LDS Geeks Podcast #43: Disney Parks (2)

One of my favorite things about going to the Disney Parks is the character meet-and-greets. It touches part of the inner child that heals my soul (or something less cheesy perhaps). Regardless of the cheese factor, I hope you enjoy our discussion about some of our favorite characters.

--Spencer

LDS Geeks Podcast #22: Disney Parks (1)

Joe and I are both Disney lovers; that much as always been clear on the blog. Recently we decided to do a four-part series about the Disney Parks, particularly Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Florida. Part one of the four is now available for listening.

--Spencer

Friday Creature Feature - Mushu

I wrote about Mushu a bit when celebrating Year of the Dragon, but since he's the Disney dragon who's actually supposed to be Chinese, I felt like he deserved a personal spotlight this year, not just a group post. Basically it's just an excuse to gush about Mushu and say why I love him.

Long before Mulan was in the picture, Mushu had failed as a guardian (see Fa Deng's decapitated head for the results) and was demoted to ring the shrine's gong. Dunno how long Mushu endured that humiliation and shame, but it can't have been fun. In an act of clumsiness, he broke the Great Stone Dragon in an attempt to wake him (though I kind of wonder if the spirit of the Stone Dragon in his wisdom wanted to send Mushu on the journey with Mulan).

After lying his way into war with Mulan, he looked for a way to redeem himself. He was clever and strategic, despite his lacking people skills (like telling Mulan to punch Yao). Despite his reasons being selfish, if it weren't for Mushu forging the general's message, Shang's forces wouldn't have been in place to fight and defeat the Huns. And if they hadn't fought the Huns in the mountains, they wouldn't have been in the capital to save the Emperor. So Mushu's selfishness inadvertently gave Mulan the opportunity to save China.

Coming clean to Mulan about his lies, Mushu started a wonderful redemption, unlocking some impressive teamwork. Mushu was instrumental in saving China. So while Mulan received accolades from the masses, Mushu was content to once again have the respect (sort of) from Mulan's ancestors. Too bad the praise went to his head, which contributed to about half the soap opera drama in the sequel (which I still won't talk about more).

Honestly, I think it's hard to not love Mushu. He's voiced by Eddie Murphy in the first movie (still not discussing the second) and I've yet to meet anyone who hates him. His wit and comedic timing make Mushu quotable and memorable. Plus, he's travel-sized for your convenience.

For more Mushu fun, check out some of his other appearances:

Mushu appears as a summon in Kingdom Hearts, but as I haven't played it, I'll let Michael talk about that.

He was a recurring character/cameo on House of Mouse.
PS: Why isn't that on Disney Plus yet?

I've yet to meet Mushu at a Disney Parks meet-and-greet, but on rare occasion he's at Epcot.

Disney's Top 5 Dragons

Once upon a time I felt like the blog was saturated by Disney posts. However, we’ve lately been short on Disney. I don’t know why; it’s not like Joe or I have stopped watching Disney movies. Though, to be fair, the Disney movies I watch tend to be the ones my older daughter is obsessed with (lately she just wants Cocomelon or Bebefin…). So since we’ve had a shortage of Disney posts and 2024 is the Year of the Dragon, I wanted to share five of my favorite Disney dragons (and one honorable mention).

1. Mushu (Mulan)

I think anyone that knew me in college would be surprised if Mushu weren’t first on this list. The reason why? My red Subaru was named Mushu. A wise-cracking dragon voiced by Eddie Murphy. What’s not to like? Mulan is one of the movies I continually get more and more out of and part of that is because of Mushu and his quotable lines. Plus, when it all comes down to it, Mushu was insecure and just wanted to stop feeling invisible. Who can’t empathize with that? Now his actions in the sequel... we tend to just forget that movie happened.

2. Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty)

A list of Disney dragons can’t be complete without this classic right? Talk about holding a grudge. Modern Disney movies might include themes of generational trauma and internal turmoil as their villains, but back in the day we had straight up pettiness and grudge-holding as a villain. While the live-action movies tried to make Maleficent more nuanced, I think there’s also something to be said for the contrast of black and white good/evil, like Maleficent.

