Unleash the Villains: TCD's Friday the 13th TR

[alexwyattmommy 181]

An energizer bus named Anna, perfect. :D

 

Shan Yu, I would stand in line for him.  Bet he was afraid of the fireworks though.

[YENSIDCAMPER 66]

Enjoying the TR.  Glad to see that you are still out park hopping even when down a twin!  I really hope to make it during the Halloween season sometime.  I love the freak show and do not mind the crowds.  That mob scene around the Hat was way worse than any of the Hyperspace Hooplas we have ever attended.  Too bad Meg was unavailable.  

 

Missing a pretzel dog...SMB.

[devores 382]

Fairytale Hall:

 

Cinderella and a visiting princesses and Rapunzel and a visiting princess. It is two separate queues and FPs, so if you wanted to meet all 4, you will have to wait in line twice or use two FPs. And the FPs work like regular FPs so if you get one for Cinderella, you have to wait until that one's return time to get another for the Rapunzel. It will also eat up two of your FP+ selections. The visiting princesses could be any of the other princesses. The only guarantee is Cinderella and Rapunzel. 

 

I had my training to work in there the other day.

 

And just FYI, the day you took those pictures, they had a soft opening with princesses in there. That's why the news crew you saw was there.

 

The area in the Town Square Theater where the princesses currently meet already has plans. Cant divulge much. But other areas will open up for meet and greets as well. 

 

Did you see a shield for Belle?  I think they will leave Merida where she is.  They still have a place for characters where the princesses are currently, unless they are going to expand Mickey's queue.  At this point the only way to see Belle is to go into the Enchanted Tales with Belle, but since they do not do autographs, for those with kids that want to get autographs, it is very hard to get Belle's signature.  I do not think Belle will ever be in this hall since she appears elsewhere, along with Ariel.  Where is Tiana's meet and greet?

Umm, if you want Belle's autograph, she meets at EPCOT in France. Beast even joins her from time to time. But, she has met in the TST before as well as Ariel and Jasmine. So them appearing in the new Hall is not too far fetched, since it is random who the visiting ones will be.

 

Merida's area has historically been used for new Princesses. Rapunzel started meeting there when she was new and Belle used to have a meet and greet there as well. The step sisters and Lady Tremaine used it for a short period as well.

 

I do not see Tiana leaving her buoy any time soon. She is still popular enough to warrant her own area and Is frequently meeting with her prince, Navine.  

[mouseketab.....Carol 1,261]

Silly question, but I don't wait in character lines. Does everyone have to get FPs to see the characters?  Let's say mom is taking the kids in to see the princesses, does mom need a FP also?  just curious, since technically it doesn't take a "seat" in the attraction for mom to walk the kids through the line.

[devores 382]

Silly question, but I don't wait in character lines. Does everyone have to get FPs to see the characters?  Let's say mom is taking the kids in to see the princesses, does mom need a FP also?  just curious, since technically it doesn't take a "seat" in the attraction for mom to walk the kids through the line.

Every person using the FP line must have a FP. So yes, even if mom isn't technically meeting the princess, she still needs a FP.

 

But there is a stand by line as well.

[Katman1356...Jason 1,140]

 

 

 

 

 

The guy in the Orange jumpsuit is clearly a pilot for the rebel alliance. 

 

http://padawansguide.com/rebel_pilot.shtml

[DaveInTN 3,247]

The guy in the Orange jumpsuit is clearly a pilot for the rebel alliance. 

 

http://padawansguide.com/rebel_pilot.shtml

 

Good eye!

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

The Anna bus is probably one that drives and drives and drives, and never stops.  Not even once.  It just goes and goes. 

 

I can't believe you haven't heard of Afro Circus.  Here is the song.  You can thank me later, when you can't get it out of your head. 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBTdgqn4o7k

 

I will thank you now Dave for the warning about the video.

 

I did not watch it, and will choose to remain blissfully ignorant of the Afro Circus.

 

 

I can't believe what a cluster $€ it sounds like the meet and greets were. It's not like Disney is new to this!

Who is Shamfu or whatever his name is?

 

I really wasn't all that surprised at the mess we encountered.

 

WDW has botched the whole Limited Time Magic promotion, and I expected this to be botched as well.

 

The thing is that they obviously spent some money on this- the logos they had on the backdrops and the t-shirts they were selling were cool.

