Join Mark as Magic Kingdom closes ExtraTERRORestrial
Alien Encounter permanently
Wednesday, November 5, 2003
by Mark Goldhaber, staff writer
Shortly after 11:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 12, the final 97 Guests
(including some off-duty cast members) and a number of on-duty cast members
entered the Tomorrowland Interplanetary Convention Center for the final
show of ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter at the Magic Kingdom in Walt
Disney World.
While not drawing the same size crowds as the final day of the park's
Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, the show went out with an enthusiastic sellout.
Screams, cheers, and applause resounded throughout the last show.
We will no longer be able to Seize the Future with X-S. Photo by Mark
Goldhaber.
The ride had been playing to increased capacity throughout the final
week, running both chambers on most days. While the crowds were not at
capacity, they were much larger than had been seen in the attraction in
quite a long time. On the final day, both chambers were in use until a
late afternoon rainstorm dropped crowds and the attraction went down to
using one chamber. The attraction was a walk-in the entire evening, while
Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin ran with 25-minute
standby times throughout.
No “Final Encounter” T-shirts. Just one rack of leftovers is all that
remains of the Alien Encounter souvenirs, with Princess merchandise outnumbering
Alien Encounter merchandise in the shop at the attraction's exit. Photo
by Mark Goldhaber.
As the 11:00 park closing time approached, people started to gather outside
the queuing area. While waiting, I got to meet Nate from Doombuggies.com
and some of his friends.
After the 10:55 show loaded, cast members announced that people could
fill the queuing area for the final show. We moved in and waited for the
doors to the Convention Center to open. At about five minutes after 11,
he doors opened and we entered the first preshow. Many people were taking
pictures or video as we watched the video monitors and waited for the
second preshow.
The final 97 guests wait for admission to the Tomorrowland Interplanetary
Convention Center. Photo by Mark Goldhaber.
We entered the second preshow, and many in the crowd spoke the lines
along with S.I.R. for the final time. At the end of the preshow, there
was applause, as well as a few disparaging comments shouted out about
Stitch. I hung back and waited to be the last guest to enter the chamber.
One other person had the same idea, so we compromised by stepping in together.
The last group goes into the second preshow to see S.I.R. Photo by Mark
Goldhaber.
The final show was loud with screams, cheers, and applause, and at the
end, we all stayed and applauded the tearful thank-you and farewell speech
given by the girl who had just played X-S Maintenance One. We said good-bye
to the chamber (some of us physically) and four of us stepped out of the
chamber together to be the last ones out… Since the others were off-duty
cast members, I can probably claim title to Last Guest Out.
The chamber stands in an empty room after the conclusion of the
final show. Photo by Mark Goldhaber.
The ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter is now closed for good, beginning
its 10-month makeover into “Stitch's Great Escape!” Disney has
said that the new attraction is a “prequel” set shortly before
the events of the hit Disney motion picture “Lilo & Stitch.”
The family-friendly adventure in Tomorrowland will showcase the mayhem
caused by the mischievous “Experiment 626”—a.k.a. Stitch—when
first discovered in the Galactic Federation.
Entering Stitch's Great Escape, Magic Kingdom guests are recruited by
the Galactic Federation Grand Councilwoman to provide additional security
for a captured alien whose reputation for being extremely “difficult”
has preceded him. Even so, authorities underestimate Stitch's capacity
for playful disobedience, causing havoc to erupt with guests caught in
the middle of the fun.
This concept art from Disney shows Stitch as the alien intruder for “Stitch's
Great Escape!” Publicity photo © Disney, 2003.
Stitch's Great Escape will feature some of the most sophisticated Audio-Animatronics
technology ever developed by Walt Disney Imagineering.
According to a cast member who has seen some sketches, the chamber will
be largely unchanged. The height limit will be removed, and the restraint
system will now adjust all the way down to work with children of all heights.
The new attraction will have Fastpass integrated into the queuing system.
We'll have to wait and see how the new attraction turns out, but there
will be no more chances to “Seize the Future with XS.”
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Mark is a veteran of many trips to Walt Disney World starting in 1972, with a few Disneyland trips also under his belt. He is also a Disney stockholder and a Disney Vacation Club member who collects Disney sericels, books, clothing, and just about any other thing with The Mouse on it that he can lay his hands on. Between visiting WDW, planning trips for himself and others, fantasizing about trips to WDW, and reading everything he can about Walt Disney and his legacy, there's not much time left for anything other than family time, but he's perfectly happy with that. Mark is a computer geek working for the State of New York. He lives in the suburbs outside Albany, New York, with his wife and son. Click here to contact Mark. 
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