April 2015 – Page 3 – WDWNT Archive

Sign-Up & Play Along as WDWNT’s Extinct Attractions Tournament Begins This Week (3/26/15) on WDW News Today: The Radio Show

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

This week, on WDWNT: The Radio show, MARCH MADNESS PART 2: EXTINCT ATTRACTIONS BEGINS! We will also discuss the news from the past week including a review of breakfast at Be Our Guest and a new Jungle Cruise themed eatery at The Magic Kingdom, and we invite you to join in the conversations as well.

Due to popular demand for our first tournament, we have decided to hold a second tournament this year! This time, we have chosen 64 Extinct Walt Disney World Attractions. Join us for some heated debates and win some great prizes from Theme Park Connection. Not only will we try to decide the greatest extinct attraction in Walt Disney World history, but you’ll get the chance to win some prizes as you root for your attractions! Here’s how it all works:

There is a pre-tournament e-mail sign-up for the March Madness extinct attraction tournament that has already begun.
Send an email to contactnickl@gmail.com with your name, hometown and phone number.
The email must be sent in and received before 6PM ET on March 26, 2015.
We will in return send you an email with 4 attractions that will be yours in the tournament. The attractions will come from four categories and be assigned randomly. You will receive 1 attraction from the 1-4 seed category, 1 attraction from the 5-8 seed category, 1 attraction from the 9-12 seed category, and 1 attraction from the 13-16 seed category.
You will need to tune-in to WDWNT: The Radio Show from 8-10 ET on March 26th, but also again on April 2nd from 8-10PM ET for the conclusion of the tournament in order to win. ALL CONTESTANTS MUST BE AVAILABLE TO CALL INTO THE SHOW ON APRIL 2ND IF YOUR NAME IS CALLED AS A WINNER. ONLY THOSE CONTESTANTS LISTENING, AND WHO CALL IN TO CLAIM THEIR PRIZE, WILL BE AWARDED A PRIZE. (winner does not have to go on air if they wish not to.)
The four attractions you will be assigned can win points for each victory they gain in the tournament rounds. The point distribution is as follows:
- 1st Round Win – 1 Point
- 2nd Round Win – 2 Points
- “Swell Sixteen” Round Win – 3 Points
- “Exciting Eight” Round Win – 4 Points
- “Fantasmic Four” Round Win – 5 Points
- Championship Round Win – 6 Points
The winner of each match is decided by the illustrious panel on the Radio Show. Each panelist counts for a single vote for an attraction. Majority rules on the 7 person panel and decides the winning attraction by vote count.
However, listeners who register to play along can change the outcome by calling in. A listener who is registered and playing in our contest may call in once during the run of the tournament and place a vote for an attraction that is worth 2 votes, more than any single panelist. The phone number is 407-774-8255. To allow time for any listening delays, we will count any phone vote cast that comes in before the next round’s voting has begun.
The top 8 players in terms of points amassed throughout the tournament will receive prizes from Theme Park Connection! The top player will receive a grand prize package and be declared the WDWNT March Madness Extinct Attraction 2015 champion.
Contestants must be 13 years of age or older to enter. You must get parent’s permission if you are under 18.

click for larger image

Hosted by radio veterans and life-long Disney fans Tom Corless and Nick LoCicero, the live radio talk show on AM 1520 WBZW in Orlando focuses on the latest news and current trending topics at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. WDW News Today: The Radio Show can also be streamed live at www.1520wbzw.com or on your TuneIn and iHeartRadio apps, just search for WBZW. WDW News Today the Radio Show debuted in August of 2013 as a 1 hour broadcast on Saturday evenings and has grown into a 2-hour program by popular demand.

To interact with the hosts during the show, listeners can call in at (407) 774-8255, tweet @WDWNT using #WDWNTRadio, or use the new LIVE chat that will be available at Listen.WDWNT.com.

The show begins at 8PM EDT Thursday night, don’t miss it!