 

But, I knew as soon as I heard that this would be a one night only, 5 hour event  that was open to everyone with valid park admission, including castmembers, that it would be busy. 

 

They are very, very lucky that it didn't rain.  There was no provision made for bad weather.  Everything was outside, and uncovered.  It would have been a complete fail if it rained.  I guess they didn't care.

 

From Mulan

 

Very good.

 

TY. I haven't seen the whole thing.

 

That's a shame.  Mulan is a great movie.

 

And, FYI, Shan Yu is introduced right near the beginning.

 

An energizer bus named Anna, perfect. :D

 

Shan Yu, I would stand in line for him.  Bet he was afraid of the fireworks though.

 

The fireworks/Shan Yu comment is very witty.  Good job.

 

Enjoying the TR.  Glad to see that you are still out park hopping even when down a twin!  I really hope to make it during the Halloween season sometime.  I love the freak show and do not mind the crowds.  That mob scene around the Hat was way worse than any of the Hyperspace Hooplas we have ever attended.  Too bad Meg was unavailable.  

 

Missing a pretzel dog...SMB.

 

Around Halloween is a great time to visit.  If there is any way you can swing it you should.  My favorite time to visit the Fort is around Halloween.  Halloween itself is awesome at the Fort!

 

Yeah, I really wanted that pretzel dog.  That will be my first stop the next time I'm at DHS.

 

Fairytale Hall:

 

Cinderella and a visiting princesses and Rapunzel and a visiting princess. It is two separate queues and FPs, so if you wanted to meet all 4, you will have to wait in line twice or use two FPs. And the FPs work like regular FPs so if you get one for Cinderella, you have to wait until that one's return time to get another for the Rapunzel. It will also eat up two of your FP+ selections. The visiting princesses could be any of the other princesses. The only guarantee is Cinderella and Rapunzel. 

 

I had my training to work in there the other day.

 

And just FYI, the day you took those pictures, they had a soft opening with princesses in there. That's why the news crew you saw was there.

 

The area in the Town Square Theater where the princesses currently meet already has plans. Cant divulge much. But other areas will open up for meet and greets as well. 

 

Umm, if you want Belle's autograph, she meets at EPCOT in France. Beast even joins her from time to time. But, she has met in the TST before as well as Ariel and Jasmine. So them appearing in the new Hall is not too far fetched, since it is random who the visiting ones will be.

 

Merida's area has historically been used for new Princesses. Rapunzel started meeting there when she was new and Belle used to have a meet and greet there as well. The step sisters and Lady Tremaine used it for a short period as well.

 

I do not see Tiana leaving her buoy any time soon. She is still popular enough to warrant her own area and Is frequently meeting with her prince, Navine.  

 

Great info, Dave.

 

Thanks for sharing that.

 

Do you know if the visiting princesses remain the same all day?  It looks like they intend to put a picture of who is in each side.  It could be a problem if someone wanted to meet a certain visiting princess, and gets a FP, then comes back and it's a different princess than the one who was pictured earlier.

 

Did the briefing you received suggest that Ariel and Belle might be visiting princesses in the Fairytale Hall?

 

The guy in the Orange jumpsuit is clearly a pilot for the rebel alliance. 

 

http://padawansguide.com/rebel_pilot.shtml

 

That is a good catch, Jason.  That website you linked is something else.  Nerd paradise!

 

Let's take a closer look at him:

 

 

He doesn't have that silver accessory on backwards does he?

 

TCD

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

No picture of the mac and cheese dog? I want to try that!

 

 

Needing 2 FPs for 4 princesses SMB. I guess they need to spread them around to make it work. I guess Z will just meet whoever is meeting with Rapunzel from now on. Their loss on Z hugs. Probably a good thing for me though because I can't handle more than 2 princess crushes.

 

WOW, DHS was slammed. They should have done that event all week. That would have helped a lot.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

No picture of the mac and cheese dog? I want to try that!

 

 

Needing 2 FPs for 4 princesses SMB. I guess they need to spread them around to make it work. I guess Z will just meet whoever is meeting with Rapunzel from now on. Their loss on Z hugs. Probably a good thing for me though because I can't handle more than 2 princess crushes.

 

WOW, DHS was slammed. They should have done that event all week. That would have helped a lot.

