Cat Randall

It's on.

My regular Halloween hotel opened its September bookings this morning and I've got 2 nights September 10/11 and 3 nights September 23/24/25. I'll wait to buy my Universal Studios Japan passes for a little while longer.

The important thing is I have a place to stay that's about a 10-minute walk to the park. I would live there all September and October if I could and even if I didn't plan to go into the park I'd hang out near the gates every single day or spend time at City Walk.

Universal Studios Japan announced this week they’re closing The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man ride. The last day will be January 22, 2024. This makes me a little blue because I’ve had so many fun experiences with that attraction down through the years. But I suppose with Disney owning the rights to Spidey it became inevitable. What surprised me, though, is their decision not to reopen Terminator 2: 3D and Backdraft. The park suspended those attractions because of COVID-19 but I believed they’d eventually open them again.

Rumor has it something Pokemon related will take over the Spider-Man spot but I wonder what they can do with those other two buildings. If I had to speculate wildly with the popularity of their Sailor Moon 4D special events something with those characters adapting the material they’ve already bought and paid for would slot nicely into the Cyberdyne Systems building. They currently use the Backdraft firehouse as the Killer Cutie zombies home base during Halloween Horror Nights. It’s a much smaller venue so I have no idea what they could do with that one.

Well. Changes aren’t permanent but change is as Geddy Lee of Rush sang. It’s good to refresh the park every so often. As for me I’m going to ride Spider-Man as many times as possible come this Halloween season as a way of saying so long to an old friend.