3/27/15 Marvel News Mash-Up (Civil War, Captain Marvel, Who’s Leaving the Avengers?)

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

Official Synopsis For “Captain America: Civil War”

Shooting for “Captain America: Civil War” is scheduled to begin this April. Marvel has released the official synopsis for the film:

Following the events of Age of Ultron, the collective governments of the world pass an act designed to regulate all superhuman activity. This polarizes opinion amongst the Avengers, causing two factions to side with Iron Man or Captain America, which causes an epic battle between former allies.

There is definitely a few things to consider. First, how the synopsis is worded. The Avengers are going to do something really messed up in “Age Of Ultron” to have basically the whole world not have any trust in them. From the trailers you can see that The Hulk and Iron Man have a big battle in the middle of a city causing lots of destruction. I think that is part of it but probably the main issue has to be Tony Stark’s creation of Ultron. By doing so, Ultron creates an army looking to either enslave or destroy all of humanity. That he was able to create such a monstrosity probably results in the world not trusting him specifically, but also other super heroes.

In the comics, “Civil War” started slightly differently. A group of heroes called the New Warriors had their own reality TV show and in order to boost ratings they fought with an enemy whose demise resulted in the death of many children. Public opinion was very negative towards all superheroes and the government instituted a superhero registration act that would reveal all of their secret identities. Iron Man was on the side of the government and Captain America was against registration. The two formed opposite sides and became enemies. One hero that was caught in the middle of all of this was “Spider-Man.”

Now that Marvel is able to use “Spider-Man” in it’s movies, it is more than likely that Spider-Man will play a major role in “Civil War.” Even though there has been no official word that Spider-Man will be in the movie version of “Civil War,” most insiders have heard that he will definitely be in the movie. This means that Sony and/or Marvel will have to announce an actor who will portray Peter Parker and Spider-Man in “Civil War” and the upcoming “Spider-Man” solo film and probably fairly soon.

The Russo Brothers Will Direct “Avengers: Infinity: War Parts 1 And 2”

This week The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that the Russo Brothers will direct “Avengers: Infinity War Parts 1 and 2.” The Russo Brothers directed last year’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and are also back to direct the sequel, “Captain America: Civil War.”

It seems like the Russo Brothers are Marvel’s go to directors now. On top of that, they recently secured a 3 year first look deal with Sony Pictures. My spider sense is tingling and saying that the Russo’s will have some say as to which actor will portray the next Spider-Man. Sony would not have approached the Russo’s if they were not impressed with their work on “Winter Soldier” and it is possible that they may direct a Spider-Man spin off or even be named as the directors of the new Spider-Man movie. When you think about it, they should have ample time between “Civil War” and “Infinity War” to direct the new Spider-man movie. That actually would fit in nicely with their schedule.

Will Captain Marvel Make Her First Appearance in “Avengers: Age Of Ultron?”

Last year we found out that after “Avengers: Age Of Ultron” completed filming that some of the cast were asked back to shoot additional scenes for the movie. This led to a lot of speculation as to what, or who, could they be adding to the film. Back in October, Marvel officially announced the upcoming movies for Phase 3. One movie that was announced and stood out was “Captain Marvel.” Soon after that announcement, we found out about the “Ultron” re-shoots. Latino Review recently posted the following information on Instagram:

Like the information above says, take all this with a grain of salt, but he is right when he says it is within the realm of plausibility that we will see her character sooner than later.

Source: Latino Review

Possible Roster For The Phase 3 “Avengers” Team

This article is SPOILER heavy. Be warned that there are some big revelations, that may or may not be true, regarding the future of the Avengers proceeding the events that occur in “Avengers: Age Of Ultron.”