 

Yeah, no picture.  As I mentioned, Twin#1 had invited three international CM's to sit with her since it was so crowded.  I'm slow, but I know she wouldn't want her dad embarrassing her in front of her new friends by taking hot dog photos.   To help you out, though, I did a Google image search, and found a good photo on your other favorite website:

 

 

You can read about what good old Josh thought here:  http://www.easywdw.com/dining/fairfax-fare/

 

That princess situation is going to be a challenge.  No way is it worth wasting two FP's.  One I can see, but not two.

 

Absolutely this event should have been an all day affair, and preferably a multi-day affair.  And sorry to say this to any CM's reading along, but they shouldn't have allowed CM's to use their free admission.  The park couldn't handle it.

 

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

This was supposed to be a quick trip report from a quick trip, so this post will wrap this one up.

 

We left off with our dining on the delicious macaroni and cheese hot dogs.  It was almost 11 when we were done, and that's when the fireworks were supposed to go off.

 

I knew there would be no chance of us finding a place to stand in the area in front of the hat, so our plan was to find a place somewhere on Hollywood Blvd. facing the hat.

 

We headed that way.

 

They had a walkway taped off on Hollywood Blvd. to allow guests to cross. There were about 20 CM's with those red light-up wands making sure no one stopped in the walkway.  Except for the space left open for that walkway, Hollywood Blvd. was wall to wall people for its entire length.  All the way up to the park entrance.  I've never seen a crowd like that.  We looked around to see if there was any space anywhere that we could squeeze in to.  There wasn't.

 

Then I remembered something.

 

At one of the Star Wars Weekends we attended, we sat right across from a walkway that CM's struggled to keep open and flowing prior to a parade.  Right at the parade time, the CM's vanished, and guests swooped in and immediately filled the space.   So, I told Twin #1 that what we should do is walk back and forth across the walkway and wait for our chance.  Sure enough, the instant the first firework shot off, the CM's vamoosed, and we had a spot.  A good one, too.  Right in the middle of the street.  Can't do much better than that.

 

This was our view:

 

 

Yes, there are obstructions, but that is how it goes in Hollywood Studios.

 

Do you see that solid crowd of people there in front of me?

 

One more fireworks pic:

 

 

You want to know something?

 

Those were some very good fireworks.

 

I thought I ought to video them, so I did:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuBBmpIB6Os

 

That video was getting kind of long, so I cut it off and waited for the finale, which I caught most of here:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJ60AZ9XlHk

 

Those fireworks made all of this worth it.

 

After the fireworks, people started to leave.

 

But the park was open until 1.

 

Maybe that would give us a chance to meet some more characters?

 

Nope, those lines were longer than ever.

 

We headed over to the dance party- there was no lack of crowd there:

 

 

If you look carefully near the center of that photo above, you can see that the Big Bad Wolf is there dancing with the guests.

 

Look at the make-up of the crowd- it is all young adults-where do they get money to buy annual passes or park admission?  They don't- these are all off duty Disney castmembers having a grand time:

 

 

They were actually dancing:

 

 

One reason this area was so crowded was that they had closed off the park behind the hat for the fireworks.  There were CM's holding guests back with ropes until the all clear was given at around 11:30:

 

 

There was an actual rope drop at just after 11:30 pm, and Captain Hook was there to greet the guests stampeding by to Toy Story:

 

 

I suggested to Twin #1 that we join the stampede and go and ride Toy Story, but she wanted to hang around the villains, so we did.

 

We thought we had a chance to meet Meg when we saw her walk by on the way to the stage, but that biotch walked right past us with a smirk:

 

 

 

I guess I should have expected as much from a villain.

 

So no Meg meet and greet for Twin #1.

 

She was devastated.

 

Not really.

 

We decided to go and see if there was any chance for us to meet the other villains at the meet and greet area.

 

There wasn't.

 

There were still people lined up all the way around the lake.

 

There was no chance that some of them were going to make it to the front in time.

 

We walked around just to take a look at the characters.

 

Here is Oogie Boogie:

 

 

I have never seen The Nightmare Before Christmas, and I have no intention of seeing it.  But, this villain does not look very villainous to me.

 

This young lady didn't seem scared either:

 

 

What is up with that?

 

Look how dressed up that girl is?

 

And she's making a heart with her hands because she's meeting Oogie Boogie?

 

That ain't right.

 

Oogie Boogie did a lot of this:

 

 

So that's Oogie Boogie.

 

The other villain here that I've never laid eyes on before was Bowler Hat Guy. He's from the movie Meet the Robinsons.  I don't think that movie was very popular, but I have seen it, and I liked it.  Bowler Hat Guy came across to me as more annoying than evil, but I guess he qualifies as a villain.

