RingMaster

I honestly do not understand why people complain about the lack of theming and detail in Kings Island, yet they want a theme park company that doesn't even theme their major rides and coasters (let alone upkeep the ones with a theme--Disaster Transport comes to mind) to buy up Paramount Parks. I'd rather have Anheseur-Busch (sp?) or the guys behind Dollywood and Silver Dollar City buy at least Kings Island, if not the whole chain. At least then we'd have a theme park with nice/amazing coasters and groundbreaking flat rides with nice scenery and theming added to it.

Will the super WalMart include a McDonald's and a Starbucks? And those elderly folk that always welcome you into the store (that's my favorite)? The park has plenty of room throughout the park to add new rides and coasers. The small footprint that FOF occupies is not needed for another attraction. That's what we said when the Antique Cars, King Cobra, Phantom Theater, and KCKC (I think that was the name of that water ride) were taken out. But, anyway, FOF is an awesome ride, and I wouldn't dare believe PKI to be that stupid to get rid of an attraction THAT popular. ....then again, there's still the rumor of either The Vortex or Top Gun leaving during the 2006 tour.

Today's youth IS experiencing what an amusement used to and still should be. It's called Nickelodeon Universe.

Which brings the question, what's the name of the song Bill used in creating the awesome movie?

Theme parks all the way. Islands of Adventure has got cool thrill rides (Hulk, Dueling Dragons) and completely groundbreaking themed attractions (Spider-Man, Cat in the Hat, Ripsaw Falls). Now if Kings Island would only follow in the footsteps of IOA, then everyone would be happy...

...and then ranked 15th in 2005? Or something like that, I don't remember. Can someone back that up before I can make it official?

....can someone say 2007 re-theme?

~The RingMaster's 2006 Ride List~ Avatar--4 Plankton's Plunge--1 Phantom Flyers--2 Top Gun--4 Adventure Express--2 Racer--3 Flight of Fear--1 Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera--2 Vortex--0 The Beast--3 Son of Beast--0 Tomb Raider: The Ride--2 Italian Job: Stunt Track--2 Delirium--0 Face-Off--0 Drop Zone--0 Scooby-Doo and the Haunted Castle--1 Fairly Odd Coaster--0 One 17-year-old in the middle of screaming 9-year-olds on Avatar--priceless.

School's back in session... ...June 5th, 2006.

Face-Off, Delirium, Son of Beast (re-tracking, obviously), Train, Viking Fury, and Tomb Raider: The Ride were closed. ...I didn't really worry about those rides; I still got to ride Avatar twice, Top Gun, The Beast, and Flight of Fear all within the span of about an hour and a half. What ****ed me off, though, is the fact that they got rid of the photo-op on FOF. That pretty much killed the whole launch portion of the ride for me (getting blinded by a camera flash adds to the fear onboard the coaster); otherwise, still a great coaster, no doubt. Oh, BTW, ran into Combat again after I got off FOF. EDIT: Get the very back seats on either side of the Avatar train, and try to sit on the ends as well. Best seats in the house, if you ask me.

Something that has changed: -Rivertown Skyline is gone and is replaced with a new Funnel Cakes shop. -The giant squirt gun game by the old Lazer Tag building and EuroBungee is gone. Something that hasn't changed: -PKICentral still sucks. j/k

The Unofficially Official Nickelodeon Universe Review by the RingMaster Yeah, that's right, I have a review....what'cha gon' do about it? Read or be square (even though that doesn't even rhyme to begin with): Overall Rating: 9.5/10 I was utterly SHOCKED by how beautiful the new area looks. Depending on which route you choose to enter NU, you will run into brightly-colored attractions nontheless. Every aspect of the kids' area has been re-done, re-modeled, and re-SLIMED with vibrant themes and colors. Even though three attractions are still in the process of being finished, the other 15 make up for them. From flying high aboard Timmy's AirTours, to bumping and bashing fellow friends using Jimmy Neutron's personal Atom Smashers, their is something for everyone, and I mean EVERYONE. The stores themselves have also gotten a facelift, tying in with Nickelodeon's crazy theme (the new Nick Store is the best out of three re-themed shops), along with an all-new snack shop built next to the classic Runaway Reptar. But, don't listen to me, get out here, come to Nickelodeon Universe, and experience what is truly the World's Most Spectacular Nickelodeon Area! You can BET that the next four years of Golden Tickets are in the bag for Kings Island. Now it's time to check out the three ALL-NEW rides from Zamperla: Phantom Flyers 8.5/10 First new ride of the day I got to ride, and it was great. Very similar to the Zephyr, the Flyers pull an interesting twist involving you lying on your stomach and giving you the sensation of flight. It's truly an experience not to be missed. The ride itself also looks cool; the futuristic satellite what-cha-ma-call-its on top are neat-looking, and has a red flash at night. The line might get a little long on more crowded days, but definitely check it out. Plankton's Plunge 8.0/10 2nd new ride of NU I had a chance to go on, this was a surprise to me. I didn't realize how TALL the Plunge was (at least 22 feet), but it didn't stop the littlest of kids from hopping onto it. Nicknamed the "Frog Hopper", the Plunge takes guests up a massive kelp tree-plant-thingy with Plankton at the top basking in his victory...before taking the plunge over and over again in quick, fun drops. Short and sweet, although the lines can get long quick, especially today (it had wrapped around the SpongeBob statue!). Ride it if you want, it's a fun little ride for those too young or too scared to tackle its 316-foot sister the thrill-junkies call Drop Zone. Avatar-The Last Airbender 9.5/10 THIS is the reason why teenagers need to visit Nick Universe; hands-down the best ride out of the entire area. Traveling through an ancient pagoda, visitors climb aboard a giant cloud carrying 36 people at a time, with the Avatar himself, Aang, riding on top. Suddenly, you rocket off into the sky, back and forth until Aang decides to take you for a spin-literally! It's a high-speed, whirlwind adventure that will leave ANYONE out of breath and ready for more! Although the ride area is pretty scarce in terms of scenery, that's only a minor quib as the ride is truly extraordinary. Get the family and kids (the ones that are at least 44 inches, mind you), make a special trip to Nick Universe and ride Avatar. You do NOT want to miss this.