Screen Rant recently came across some information that reveals what the Avengers could possibly look like after the events of “Avengers: Age Of Ultron”

The Avengers will break up at the end of “Avengers: Age Of Ultron”
The Avengers 2.0 roster will consist of Falcon, Scarlet Witch, Vision and War Machine. They will be led by Captain America and Black Widow.
Thor returns to Asgard and this will set up “Thor: Ragnarok.”
Hulk is missing. Speculation is that he is on the AvQuinjet leaving Earth’s orbit. “Planet Hulk?” Or will he appear in “Guardians Of The Galaxy 2?”
Iron Man is “done.” Not sure if that means he officially quits the team which leads to his role in “Civil War.”
Thor, Hulk and Iron Man will not be in “Infinity War: Part 1” but will return for “Part 2.”
No mention of Dr. Strange, Captain Marvel or Black Panther as being part of The Avengers, yet.
Quicksilver may be dead at the end of “Age Of Ultron.” There are apparently two versions of the script that have leaked and one has him dying but one has him surviving. The rumor has been taking off recently because of the image from the trailer below shows all of the Avengers together battling Ultron’s army except Quicksilver is absent (or maybe he is just so fast that we cant see him).

Source: Screen Rant, Superhero News, Badass Digest

First Look At Marvels’ “New York City” Themed Variant Covers

“Spider-Gwen”

As an ex New Yorker, I definitely appreciated these beautiful New York City themed covers for some of Marvel’s most popular comics. There will be 15 variant covers released that will showcase various New York City landmarks.

“New York has always been home for the Marvel Universe,” said Marvel editor-in-chief Axel Alonso to The Post. “We were born here 75 years ago. We’re proud to be New Yorkers and we just thought that this was a way to underscore that.”

Here are some additional New York City themed covers:

“Howard The Duck”

“All New Hawkeye”

“Guardians Of The Galaxy”

“Hulk”

“Ant-Man”

“S.H.I.E.L.D”

Source: Comic Book Resources

That’s it for this time!

PHOTOS: Tour the New Villas and Bungalows of Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

We are just days away from the opening of the Villas and Bungalows at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, but we’ve got a look inside the new DVC resort rooms for you today:

Stopping first at the Bora Bora Bungalows

Yes, it’s a lot of money to stay here, but it is clear these are something very special

You’ll find artwork with the Electrical Water Pageant when you pull the bed down

Great artwork in the rooms

These look awfully familiar… oh yeah, YOU COULD BUY THESE…

Super-amazing artwork!

The decor is really wonderful

The bungalows have there own private plunge pool

The giant bathroom

Yes, they have the TV in the mirror too

Now moving on to the Villas

The hallways inside are very colorful

A look around inside the Villa

Polynesian Tiki guy is the lamp…

A look ahead to the soon-to-be-completed pool area

REVIEW: Be Our Guest Restaurant Begins Breakfast Test; Is It Worth The Price?

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

On Friday, the Be Our Guest Restaurant in New Fantasyland at the Magic Kingdom began testing breakfast service between the hours of 8 & 10 AM. We went to check it out on Sunday and see if the ever-popular restaurant’s pricey new breakfast would live up to months of speculation and hype surrounding it. Let’s find out if it did:

Yes, it is expensive.

Each table is provided a pastry tray. The pastry tray is pretty small for a party of 4, but I can see parties of 2 feeling like they got more than enough from this. With a few different reservations, we ended up having 12 in our party on Sunday morning. Now, you would think that each separate transaction would warrant a separate pastry tray, but it did not. The servers gave us 4 pastry plates for 12 people. If more than 4 people wanted a croissant, well, I guess that’s too bad. After asking several times, they did bring us a few more trays, but upon telling them that our kids would really love another croissant (if possible), the waitress vanished and never returned. I would much rather they simplify this as a basket of croissants and muffins, rather than this sampler that doesn’t feature many items that are easily share-able amongst more than 2 people. Besides that, they were the usual pastries you’d find at any of the breakfast buffets and most of the items are quite good… if you actually get one…

There is some variation in the trays as well, with a cinnamon roll being replaced with this tart in this case

The croissant doughnut was insane, but also insanely delicious. Very sweet, very soft, practically perfect in every way.

