Welcome back to my Geeking Out in Orlando mini-series!
Carrying on from last week we will look at the top ten geeky things to do in each of the major theme parks in Orlando and then ask for you to vote on which has the best geeky attractions.
Last week we looked at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and EPCOT. Today, we're looking at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
Disney's Hollywood Studios (previously the Disney-MGM Studios) began life not just as a theme park but also as a working studio where guests could watch animators and other film makers at work. Nowadays, next to no real film making goes on at the park and the studios were shut down. But the park continues to educate and entertain people with behind the scenes entertainment.
To quote the park's dedication plaque, Disney's Hollywood Studios welcomes you to "a Hollywood that never was–and always will be."
10. One Man's Dream
Best described as a museum of Walt's life, One Man's Dream mixes historical items such as Walt's desk with scale models of landmarks from the parks and behind the scenes looks at the attractions. The attraction never has a queue which is a shame as so many miss out on seeing the history behind the parks, but great for those who wish to visit. After walking through the museum, guests watch a short film about Walt's life that includes previously unseen footage.
9. The Great Movie Ride
This one gets in based almost solely on one scene - something you probably wouldn't be expecting in a Disney theme park. The ride is a slow moving vehicle that takes you into scenes from classic movies. You'll go down the Yellow Brick Road with Dorothy and experience a gun battle in the wild west. It's agonisingly cheesy as your tour guide interacts with the scenes.
However the scene that makes it a must do for geeks is when you unexpectedly find yourself on-board the Nostromo being hunted down by an alien that appears right above you, a scene that is slightly terrifying for kids brought on to what their parents expected would be a relaxing rest from the noise of the park. You'll also see Indiana Jones during the ride and play spot the movie during the end sequence of classic clips. But it's the unexpected Alien experience that makes this ride a geeky must-see.
8. Fantasmic
Fantasmic is the only evening show in this series and it is featured here because of both its technology and its storyline. As I discussed in my EPCOT list, a good imagination is something shared by all types of geek.
Fantasmic is set inside one of Mickey's dreams and has many of the Disney villains coming together to try and destroy Mickey's goodness. It's a classic tale of good vs evil with some effects that could scare young children. The effects in the show are spectacular and, although not unique, are used to tell the story without taking over. Water mist screens project classic movie scenes over the water and the finale includes a 40ft tall Maleficent in her dragon form setting light to the whole lagoon. It's a truly amazing spectacle to end your night.
7. Backlot Tour
The Backlot Tour is really a mixture of several attractions which all work together to show have movie effects are prodiuced. The first part is based on the movie Pearl Harbour. A group of pre-selected guests participate in shooting some special effect sequences on a miniature sound-stage. One of these roles involves having 20,000 gallons of water dumped on top of you - this was the role my father-in-law took on several years ago and those few seconds remain some of the funniest I can recall on any vacation. After the filming, the sequence is mixed with footage from the film and showed on overhead TVs (sadly you can't get a copy of your moment of fame to take home). After the footage is shown, guests walk through the enormous prop warehouse then board a tram tour which takes you around the backstage lot where classic movie vehicles are housed. Finally everyone gets to be part of a special effect sequence as you roll onto a set during shooting of a disaster movie sequence.
6. The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Well before The X-Files or Supernatural, The Twilight Zone was scaring audiences on televisions across the globe. Rod Serling's tales of the paranormal and more have become embedded in our psyche and parodies are still found today on shows like Futurama and The Simpsons. It is deeply refreshing to have an attraction in a popular park based on something many might consider dated. I often wonder how many of the teens passing through the thrill ride's doors have ever actually seen the show it is based on?
On entering the attraction you enter the Twilight Zone, in this instance a hotel struck by lightning decades ago. On that night, the lightning bolt caused part of the hotel itself to vanish into the Twilight Zone, taking with it five guests riding an elevator. After winding through the Marie Celeste style lobby you have the opportunity to board a service elevator and discover what happened to those guests. I rode the attraction once and hated it (I really despise "drop" rides), but the queue is one of my favourite things to do in Walt Disney World so I will always queue with my group to experience the story before peeling off into the "chicken exit" just before they board the ride vehicles.
