Pandora: The World of Avatar Announcement, Construction, & Preview Discussion

[twebber55]

there was music by Satuli and Windtraders last weekend

 

[Alicia]

there was music by Satuli and Windtraders last weekend

Yea, the "radio" by the Pongu Pongu sign blasts music into that courtyard.

BGM also plays inside Satuli, Windtraders, and the covered outside queue for NRJ.

 

[Alicia]

Anywho - something else I've been wanting to mention. The shield in front of the vehicles when you load is a mesh scrim/screen. It's painted to look solid. When the lights go out the screen for the film has bright spots that show through it - in 3D - that's how the transition is so seamless.

Yea I noticed you can see through the mesh wall in that video someone posted that was taken from the cubby that shows the up/down motion.

This video, after a minute in.

 

[WAJAS]

I'm curious how they'll extend the queue when it opens and gets busy.

It has a sort of core queue that winds through all the areas but then has switchbacks that can be opened in various spots. Wonder if they will prioritize keeping the line in the building or if they will just try to keep it inside the entry point.

I'm certain in the first few weeks it will prove popular enough that neither will matter, but in a few months it should calm down some.

Anywho - something else I've been wanting to mention. The shield in front of the vehicles when you load is a mesh scrim/screen. It's painted to look solid. When the lights go out the screen for the film has bright spots that show through it - in 3D - that's how the transition is so seamless.

Now that's an interesting design. It's stuff like this that make good rides great. They could have made it a simple piece of metal going up and down, but the added detail of the white spots on the screen and the see through wall make it that much better.

 

[Frank Drackman]

FoP sounds risky to me as a Disney ride. To me, Disney has a reputation for having rides that families can enjoy together. I get that riding a banshee is a solo experience, but to hear folks talk about the thrill aspect of the ride, I can't help but wonder how families will react.

When my daughter was young, we went to Disney at least a couple of times a year and (to me) I think it was reassuring to my daughter that at least one of us could sit next to her on any ride, to gage how she was handling it, to experience it with her, to help out if she was scared.

This ride sounds like it splits the entire family up. It sounds like mom and dad won't know how Jonny takes to flying on the back of a dragon. If the adult finds it thrilling, will they spend the whole ride worrying about Johnny?

How will young kids take it being apart from their parents?

To me, it seems folks won't know a lot about the ride and will see it as any other Disney ride. I'm just not sure parents will be able to judge in advance that Johnny might not be ready for this.

This is not a criticism, just a couriosity on how families might take the ride. Maybe kids don't get scared at parks these days and they get it is an illusion meant to be fun, but this ride sounds like a departure for Disney in that it is a solo experience and not a shared one.

Any thoughts from those that have ridding? Do anyone see young children experience the ride?

 

[sjago13]

I mean while your focus is forward you are right next to each other to where you can reach out and touch the person next to you. This isn't like forbidden journey where you are all boxed in. I also didn't notice anyone coming off crying or anything. Just a bunch of people, including me, trying my to beg the people out front for a reride.

FoP sounds risky to me as a Disney ride. To me, Disney has a reputation for having rides that families can enjoy together. I get that riding a banshee is a solo experience, but to hear folks talk about the thrill aspect of the ride, I can't help but wonder how families will react.

When my daughter was young, we went to Disney at least a couple of times a year and (to me) I think it was reassuring to my daughter that at least one of us could sit next to her on any ride, to gage how she was handling it, to experience it with her, to help out if she was scared.

This ride sounds like it splits the entire family up. It sounds like mom and dad won't know how Jonny takes to flying on the back of a dragon. If the adult finds it thrilling, will they spend the whole ride worrying about Johnny?

How will young kids take it being apart from their parents?

To me, it seems folks won't know a lot about the ride and will see it as any other Disney ride. I'm just not sure parents will be able to judge in advance that Johnny might not be ready for this.

This is not a criticism, just a couriosity on how families might take the ride. Maybe kids don't get scared at parks these days and they get it is an illusion meant to be fun, but this ride sounds like a departure for Disney in that it is a solo experience and not a shared one.

Any thoughts from those that have ridding? Do anyone see young children experience the ride?

 

[Treakyone]

I had the same qualms with my son experiencing it.... He gets anxiety on rides he isn't familiar with, and I had the same worries about Flight since I wouldn't be able to reassure him. Luckily, Soarin is one of his favorites, so I just told him it was a suped up version of Soarin, and when he saw the pre show video of how to get in to the chair, I told him it was just like riding the motorcycle game at the arcade. He had no qualms except the back pad that comes up since it was uncomfortable.

 

[Skipper Justin]

I had the same qualms with my son experiencing it.... He gets anxiety on rides he isn't familiar with, and I had the same worries about Flight since I wouldn't be able to reassure him. Luckily, Soarin is one of his favorites, so I just told him it was a suped up version of Soarin, and when he saw the pre show video of how to get in to the chair, I told him it was just like riding the motorcycle game at the arcade. He had no qualms except the back pad that comes up since it was uncomfortable.

I will say that as we entered the first preshow room there was water all over the floor. It turned out not to be water. A little girl had Elsa'ed from fear of the ride. We have to leave the room while they cleaned.

