Redoing a disappointing character interaction?

[Mags2002]

Piglet making kissing sounds in my ear, that really was an unexpected character experience.
So I would try again and see what happens when meeting Pooh for the second time, but even Disney characters can have an off-day.

The “kissing sounds” is one way fur characters communicate their thanks or love of something.
Agree about the off day, this can happen to anyone. For some, this is a dream job and they love it and always give 110%. For others it is a pay check and they do the minimum to not get fired

 

[StageTek]

Is it worth trying to revisit the character tomorrow? How likely will it be the same person?

It is quite likely to be the same person. But, yes, it's worth revisiting the character again.

Perhaps someone in your group could point out the outfit to the character; "Pooh, what do you think of this cute outfit?"

 

[Karin1984]

I went to Disney World with a Sleeping Beauty fan. We saw Aurora about 10 times during our 2 week there. And only once we had a duplicate.

And not to burst your bubble, but actors are people and they can have an off day too. It sucks, but it happens.

I had your experience with Belle. I had a BatB shirt on, made a movie reference and all I got was a "Oh, that's nice, shall we take a picture?"
Disappointing? Definitely, but sometimes you have bad luck.

 

[Mags2002]

I went to Disney World with a Sleeping Beauty fan. We saw Aurora about 10 times during our 2 week there. And only once we had a duplicate.

And not to burst your bubble, but actors are people and they can have an off day too. It sucks, but it happens.

I had your experience with Belle. I had a BatB shirt on, made a movie reference and all I got was a "Oh, that's nice, shall we take a picture?"
Disappointing? Definitely, but sometimes you have bad luck.

I remember you sharing that on another thread. Some characters are naturally more reserved, like Belle or Cinderella. And then you have the ones who are able to have a bit more fun, like Anna or Rapunzel. They are much more likely to make a big deal over an outfit and due to their character’s personalities, can have a bit more fun with the Guests

 

[Mags2002]

It is quite likely to be the same person. But, yes, it's worth revisiting the character again.

Perhaps someone in your group could point out the outfit to the character; "Pooh, what do you think of this cute outfit?"

It may be the same performer but it is not quite likely. There are a lot of performers on many different shifts so chances are it won’t be

 

[DisneyOma]

I remember you sharing that on another thread. Some characters are naturally more reserved, like Belle or Cinderella. And then you have the ones who are able to have a bit more fun, like Anna or Rapunzel. They are much more likely to make a big deal over an outfit and due to their character’s personalities, can have a bit more fun with the Guests

We have had amazingly animated conversations with Belle - over by Maurice's cottage. She asked us if we liked books, etc. She was fantastic. I think the characters are hit or miss, depending on the weather, temperature, time of day, and so on.

 

[Karin1984]

I remember you sharing that on another thread. Some characters are naturally more reserved, like Belle or Cinderella. And then you have the ones who are able to have a bit more fun, like Anna or Rapunzel. They are much more likely to make a big deal over an outfit and due to their character’s personalities, can have a bit more fun with the Guests

I didn't feel that this Belle was reserved, it felt more like she had a black out. I don't expect upbeat Rapunzel or Ariel or Merida energy from Belle. That is not her personality. But even when Belle doesn't have a high energy, she still can have fun with her guests. Belle is considered the smartest of the princesses and can be very witty.

I have had great interactions with Belle on other occasions, and Belle usually has a few standard questions to get the conversation going, like what kind of books you read, if you are going on any kind of adventure, asking if you are from a small provincial town.

I understand that the characters are actors and that they can have an off day. I am sure that every character actor has days where they do not feel it, are distracted for whatever reason and just go on autopilot and do what they get paid for. No one can give 100% all the time. That's just how humans work.

 

[twodogs]

I didn't feel that this Belle was not reserved, it felt more like she had a black out. I don't expect upbeat Rapunzel or Ariel or Merida energy from Belle. That is not her personality. But even when Belle doesn't have a high energy, she still can have fun with her guests. Belle is considered the smartest of the princesses and can be very witty.

I have had great interactions with Belle on other occasions, and Belle usually has a few standard questions to get the conversation going, like what kind of books you read, if you are going on any kind of adventure, asking if you are from a small provincial town.

I understand that the characters are actors and that they can have an off day. I am sure that every character actor has days where they do not feel it, are distracted for whatever reason and just go on autopilot and do what they get paid for. No one can give 100% all the time. That's just how humans work.

I’m sure it is like most people in any job (me included!); some days you are firing on all cylinders all day long, and some days, you are not at your best or you wear down as the work day goes on. In a very public facing job such as a character, the days that are the latter really stand out. Thankfully, when our DDs were young and VERY into characters, we had really awesome interactions (can’t say the same about a few regular park CMs…).

I hope you tried again and that your friend got some love from Pooh!!

 

[Lesverts]

I will concur with try again. I (chubby, 30s guy) have had the full spectrum of interactions with characters. And it really depends on their friend. I remember my, so far, only interaction with Mulan being initially uncomfortable but once I said I had met most of her 'friends (the other princesses)' and I was happy to finally met her it got friendly.

Belle has been almost universally positive. I really wish they would have her meet with Gaston again. Such an amazing interaction. Her exact words when I asked a question about Prince Adam was, 'we haven't gotten to that part of the story yet'. 100 acre woods gang have tended to be in the lets make this introvert smile. Chip and Dale and Donald are also like this a lot. I called Donald Daffy once, one angry duck. Such anger.

Truthfully I find Mickey himself to be the most inconsistent greeting. From completely standoffish to absolutely heartwarming. Goofy has been the most universally fun for me.

