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Originally Posted by 111702
Please choose the ride experience (atmosphere, music, effects, originality, lighting, cars, track, etc.) that you think is the best! Please say why!
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Ok, you asked for it!
Atmosphere
SM '05 wins with the night exterior lighting, comm traffic in the outdoor stand-by queue before merge, no ridiculous SMTV, and let's call it "enhanced" load/unload room.
SM '05 -1 SM '77 - 0
Music
Dick Dale created a heartpounding soundtrack to what was simply a roller coaster in the dark. This was an age where on-board ride audio systems was pretty much an unheard of concept. His music made the awkward lift hills make a little sense and made the inital descents off the lift hill incredible. So props to Dick Dale for that. While that was good, the new music is everything Dick Dale was lacking. Space Mountain was never meant to have a surfer-sounding music track! The music I think we all invisioned for Space Mountain is what was written for what's out there now. A fast-paced, high-octane tempo with the feel of flying through unknown space past who knows what. That & the entrances to both the lift hills & the main building up the 3rd & final lift hill. Wonderful way to present to the rider what you've got. SM '05 wins here for sure.
SM '05 - 2, SM '77 - 0
Effects
The addition of Dick Dale's theme to the existing trains was laughable at best. What I hated the most about it was there were no cushions on the tall headrests. If you're head came back, you bashed your skull on hard plastic. Ow. It doesn't hold a candle to the onboard audio systems that exist now. Of course state-of-the-art proven technology is going to beat prototypical glorified guess-work technology. Closing off what were windows into the main building from the queue has made the ride darker and it's next to impossible to see any track now. Stark contast to what used to be there. Finally, the lift hills on '77 were an awkward experience & finally ended up being basically a light in your face. SM '05 has those red bars that come at you and then spin with the black hole at the end. 100% improvement there. SM '05 wins
SM '05 - 3, SM '77 - 0
Originality
Space Mountain '77 was the first, the original, the ultimate wow that Disney had produced in its theme parks thus far. Roller coaster? In the dark? You're crazy right? Nope! Replacing the flying saucers, which were a neat idea but broke down all the time, was this gargantuan building which would house a roller coaster. You're off your rocker Disney! The kids would be petrified of it and the parents would stay away! Boy, how wrong they were. Great risks yield great rewards & Space Mtn '77 reaped it all. SM '05 had some good originality in the lift hill effects & re-entry tunnel, but it really wasn't anything that didn't already exist either @ DL or WDW. SM '77 wins by a landslide.
SM '05 - 3; SM '77 - 1
Lighting
Again, with newer technology comes better effects and lighting falls under this too. SM '05 does a great job of using show lights outside at night, with it's switcharoo marquee sign, show lights in the queue and the lack of just about every light in the main ride building. SM '77...no, not even close.
SM '05 - 4; SM '77 - 1
Cars
As stated before, I don't really enjoy bashing my head against hard plastic & SM '77 made me do this. With SM '05, there really isn't any headrest, so that solved that problem. Newer & better always beat old & busted & that's what the old SM had by the time it was shut down for good. SM '05 wins and my brain stem thanks you.
SM '05 - 5; SM '77 -1
Track
Track layout identical. New wins because it's, well, new. Not saying the old was rough, it wasn't too rough, but B&M's involvment somehow in this current track has allowed for some great smoothness which is usually B&M's signature. However it got there, smoothness is good & SM '05 wins.
SM '05 - 6; SM '77 -1
FINAL SCORE
SM '05 - 6
SM '77 - 1
Space Mountain 2005 is officialy declared as superior over Space Mountain 1977!
-- Peoplemover "Ah, that was a brilliant killing of 20 minutes" Matt