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[pussinboots]

We can squabble for ages about projections and props, but there are three things that have truly killed the ride for me:
- the loss of the music;
- the loss of the walk-through;
- the loss of a fantastic theme.

And catering to today's teenagers does not always mean giving them fast, shiny things with Japanese characters plastered all over them. Look at the movie industry; the Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean. Each ventures into dusty old worlds of archaic parlance and historic allusions yet they have conquered the short attention spans of young people and pried them away from their Wiis for a few hours. Compare the simple, 20-year old Indy series to the flashy, ADHD-paced, uber-CGI'ed Tomb Raider movies; which ones do people still care about? Yes, the old, CGI-less Indy films.

Catering to the lowest common denominator seldom works in the long run.

[david]

i didn't mean that i don't accept other people's opinions, it's just that i think that people are a bit unfair to it- i know there are lots of people who set out to make themselves not enjoy things simply because they are new and different and because they change pre-existing things that they love and enjoy (a good example casino royale- remember the anger that was created over a blond bond?- and sure enough, these people hated it). I certainly agree that it may have been rushed somewhat in its development- especially regarding the smoothness of the ride vehicles however.

and just to point out a problem with pussinboots comments 9though i agree with what your saying) lord of the rings, harry potter (the movies) and pirates of the Caribbean are enormous, epic, expensive special effects laden films with enormous fight scenes and moments of nothing but CGI- i get what you mean, but i still think that modern entertainment is very high-tech and special effects laden, and needs to be because it what people expect and they are not impressed with anything less

[pussinboots]

i didn't mean that i don't accept other people's opinions, it's just that i think that people are a bit unfair to it- i know there are lots of people who set out to make themselves not enjoy things simply because they are new and different and because they change pre-existing things that they love and enjoy (a good example casino royale- remember the anger that was created over a blond bond?- and sure enough, these people hated it). I certainly agree that it may have been rushed somewhat in its development- especially regarding the smoothness of the ride vehicles however.

and just to point out a problem with pussinboots comments 9though i agree with what your saying) lord of the rings, harry potter (the movies) and pirates of the Caribbean are enormous, epic, expensive special effects laden films with enormous fight scenes and moments of nothing but CGI- i get what you mean, but i still think that modern entertainment is very high-tech and special effects laden, and needs to be because it what people expect and they are not impressed with anything less

Yes, you're right, it's all CGI nowadays... Still, "Speed Racer" bombed and I've heard the new Indy film manages to stay true to its 1980s roots, which would be tame for today's standards. But POTC, LOTR etc. do have themes that are at least as old and dusty as Jules Verne.

So perhaps the ride should have been cranked up a little, maybe the effects needed tweaking... But there was no sensible reason to take Jules Verne out of his attraction. And look what we have now; a mysteriously Victorian Discoveryland building housing a ride that aspires to be Tomorrowland. It's awful.

[david]

thats absolutely right- its an awkward fit thematically- its modern-futuristic, but launches out of a victorian-futuristic cannon

[Lordofthemightybeasts]

Looking back to the old ride the scenery and theming inside the mountain were a bit lame (apart from the view from the queue) but on the ride itself, the asteroids were 2 dimensional, the UV painted wooden cutouts of characters from the book (presumably) and the basic slowly rotating projection of the moon at the climax of the ride is just so...... 90s!

The asteroids were all three dimensional props, some with fibre optic effects, Mission 2 uses the exact same ones but with the edges smoothed over for projection. Admittedly, the moon was fairly basic but it made a far better climax than the oh-so-dull supernova projection, particularly through the music. And the special effects were never the highlight of Space Mountain, it was the wonderful music and the atmosphere the ride created.
The trouble with Mission 2 is that it was designed to live or die by it's special effects alone and in the end that just gives something completely charmless, particularly when the effects are... I'm sorry to say, pretty rubbish.

Those disco ball stars that light up the mountain sides and all the interior structure were unconvincing in the '70s and are just an embarassment now. And the awful projection effects have all the depth of a UV painted cutout, but without any of the quirky charm. And the red vortex finale was certainly very impressive the first time you experienced it, but it shows the track in front of you as clear as daylight. It may seem irrelevent since you know you're on a rollercoaster anyway, but it's a prime example of having flashy effects at the expense of the storytelling, which Disney was never about.

[Remco K.]

The point is, the new theme could've been a great upgrade to the ride. However, it turned out to be a huge downgrade... Wether you like the new soundtrack or not, it doesn't really matter, because you barely can't hear the soundtrack at all. It either plays to soft or is broken. Personally I really miss the building up excitement the old soundtrack did when waiting for the launch in the cannon. But that's my opinion.