The Eggs Florentine was my favorite dish. The flaky, crisp pastry mixed with eggs and spinach was absolutely delicious.

The meat tray was good, but fairly standard.

The vegetable quiche was surprisingly edible and actually a really good option for those with special dietary needs. The crust was perfect, and there was enough flavor in it to feel satisfied with it.

The open face sandwich was also very good, but every order of this at our table was a bit cold. The ordering system at Be Our Guest can be spotty at times and you really can’t afford a delay in food coming to a guest’s table when there are eggs on it. Eggs cool down real fast and it was apparent this sat somewhere for a bit.

The kid’s meals aren’t huge, but they are kid’s meals. Our 4 and 6 year-old children enjoyed them, but there honestly was anything special about them.

Overall, some dishes were great and some mediocre, but none of them were bad. I’ve had much worse breakfasts at Disney Parks, and I wouldn’t rank this lower than many (not bringing value into play).

So, is it worth $20 a person? You might be surprised to hear maybe…

Look at it this way: A tremendous amount of guests book a breakfast reservation for the Crystal Palace really just to get in the park early and get a jump on the crowds. Crystal Palace is far more expensive than Be Our Guest Restaurant for breakfast. Yes, there are characters, and yes, it is a buffet, but the price point is significantly higher. An 8:00AM Be Our Guest Reservation is far more affordable for any family, and while there is less food and no characters, that same early advantage remains. While later reservations won’t have this advantage (and thus are more easily deemed overpriced, which I feel that the meals are), I can’t help but feel Disney priced this based on those who will receive this perk and perhaps some backlash from those paying a lot more for Cinderella’s royal Table or Crystal Palace. Be Our Guest is the closest restaurant to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train too…

CONFIRMED: Jungle Cruise Themed “Skipper’s Cantina” Restaurant Coming to the Magic Kingdom

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

The Jungle Cruise may not be getting a store anytime soon, but it is getting its own restaurant…

Image courtesy WidenYourWorld.net, Adventureland Veranda many years ago

The Adventureland Veranda restaurant opened with the park in October 1971, and despite several widespread menu changes and the arrival and departure of Kikkoman as a corporate sponsor, continued to operate until 1994. Since then, it has been used for many things, mostly character meet and greets and treat stations for the Magic Kingdom’s party events. After most recently serving as home to Tinker Bell and her fairy friends before she flew on over to Town Square Theater, the establishment will finally return to food service after 21 years of being lost in the shuffle. The recent swap of Sunshine Tree Terrace and Aloha Isle was indeed a measure to alleviate traffic in front of the restaurant’s entrances and exits.

The space being used as Tinker Bell’s Magical Nook

The new restaurant will be tentatively called the “Skipper’s Cantina”, themed around the near-by Jungle Cruise attraction. The back story would revolve around Jungle Cruise skippers being paid pretty poorly by the Jungle Navigation Company (or Disney in real life, but that’s enough of that…) and needing to operate the restaurant to make a little more money. This would be significant as it would be the first restaurant at the domestic Disney Parks inspired by an original Disney attraction and not an animated or live action film.

Who’s hungry for some Jungle Cruise-inspired cuisine?

Current rumors speculate that the restaurant will operate in a similar fashion to “Be Our Guest” in that is will offer a counter service lunch and a table service dinner. With the annual Magic Kingdom park attendance continually rising, the once unnecessary establishment will now serve a real purpose in helping out the overburdened park-wide dining facilities in the Magic Kingdom of 2015.

Disney would like to have the new restaurant open by November 2015, but that is purely speculation at this time. That being said, the interior of the building was never damaged too heavily by any of the tenants over the last few years, so the conversion shouldn’t take very long.

Stay tuned for more on this breaking story…

VIDEO: New Video From Disneynature’s “Monkey Kingdom” Now Available!

