calling this attraction "The Band Concert," to me, is like painting a new Vekoma boomerang red and yellow and calling it "Avatar - Flight of the Toruk".

I don't mean to sound ungrateful for updated attractions, but come on. As I've said many times, Paradise Pier looked fine. It was the experiences, not aesthetics, that ruined it.

What do you pay for when you visit a Disney park? Customer service? Certainly, but most employees get paid very little, so that can't justify your admission price. Food and souvenirs pay for themselves. What, then? How about engaging, exciting, and educational attractions and surroundings? Bingo, and none of those are present here.

I'm hopping on the Rao wagon. Let's grab some tools and ship these midway rides to the nearest Six Flags, where I enjoy attractions like this because I don't pay Disney prices.

March 4, 2010 at 4:01 AM · Josh, you are spot on: from Disney we expect (nay, demand) fun, immersive, original, whole-family attractions and experiences, not carnival rides.

Sorry, Anthony, but I think the Mad Tea Party needs to go along with the rest of those crappy, slow-loading, boring, mall-food-court caliber, spinner rides. The only midway attraction I want to ride at a Disney Park is Toy Story Midway Mania.

March 4, 2010 at 6:51 AM · What do you pay for when you go to Islands of Adventure (Storm Force, Caro-Seuss-el, One Fish…)? Or Six Flags? Because the price of the theme park tickets are pretty close. So which theme parks are allowed to have simple rides? It would be different if Disney ONLY offered midway type rides. They are offering a full gamut of experiences, simple to complex, A ticket to E ticket. When an artist makes an album, they usually have more than 1 type of song, otherwise it would be pretty boring. They offer variety. And if you don’t like the whole album, buy the songs you like. If you don’t like the midway rides, skip ‘em. But why should you rob those that like them of that experience just b/c you want to hold Disney to a “higher standard” than other theme parks. Get over it. The midway rides are largely confined to “kiddie areas”… and the 2 Disney parks that skew to older audiences (Epcot and Hollywood Studios) don’t have those rides.

March 4, 2010 at 10:05 AM · What do I expect from IOA? Spiderman, Hulk, Popeye & Bluto, Dudley Do-Right, Cat in the Hat, Jurassic Park, and now, Harry Potter.

The actual admission price for a Six Flags Magic Mountain (e.g.) ticket without any discounts is $54.99, which is the same price as an unlimited season-long Play Pass, complete with four day-trip tickets (for your guests), $300 coupon book, and inclusion of all the Six Flags parks. Alternatively, you can buy an online day pass from their website for $32.99.

Compare that to a 1-day, 1-park, expiring Disney ticket with no discounts: $79.00, with no perks. Want to park hop? $120.00 for 1-day with expiry. Season pass? $619.00.

Let's go even further. If I want to go to a Six Flags, I can take a car, train, or bus to Montreal, which is two hours north of me. Alternatively, I could cross the border into New Jersey in a single day. With Disney, I'm limited to California, Florida, or overseas flights. Plus I'd either have to rent a car or stay at a Disney resort. Already, my costs have increased more than 10-fold.

Do I want to hold it to a higher standard? They demand it with their prices, so no, I won't just "get over it".

March 4, 2010 at 4:44 PM · Disney should build whole-family attractions and experiences... not kiddie rides. The reason I like Disney so much is because most all of their good attractions are designed for the whole family to enjoy TOGETHER. A Dumbo spinner is fine for a three year old, but Daddy says, "BOOOOO!" Take that same three-year-old on Peter Pan, and now both child and father are happy.

Speaking of Islands Of Adventure, they can dump their tea cup ride, too. And for that matter, Dr. Doom's Junkfall and Dr. Seuss' lame (but pretty) carousel can be removed as well. Replace those three attractions with creative, inventive, original, whole-family experiences, and IOA would be the PERFECT park.

March 5, 2010 at 4:57 PM · Not sure why Disney is making such a big deal over this re-themed oldie. It might be nice to swing out over the lagoon but this is still the same ride that many other parks (and carnivals) have had for decades. To see the film playing in The Blue Sky Cellar at DCA and seeing all the imagineers so breathlessly describing this would make you think that this is some state-of-the-art, one of a kind, Disney exclusive. All I see is a new paint job and a better queue area. True, this WAS needed but it's not the next big thing like they are making it out to be.