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extraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter -- 4/30/02
Today we visit the last attraction in Tommorowland, the extraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter. Using the old Mission to Mars venue, the Alien
Encounter opened in the summer of '95 amid much todo and hoopla. In fact, just to titillate and create controversy, Michael Eisner
produced a special starring Robert Urich, documentary style, all about how UFOs were on their way and would get us all, eventually.
This was only aired at 5 stations in the country and without warning or advertisement, so if you have it on tape, you have
a rare collector's item indeed. If you would like to read a quotes from the transcript of the program, it is located at
MICKEY MOUSE CONQUERS THE MARTIANS.
It was delivered with deadpan seriousness and it's a hoot. Unfortunately, the folks at SETI, who apparently have no sense of humor, were
annoyed with Michael for aiming a program at kids that said that aliens were probably already here AND up to no good. Dr.
Seth Shoshak of the SETI institute wrote Michael a scathing letter of complaint. Apparently, the program did air in Dr.
Shostak's city.
It didn't air in mine, or at least I never knew it if it did, so I just had to go the AE like anyone else- expecting to be
entertained in Disney Style. I was- in spades! The alien travel company XS-Tech attempts to teleport their CEO to Earth in attempt
to demonstrate their newest technology. Instead a far more threatening alien is intercepted and sent to us.
This attraction is not for littles who are afraid of the dark!!!! Do NOT force your child to go- it is VERY scary. There are those
who pooh-pooh this and say it's wimpy. To those folks I say, what exactly do you want in a scary attraction? Actual blood
shed? Body parts? Human sacrifice? Trust me, folks, AE is SCARY- and tons of fun.
My husband and I have done AE about 5 or 6 times and I get the willies every time. There is just something about having a large
winged predator breathe down my neck in the pitch dark that makes me cringe. My DD did this once and decided it was too
scary for her, so we used the baby switch a few times. She is now old enough to sit outside with the CM and wait for us- which
is good, because the attraction is much better with someone's hand to hold- and a friendly thigh into which you can dig your
nails!
There are several physical effects, the attraction is almost entirely done in the pitch black confines of the room, and will
scare the pants off the average person. I have only one complaint- there is a point at which a (living actually seen) CM appears
to be killed and eaten by the monster and the audience is sprayed by liquid. Some say it is supposed to be drops of blood, others
alien saliva- in either case, it should be warm and it is cold. One feels it more readily cold, I suppose, but I think it would
be much more disgusting if it was warm. WAAAY COOL! BTW- the letter from the good doctor at SETI can be seen at csicop.org.
Frankly- I thought he was a little whiney, but to each his own. Some people just can't take a joke!!
Anywho- all of those of you who like getting scared in the dark- this is a must do. Use baby switch and DO NOT force your child to do this (sorry to preach but I can't tell you how many people I've seen do this to their children-and they wonder why little Johnny climbed the clocktower with daddy's shot gun later in life). For those of you who are truly afraid of the dark- give it a miss, or save it for last, because you won't be the same when you come out!
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