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

From Oscar, Sita, Scout, and the countless wild creatures we share this planet with, thank you! Disneynature is making a difference. With every ticket purchased for Disneynature’s Monkey Kingdom opening week (4/17 – 4/23), Disney will donate to benefit Conservation International to help benefit monkeys and other endangered species in their natural habitat.

Monkey Kingdom will be in theaters April 17, 2014!

Take a look at the video here:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tw9ZCONCkAA]

Life is an adventure for Maya, the clever and resourceful blonde-bobbed monkey in Monkey Kingdom, Disneynature’s new feature film set among ancient ruins in the storied jungles of South Asia. Maya’s world is forever changed when she welcomes her son, Kip, into her complicated extended family. Like all families, Maya’s has more than its share of colorful personalities—and she’s determined to give her son a leg up in the world. When their longtime home at Castle Rock is taken over by powerful neighboring monkeys, Maya’s whole family retreats, and she uses her street smarts and ingenuity to uncover untapped resources amidst strange new creatures and unsettling surroundings. Ultimately, they will all have to work together to reclaim Castle Rock, where Maya can hopefully realize her dreams for her son’s future.

Featuring a rich variety of characters, including a mischievous mongoose, simple-minded langur monkeys, predatory leopards and monitor lizards, Monkey Kingdom is narrated by Tina Fey, directed by Mark Linfield and co-directed by Alastair Fothergill. With music from award-winning composer Harry Gregson-Williams, Disneynature’s eighth True Life Adventure—the follow-up to 2014’s Bears—swings into theaters April 17, 2015.

Monkey Kingdom is the sixth theatrical release for Disneynature, the first new Disney-branded film label from The Walt Disney Studios in more than 60 years. The label was launched in April 2008 to bring the world’s top nature filmmakers together to capture a variety of wildlife subjects and stories.

Disney Extends Ban On Smoking In Films to Include Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

During Disney’s annual shareholder meeting, Bob Iger announced that Disney will absolutely prohibit the use of a character smoking in all of its films rated PG-13 and below. The only exception will be the portrayal of a historical character who smoked. This rule will apply to all Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars films.

Bob Iger:

“We are extending our policy to prohibit smoking in movies across the board. In terms of any new characters that are created for any of those films, under any of those labels, we will absolutely prohibit smoking in any of those films. Except when we are depicting a historical figure who may have smoked at the time. For instance, we’ve been doing a movie on Abraham Lincoln, he was a smoker, and we would consider that acceptable.”“I thought it was the right thing for us to do,” he said about the decision — which he says he made over the last 48 hours prior to the shareholders meeting.

Source: The Telegraph

Innoventions West Closing, Are New Exhibits Coming or is Something Bigger on the Way?

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

Disney confirmed after a few days of speculation that all existing exhibits inside Innoventions West at Epcot will be closing. The expected closing date is April 30th.

While it isn’t rare for Innoventions exhibits to close and be replaced, the last time that the entire pavilion or a whole side of it was shut down was when it was converted from Communicore to Innoventions in 1994.

We are also led to believe this has been in the works for a long time now as replacements for the now long-closed Velcro, Segway, and Rockin’ Robots exhibits never materialized, even after years of vacancy in those space. Where’s the Fire, IBM Think, and the Great Piggybank Adventure will now follow suit.

“We’ve reached the end of our sponsorship agreements with the exhibitors in Innoventions West and will temporarily close the space in early May to begin preparing for a new experience.” – Disney spokeswoman earlier today, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

Innoventions at Disneyland is closing permanently at the end of March 2015, so is Innoventions West at Epcot coming back, or is this the start of something else planned for the park? Now, it is possible they are just taking this opportunity to remodel the space before new tenants move in (the last time this happened was 1999), but it seems odd at a time when Disney is often hard-pressed to find sponsors for Epcot attractions. We will just have to wait and see…

Dirk Wallen’s 3/20/15 WDW Photo Report (Polynesian Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Disney Springs, ETC.)

