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Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem (USH)

really wish they took the time to actually theme the extended queue. As soon as you walk through Gru's Door it should all be the interior of his house.It's off putting to go through his front door and all of a sudden it's as if you go to another dimension filled with zig zags and blue...lots of blue, then suddenly your back into gru's home once you enter the show building.
Been my complaint since opening. It's just disheartening, because they COULD have gone all the way, and used all of the queue space to make it an immersive and detailed space. They did it with Potter, so why not here? The entire area is beautiful and the facades are fantastic, but that break in theme is very mediocre and cheap. I would've enclosed it and made it a detailed and amusing tour of Gru's house.

Also, maybe it's because I'm not the "target audience", but I'm very much "over" the ride. I like the preshow and I love the Minions, but the ride itself is just...mediocre IMO and I keep getting the worst possible ride vehicle locations with zero illusion, and...yeah. I miss T23D. THAT I was constantly excited for and got the chills.

Wow, I just realized that came off very negative. I mean, I ENJOY it but just...I'm not excited about it even 1% anymore. Even Simpsons is more immersive for me. And the cheesy and long loading process/safety check before the ride starts has been very cringe worthy cheesy recently. Like...are we 5?

Again, I don't want to come across as super negative, but now that it's been open a year, I feel that the actual attraction is a let down and feels rushed. Which is a pity, cuz I love the facades, funny preshow videos, snacks, and the whole Despicable Me franchise.
 
Wow, I just realized that came off very negative. I mean, I ENJOY it but just...I'm not excited about it even 1% anymore. Even Simpsons is more immersive for me. And the cheesy and long loading process/safety check before the ride starts has been very cringe worthy cheesy recently. Like...are we 5?
I know you said you're not the target audience, but that loading process is geared strictly at, yes, five year olds. I do find it highly ironic that the height requirement is 40 inches, but what can you do? 

I noted this in my post back in July, but I actually really liked the way that they load the theater. All the other attractions in Universal, ESPECIALLY Transformers have a rather stressful and rushed atmosphere to the loading. I tried the best I could whenever to calm down children who were literally on the verge of tears in utter terror at what lies ahead, and it doesn't help that from being grouped to sitting in the ride vehicle it could be less than sixty seconds, and you're screamed at almost the entire way in, not to mention how dark and unsettling it can be when the load platform is at full capacity.

When I was six my parents took me to Walt Disney World, and my dad and my sister really wanted to do Alien Encounter. I was rather different as a child, and even though I was already at a fifth grade reading level, I did not like how the words "ExtraTERRORistrial" sounded. Add in the fact that I could read all safety warnings and fully understanding the announcements and it didn't take long for my heart to start racing nonstop and struggling not to hyperventilate the second we stepped into the pre-show room with S.I.R. The music was sinister and foreboding, and Tim Curry's menacing performance combined with the AA's brilliantly condescending movements made the pre-show felt like an extremely uncomfortable four-minute stay of execution. Then immediately I was shoved in a seat in a dimly lit auditorium surrounding a terrifying-looking steel contraption. Oh, and the music and the sound effects were still super unsettling. Then the restraints came down. I am trapped. My mom leans over to me, "Remember, just close your eyes. It'll be fine."

Anyone who knew about Alien Encounter knows that advice is useless. I ended the attraction in tears, and my mom took me to ride the Astro Orbiter while my dad and my sister went right back in the short line. Following that trip, I had nightmares about AE for months.

Of course, if I were to travel back in time from now to then, I'd gladly join my dad and sister and tell them that this great and innovative attraction is ruined in the future because of a movie that I ironically really like. The point is that I extremely relate to kids scared of these overwhelming experiences, especially when everything surrounding you is so massive. So I actually applaud Universal for making Minion Mayhem, also a potential overwhelming experience (the second pre-show room is fairly dark and the subwoofer effect I've noticed does make kids a little on edge), into a very easy, calm atmosphere, with a very comforting brightly colored (and lit) room to start out on, and zero rushing. This attraction is fun, not scary, and I've literally never seen a large attraction like this cater to this. Disney is extremely steadfast on creating mood, realism and escapism and I'm not at all chastising them for it... this is what makes them great. Walt Disney was the one who always said, "it's okay for kids to be scared". And I totally agree with him, but sometimes you have to realize there is a way to balance fun with scary, and that's by setting the mood.

It's funny because Pirates and Haunted Mansion are both fantastic attractions, but I always gravitated to Pirates more as a child. Now it's close to Haunted Mansion, but I know exactly why. Pirates had a dark and mysterious second act, whereas the first and third are rather lighthearted. The first act of Pirates, of course, being the queue, walking past the happy guests in the boats with the parrot, and then boarding a boat on a rather calm and peaceful Louisana bayou. Then comes the drops, dark caves and such... and we end with the silly pirate antics. It worked easier on me because the introduction was much more forward and calming. Haunted Mansion, on the other hand, is spooky, unnerving and creepy (by design) for the entire first half, before finally moving on to the Marc Davis silliness in the second half. This is almost exactly why the new HM queue at WDW is so weirdly cartoonish, to help children get acquainted to the ride's intended mix of macabre and silly that you encounter later on, but won't necessarily see at first. 