 

And here he is:

 

 

And once again, I say WTF?

 

Look at that guy meeting him.

 

He's got the gun show going and tats, and here he is meeting Bowler Hat Guy?

 

That ain't right either.

 

I had a big problem with Bowler Hat Guy's knit outfit:

 

 

It's the first time I've ever seen a man with a camel toe.  And I hope the last.  (if you don't know what a camel toe is do not look it up on Urban Dictionary- just let it go).

 

Bowler Hat Guy shared space with Maleficent.  They hammed it up for the crowd when it was time for Bowler Hat Guy to go:

 

 

 

 

The first two guests who met Maleficent were interesting.  First a guy with tats and a poncho:

 

 

What's up with that?

 

And then a guy with a bad dye job:

 

 

What's up with that x2?

 

We made one last stop at the dance party to see if Meg was anywhere to be found, but all we found was Frollo.  Again:

 

 

When we were meeting with Shan Yu, I noticed guests bombarding the CM on duty asking for autograph cards.  She ran out before Twin #1 made it up to the front for her photo, and I figured we were out of luck, but at the dance party, there was a CM walking around with a big stack, so we each got one:

 

 

 

I wonder how much one of those would go on eBay?

 

At around 12:30, we decided to call it a night.

 

We weren't going to get anything else done, and I figured we would have a long painful exit from the park with traffic back-ups, and gridlock.

 

To my surprise, we encountered none of that.

 

We made it out with no problem at all.

 

We hopped in the car, pointed it west, and zipped home on an empty I-4.

 

All in all, we had a great time.  The crowds were bad, but it was a fun evening.

 

The End.

 

TCD

[alexwyattmommy 181]

Definitely should have made that a no for CMs.

Disney is an Idiot for not cashing in more on the Villains.

 

Great autograph card.  Sorry Meg was so anti-social.

[wendinator 109]

I had a big problem with Bowler Hat Guy's knit outfit:

 

 

It's the first time I've ever seen a man with a camel toe.  And I hope the last.  (if you don't know what a camel toe is do not look it up on Urban Dictionary- just let it go).

 

I believe that's technically a moose knuckle.  :laugh:

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Definitely should have made that a no for CMs.

Disney is an Idiot for not cashing in more on the Villains.

 

Great autograph card.  Sorry Meg was so anti-social.

 

Having the CM's there added to the party atmosphere tremendously.  But, it was too darned crowded.  The guests pay to be there.  They should have had priority.

 

You're right- Disney is missing an opportunity to cash in on the villains.  They ought to come up with a hard ticket party based on this event.  People would pay to be there.

 

I believe that's technically a moose knuckle.  :laugh:

 

Oh dear.

 

Thankfully, up until now, I have not heard that term.

 

I think you're right though.

 

I hope to never see another.

 

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Well, Fudge.

 

I took a look on Ebay to see if anyone was trying to sell those autograph cards.

 

And I see that a pair of them generated 21 bids and sold for 100 bucks! :

 

 

So, now I find out that there were two different cards.

 

Nobody told us that.

 

In fairness, nobody told us anything.

 

In even more fairness, I don't think anyone knew anything to tell us.

 

If a pair sold for $100, I should be able to get $50 each for mine.

 

I'm kicking myself, too, because the CM who handed us ours had a giant stack, and probably would have given us more than one each had we asked.

 

TCD

[DaveInTN 3,247]

Is there no end to what people will buy on eBay? 

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Is there no end to what people will buy on eBay? 

 

I know.

 

I heard tell of a guy who bought a used kazoo (it even had teeth marks) on eBay.

 

What an idiot.

 

TCD

[DaveInTN 3,247]

I know.

 

I heard tell of a guy who bought a used kazoo (it even had teeth marks) on eBay.

 

What an idiot.

 

TCD

 

True. 

 

It would be even worse if someone bought a display case for a used kazoo. 

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

I know who bought the used kazoo.  Did the same person buy the display case?

[devores 382]

 

Great info, Dave.

 

Thanks for sharing that.

 

Do you know if the visiting princesses remain the same all day?  It looks like they intend to put a picture of who is in each side.  It could be a problem if someone wanted to meet a certain visiting princess, and gets a FP, then comes back and it's a different princess than the one who was pictured earlier.

