You just have to face a choice between what it right, and what is easy...
It's good to be back in sunny, Southern California...
Remember when I said I was "Gone Phishing" last week? Well, I kinda was. I was in Florida and I've been very busy. I was spent some time at Walt Disney World with friends, spending a day at each park (and still enjoying Disney's Animal Kingdom most of all). But the main thing we all wanted to do was go to the competition. We enjoyed a nice day at Universal Studios, but then the next day we went to our actual destination and reason for going in the first place: Islands of Adventure. You know where this is going?
The Wizarding World of Harry.
To be specific, we wanted to see "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey." And that we did. First off I want to say that IOA is probably my favorite non-Disney theme park. It's probably the closest thing to a Disney Park in terms of details and theming, but it still falls short. But with the addition of "Forbidden Journey," they've made a huge leap toward parity. All of the park is very well laid out with nice touches and good details, but were the rest of the park to have to quality of the Harry Potter section then this would truly be a rival to the Mouse. It is a very detailed area, rivaling Animal Kingdom in the layering on of things that you have to pay attention to to notice. And the E-Ticket, if you could call it that, the main attraction, Forbidden Journey, is of a quality not seen lately by WDI in the states. It rivals Tokyo DisneySEA in terms of craftsmanship and standards, it's that good.
I want to thank Universal Creative (Universal Studios version Walt Disney Imagineering) for achieving this, it's truly a step up from anything that they've done before and if the future of their rides/attractions is like this then Disney is going to have to step up their game. The heat is on. And that's a really good thing. We should all thank these people and this attraction because without them and this marvelous ride, there wouldn't be all the construction going on in the back of Fantasyland. That 300 million dollar expansion of WDW was started specifically because the Suits were uneasy with the new opening at Universal. Competition is good. We all benefit from it. And if more people go see this and reward Universal, Disney starts to get even more worried and we might even see more TLC for Disney World. Again, a very good thing. The better these parks get, the more the Mouse will have to respond with the incredible details that enhance a guest's experience there.
Now, as to what they'll do? We'll have to wait and see how the response to this new experience unfolds. Don't expect anything relating to that four billion dollar purchase last year, though. Nothing is/will be planned in Florida for most likely the coming decade because of Universal's preexisting conditions with Disney's new adopted child. But there are plenty of things in the files of WDI over in Glendale that the Imagineers can pull out to use. If only they have the will to do so. A decade ago I wouldn't have any faith in the management at the time to have that vision or willingness to spend the bucks. At least now I know there is a chance and that we might see something like this come about. All you have to do is dream and have the desire to see those dreams through.
And we may have a teenage wizard to thank for it...