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

For others it is a pay check and they do the minimum to not get fired

I’ve been too WDW on 17 trips. I guess I’ve been lucky, but I’ve never experienced a character actor with my daughters who I could even remotely describe like this.

 

[cobright]

The Pooh costume is notorious for offering the character’s controlling magic (CM) very limited vision. Especially if the meet is outdoors or the guest is backlit, the tubby ol bear may not have actually seen you very well at all.

 

[ars0525]

Try again. They're people who are doing their job. I've had great & ok interactions over the years. Honestly my most disappointing was Peter Pan. I watched him interact with a few groups ahead. I am not looking for stimulating conversation here, but at least a hello & a fun few pics maybe different poses. I got a "lets do a picture" & snap snap next. I walked away like what just happened? Tried another time & different experience. I get it. We all have our days.

 

[MinnieMSue]

We met Pooh today in Epcot and it was an awful interaction. I was thinking about you OP immediately. My daughter had a Pooh and friends shirt on and mentioned it to him and he just posed for a pic and was done. He didn’t acknowledge her at all. Just put his arm behind her and posed for the pic and moved us along. It was such a negative interaction she deleted the pics I took because she didn’t want to remember it anymore. I really never would have thought it possible to have a bad interaction with a character like this but today’s Pooh was clearly done. Oddly there wasn’t a line or anything. We just walked right up and saw him.

 

[TheDailyMoo]

We met Pooh today in Epcot and it was an awful interaction. I was thinking about you OP immediately. My daughter had a Pooh and friends shirt on and mentioned it to him and he just posed for a pic and was done. He didn’t acknowledge her at all. Just put his arm behind her and posed for the pic and moved us along. It was such a negative interaction she deleted the pics I took because she didn’t want to remember it anymore. I really never would have thought it possible to have a bad interaction with a character like this but today’s Pooh was clearly done. Oddly there wasn’t a line or anything. We just walked right up and saw him.

Pooh really living up to his name huh

 

[IanDLBZF from MCMagic]

The “kissing sounds” is one way fur characters communicate their thanks or love of something.

AFAIK I recall reading somewhere that it was one of the only sounds fur characters wee allowed to make, though I initially passed it on as Urban Legend at first....
Only for me to experience Judy Hopps kissing me on the cheek during Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party back in 2016 and then I found out it was real!

 

[MinnieMSue]

Pooh really living up to his name huh

I told her Eyore would have had a better meet and greet most likely. Maybe he forgot who he was lol

 

[Scorpioxynxy]

We had someone in our group who handmade an outfit and ears and was so excited to meet a specific character. Others in our group met characters who our outfits were themed after and those characters made such a big deal of it. When the person in our group met the character her outfit was themed after the character was basically a statue. They didn’t acknowledge her or the outfit. Is it worth trying to revisit the character tomorrow? How likely will it be the same person?

Some great responses, I would also like to add something. Some costumes are impossible to see out of (I was the “Budman” for a few years.) because of this reason and other safety reasons any helmet costume will have a handler.

 

[DodgerGirl]

We had someone in our group who handmade an outfit and ears and was so excited to meet a specific character. Others in our group met characters who our outfits were themed after and those characters made such a big deal of it. When the person in our group met the character her outfit was themed after the character was basically a statue. They didn’t acknowledge her or the outfit. Is it worth trying to revisit the character tomorrow? How likely will it be the same person?

What I think you should do if you see Winnie The Pooh again is tell Winnie The Pooh's character handler about your friend's outfit and chances are that your friend will get a great interaction from Winnie The Pooh. I have never witnessed disappointing character interactions when I have gone to Disney Parks and when I would go to Disneyland the characters always liked my clothing and I would have a wonderful interaction with the character. If the same thing happens again to your friend you should try to complain to Guest Services or when you get home you could send an email to Disney Parks and mention everything that happened including the day date and time that you and your friend met Winnie The Pooh and see what they can do to help you. My guess is that Winnie The Pooh was rushed and he couldn't spend some time with your friend because as you know when it comes to character meet and greets characters have to spend time with the next family in line and so you have to say "hello" ask for an autograph then get a hug from that character then they move to the next person or family in line
Let me know what happens,
Dodger

 

[PollyMroz]

We met Pooh today in Epcot and it was an awful interaction. I was thinking about you OP immediately. My daughter had a Pooh and friends shirt on and mentioned it to him and he just posed for a pic and was done. He didn’t acknowledge her at all. Just put his arm behind her and posed for the pic and moved us along. It was such a negative interaction she deleted the pics I took because she didn’t want to remember it anymore. I really never would have thought it possible to have a bad interaction with a character like this but today’s Pooh was clearly done. Oddly there wasn’t a line or anything. We just walked right up and saw him.

Oh no!! Such a bummer! I wonder if it was the same CM. Just unfortunate because for many it is a once in a lifetime trip, or a trip they have been looking forwards to or saving for, and that one interaction can really put a damper on the mood.

 

[PollyMroz]

The Pooh costume is notorious for offering the character’s controlling magic (CM) very limited vision. Especially if the meet is outdoors or the guest is backlit, the tubby ol bear may not have actually seen you very well at all.

I think this one was just over it. We went to Disney ~5 years ago and I wasnt prepared for the evening cold, I found a faded 100 acre woods hoodie at a target near our hotel and wore it to the parks. I met Pooh and Tigger and without prompt they were both adorable. Tigger was bouncing up and down pointing at my shirt and i have a picture where Im getting a group hug from them. It was adorable and it makes me sad that not everyone gets to experience that level of magic.