 

Did the briefing you received suggest that Ariel and Belle might be visiting princesses in the Fairytale Hall?

 

TCD

The visiting princesses are random and can change at any time. There is no guarantee who they will be. For the most part, they should remain the same for the day. The MDE app will be updated to show real time who is in the hall with them.

 

Any of the Disney princesses are subject to be in the hall. So any of them COULD be in there.

 

Disney's days of limiting cast entrance is over. When they blocked cast IDs during the 24hour event, it created a backlash with the unions and will probably never happen again. They can limit them bringing in guests, but cannot restrict the CM form entering as it is a benefit to working for the company. The union must agree to the block. It would be the same as saying CMs cant use their medical benefits. Its not as simple as Disney saying no CMs can enter the park.

[AC in A2......Aaron 693]

Finally caught up and read the rest of this TR.

Great job again TCD!

None of the norway girls invited Twin#1 back to their Fjord for the after-party?

I agree with you on using two FPs for the princess meets. That SMB.

The villians should have walked around serving warm MSB cinnamon rolls. That would have been some limited time magic.

[LONE-STAR 370]

Nice report

[dvccamper 32]

Fun report. Will now make it a point to hang around MK to see some of the MNSSHP "pre-show" on our upcoming trip.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

True. 

 

It would be even worse if someone bought a display case for a used kazoo. 

 

Yes, that is worse.  That person might need professional help.

 

I know who bought the used kazoo.  Did the same person buy the display case?

 

You know?

 

I was just repeating some hearsay I heard- I'm not sure how the kazoo thing went down.

 

Dave and I found a couple of old kazoos once.  And a moose.  Well, it was actually just a moose head.  No moose knuckle.  Thank the Good Lord.  That's all I know.  The details are hazy.  He gave me a Russian beer after that, and I can't sort out what really happened and what was a hallucination.

 

The visiting princesses are random and can change at any time. There is no guarantee who they will be. For the most part, they should remain the same for the day. The MDE app will be updated to show real time who is in the hall with them.

 

Any of the Disney princesses are subject to be in the hall. So any of them COULD be in there.

 

Disney's days of limiting cast entrance is over. When they blocked cast IDs during the 24hour event, it created a backlash with the unions and will probably never happen again. They can limit them bringing in guests, but cannot restrict the CM form entering as it is a benefit to working for the company. The union must agree to the block. It would be the same as saying CMs cant use their medical benefits. Its not as simple as Disney saying no CMs can enter the park.

 

I looked at the MDE app yesterday, and it didn't ever state who the visiting princesses were.  Just Rapunzel and Cinderella.  If they're going to rotate all day, that is going to be a challenge for guests who wish to meet a certain princess.  That could be frustrating for someone who wants a photo of their little princess with a specific princess other than those with set meet and greets.  I guess they will get it figured out.

 

I didn't know about the backlash over the Monstrous Summer 24 hour event.  I guess that might be one reason there were so many CM's at this event.  They didn't want to be left out again. Personally, I don't have a problem with it- but it creates a not so family friendly atmosphere.  The Leap Day 24 hour event became rowdy and boisterous when the CM's started pouring in after their shifts ended.  This Release the Villains event had a rowdy and boisterous feel to it.  We had fun, and enjoyed it.  But a family on a once in a lifetime vacation would not have enjoyed it very much.

 

 

Finally caught up and read the rest of this TR.

Great job again TCD!

None of the norway girls invited Twin#1 back to their Fjord for the after-party?

I agree with you on using two FPs for the princess meets. That SMB.

The villians should have walked around serving warm MSB cinnamon rolls. That would have been some limited time magic.

 

Twin #1 made plans to meet up with the Norway girls again some time during the Food and Wine Festival.  They both work at the Norway pavilion.  I was not included in those plans, nor should I be.

 

That MSB cinnamon roll idea is golden.  You should be working somewhere in WDW management.  No forget that- they would never hire anyone who has good ideas.

 

Nice report

 

Thanks.

 

I wish it could have been longer.

 

Fun report. Will now make it a point to hang around MK to see some of the MNSSHP "pre-show" on our upcoming trip.

 

If you do that, you need to share photos.

 

I think there could be a blog dedicated to just posting photos of guests coming in to the party.

 

"People of the MNSSHP^TM."

 

That would be a good one!

 

TCD

[DaveInTN 3,247]

If you were hallucinating, I may have given you a Ukranian beer.  Was the bottle green?