3. Narissa (Enchanted)

Another wise-cracking dragon/witch. She was a hyperbolic representation of Maleficent, Lady Tremaine, and the Evil Queen rolled into one, but she had the sass of Queen Regina from Once Upon a Time. And despite how naive Edward and Giselle were, the Queen of Andalasia was as clever as they come. 

4. Sisu (Raya and the Last Dragon)

Raya and the Last Dragon wasn’t my favorite Disney movie by any stretch, but my toddler went through a phase when she only wanted to watch Raya. So I got plenty of exposure to Sisu. After seeing Shang Chi, I grew to love Awkwafina’s comedic timing. To get that again in animated form was adorable. Plus, even if I didn’t love the movie, I love Sisu’s mentality of trying to trust people. We can’t make the world a better place if we don’t try to trust each other, right?

5. Blazey (Onward)

So I know the pet dragon played a minor role in the movie, but come on guys. It’s a dragon that’s basically a puppy! This is exactly the kind of adorable fire-breather that Hagrid wanted when he watched Norbert(a). Obviously the more prominent dragon in the movie was the curse/rubble dragon at the end. But again, dragon puppy! The only reason Blazey is so low on the list is because he didn’t get the central role he deserved.

Honorable Mention: Figment (Walt Disney World)

I can’t say Figment is my favorite, but I feel I’d be doing a disservice to my brother’s boyfriend if I didn't mention him. I had never heard of Figment until we went to Disney World in 2019. Florida in the summer with a pregnant, nauseous wife is not fun for anyone. So all the indoor air-conditioned attractions were a much needed reprieve. Figment has appeared in iterations of “Journey into Imagination” at Epcot and he’s a dorky lovable dragon.

Obviously there are Disney dragons I didn't talk about, like Madame Mim's dragon form, Elliot, or Sisu's siblings to name a few. So make sure you let us know which Disney dragon is your favorite. Happy Year of the Dragon!

Friday Creature Feature - Stitch

He’s cute and fluffy, but he’s destructive. So don’t give him caffeine.

Of course I’m talking about Experiment 626, better known as Stitch. If you haven’t watched Lilo and Stitch recently, do it this weekend. It’s good family fun with a dash of sci-fi. But for now, we’re gonna talk Stitch

As one of Jumba’s illegal genetic experiments, Stitch has lots of special abilities. In some ways he’s a fuzzy blue superhero. His durability is outmatched; he’s fireproof, bulletproof, and shockproof. He’s also super smart; he can think faster than a supercomputer and his language acquisition skills are amazing. Physically he’s also super strong (up to 3000 times his weight) and super fast. He can climb walls and see in infrared, x-ray, and night vision. His biggest weakness is honestly that he’s too dense, so he sinks in water.

Stitch was originally created to be destructive. But when he ended up in Hawaii with no cities to destroy, he quickly mellowed out.Throughout the course of the movie, he becomes part of Lilo’s family. In the spin-off movies and TV series, he and Lilo find Jumba’s other 626 experiments (we can talk about those in another Creature Feature post). Stitch and his family rehabilitate and recondition his “cousins” and they become loving members of their community (more than I can say for myself some days).

If you’re planning a trip to a Disney Park in the future, you can meet Stitch when you’re there. The easiest place is Tomorrowland at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. He’s got his own little alcove where you can meet him pretty much any time. If you’re headed to California, I haven’t found him in the park before, but you can get tickets for a character meal at Disney's PCH Grill. When I met him in California, it was called the Surf’s Up breakfast, but the name may have changed in years since.

I think the reason people love Stitch is that we can relate to him. We all want to be loved and we all want to belong, but we have all made mistakes. But like Stitch we can grow and improve to become the best versions of ourselves. Lilo and Stitch also showed us that we can find family in the people we meet. We're all flawed, but we’re all ohana.