And some people hate it. Hate it, hate it, hate it. But guess what? WDW caters to families, and some of those children are understandably already having issues on handling the grandeur of everything around them. It's very loud, brassy and bold. More power to Disney if they want to adjust a small thing just to cater to them... I mean, as long as they don't literally dumb down the attraction. (which goes back to Alien Encounter) And yes, parents should realize what their children can or can not handle.

So it'd be really unfair to build an attraction about the most popular childrens film franchise in years, have it be a 3D simulator in the dark and not at least try to cater the experience so all of those families (as long as they're over 40 inches!) can rest easy in enjoyment. 

Sorry if this sounds like I'm putting you down Allen, because I really am not. I'm just happy that Universal seemed to recognize this going in, and crafted the experience like that. It just touches me on a personal level, that's all.
 
No, I totally get ya, totally respect that. I know you're not putting me down. I'd be content with the loading process if the actual attraction wasn't such a mixed bag and such a let down. I know that they have to cater to different audiences. I just hate when they talk down to the kids and make it overly cheesy haha. But again, I'd be willing to ignore that if they made the experience better.

What I like at Disney is that they're able to (for the most part) build attractions that anyone from any generation can enjoy. Minion Mayhem just doesn't seem timeless or up to par IMO.

Dont tease me with ExtraTERRORistrial ;)
 
I think the Minions and the entire Despicable Me is absolutely timeless and will forever be popular. I absolutely adore the movies and characters. My issue is that the attraction is very underwhelming for such a phenomenal attraction. Like, even if it didn't replace the highly superior T23D and that this was an entire brand new plot of land for the park, I'd still think the ride was underwhelming. Thank goodness for our amazing facades and Super Silly Fun Land. Those additions made this whole expansion a success in my eyes, and makes it more enjoyable for me.
 
I love Despicable Me as well! I'm just raising the question. I think it will last for a while as well. 

I remember reading this LA Times article where the author stated that the Minions were the "21st century Mickey Mouse." 
 
I rode Silly Swirly while at the park on Saturday, and for those of you who haven't been on it, it offers some pretty cool views:

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Okay so I remembered this when we were talking about FJ & Simpsons show building last night... Due to 50+ pages in this thread, I'm not sure if this was ever brought up or not by anyone else... so sorry, if someone else suggested this...

Every time I end up going to the park, or even just Citywalk... I always look up at the bare empty walls of the Minion Mayhem building and sigh. Why? well, its because the exterior walls on the side & back of the building are devoid of details (obviously not the front or SSFL side of course). It bugs me that they didn't take advantage of what Orlando has on the exterior of their soundstage building that the ride is located in. I'm referring the to "BE A MINION" giant posters. Its nothing major, but it would be a nice addition.

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I know they have the same "Be a minion" stuff in the queue like Orlando. Yes, the façade is amazing, but that's in the park itself. It just seems so.... "blah" on the side that guests see when heading to the park. The "sky blue" does nothing for the back/frankentsein garage entrance side.
 
I know they have the same "Be a minion" stuff in the queue like Orlando. Yes, the façade is amazing, but that's in the park itself. It just seems so.... "blah" on the side that guests see when heading to the park. The "sky blue" does nothing for the back/frankentsein garage entrance side.
That would look kind of tacky though in my opinion. Knott's does this with Iron Reef and it looks messy.
 
Overall, is our despicable me ride area better than Orlando?
There really is no comparison. I know the ride itself isn't that great but the area here in Hollywood is truly great, especially at night. 

Orlando:

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Hollywood:

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Well of course its better than Orlando's... they didn't have the space to do what Hollywood did. And the ride isn't that bad, its quite fun. You have to keep in mind that, for Orlando, all they did was mostly make cosmetic changes since it has been a simulator since the park opened (Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbara, Adventures of Jimmy Neutron ....same damn ride only with nickelodeon characters <_<  ). For Orlando, this is a welcome upgrade from its predecessor (although not as great as Hanna-Barbara)..

Not only did Hollywood get the better DM area, they also got the better grand opening lol
 
Never said the ride was bad. It's just nothing to marvel over. It's perfectly fine for what it is. Production Central as a whole is a mess to be honest and it's unfortunate they jumped the gun with DM and placed it there. Just glad (and very surprised) Hollywood didn't take the same quick route. DM and SFFL are still my favorite areas at night besides Universal Plaza. Can we get a Zoom Lens on DM at night? ;)  
 
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