 

[Coasted]

Frank Drackman - You make a great point. Similarly, Everest we were happy to go on at 6 years old as could sit next to, whereas Space Mountain we waited until 8 years (the next time) as could not sit next to.

 

[Mad Dog]

Kevin Yee has a nice Pandora review article on Mice Chat, with lots of photos also. Bottom line is he thinks the land is beautiful, but compares it to to a dinner. He said it's like a Filet Mignon , only one course, dinner. But it lacks the extra dinner courses and feels incomplete. He says it feels like half of a land & not a full land, that it needs more than just two rides and a quick serve restaurant & gift shop tucked away into a far corner of the land. That it is not complete like the HP lands or Carsland. But what is there (Pandora) is pretty good. He says good stuff about FOP, says it's a good 3D simulator, but says it lacks the wow factor of a Forbidden Journey....The article is a very good read and has an interesting approach to the subject..... I missed the article at first, but I went back and found it on Mice Chat, since the Disney Insider Marni (on Magic) was recommending that people read Yee's review to get an understanding of the land.

 

[Frank Drackman]

I mean while your focus is forward you are right next to each other to where you can reach out and touch the person next to you. This isn't like forbidden journey where you are all boxed in. I also didn't notice anyone coming off crying or anything. Just a bunch of people, including me, trying my to beg the people out front for a reride.

Thanks, some of the reviews made it sound like the center seats made it tough to see others, but I imagine folks are just looking where Disney wanted them to focus.

I had the same qualms with my son experiencing it.... He gets anxiety on rides he isn't familiar with, and I had the same worries about Flight since I wouldn't be able to reassure him. Luckily, Soarin is one of his favorites, so I just told him it was a suped up version of Soarin, and when he saw the pre show video of how to get in to the chair, I told him it was just like riding the motorcycle game at the arcade. He had no qualms except the back pad that comes up since it was uncomfortable.

Frank Drackman - You make a great point. Similarly, Everest we were happy to go on at 6 years old as could sit next to, whereas Space Mountain we waited until 8 years (the next time) as could not sit next to.

Yeah, I mean, as parents we had ridden all the Disney rides before taking our daughter on them. I just have seen some of the GP that visit, plus I have heard that Alien Encounter was removed from the park due to complaints that it was too scary for a Disney ride so I was a little worried that some parents might complain about FoP's set up.

 

[tielo]

After the second world war the nazi's left banners, swastika's and tanks behind. They killed an enormous amount of civilians in a gruesome way. I can't imagine the Dutch (I'm dutch) re-used those materials to decorate them lovingly and place them outside a bar for extra enjoyment. It would be tasteless.

I get it. Americans have never been oppressed on their own soil but how this is represented at Avatar Land is disturbing.

 

[GAcoaster]

I get it. Americans have never been oppressed on their own soil but how this is represented at Avatar Land is disturbing.

Well, SOME Americans were never oppressed on their own soil, but not all. But that's another story/debate, not here.

I just think the idea of these layers of time in theory sounds great, but to the average park goer will be a little confusing.

 

[Alicia]

After the second world war the nazi's left banners, swastika's and tanks behind. They killed an enormous amount of civilians in a gruesome way. I can't imagine the Dutch (I'm dutch) re-used those materials to decorate them lovingly and place them outside a bar for extra enjoyment. It would be tasteless.

I get it. Americans have never been oppressed on their own soil but how this is represented at Avatar Land is disturbing.

Something to remember is... the Na'vi are not people... they are aliens on a distant moon. The actors actually went through training to learn how to walk and move not like a human in the film. The Na'vi barely understand where the "sky people" come from when the film starts. They are represented more as aliens than people. But they are also creatures that respect and love the land. They use everything they have. They convert leaves into bowls, plants into tools, and why not use leftover machines to their advantage as well? These aliens do not have the same hangups that humans have (they have different ones unique to them.) They have respect for the land, and these relics from the old battle are now part of the land. Look at the downed helicopter covered in vines and moss. It's now beautiful and looks just as part of the landscape as any of the rocks or plants around it.

Now, having said all that, Pongu Pongu is actually run by a human. According to the land's backstory, he took an expedition from ACE years ago and loved it so much he came back, never left, and opened a tiki bar. This of course is a human that had no first hand account of the battle between humans and Na'vi. He just fell in love with the land and the culture and decided he wanted to stay, and now he makes his living selling refreshments to new visitors. So, it's not about the locals opening up a food window and appropriating the leftover military hardware, it's about a human doing that. He enjoys the Na'vi culture so he dresses the mech suit in Na'vi braids. He makes arts and crafts and builds the animals he sees on Pandora out of leftover junk that he finds in the old munitions bunker. He's a weird guy.

But more importantly, he's also fictional.