And ohana means family. And family means no one gets left behind or forgotten.

Disneyland 2020 or How I Learned to Love The Star Wars

For years when people asked me something about Star Wars I would have to sigh and patiently explain that I'm not a Star Wars fan, which led to everything from mild shock to being chased with torches and pitchforks. To make a long story short my beef with Star Wars was that I found it to be an overwritten exploitative marketing exercise with a toxic fan base to rival Rick and Morty, so for the most part I just stayed away whenever I could.

And Then Came The Baby...

With the lead up to Disney+ coming out a lot of talk was floating around The Mandalorian, the new Star Wars series exclusive to the streaming service, for which I cared about as much as I care about hip new trends in nail files. Either way I was getting the service for access to the Disney vault and Gargoyles. And then memes of the Child, AKA Baby Yoda started cropping up, and his cute eyes and those big green ears melted through my cynicism enough to sit down with my wife and watch the first episode of The Mandalorian. 

Then we binged the series and were in love. 

The Galaxy's Edge

Last week I found myself in Disneyland, the happiest place on earth and my home away from home. I was of course aware of the new Galaxy's Edge, the so called new "Star Wars Land", and before had no interest in it for the reasons listed above, but this time I was with five children and was on a personal hunt for Baby Yoda swag so off we went to Galaxy's Edge.

First thing I noticed about Disneyland was that it seemed that everyone was decked out for Star Wars. Gone were most of the princess and Mickey Mouse tee shirts to be replaced with Boba Fett, Chewie, and Han Solo outfits. I even saw several adorable Reys wandering around complete with triple bun hairdos. The fans I'd thought toxic for so long had invaded my precious happy place en masse, covering my beautiful fairy tale world with their sci-fi rubbish. (Yes, I know Star Tours has been a fixture at Disneyland for years, but I'm making a point). 

I honestly wasn't sure I was expecting when we first passed through Frontier Land into Galaxy's Edge, certainly not what I found. here was a life-size representation of the Star Wars universe. It was like Hogsmeade at Universal Studios or Radiator Springs in California Adventure, a fully immersive world filled with wall to wall fans enjoying themselves. It didn't just feel like Star Wars, it felt like Disneyland.

That's when it happened. All those years of resentment and anger faded and that little boy who dreamed of becoming Darth Maul, the one who saved his allowance to buy the Lego speeder with Luke and Obi Wan, the one who spent countless hours running around with HK-47 and Mission Vao in Knights of the Old Republic trying to get all the dark side points emerged. I was a fan again. 

Don't get me wrong, I didn't spring for a lightsaber. Or a droid. Or a $22,000 R2-D2, Mainly because a majority of my money had already gone to pins and stuffed baby Groot, but also because for $22,000 the thing had better repair my car. I did love the experience though. We were even lucky enough to win a spot in the new Rise of the Resistance ride, which further cemented my reemerging fandom with animatronics I honestly mistook for actors at first. I watched Stormtroopers take a woman from the crowd and accuse her of being a rebel spy and then do a fun comedy routine for the crowd. 

This trip is my tenth time to Disneyland in seven years, and while each time has had its own memories (losing a hat covered in pins, crying when I first met Mickey Mouse, being wished happy birthday by Elsa from her float to name a few), this one will go down in my personal history as the time I fell back in love with Star Wars. 

Clone Wars is still crap. 

-JOE

Pregnant at Disney World

This past weekend my wife and I announced that we're having our first baby this winter (due right around New Years). Just a week before the announcement we were in Magic Kingdom, finishing up a week at Walt Disney World with my family. Being at Disney in the middle of her morning sickness made things really interesting for my wife. After all that, I asked her to be my consult for this post. Hopefully it'll help someone else with their experience being pregnant at Disney.

