Just my own feedback/opinions:

DCA's Lumi-aria Lagoon Show starts 11/6

Nice to know, although personally since my trip got delayed until next year I won't see it for a while... The children's drawings bit sound a little too Small World, but I can understand why they did it.

Chance to Shine moves

Erm, alright.

Millionaire's ever so cheap set
Everything (and I repeat, everything) is simply scaffolding - from top to bottom

Mind you, that's how the Matterhorn started. ;) (Not that I suggest in any way that Millionaire will have the legacy or the longetivity of the Matterhorn)

Host: So, what's your favorite thing at California Adventure?

Guest: The EXIT! (Which gets wild applause and cheers from the audience.)

Is it me, or is that REALLY unbecoming of the locals (you can't tell me it's mostly tourists doing that)? The APs more than the visiting Guest know that (1) City Hall is the proper place to complain and (2) it's not like the poor CM is a Disney board member and can do anything if the park reeks.

Parking structure problems

Al, you must be learning an awful lot about construction and parking lots for all that. :b

Disneyland upkeep

They've done worse in the past, although leaving stuff half-painted on Main Street is a little half-assed (can I say that here? I hope I can..)

DCA rides/coasters

I can't help but wonder how long management thinks they're going to own and maintain these rides. They're already seeing through intense rehabs spanning over a year on the Matterhorn (and the steel ones don't get much older than that) what the lifespan on these sorts of things are. I wonder how many years it will be until the Space Mountain track will need a serious look at.

McDonald's Fries

People, please, move on. Recognize sponsor deals will happen if you like it or not and find something else to dislike. On my first trip to Disneyland as a child, I was never very much in love with that Coke Center (or whatever it was called) sign on Tommorowland Terrace that you could easily see from the PeopleMover. Something about equating the future with Coca-Cola didn't seem quite right.

But neither case is REALLY all that important in the end.

DVD gaffs and commentary

LOL! I never knew about these. Thanks for adding them, I'll be sure to look for both.

Disney Store
I am personally glad (and slightly suprised) that I've never ever seen a Disney Store change listed in MP applied to our own local Disney Store.

Universal tries harder

This story can be pretty much summed up as "Al renews his Universal membership and they treat him like a king, giving him discounts and letting him skip the lines of the plebeians."

It's something I've been predicting for a long time, and with Al's press and attention these days I keep expecting it to happen anytime... Does anyone else wonder if maybe management of the other parks are telling their staff to act like a Vegas comp host if they meet a Mr. Al Lutz, treating him like royalty and giving him free goods? ;D

Not that I'm implying anything, mind you. It just seems a little odd to me just how much greener the grass is on the other side. I'd think it'd be radioactive. :)

While I still enjoy reading Al's updates for informational purposes, I find the tone harder and harder to deal with. I know there are many things that Al takes issue with concerning Disney in general and DCA in particular, but it just seems that very little gets mentioned unless it's something bad, with "Chance to Shine" being an exception in today's update. I know there are things that Al does like about DCA, but he seems to rarely, if ever, mention them, and when he does, there's always a backhanded slap to something else.

As for Harbour Galley, I'm disappointed that they're no longer serving the food they used to, but they've been messing with that place for quite some time now so I suppose I've already done my mourning. On Sunday, we went on Haunted Mansion, and when we exited, I didn't notice the McDonald's sign at all. It wasn't until later, when we were waiting for the second Fantasmic, that I remembered about the changeover and glanced in that direction to look at the structure, but I couldn't see much because it was dark.

As for annual passports, there are other local theme parks that seem to treat APs better than Disney does, but then, they probably have to in order to generate more business. I've been a passholder to Sea World San Diego for 8 years now, and their newest passholder program is amazing, with perks that would be incredible if offered by Disney. But, Disney doesn't, and I still feel that I get incredible value for my 2-park premium. I guess it's all a matter of perspective. Universal gave free parking. That's cool. But that could be viewed as a nice perk, or a desperate attempt to get more people to buy Universal passes. Anytime Disney has done something recently, many people look at those as nice gestures, but others scream desperation no matter what, no matter if people are benefitting.

As much as there are things that Al and I disagree about, though, I always appreciate his efforts.

All in all a good update. I don't care a whit that McDonalds fries are in the park. If the park had previously been a bastion free from commercialism and sponsorship, I would probably see it as a chink in the armor, but since I ride the AT&T Indiana Jones ride and go to the Dole Tiki Room and the Mattel Small World ride (at least it used to be) it doesn't bother me that McDonalds serves fries.

Does it really make a difference that McDonalds brand fries are being sold for $2.50 rather than DL fries?

As far as the tone goes, Al clearly does not like DCA or DLR management. His tone reflects it. I'm prepared for that when I read his updates. I take the updates as a package and overall I like it.

The Universal AP stuff didn't seem like that big a deal, but I liked renewing my DL passes by mail.

Originally posted by Mike
It's something I've been predicting for a long time, and with Al's press and attention these days I keep expecting it to happen anytime... Does anyone else wonder if maybe management of the other parks are telling their staff to act like a Vegas comp host if they meet a Mr. Al Lutz, treating him like royalty and giving him free goods? ;D

Not that I'm implying anything, mind you. It just seems a little odd to me just how much greener the grass is on the other side. I'd think it'd be radioactive. :)

If you pay close attention to the MP coverage of press events and openings, you'll notice that Al is never there. He doesn't even attend. He does this on purpose - he is not involved in any way, shape, or form, with contact to the parks in any official capacity. He's afraid he *would* be treated like royalty, and he doesn't want it to affect his impartiality (he knows he's human). IMO, his restraint is a significant benefit to you all, the readers.

QUOTE:
While I still enjoy reading Al's updates for informational purposes, I find the tone harder and harder to deal with. I know there are many things that Al takes issue with concerning Disney in general and DCA in particular, but it just seems that very little gets mentioned unless it's something bad...

REPLY:
There's really nothing new in Al's tone, from what I see. I agree with you - I read every word printed for current information, but the negativity is pretty hard to take. I wrote a note to him after reading the first few Tokyo Disney Seas photo essays, for which Al wrote the text. Almost every good and beautiful thing in this park was countered by a bad thing that DCA has done ("My, isn't the entry way to this new park beautiful, and my, but didn't they screw up the entryway at DCA", etc.). It was incredibly annoying. It seemed to get better in later issues, so perhaps he's learning.