The Things that Nightmares are Made of.

I am a huge fan of classic Disney cartoons. Let's face it, the cartoons that Disney cranks out these days are not quite the same caliber as the ones made 50 years ago. The films today seem to be missing something. On of those "things" is the dark undertones in the films of yore. Anybody remember the demon in Fantasia?



That's enough to give you nightmares. Or how about Sleeping Beauty's Maleficent. The villians in these classic Disney films don't have the goofy characteristics you see in today's villians. They are simply downright scary. Honestly, I'd much rather run into Hades from Hercules than the Queen/Witch in Snow White.

Just take a walk though Disneyland's Fantasyland, which is filled with rides based on the classics. My mom absolutely refused to let my three-year-old sister on a good majority of them for fear that she will incur permanent psychological scarring. Initially, I ridiculed my mom for being "dramatic" and "overprotective." Turns out, moms have this funny way of being right (most of the time).

On one Disneyland trip with my family a few months back, I suggested Mr. Toad's Wild Ride since the wait was only 20 minutes. My parents were hesitant but caved in. How scary can a 4 minute adventure with a frog be? Well, Mr. Toad's journey ends with him being sentenced to an eternity in hell by a judge that bears a striking resemblance to Satan. Who knew?

I wasn't allowed to pick out rides after that.

Afterwards, I decided to go on all the rides in Fantasyland at night after most of the kids had cleared out of the park. I learned that those of you with young children want to avoid the rides in Fantasyland that have the shortest lines (i.e., Snow White's Scary Adventure, Pinocchio's Daring Journey). Parents aren't taking their kids on these rides for a reason.