Plan Second Trimester
If you can help it, plan the Disney trip during your second trimester. At first when planning our trip to Disney, we just knew we couldn't fly during the third trimester. It hadn't occurred to me that traveling during the first tremester would risk a huge overlap with morning sickness and since this is our first baby, I had no idea how intense morning sickness really was. So if at all possible, plan your trip for after the morning sickness is over (even though it's not exactly predictable).

Bring Extra Snacks
Even when I went to Disneyland a few years ago with a buddy, we stocked up on snacks for the park so that we could save money, instead of buying overpriced in-park snacks every time. However, with my pregnant wife we over planned our snacks. With her morning sickness being somewhat unpredictable, we never knew which snacks would sit well and what wouldn't. Sometimes she needed something pretty plain or salty (like goldfish crackers) but sometimes she needed something naturally sweet (like an apple). As a result, we had to plan for all possibilities so that we could play trial and error for which snacks would help her feel less nauseous.

Drink Twice as Much
This is a tip I'd give anyone, especially for Disney World. When I've been to Disneyland, it was warm, but I never felt like it was nasty humid the same way that Florida is. As a result, especially coming from desert Utah, we had to drink extra water. We had Gatorade and frozen waters in my backpack each morning and we filled my blender bottle every time we saw a water fountain. Sure it'll mean many more bathroom breaks, but it's better than being dehydrated. And especially with my wife's pregnancy, sometimes the trial and error that I mentioned ended up being that she needed more water. Again, sometimes it's a snack, but sometimes it's water.

Aim for Kid Friendly Parks
To be fair, my wife and I aren't very adventurous. She's not one for roller coasters and I'm not one for falls. So Rockin Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Splash Mountain, and several others were off our list immediately. In addition to our hesitations, I was surprised by how many rides said that expectant women shouldn't ride (like Star Tours and the Jungle Safari). So as a result there were plenty of rides that my wife couldn't ride anyway. So if you're going to Disney World (I see this as less of a problem for Disneyland), I'd recommend focusing on Magic Kingdom. Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom had a lot more adult rides, in my opinion. But Magic Kingdom had lots of kid rides that were slow and easy, so that my wife wouldn't get sick.

Take Things Slow
Making a baby is exhausting! Going full speed with my siblings, my wife was worn out early on our first day. We just couldn't keep up with them. By our fifth day, rests were non-negotiable. Sometimes this meant going on an easy ride just to sit, like The Little Mermaid. Sometimes it meant finding a spot to sit down for five-ten minutes to regain some energy. Personally, I don't think it's realistic to expect yourself to jump from ride to ride as quick as you would before pregnancy.

Keep Realistic Expections
If you're going to Disney and you are (or might soon be) pregnant, make sure you have accurate expectations. You might not ride lots of rides. You might not move very fast. You might take more breaks. However, one of the things I love about Disneyland and Disney World is that you don't have to do anything to enjoy the atomosphere of Disney. Being in Disney is often enough for me. There's always fun music playing. There's always a snack stand you can enjoy. There's always something. So even if you can't ride the roller coasters or keep up with the rest of the family, there's still a lot of fun to be had.

Women who have been pregnant at Disney: What have I missed? Anything you'd recommend for someone in your situation?

Disneyland Souvenirs

"It was my graduation gift to me. I'm so happy!"

In celebration of graduating from BYU, I spent a week in Southern California at the happiest place on Earth. As happens at Disneyland, I'm certain I spent too much money. That's why it's important to go in smart and be careful what you choose to buy for souvenirs, or else it adds up incredibly fast. So here are some tips about what to get for souvenirs and what not to get, to make the most of your money.

Good souvenirs:

Pins are relatively cheap souvenirs. However, they can get out of hand very quick. Each pin is about $10-$15. I tend to get a couple ranging in that price, but you can also get a smaller price for a random pin, which you can then trade in the parks. Any cast member with pins has to trade with you if you ask, so it's another way you can make the park fun.

