| Ride Review - Latest Revision: January 2008 (WARNING! Will Spoil First Time Riders) | ||
 How do you even start to describe Magic
Mountain? It's been at Pleasure Beach Blackpool since time began. (It obviously hasn't, and is newer than the River Caves, but it feels older!) It's a ride for the kids, apparantly. And perhaps these days it is, but was always known historically for having scenes that were, erm, somewhat questionable. There is no real premise, its a train ride through various unconnected scenes for kids. It may sound boring and simple, but because this is Blackpool, its is of course, mesmorising. The scenes are not at all related all the way round; some have human sized hedgehogs, other feature 2D drawings of fish and sea creatures weaving around a cloth underwater. Some animals hold a tea party, and toast with paper Pepsi cups, showing who is the main sponsor of the pleasure beach. A vintage car garage tries to get some old crocks on the road, with disastrous results. And in other scenes, tens of dolls get up to all sorts misheif, ala It's A Small World. Actually, it would be easy to categorise Magic Mountain as Blackpool's answer to Disney's It's A Small World. The scenes are just as detailed, though of course in completely different ways. Nice chintzy music plays all the way round, and untimately there is little point to the whole thing. However, up until recent years there was one cavernous difference between the two. Whilst It's A Small World preached love and understanding between all races, Magic Mountain seemed to take rather a different view. Indeed in one notoriously shocking jungle scene that somehow survived right the way up until 2005, Gollywog style black dolls were tied up by "white skins" and boiled in a pot, whilst elsewhere in the scene, a tank stormed towards more natives, sending them fleeing. In 2006, modern times caught up with the ride and the scene was replaced with Circus acts from "The Greatest Show On Earth", an old dark ride where Burger King is now. The horribly bouncy happy melody over the warped scenes gave the ride a distinctly disturbing flavour. These days, one can only wonder how such scenes could ever be perceived for the public at all, let along young children. Whilst there is no argument about the scene finally leaving, it did show how dark rides from so many years ago were perceived. These days, it is far more palettable, but whilst It's A Small World is found to be some to be sickeningly idyllic, Magic Mountain's peculiar music and still strange scenes can still be regarded as at least a little disturbing. But like the most surreal kids programs from years ago, the kids will love it. Oh, by the way, that entrance song in full: "Hear
the clock "Tick Tock" while the children play, Welcome
to our world, Welcome
to our world,
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