JAWS - The Ride Tribute: Amity Village (PART 4)
Here you are the last part of this tribute of the Amity Village. Let's continue to check out the area:
The Village Circle Hall, which housed the only restrooms in the area:
The back:
Here's a general look at some of the themed elements of the Village (that made a difference):
We really hope they will maintain this tribute to the area:
This is found next to DISASTER!:
A look at some of the building of Amity Village from the Lagoon:
At dusk:
A Kodak photo-spot sign reminds us of the past look of the area, which has never changed... until now:
In the past:
The view before January 3, 2012:
And now, here you are a panoramic photo of the entire area:
Before wrapping up this tribute, enjoy some nighttime photos of Amity and of the surrounding areas:
And this concludes our huge Amity Village update. But, wait! What about the ride itself? Don't worry. We'll soon post a huge tribute of the ride too!
Its a shame because Harry Potter. I could a classic movie not not this crap. Harry Potter is Island's of Adventure how much do you want of him
ReplyDeleteThanks Sam for the goodbye pics for those of us who couldn't make it down there for the last day. I ALWAYS loved the ride - & the movie too - since I am a New Englander. Now it's like the park is slowly turning into Harry Potter Studios, which is a turn off for me.
ReplyDeleteUniversal is going to make a killing by closing Jaws. It was a fun ride, but definitly dated and only worth riding as a laugh. I can guarantee you that the people who have gone to Universal in the last few years are overwhelmingly there for Potter, and not for Jaws. Theme parks are all about attendence and money, and this is a brilliant move. I don't know anybody who has boycotted Magic Kingdom because Mr. Toad is gone, and that was far more of a classic than Jaws ever could be.
ReplyDeleteSigh.....I will miss Jaws. I've always loved that ride. I was lucky enough to get down there in Dec. to see it one last time. Thank you for a great update!
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, Universal will most certainly make a killing in the short run but we we've yet to see if Potter has staying power (the Jaws ride replacement won't be open for a few more years, so that can be a pretty decent test as to whether fans will still be interested now that the books / movies are over and they've grown older) .
ReplyDeleteYour claim that Jaws is dated is a pretty ridiculous one as it was meant to be dated (it takes place on the 4th of July in 1976). It's like complaining that the Jungle Cruise takes place in the 20s, it's part of the theme.
You claim it's only worth riding for a laugh, a claim that's been around since it opened, but many people feel differently. The shark is no less convincing then it was when it opened in the 90s (or the 00s for Japan). Just as it was then, some people will be scared and some people will find it campy (sometimes intentional, if your Skipper goes that route).
I personally feel Jaws had a larger appeal then Potter. Potter is mainly enjoyed by people who travel there specifically to see Potter whereas Jaws could be enjoyed by anyone who visited Universal. The Potter attractions rely on locations, characters and scenarios from the books / movies and a large part of the magic is lost on people that have never read the books or seen the movies. Jaws, on the other hand, doesn't require you see the movie. It doesn't feature the specific plot or use any of the characters, instead it focuses on a universal fear of sharks. As a kid, I had never seen Jaws but that didn't stop the shark from scaring me shitless.
People are overwhelmingly there for Potter, but what happens when the fans get tired of Potter? Theme park fans will continue to go to Universal but the Potter fans will abandon them. Universal realizes that the appeal of Potter is limited to a passionate group and that they can't be relied on in the future. This is why instead of building a third park dedicated specifically to Potter, they built that park within their current parks.
Theme parks are indeed about attendance and money, but they're also about cross-promotion (this specifically is why the Universal parks were started). Universal doesn't own this property, they license it from WB. I question how brilliant it is to invest so heavily in a property they don't own.
As for Toad being more classic then Jaws, it's a matter of opinion but I personally feel Jaws is FAR more classic then Toad. Jaws was based on a popular / classic movie, set to the timeless fear of sharks, and follows the formula of the VERY popular classic Disney attraction, Jungle Cruise. Toad was based on a somewhat popular Disney movie and follows the formula of the [long gone] old fashioned haunted house ride (cheap theming and all). Not to knock Toad, I enjoyed it as a kid but it doesn't hold a candle to Jaws.
Overall, I'm not pleased with Universal's decisions over the past decade. As for this specific instance, I'm not sure why they're removing this timeless attraction with plenty of appeal over their lame ducks like Disaster, Fear Factor, Twister or even The [already outdated] Mummy coaster. Universal just has too much wasted space for them to want to remove one of their only surviving 'timeless' attractions (the Jaws Blu-ray is coming out this year and I hope they have something about this ride in it).
"People are overwhelmingly there for Potter, but what happens when the fans get tired of Potter? "
ReplyDeleteThen the same thing will happen to the Potter attractions is is currently happening to the Jaws attraction. It'll be replaced by something else. Nothing is permanent.
thanks Sam for another fantastic post. I'd forgotten just how much rubbish there was in the Amity area apart from the actual Jaws ride - I'm no fan of the Midway games either.
ReplyDeleteI'd also forgotten just how BIG the area was, especially with the huge amount of theming (which I loved btw).
I now think Universal have approached this closure wrong. They clearly want to use the area for something new, but could have created a huge area by just removing the midway games and surrounding theming. The Jaws ride could have remained, but only with theming in the direct ride area.
I think the thing that upsets so many people about this closure is not that its based on a popular movie franchise but that this ride is a timeless classic, as much a part of Universal as Jungle Cruise is to Magic Kingdom (lets be honest JC is rubbish but we'd all hate to see it go!) Its still popular so why does it need to close?
ReplyDeleteIf Universal was only interested in attractions based on current or popular movie franchises we'd soon have to say farewell too to Twister, Terminator, ET - there wouldn't be much left!
The point is, its not the movie an attraction is based on thats the draw, its the quality of the actual attraction. Whether you like Potter or not, you've got to admit the ride is very good and the theming amazing. T2 is old now but is still my favourite attraction within Universal. I hated the MIB movies but enjoy the attraction. Disaster isn't even based on an actual movie anymore and can anyone tell me where I can buy "Hollywood Rip Ride Rocket" on DVD?
I guess it doesn't really matter what Universal base its new attraction on - Potter, Transformers, something else - providing the attraction is a corker!
Thanks I love these pics too bad the ride is no longer open.
ReplyDelete