Hats/ears: hats and ears are a toss up as whether they're a good or bad choice. I like to get a pair of ears to wear at the park, but they have to really speak to me. The downside of the ears, or character hats (Stitch, Pluto, Goofy), is that they're not exactly practice to wear in the outside world (people might look at you weird). If you're buying it simply to wear in the park, then that's one thing, so I guess it's all about intent. If you intend to wear them outside of Anaheim, be prepared for weird looks (like how people look at Joe). Alternative, there are baseball caps that would be appropriate both in and out of the park.

Pressed pennies: scattered through the the park are the pressed penny machines. Put in 51 cents and you can have a small little trinket from park. If that's something that interests you, come to the park with a bag of quarters and pennies. There's a cheap souvenir for you.

Autograph book: these are nice if you're into meeting characters like me. The characters are pretty good about giving guests attention regardless, but with an autograph book you're guaranteed at least long enough for the character to sign the book and to get a picture.

Photos: best souvenir is getting photographs. With smart phones we can get pictures almost anywhere in the park. Cast members will gladly take your picture with characters or at iconic spots. You can also buy picture from the photo pass if you want, so that's always an option too. For me getting these pictures helps me easily bring back memories later on.

Bad souvenirs:

Hats/ears: see above

Souvenir sippers: I've bought several souvenir sippers. They're alright, but I'd say they're not great. I got 2 during my previous trip to Disneyland, but never used them again. Just not practical. There are plenty of places to get them, but unless you're absolutely certain you'll use them again, just save the $3-$5 and get a regular drink without the sipper. You can just buy a water bottle in Downtown Disney.

Plush: I'm a big fan of Disney plush (my Stitch and Dug collections just keep growing), but be smart about it. I found a plush Pluto in Downtown Disney that looks very much like one I've seen at the Disney Store, but more expensive. So if you have a Disney Store near where you live, be aware of what they have and keep that in mind when you buy your plush souvenirs.

One final tip for Disneyland souvenirs: don't buy it the first day. Assuming you'll be at her park more than one day, leave the souvenir buy it for a bit. There were a few things the first day that I nearly bought, but I was later glad that I'd waited. So be careful. Disneyland is expensive enough. Don't get too carried away with stuff. At the same time, remember that all magic comes with a price. 

Disneyland on the Cheap!

Hay all!
Disneyland is notorious for being the happiest place on earth and one of the most expensive. If you're on your way to the park but don't want to go through your entire bank account to do so, here are some tips to do Disneyland without doing in your wallet.

1. Tickets
Discount tickets aren't really a thing, unless you can get a military discount or have small children. However if you're plan beforehand you can plan ahead to make it easier on the bank account. Park Hopper tickets allow you to go from Disneyland to California Adventures as many times as you want in a day, which is great if you're only going to be in the park for a single day. If you're going over several days though, single park tickets can be cheaper. If you know you're going at least three times in a year, get the season pass. It'll pay for itself before you know it. Lastly, if you're looking at doing something more than just the Mouse's House, get the City Pass. It allows three days in Disneyland as well as a day in Universal and a day in Sea World.

2. Food
One of the best things about Disneyland is that they let you bring food into the park. Before you go in, supply up at the local Target or Walmart with trail mix and sandwich material. While waiting in line, munch on something healthy to keep your appetite in check. Some places in Disneyland have decent prices compared to outside the park, including a Subway in the French quarter. Plan at least one big meal in the park though, because the food is fantastic.

3. Souvenirs
You can't swing a Goofy doll in Disneyland without hitting a place to buy Disney related merchandise. Before you go into the park, have either a couple characters or items in mind and stick to that. Same tip goes for Comic Con. Right outside of Disneyland park is a mall full of Disney stuff at any price you need. These rules may be harder to apply to little kids who want everything in reach, but it can provide a perfect time to teach responsibility and how money works.

Got any other tips for doing Disney on the cheap?

-JOE

Disney Halloween-Best Party of the Year (Until I have mine)

Us at the Target in Cali. 