Ooh, ooh, here's a thing that hasn't changed: Italian Job: Stunt Track still has half of its effects not working (onboard speakers, headlights/tail lights, stair effect still not installed). But, I don't blame them; they've had a tough time building Nick Universe, and they still have little bits and pieces to add in. All in all, though, not their fault.

Little Bill's Giggle Coaster. The drop on that puts Son of Beast to shame.

Wait, if it's a surprise and a secret, then why are you spoiling it by posting it all over a public forum? Oooh, BURN!

One question still worries me-since a new snack shop has been built, what happens to the old Krusty Krab Snack Shack? Will they tear it down or leave it alone? On another note......Jeff Seibert wasn't kidding when he said Nick Universe would be the most ELABORATELY-themed Nickelodeon area in the world. This should put a stop to the cracks about Paramount budget cuts. ....then again, I'll believe it when they get all of the special effects on TR:TR up and running and repair the scenery both inside and out; the cave needs to be cleaned up BAD (sweep it up for God's sakes), no to mention the styrafoam's been peeling off for I don't know how long. EDIT: Oh, and BTW......300 POSTS, YO!

Too bad I don't have an avatar of Keira Knightely though...

^That is, of course, if Great America or Kings Dominion doesn't get it before us.

But I wanna rush to judgement NOW!

Dang it, I knew I was forgetting Patriot.

Well, remember that Universal just got rid of Nick Studios, so it wouldn't make much sense to buy a chain that's in the process of re-theming their kiddie land to that of Nick-licensed properties (although Funtastic World was replaced by the craptastic Jimmy Neutron Nicktoon Blast). Basically, I'm rooting for Busch Gardens or a private investor to buy out the parks. It seems as if Cedar Fair puts way too much emphasis on just one park and, to a point, neglecting others (when's the last time Dorney Park or Worlds of Fun got a massive coaster?). What I'd also like to see is the owners of Dollywood and Silver Dollar City buy PP (or at least Kings Island). They do the same "build-a-ride-or-two-every-year" plan PKI does, except Dollywood's owners do it MUCH better (look at Thunderhead, Powder Keg, and the upcoming Timber Tower to see why).

And it's kinda obvious to see who gets all the love and who has the shortest straw.

Yeah, this is mostly due to Canada's Wonderland's sucess with their first season of FearFest last year; I believe that if our FearFest gets revamped in terms of a new scare zone, Action Zone will be the likely choice. Now, if I'm not mistaken, either Kings Dominion or Scarowinds had multiple scare zones ala cornSTALKERS last year, so it should be no surprise that we get new scare zones; cornSTALKERS and that Gauntlet thingy by the Sling Shot was defintely the best part of FearFest last year. Although, if we get bought by Cedar Fair, hopefully the amazing talent of Knott's Berry Farm's Halloween Haunt makes its way over here to Kings Island. What I don't want is to see our haunted event get the boot and have CP's HalloWeekends get all the fame and glory, like Geauga Lake did at the end of 2005. That would just about kill my liking toward CF, as the Halloween Haunt is the only thing I like from Cedar Fair.

Oh, snap! Check out the thingamabob on Atom Smashers! All in all, looks pretty neat. But I'm STILL crossing my fingers on more shaded areas like they promised back in October.

Of course, you realize in the past few years we've have seen the most amazing wooden roller coasters on the planet built: -Thunderhead (2004) -Hades (?) -The Voyage (2006) -Kentucky Rumbler (2006) -El Toro (2006) -The Legend (2002, perhaps?) There's more to it than those; I'm just too lazy to put them down right now. Not to mention if you get a boner on a real nutcracker like Delirium, Face/Off, or Tomb Raider, you've got serious issues.