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

WDWNT Reporter Dirk Wallen was all over the Walt Disney World Resort this week and has a ton of newsworthy photos to share with us, so let’s take a look at what’s new and exciting:

Starting at the Polynesian, the right side of the entrance is out from behind walls and looking good

The pool area is nearing completion also

Moving to the Magic Kingdom, work on the center of the hub is picking up speed

New planters await railings

The old Rose Garden is now being demolished as part of the hub expansion

The final remnants of the Plaza Swan Boats are being erased

Moving over to the Studios, walls are up around the former site of the Sorcerer’s Hat, at least through late-April

Strange to see this sight again, but if Echo Lake is demolished, it won’t be a sight for long

Over at Epcot, work continues on the mysterious “colorful” new Innoventions exhibit

Meanwhile, there is no visible progress on the Frozen attraction

Moving to Disney Springs, the Marketplace Co-Op has these Adventurer’s Club signs back in stock

These photos were taken just before the first pedestrian bridge was installed yesterday

The Town Center will rise upon this site over the next 12-14 months

One large structure is already rising

The small park area in front of Planet Hollywood and the Orange Garage entrance is nearing completion

New planters being installed outside Harley Davidson

No visible progress on STK Orlando, the supposed replacement for the BET Soundstage

The Hangar restaurant is now completely sealed, but still no announcement from Disney

The new Margarita Bar and pier in the Marketplace is coming along nicely

The BOATHOUSE, as seen from the Village Causeway

Still to early to tell, but this looks like one fo the facades that will hide the second parking garage from view

A lot of work still to be done on Morimoto Asia

Meanwhile, flags have gone up outside of the BOATHOUSE, leading us to believe it is nearing completion

Work on the dock is wrapping up

Another look at the Hangar Restaurant, whatever it might be…

PHOTOS: New Merchandise on the Way To Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

WDWNT on April 13, 2015

Disney today previewed more merchandise coming to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort:

Disney once again showed off the fantastic Tiki medium figure near where the actual full-size statue will be located in the lobby.

These ceramic cups will arrive later in the year.

Hawaiin shirts for guests of all sizes are on the way, as well as bags and a hoodie.

Steven Miller of the Disney Parks Blog poses with a great shirt inspired by Trader Sam’s.

Adult and child apparel

A glass, picture frame, window decals, pins and magnets are among other items guests will be able to find at the resort. Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto has an open edition pin and a limited edition grand opening pin as well.

All of these items will be released at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort this year.

Month: April 2015

Sign-Up & Play Along as WDWNT’s Extinct Attractions Tournament Begins This Week (3/26/15) on WDW News Today: The Radio Show

3/27/15 Marvel News Mash-Up (Civil War, Captain Marvel, Who’s Leaving the Avengers?)

Official Synopsis For “Captain America: Civil War”

The Russo Brothers Will Direct “Avengers: Infinity: War Parts 1 And 2”

Will Captain Marvel Make Her First Appearance in “Avengers: Age Of Ultron?”

Possible Roster For The Phase 3 “Avengers” Team

First Look At Marvels’ “New York City” Themed Variant Covers

PHOTOS: Tour the New Villas and Bungalows of Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

REVIEW: Be Our Guest Restaurant Begins Breakfast Test; Is It Worth The Price?

CONFIRMED: Jungle Cruise Themed “Skipper’s Cantina” Restaurant Coming to the Magic Kingdom

VIDEO: New Video From Disneynature’s “Monkey Kingdom” Now Available!

Disney Extends Ban On Smoking In Films to Include Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars

Innoventions West Closing, Are New Exhibits Coming or is Something Bigger on the Way?

Dirk Wallen’s 3/20/15 WDW Photo Report (Polynesian Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Disney Springs, ETC.)

PHOTOS: New Merchandise on the Way To Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

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