I'm on record for being both a huge Disney fan and a huge Halloween fan, so it's only natural that my dream vacation would be to visit Disneyland at Halloween. So that's what we did: My wife and I picked up a couple of dear friends and headed to sunny California!

Now Disneyland has a special event from late September to the end of October, where they'll open the park to special ticket holders only and throw a massive Halloween party for all involved. This is what my wife and I attended. Before the party even started I had to change into my awesome Halloween costume, a giant man-sized Stitch onesie. Adults get to dress up for the party and I wasn't about to miss out on anything.

Our first stop was the Haunted Mansion, which for Halloween is changed into a Nightmare Before Christmas motif. While I would love to share some sort of video of the experience, I do try to respect the Disneyland rules so all I can do is describe it. Every single character and look from the show is mimicked on the ride, My head couldn't swivel around fast enough to see everything, especially when we entered the graveyard scene. A massive room full of ghosts and monsters from Nightmare, with everything singing and dancing had me squealing with delight.

My wife and I aren't the biggest for rides, so that and Pirates were the only rides we did that night, but that wasn't the end to our entertainment. On the river in the French Quarter/Frontier land an A Capella group called The Dead Daves started singing Halloween songs while floating on a barge down the river. Stuff like this is the reason my wife and I love Disneyland, because unlike some other amusement parks I'm not going to mention Disneyland works on their atmosphere so that even when you're not on a ride you're having a good time. We enjoyed the band while we waited in several trick-or-treat lines that were handing out candy to kids of all ages.

The park is decorated for the holiday!

Our next stop was the night time Halloween parade, which had all our favorite characters in their Halloween costumes, including Mickey Mouse and Stitch. My only complaint is that it's a stark contrast to their usual Mickey's Soundsation parade which is a celebration of Disney music, this parade had one song played on loop to the point of madness. It was still cute but I had that song stuck in my head for the rest of the night.

Next Jack Skellington and the villains took over the fireworks show, as they lit up the sky with Halloween colors and effects. I love it when the show incorporates giant flames, since it's nice to work on my tan at night. The fireworks show definitely made up for the lack of music in the parade.

We spent the rest of the evening in line at what is probably one of my favorite things about Disneyland in general: Character meet-and-greets. And yes, I know I didn't actually meet Lady Tremaine or Hades, but frankly I don't care. It's still exciting for me to meet my favorite characters. I go back to feeling like a little kid.

Scarecrow outside the Haunted Mansion

Now I want you to picture my wife and I standing in line to meet Jafar. I'm dressed in my Stitch onesie hanging out having a good time when a character helper walks up to us. Here's the conversation:

Cast Member: "Oh no! You don't get any candy!"
Me:"I'm sorry?"
Cast Member: "No! Last time we gave you candy, Stitch, you treated this park like Tokyo and trashed everything!"
Me: (Starts pretending to cry) "But I trick-or-treated for it!"
Cast Member: (To my wife) "Are you with him?"
My Wife: (Trying so hard not to laugh) "Yes"
Cast Member: "Will you make sure he behaves?"
My Wife: "I've tried but there's no stopping him"
Cast Member: (Turns back to me who is still sobbing) "Do you promise to behave?"
Me: (Starts to nod head, then switches to shaking head)
Cast Member: (Throws up hands) "You're hopeless!" (Walks away)
(Everyone in earshot laughs hysterically, including me and my wife)

One of the floats in the nighttime parade

We met a pile of villains that evening, and for the entire weekend had a wonderful time celebrating this most wondrous holiday. I highly recommend that if you're going to plan a trip to Disneyland next year take the Halloween party into account, because it's probably the most fun you've had at Halloween since you could go door-to-door asking for candy for yourself.
-JOE

YAY Stitch!

One must bow before a queen!

Us with Jafar

Hades Lord of the Dead

Dr. Facillier from Frog Princess!

The Tremains-one of the scariest villains of all!

The castle-always makes my heart jump

Little bit of multi-culturalism

Friends at Disneyland-what could be better?

I'd love to hear them play!