It can't compete with the likes of Iron Gwazi as far as thrills, but if you're looking for something with a beginning, a middle, and an end, there are...
It can't compete with the likes of Iron Gwazi as far as thrills, but if you're looking for something with a beginning, a middle, and an end, there are few better. The queue house is a highlight; it's comfortable, with lots of interactivity and a near Disney-level of attention to detail. There's a charming VHS-pastiche safety video on the queue line monitors. Every inch of Cobra's Curse - from the moment you spot the big beautiful sign out front until the moment you're through the exit - is rich with stuff to look at. The setting is a bustling archeological survey on the site of a ruined temple, and no storytelling stone is left unturned. There are ladders, pulleys, lanterns, supply crates, taped-up schematics, and makeshift scaffolding everywhere. The centerpiece, a 70-ft stone monument in the shape of a cobra, is pocked with damage both structural and superficial. It's weatherbeaten, chewed up by erosion, and held up by wooden supports erected at the base on all sides. Recesses in the surface of the idol where gems once were embedded are now empty holes, all pried away by looters, only the hardest-to-reach stones still in place.
As for the ride itself, as I say, it really has a great dramatic shape with a beginning, a middle, and an end. I hesitate to go into detail; I never thought it was possible for a roller coaster to have "spoilers", but you only get to ride Cobra's Curse for the first time once, and I'd hate to think that I robbed someone of the great surprises in this layout. Undoubtedly the most unique ride in the park.
Ridden 8 times. Despite not making me black out like Sheikra, Iron Gwazi still feels to me like it's worthy of the Most Intense in Park crown at Busch...
Ridden 8 times. Despite not making me black out like Sheikra, Iron Gwazi still feels to me like it's worthy of the Most Intense in Park crown at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. It can't be matched by any other ride there for sustained intensity. Iron Gwazi takes great pleasure in thrashing your body left and right and some of its elements are quite punishing. There's a bit where you're basically cresting a hill while doing a human flag at 50 mph (some googling tells me this is called a "wave turn") and there's an element in the tail end -a kind of an s-bend- that knocked my ribs into the restraint super hard on two separate rides. The wave turn feels more like work than fun and something tells me the latter element is maybe an aberration and it's liable to be fixed, because it does feel more like a whoopsie than an intentional effect. Despite these, the coaster has remarkable highs that more than redeem it in my eyes. An awesome first drop and a zero g stall stand out, but it's the zero g roll that is the apex moment I look forward to every time I ride. The way the supports enclose you as you move through that roll is absolutely money. It's a special coaster, but there are some little nagging things that keeps it from a perfect 10. I would have appreciated bit of restraint when it came to the airtime hills, where I think RMC was either worried about them being "boring" or maybe they just got too cute, but there are almost no uncomplicated airtime moments; the track always puts you through some kind of whip or jiggle or bank as you crest. This doesn't "ruin" the hill, by any means, but it's a little harder to enjoy the airtime. Maybe this is the connoisseur's element of choice in 2025, but it did leave me to wonder whether it might have been better had they just left well-enough alone and let me crest an airtime hill sitting straight up in my seatback.
The pullouts on this thing have some real crunchy intensity, and the interaction with the monoliths is as iconic as it gets. Looks amazing as you appr...
The pullouts on this thing have some real crunchy intensity, and the interaction with the monoliths is as iconic as it gets. Looks amazing as you approach the park entrance. I also like the heterogeneity I get from ride to ride, with every seat providing a different experience.
Obviously this thing is a technical marvel, is stupidly fast, and lives up to its name. It's a real thrill, no doubt about that. While it may lack som...
Obviously this thing is a technical marvel, is stupidly fast, and lives up to its name. It's a real thrill, no doubt about that. While it may lack some of the things that I look for in a great coaster, it's a very fun ride. After all, we want our trips to the amusement park be a variety show; a little of this and a little of that. And Top Thrill 2 is undeniably a unique, must-try attraction. Is it a great "roller coaster," though? I would stop short of that myself.
Everything a roller coaster can and should be. The most generous layout ever put together. Borderline symphonic in the clarity of its beginning, middl...
Everything a roller coaster can and should be. The most generous layout ever put together. Borderline symphonic in the clarity of its beginning, middle, and end. An airy first movement, a nimble second movement, a turbulent third movement, and an astonishing finale that seems to defy the laws of conservation of energy. Gives me the giggles every time.