At some positions in the trains the ride is so rough, it makes for a bad ride experience. This is not a problem of Mission 2 though, it has been bumpy years before the 'upgrade'.

The queue used to have views on the ride. Closing this view and taking away the queue music makes the long hallway a boring experience. They tried to 'fix' this by putting some images of space related items on the walls.

Although the attraction still has a story, it feels less present to me.

If they could fix problems like the soundtrack and the bumpy track, it at least could've been a good ride.

[pussinboots]

The queue used to have views on the ride. Closing this view and taking away the queue music makes the long hallway a boring experience. They tried to 'fix' this by putting some images of space related items on the walls.

Totally agree. Sigh.

Basically, they destroyed a perfectly good attraction that only needed a refurbishment just to have a marketing gimmick for a "gap year".

The good news, I suppose, is that when (read: if) the time comes for another refurbishment, they won't be able to destroy even more for something called "Mission 3" or "...Backwards!". Because that wouldn't sell. So all that's left to do now is fix things.

And they did eventually turn Indy back around! Who knows, maybe one day they'll be wise enough to replace the soundtrack. Or not.

[Maarten]

I mis the old Space Mountain- de la Terre a la Lune aswell. It was my favourite ride at the Resort, but nowadays I don't ride it that often anymore. You know, there are some positive changes since they've introduced Mission 2. For example, the new ride instructions film in the queue area is far more fitting then the old one. Even enclosing the queue area wasnt such a bad move in my opinion since it never made sense to me why you could look into outerspace while waiting. Its a pity though that they've enclosed it in such a cheap way, even the posters don't fit the general feel of the attraction (by the way, did anyone notice the huge copyrights on the posters?!). I also miss the beautiful queue music loop with The Rockteer and Krull among other films.

I also mis the climax while reaching the moon and blasting off out of the Columbiad (thanks to the soundtrack). The soundtrack was such an essential part of the experience and it fitted the mood and atmopshere of the attraction so well. Personally I do like some of the new projections in the Mountain. Not every change they've made is bad. But I do miss the moon and 3 dimensional theming like the Blue Moon Mining Company sets.

In my opinion they ripped out the soul of this Disney classic. Its a shame.

[Fever]

I think my biggest issue with M2 is the awful queue line that now as zero atmosphere and the fact a scored mission to space is a gamble.

The score is a very exciting track, I do think it's a very good replacement BUT how many times have I ridden mission 2 in silence? It's the many times like this it becomes a standard roller coaster and not an adventure it should be.

SORT IT!

[Remco K.]

I want to add to all of my comments that I don't hate the Mission 2 ride music. I just don't like it on Space Mountain.

I could so totally accept a new ride (with a general space theme) in the current HISTA building featuring the Mission 2 ride music.

But the fact that they've replaced a piece of music that was... well, unreplaceable... I won't forgive them!

[pussinboots]

I think the new music is crap, I really do. To this day, the original soundtrack sometimes gets in my head, like the Indiana Jones track does when you wonder why it did until you realize you heard the sound of a whip or opened a gate with a remote control. That's what good soundtracks do -- they nestle into your brain, ready at any given moment to revive a 20-year-old memory.

The new soundtrack is like a bad blockbuster movie you've completely forgotten the moment you leave the theater. It makes no impact, it might as well not be there at all. Which is frequently the case, actually.

I've felt more touched by the music they play in the Hyperion restrooms.

[dlrp-mad]

I think the new music is crap, I really do.

Possibly a little too harsh, but it's your opinion.

I personally thought that they did loose a lot of the atmosphere when they changed the ride. You're right in saying it was a 'downgrade' rather than an upgrade. I think the new music's fantastic thought. It may not be the old track, which was still very good, but I think it's a really decent score. Did you know, it's written by the same guy who wrote the score the The Incredibles??

dlrp-mad :mickey2:

[Nicholas-c]

i dont see what people have against the new one ? >.<

i mean, mission 1 was great but missions 2 is hardly rubbish not as good as 1 but still fun!

[Maarten]

i dont see what people have against the new one ? >.<

i mean, mission 1 was great but missions 2 is hardly rubbish not as good as 1 but still fun!

Like you say, it isn't as good as the old Space Mountain. Why should we settle with a downgrade, while this change from "De la Terre a la Lune" to Mission 2 wasn't even necessary? If you change a ride, it better be a true upgrade or at least on par with the original.

[davewasbaloo]

Although I miss virtually everything about the old attraction and I do like the red spiral at the end. The biggest travesty is the disappearance of that amazing score with strings and brass that took you on a new adventure. the new score (when it works) is forgettable. The loss of Le Terre au la Lune, Les Visionarium and the fire on the fountains took away the coolness of Discoveryland. It used to be my favorite land (with Frontierland coming second), but now it is a shadow of it's former self.