Hi Peter,
I, personally, take Sklar's comments with a grain of salt. I am glad he is excited, but he was also excited about DCA. Part of his job is to be excited about Disney product. I have no contempt for Sklar; I just think he is biased.
Am I excited about Mission Space, Philarmagic, Figments Journey into Imagination? Yes and no. Mission Space and Philarmagic are both film based attractions. Mission SPace maybe an elaborate film based simulator attraction and may have a lot of novelty. I hope so. I hope it knocks my socks off. The long wait for Test Track, and the lackluster experience it provided, when opened, (my opinion) leaves me to doubt that Mission Space will be a favorite of mine.
I was also underwhelmed from experiencing
Disneyland's New Tomorrowland '98, DCA, JIYI. I completely do not understand why Disney spent money on the Wide WOrld of SPorts and the Disney Institute (why are they in the junior college business?). I don't have contempt for Eisner I just don't trust current management to understand their consumer base and why they fly thousands of miles and spend thousands of dollars to vacation with the mouse.
As a DVC member I am sure to eventually see all of the above mentioned attractions. My anticipation for my future Orlando vacations lies with Central Florida as a whole and not Disney as a resort destination. This is a big change from my blind allegiance to WDW in the past. I enjoy film attractions. I enjoy parades. But I get excited about innovative themed rides. I want fantastic themed experiences to emerse in. That is why I am a fan of Universal's SPiderman, Seuss
Landing ( or whatever it is called!) and Islands of Adventure in general. Is Islands a perfect theme park? No. But they sure tried hard to be! (My opinion) Universal Studios also tries hard. I still have not ridden Men in Black but I am looking forward to it. Harry Potter would continue in Universal's tradition of exceptional themed attractions (my opinion)
I also want to visit Busch Gardens again now that they have opened Rhino Rally.
Am I still a Disney fan? Yes. Will I still visit WDW? Yes. Even without DVC I would still come back. But I am finding a lot of entertainment magic in venues I used to skip because of loyalty to the mouse. And my vacation dollars are being spent there as well.
Also hoping to get to Tokyo Disney Sea in 2004 or 2005.
God willing.
Larry Poppins