Here's my video from the first day of passholder previews. I explore Mo'ara, both ride queues, Pongu Pongu, Satu'li, and Windtraders in some detail.
My thoughts so far on the new land:
The land is completely immersive, in that you cannot see the rest of Animal Kingdom while in it. There's no sign of Mickey Mouse anywhere, (not even the FP+ touch pole.) And the food is very different from your usual theme park fare. The land feels like Animal Kingdom. It feels like it has always been there. AK is my favorite park to visit alone and this new area will just help solidify that. It's just the right mix of nature and sci-fi for my tastes. If it weren't for all the people, it'd be a relaxing place to hang out at (like so many areas of AK already.) I loved exploring and finding cool stuff, like the squirting creatures with a warning sign. The land lends itself to exploring more than most theme park lands.
The two rides are technically incredible. The boat ride utilizes multi-plane screens, which I have never seen before in an attraction, that create a sense of depth without the need of 3D glasses. Of course we all know the AA shaman is amazing, but honestly it was the moments leading up to that that I enjoyed the most. Could've used 3-5 more minutes, and maybe
a little bit of storyline. Like, we see Na'vi and animals all heading towards the same direction, to where the shaman is, the whole ride. And at the beginning there's a pepper's ghost Na'vi guy just standing there. If he had said just one phrase like "Come, join us today for the celebration. The shaman is awaiting your arrival." It would've made the whole thing feel a little more complete.
Flight of Passage is a marvel of simulator tech. The screen melts away. The ride vehicle lets you experience the ride in a new way. I stopped holding on halfway through to truly experience the weightlessness of flying, the way I do on negative G moments on coasters. The ride film has more detail and visual information in 5 minutes than all other 3D rides in history combined. If only it had a little more story. A section where you're being chased by the leonopteryx (big red banshee) was my favorite part, because it was suspenseful, (guess I'm used to the Universal playbook of "then something goes wrong.") The preshow is terribly acted by what I can only assume is a real scientist pretending to be an actor, because if they hired an actor pretending to be a scientist it might have been somewhat entertaining (like the wonderful Seeker guy on Dinosaur.) The first line in the Avatar film includes the phrase "...I started having these dreams of flying. I was free." This ride is you flying. It's your dreams about flying realized.
The standby queue for FoP has the best theming of the land. It has caves, bioluminescent plants, cool stuff in the science lab, and it feels massive. The FP queue is neat that you get to climb up the outside of the mountainside, like the Na'vi do for their rite of passage, but not nearly as cool as that avatar in the tank in the standby line!
Lumpia was the best food we tried, followed by the dessert formally known as blueberry cheesecake. Chocolate mousse cake was too bitter, especially after eating the other dessert. The bowls are a lot of food for the price. Cheeseburger pods taste exactly like McDonalds regular hamburgers, which is a good thing if you like that (like I do.) I love hearing the Avatar movie theme integrated into the land (by the incredible James Horner, RIP.) It's on the rides, playing in the restaurant, and there's even a fun and lively version at Pongu Pongu that reminds me of the fun version of the Jurassic Park theme for Camp Jurassic at IOA.
I can't wait to get back and eat some more food, enjoy the area, and buy some more unique souvenirs... especially before Disney replaces menu items with generic ones, plasters characters all over the land, and puts a blue Mickey Mouse plush in the store. For now, it's untouched and true to the source material, I just hope it stays that way.
And say what you will, but I love my mini banshee with all my heart!