You may not know that in 1997 a film was made based on this ride's story starring Steve Guttenberg and Kirsten Dunst. It was the first film Disney created based on one of their park attractions and did not perform nearly as well as later attraction based films such as the highly successful Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
5. Jedi Training Academy
The only reason this little show doesn't rank higher on this list is that people people at Disney reserve participation for kids, and no amount of "but I'm a kid at heart" will sway them. The Jedi Training Academy is a short outdoor stage show that began during the annual Star Wars Weekends held at the park. It became so popular that is was promoted and became a permanent attraction. A group of kids are selected* for Jedi training and each receive a set of robes and a plastic lightsaber before being taught a short sequence of moves ("block high", "cut low" etc). Once the kids have the moves down, Darth Vader comes out to convince them to join the dark side and just occasionally a child will decide to pledge allegiance to him., However, most will then battle Darth, who never seems to try anything except the same set of moves that the kids just learned to defend - odd that. At the end of the show, each child gets a certificate.
*The new selection method involves signing up at the start of the day near the Sounds Dangerous building. Once the cast member is satisfied that your child is capable of participating (basically if they can follow instructions) you'll be given a piece of paper with your return time on it. The slots fill up quickly so do this first thing and kids must be aged between four and twelve.
4. Sci-fi Dine In
This is possibly my favourite restaurant on Disney property, even to the exclusion of some of the resort's top steakhouses (Le Cellier anyone?). Although the food is generally quite average - burgers, fries, shakes, etc.– the atmosphere of the room is beyond exceptional.
On entering, you find yourself seemingly outdoors in a drive in movie theatre at twilight. The tables are inside open top cars that all face forward toward the cinema screen. This is not the place you want if a family meal and discussion time is what you're after. Throughout your meal, a forty-five minute loop of geek heaven plays on the screen; a mixture of sci-fi cartoons, trailers for classic and not-so-classic B-movies and old footage from the 1950s that showed that generation what the future would look like. Here's a clue, it doesn't! You'll pay more to eat your burger here than you will in the counter service eatery nearby, but for geeks the extra cash is well worth it.
3. Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
If you're a fan of everyone's favourite adventuring archaeologist, then this show is a must see. It begins with a four minute long live action reconstruction of the opening scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark, complete with spears, falling statues and the iconic rolling boulder. Later on there are full re-enactments of two more scenes from Raiders: Marion and and Indy being chased through Cairo by the Nazis, and the fight around the moving plane.
In between the big scenes, the crew talks to the audience about the process of creating big stunt sequences, using stunt doubles or actors, demonstrate fight techniques and more. This is another show where volunteers are picked from the audience to join in. this is done just before the show begins.
2. Muppet Vision 3D
Muppet Vision is one of the few attractions that I've been known to walk away from when I realise it's about to load and I won't get to stay in the queue very long.
That's because the pre-show video is just as entertaining as the show itself. If you walk in and see the videos running, head back out and wait a few minutes, then come in again - you really want to see this. The show itself is a 3D movie with in-room effects. It takes place inside the classic Muppet Theatre from the TV show and, yes, Statler and Waldorf are up in their box heckling the show as it goes along. The plot is as madcap as you would expect from the Muppets with plenty of unexpected explosions and more as the show progresses from Kermit's nicely organised tour of the facility to outright anarchy. This is absolutely one for the whole family to enjoy.
1. Star Tours: The Adventure Continues
It had to be number one really didn't it?
Star Tours has recently undergone an enormous update that has added huge changes to the ride, a motion control simulator that allows you to fly into the Star Wars universe. Unlike it's previous incarnation, this new updated version is in 3D and features 54 possible ride sequences taking in many different planets from the galaxy far, far away including Coruscant, Hoth, Naboo and Tatooine.
The ride's "story" is set between Revenge of The Sith and A New Hope. You will also encounter different Star Wars characters depending on which ride sequence is randomly selected such as Yoda, Princess Leia, Admiral Ackbar and yes, unfortunately, Jar Jar Binks.
The ride sequence you will experience is chosen completely at random by the computer system controlling the attraction. It is based on a "choose your own adventure" style branching narrative as the film is comprised of 11 segments (with various options for each) which when combined allow for the 54 different experiences for riders. Finally, if you miss the original Star Tours ride then it is still operating at Disneyland Paris, now the only park not to have updated.
So do you think Disney's Hollywood Studios might just get your vote for geekiest park in Orlando?
Later this week we’ll be visiting Universal's Islands of Adventure as we proceed alphabetically through the parks, I look forward to seeing you again.
