Da-Dum...Da-da-Da-Dum...Da-da-dada-Da-da-dada-Da-Da-DA! He lurks in the water to send shivers down riders’ spines. He still is an iconic despite many other rip-offs emerging. Nothing can ever beat Jaws for an oceanic terror film. Universal must have realized this as well, transforming Jaws from the big screen to a theme park attraction with great results.
Located in a very well themed Amity section of the park, Jaws fits in flawlessly with the architecture. One of the park’s original attractions, Jaws has been renowned as a classic experience, but over the years fans have stated the effects have deteriorated and that the ride was just outdated. However, I for one greatly enjoyed this classic attraction immensely.
Unfortunately I only got one ride on Jaws, which is a shame since the wait was only about 10-15 minutes or so. Anyway, the line moves very quickly though thanks to the ride’s high capacity. I would assume that the best seats are the ends of the boat or the front of back row, but I was unfortunately assigned the middle of the boat, which made my view incredibly obstructed. Nonetheless, I still enjoyed my experience.
First and foremost, I have nothing but praise for my tour guide. He was incredibly emotional and enthusiastic, just making the attraction so much more immersive and exciting. However, I was fortunate since other tour guides seemed far less emotional and monotonous in their tours. I always appreciate employees like these who go all out to make the experiences of guests that much better.
Onto the ride itself, despite its age, Jaws still has some impressive special effects and is just an enjoyable experience from start to finish. What starts off as a leisurely tour of Amity Bay, quickly escalates into something much more serious, Jaws! After passing the carnage he caused, the tour guide bravely fends Jaws off with a barrage of grenades, which definitely are cool. Also, the boat shack scene was pretty well executed in my opinion, and this is where I got my first real glimpse of the Jaws animatronic. Despite the ride getting a rehab earlier last year, it just seemed pretty dated in my opinion, which hampers the experience a bit.
By far my favorite scene of the ride is the finale. Following an errant shot which sets a gas dock ablaze, riders have their final encounter with Jaws. The scene is very convincing with the boat rocking and Jaws soaking riders towards the end of the boat, really making the scene memorable and incredibly convincing. I won’t spoil the ending, but I will say this though, that the Jaws animatronic at the end is very lackluster in my opinion and pretty pathetic if you ask me.
Despite some flaws that hold this time-tested attraction back, Jaws is nonetheless one of the park’s best attractions and definitely a classic that I hope stays around for a long time. My experience on this was just an all-around great experience thanks to my incredible tour guide and the perfectly executed special effects. Definitely save some time for this classic while at Universal, and I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.
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