STREAM GOES GOOFY
Disney+ debut marred by tech snafus, delays
It’s a whole new world — of technical difficulties.
Disney’s $6.99-a-month video-streaming service Disney+ launched at 6 a.m. New York time Tuesday and quickly drew complaints — about glitches, error messages and being put on hold by customer service — from would-be watchers of its trove of shows from Disney, Pixar and Marvel.
“Two hours on hold is not a good way to start with my subscription to #DisneyPlus still can’t log in,” one frustrated user tweeted. “Help me Obe Wan Kanobi your my only hope!”
The hashtag #DisneyPlusFail quickly began to trend on Twitter, with more than 8,300 users reporting that the service was not working as of Tuesday afternoon. Most users cited problems with streaming videos and logging in, according to Downdetector.com. Many received “unable to connect” messages.
One bright-blue error screen depicted Mickey Mouse and his dog, Pluto, wearing spacesuits, with the text: “We are having a problem. Please exit the app and try again.”
Another featured Ralph and Vanellope of “Wreck-It Ralph.”
It’s a rough start for Disney+, which has been billed as the future of the Mouse House by Chief Executive Bob Iger, who looks to take on Netflix, Amazon, Apple and others.
“The brand name that [they are] going to get tagged with if they don’t get this cleared up quickly is Disney minus,” said Al DiGuido, president of North 6th Agency, a New
York-based public relations firm. “You don’t want hiccups or glitches because every moment that goes by, it’s impacting the brand and brand value.”
Disney published a mea culpa via Twitter: “The demand for #DisneyPlus has exceeded our highest expectations. We are so pleased you’re excited to watch all your favorites and are working quickly to resolve any current issues. We appreciate your patience.”
Analyst Rich Greenfield of
LightShed Partners acknowledged that Disney had a rough start, but he shrugged it off.
“It’s never good if you have technical issues, but this is Disney’s strategy for the next 10 years, not Nov. 12,” Greenfield said. “If this is a persistent issue two weeks from now, I’ll be concerned.”
On the positive side, the chaotic launch could be a signal that Disney’s marketing blitz for the service is paying off.
“They probably ran the most aggressive streaming-marketing campaign in the history of streaming apps,” Greenfield said. “You’d literally have to be living underground to not realize that Disney+ was launching.”
The feeding frenzy was driven partly by new original shows. “Star Wars” fans immediately started streaming “The Mandalorian” series, which follows a gunfighter out on his own after the fall of the empire.
There are more than 600 movies, including animated features such as “Fantasia,” and Pixar classics like “Monsters, Inc.” Marvel franchise films such as “Guardians of the Galaxy” are included, too.
“There are always technical glitches,” said Kevin Mayer, head of Disney’s direct-to-consumer and international unit. “And you can always improve the technical performance of any service like this.”
‘G AME of Thrones” and “Narcos” star Pedro Pascal is billed as the star of the new Disney+ production of “The Mandalorian” — but it’s impossible to know if that’s really Pascal on-screen since his titular bounty hunter in this “Star Wars” spinoff never takes off his helmet.
It’s a good thing he doesn’t have hay fever — one sneeze and his cover would be blown. “Star Wars” fans may not mind, but one glimpse of his eyes might have helped humanize the 40-minute pilot, which debuted Tuesday (a second episode will premiere Friday).
The action in this small-scale production, created by Lucasfilm and Jon Favreau, is set five years after the collapse of the Empire as described in the 1983 film “Return of the Jedi.” Our bounty hunter traverses the galaxy in a worse-for-wear spaceship called the Razor Crest, rounding up bail jumpers and smugglers and sealing them in panels of carbonite before delivering them to Greef Carga (Carl Weathers), who heads up a guild of bounty hunters.
When Carga offers The Mandalorian a juicy assignment with a live capture, the show, directed by Dave Filoni (“Star Wars Rebels”), finally picks up some steam as Pascal is transported to a mountainous desert landscape and has direct contact with an Ugnaught, voiced by a gruff Nick Nolte. He offers to lead Mando to his 50-year-old bounty if he’ll learn to ride something called a Blurrg. Think of a rhino missing the essential, central horn. This is Mando’s first time at the Blurrg rodeo as the beast tosses him to the ground. Nolte suggests the Blurrg, a female (like you can tell?), might be more receptive “if you remove your helmet.” No dice, and “The Mandalorian” misses another opportunity to show that it’s really Pascal under there.
No matter. A space-Western gunfight awaits the bounty hunter at the doors of the encampment. Although he groans that he has competition in the form of bounty droid known as IG-11 (Taika Waititi), the droid comes in handy as it can shoot behind its back. What awaits these space cowboys inside the encampment stops Pascal in his tracks. Spoiler alert: the age of the bounty (50) does not match up with the cradle-like vessel where it is housed. Suffice to say, the discovery hearkens back to one of the franchise’s most memorable characters, and sets up enough intrigue for the sevenremaining episodes of the first season (a second has already been ordered).
Favreau has assembled an odd cast, to be sure. In addition to Weathers and Nolte, famed German director Werner Herzog puts in an appearance as the cryptic Client, who is willing to pay big bucks for the bounty. Horatio Sanz contributes a funny cameo as Mando’s doomed bounty, Mythrol (“I have to use the backtube,” he says, hoping to escape the Razor Crest). They will be joined in future episodes by Giancarlo Esposito, Gina Carano and Ming-Na Wen of “Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD.” The tone of the series veers from space-age bathroom humor (“I haven’t evacuated since the Solstice”) to Pascal’s sinister utterances, delivered in a terse style that recalls Clint Eastwood from his “Dirty Harry” period. A nod to the Chewbacca cantina scene from “Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope” will make longtime franchise fans feel secure as Favreau introduces more new characters.
“The Mandalorian” offers a decent intro to a familiar universe with superior production design by Andrew L. Jones. Diehard fans will be back for more popcorn TV. The rest of us will tune in again when Pascal takes off his silly helmet.