Below is Joe Rohde's explanation of tiki bars and narrative placemaking in a theme park land from Instagram. He grew up in Hawaii:

Narrative placemaking is not a "push" form of storytelling. You are not forced to look in any particular direction, pay attention to any particular character, or place yourself in any particular place. Instead you are free to look at anything you please, and think whatever you choose to think about it. However, whatever is there to be seen should be filled with meaningful detail, so that if you do look, and you do think about what you see, there is story, emotion, and philosophy to be absorbed. Not very different than the real world. The tiny Pongu-Pongu tiki-style walk-up bar on Pandora is such a place. Because I grew up in Hawaii, I remember tiki bars that were not retro… they were sincere. They were made by vets who had returned from World War II in the South Pacific, which ended only 10 years before I was born. The idea of people returning to peace, of taking the trash of conflict and up-cycling it into something that will be used for celebration, friendship, and fun is poignant and meaningful. The idea of the power of a creative soul to recover beauty out of destruction is important. Or. It's a great place for a tasty colorful drink. And that is true too. Only depends on how closely you look.​

 

[darkridelover]

Something to remember is... the Na'vi are not people... they are aliens on a distant moon. The actors actually went through training to learn how to walk and move not like a human in the film. The Na'vi barely understand where the "sky people" come from when the film starts. They are represented more as aliens than people. But they are also creatures that respect and love the land. They use everything they have. They convert leaves into bowls, plants into tools, and why not use leftover machines to their advantage as well? These aliens do not have the same hangups that humans have (they have different ones unique to them.) They have respect for the land, and these relics from the old battle are now part of the land. Look at the downed helicopter covered in vines and moss. It's now beautiful and looks just as part of the landscape as any of the rocks or plants around it.

Now, having said all that, Pongu Pongu is actually run by a human. According to the land's backstory, he took an expedition from ACE years ago and loved it so much he came back, never left, and opened a tiki bar. This of course is a human that had no first hand account of the battle between humans and Na'vi. He just fell in love with the land and the culture and decided he wanted to stay, and now he makes his living selling refreshments to new visitors. So, it's not about the locals opening up a food window and appropriating the leftover military hardware, it's about a human doing that. He enjoys the Na'vi culture so he dresses the mech suit in Na'vi braids. He makes arts and crafts and builds the animals he sees on Pandora out of leftover junk that he finds in the old munitions bunker. He's a weird guy.

But more importantly, he's also fictional.

Below is Joe Rohde's explanation of tiki bars and narrative placemaking in a theme park land from Instagram. He grew up in Hawaii:

Narrative placemaking is not a "push" form of storytelling. You are not forced to look in any particular direction, pay attention to any particular character, or place yourself in any particular place. Instead you are free to look at anything you please, and think whatever you choose to think about it. However, whatever is there to be seen should be filled with meaningful detail, so that if you do look, and you do think about what you see, there is story, emotion, and philosophy to be absorbed. Not very different than the real world. The tiny Pongu-Pongu tiki-style walk-up bar on Pandora is such a place. Because I grew up in Hawaii, I remember tiki bars that were not retro… they were sincere. They were made by vets who had returned from World War II in the South Pacific, which ended only 10 years before I was born. The idea of people returning to peace, of taking the trash of conflict and up-cycling it into something that will be used for celebration, friendship, and fun is poignant and meaningful. The idea of the power of a creative soul to recover beauty out of destruction is important. Or. It's a great place for a tasty colorful drink. And that is true too. Only depends on how closely you look.​

Thats a convoluted story that no one will get. Disney is great at those. If you need paragraphs to explain something you've already lost me. But also no one will care that a Mech Suit is there or think it's out of place. So it's there. It's not going to change. I don't have a problem with it. Looks cool to me.

 

[tyro]

Thats a convoluted story that no one will get. Disney is great at those. If you need paragraphs to explain something you've already lost me. But also no one will care that a Mech Suit is there or think it's out of place. So it's there. It's not going to change. I don't have a problem with it. Looks cool to me.

I'm just happy the mech doesn't have a Hulu skirt.

 

[Alicia]

Thats a convoluted story that no one will get. Disney is great at those. If you need paragraphs to explain something you've already lost me. But also no one will care that a Mech Suit is there or think it's out of place. So it's there. It's not going to change. I don't have a problem with it. Looks cool to me.

I'm obsessed with backstory in theme park lands. Like Rohde said, most people will just think of it as a place to buy a colorful drink. I like that a lot of thought went into it, even if it's convoluted and messy.

 

[epcyclopedia]

The aesthetics of Pongu are confusing.

The buildings around it have fallen down, but it exists with its own unique shape. The mech is out front, but not adorned as in concept art or anything. The decor is of items that don't appear anywhere else in the land. There's what appear to be unobtanium skeletons of various animals and the dog tags of who knows who (in reality Imagineers) hanging from it.

And then inside is weirdly sterile - not sure if that's food safety or what.

When it's all open maybe it'll make more sense but pongu Pongu sits oddly where it is and seems like it was a final remnant of part of the story that was cut out.

 

[Alicia]

The mech is out front, but not adorned as in concept art or anything.

He's not completely undecorated, there's braided things and bracelets on him. He's just missing the hula skirt (which would've been made fun of maybe a bit too much, so I understand why it didn't make it.)

 

[epcyclopedia]

That's new!

Comparison from preview Day 1: