Disneyland Resort (DL, DLR, DCA) Discussion Thread

Really really hope that "classic" Space Mountain means that the Dick Dale soundtrack is coming back for a bit. I would lose my mind.

That was a later addition to the ride. So true classic would be no music.

We finally have more GOTG Mission: BREAKOUT details! Read below!

The following is an excerpt from Themeparkinsider.com:

April 25, 2017, 8:10 PM · ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Disneyland Resort this afternoon invited a small group of local reporters behind the construction walls of Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout! for a walking tour of Disney's first Marvel-themed ride in the United States.

As fans can see looking at the former Twilight Zone Tower Terror building in Disney California Adventure, the external transformation of the building is complete. And from walking through the building today, I can report that Disney has made no substantial changes to the building's construction on the inside. However, the decoration of the building will be completely different from its former theme, and most of those decorative changes are complete.

 

Guiding us through the building, Disney Imagineers described the story of the new attraction,(Now, we enter spoiler territory....)

 

Standing outside the The Collector's Fortress, as the tower is now known, Walt Disney Imagineering Creative Director Danny Handke talked about how the gaudy appearance of the tower, with its many pipes running up and down the surface, helps set up the story that fans will discover inside.

 

"The organic matter that they mine on Knowhere flows through these pipes, which power the giant generator that keeps every cage [in the collection] locked and secured," Handke said. "So if the generator ever happens to go out, then that would be utter chaos, so that's a very important story point that we wanted to start telling at the exterior of the building."

 

The newest occupants of five of those sealed cages are the Guardians of the Galaxy, whom Taneleer Tivan (a.k.a. The Collector) has captured and brought to the edge of Disney California Adventure to show off to the people of Terra (i.e. Earth).

 

"You might notice some alien language throughout the facility," Handke said. "We have some mystery elements here that you can decipher that will help give you clues to other reasons why The Collector is here."

 

The Collector is holding the Guardians inside the top of the tower, suspended over an abyss — an isolated location that visitors to the tower can see only by riding a special gantry up to the tower's highest level.

 

But before we see the Guardians in their cells, The Collector has invited us to take a VIP tour past some of his other collectibles. "There's a ton of Easter eggs in there, and I think what's fun about it," said Dave Bushore, Vice President for Franchise Creative and Marketing for Marvel Studios. The more than 2,200 props in the building will include items not just from the Guardians franchise, but from other Marvel franchises, including Agents of SHIELD and Doctor Strange, as well as from the theme park world, he said.

 

Marvel creative talent worked closely with Walt Disney Imagineering in developing the attraction — some elements of which may find their way back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe at some point, the team teased.

 

"One of the fun things for us was having the ability to partner James [Gunn, the director of the Guardians films] with the parks teams on this original Guardians attraction," Bushore said. "James was heavily involved in dialogue, in working in bringing the cast in, and having them work with the parks team."

 

The original cast members from the Guardians films, including Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana, appear in original filmed sequences in the attraction, which will differ through multiple rides for visitors.

 

After meeting The Collector in his private office, visitors will move into a maintenance area of the Fortress to board the gantry that will take them up to see the Guardians. Instead of a slow journey up the tower, visitors will blast immediately to the top on Mission: Breakout!

 

And that's where it all goes terribly wrong. Rocket Raccoon has escaped and has a plan to blow up the Fortress' power generator. That will free the Guardians... but it also will plunge the tower into darkness and send our gantry plummeting back down to the ground.

 

As the emergency power tentatively kicks in, the ride will give you one of six different show segments, each with its own drop sequence and pop song accompaniment. We didn't get to see the sequences or go on the ride, but a prop board at the elevator entrance included an illustration of each of the six scenes, which were labeled: Escape, Abelisk Attack, Drak vs. Beast, Anti-gravity, Quill vs. Orloni, and Drones.

 

The pop songs that will play for the six different show scenes are:

“Born To Be Wild” by Steppenwolf

“I Want You Back” by The Jackson 5

“Burning Love” by Elvis Presley

“Free Ride” by The Edgar Winters Group

“Give Up The Funk” by Parliament

“Hit Me With Your Best Shot” by Pat Benatar

 

In addition to those songs, throughout the building, visitors will hear an original underscore for the ride composed by Tyler Bates, who wrote the score for the Guardians films, said John Dennis, Executive Creative Director for Music at WDI. The audio experience continues even after visitors exit the gantry.

 

"As you get off the ride, you're going to hear some of those greatest hits moments from the Guardians soundtrack, but you're also going to hear some of the creatures that have set loose, running through the building," Dennis said.

 

Once through the hall following the gantry ride, you will exit the building through The Collector's warehouse.

 

"Since everything is in utter chaos, his cast members are selling all his stuff, all his collectibles on the site," Handke said, providing the best attempt at a thematic explanation for a post-ride gift shop I've ever heard.

 

"They're getting rid of everything. Everything must go. It doesn't matter anymore. The Collector is preoccupied with everything on the loose, saying 'Where are all my collectibles?' so while all that's happening in the hall, we're selling off all his good stuff."

 

The moment of the Guardians' escape is a moment of liberation for the cast members staffing the attraction, as well, who will be working with forced smiles as they toil under the oppressive control of their boss, The Collector.

 

"We've never done an attraction where we're working for the villains," Handke said. "They want to be good guys, that's why they are on with Rocket's plan. They think it's going to be hilarious when all the creatures are on the loose and The Collector is freaking out."

 

"They're sticking it to The Man. They have to work for this guy, but they don't like it."

Sounds like they put a lot of detail into this attraction, which is to be expected of Disney, but as a Marvel fan it sounds like they put plenty of eye candy in the attraction for me.

It will be so weird not having the Twilight Zone theme though. I'm having a hard time imagining hearing some of those songs during the drops, but then again I would have said the same thing about most of the soundtrack from Guardians 1.

When the initial pitch came out, I was completely against it and thought there was no way it was going to work. As much as I still hate the exterior and find the concept odd, the details I've seen from the inside actually make me kind of excited about this.

Hell, some of the details are starting to make this sound like Tokyo's Tower gone sci-fi...and I'm hoping that comparison bodes well.

I agree. I was not excited about this, as I will miss the old theming and wasn't loving the look. However, the look is growing on me, and all the details inside seem like they'll be amazing. Listening to those songs as you fall just seems hilarious. And that WAS the best explanation for a gift shop I've ever seen. I'm looking forward to this now.

The new ride is what it is. At the end of the day, the ride experience is the same (better if you wanted the randomized drops). So, just go enjoy it for what the ride is now. We didn't lose something like Tower in Florida, so we can only go up from its original design.

My reaction when I read all the Disney fanboy/fan girl hate rants about how this ride is destroying DCA and the Disneyland Resort:

Someone even challenged me to explain how this ride fits into the story of California... oh, please tell me how a land inhabited by homunculus automobiles fits, or a land with English speaking insects helps tell the story of California. If anything, California has always been infatuated with celebrity and entertainment. It's the home of Hollywood. Nothing is more Californian than modeling a ride after a successful movie franchise. Seems legit to me, but like all updates to the resort, after the ride opens and the hard core Disney fans get to ride it, the sooner they will start back pedaling and praising.

Guardians of the Galaxy is one of my fave movies, and I have to say, it looks and sounds like an awesome ride!

Although if Disney even touches Orlando's Tower I swear I'm gonna kill someone

Although if Disney even touches Orlando's Tower I swear I'm gonna kill someone

But didn't you hear? They're giving it a Rogue One theme in anticipation of the upcoming Star Wars Land. You'll ascend the tower to upload the plans for the Death Star to the rebel fleet.

My reaction when I read all the Disney fanboy/fan girl hate rants about how this ride is destroying DCA and the Disneyland Resort:

 

Someone even challenged me to explain how this ride fits into the story of California... oh, please tell me how a land inhabited by homunculus automobiles fits, or a land with English speaking insects helps tell the story of California. If anything, California has always been infatuated with celebrity and entertainment. It's the home of Hollywood. Nothing is more Californian than modeling a ride after a successful movie franchise. Seems legit to me, but like all updates to the resort, after the ride opens and the hard core Disney fans get to ride it, the sooner they will start back pedaling and praising.

I was challenged as well, having it end as it usually does with the "it's not the way I like it so I'm not going to accept it" discussion. I fail to see how Bugsland or Carsland can "sort-of" fit into DCA but when Marvel doesn't when Marvel has used the real world as a setting throughout its whole career. West Coast Avengers, SHIELD is stationed all over the world, etc... It's a very clear fact superheroes reside in California as well, can't be argued (or you would think).

Then when they would bring up how much they don't have faith in a company they seemingly still attend every year, I used Iron Man at HKDL as a perfect example. But we all know you can throw them straight proof of a comics taking place in California in a park about California, I got told "it still doesn't fit." Whaa - whaaa?

Shield is stationed behind TOT, therefore superheroes are naturally nearby in the town of Hollywood. Easy for everyone but a fanboy.

Randomized video segments for the ride is a good idea, and could be adapted to the other TOT's out there.

My reaction when I read all the Disney fanboy/fan girl hate rants about how this ride is destroying DCA and the Disneyland Resort:

 

Someone even challenged me to explain how this ride fits into the story of California... oh, please tell me how a land inhabited by homunculus automobiles fits, or a land with English speaking insects helps tell the story of California. If anything, California has always been infatuated with celebrity and entertainment. It's the home of Hollywood. Nothing is more Californian than modeling a ride after a successful movie franchise. Seems legit to me, but like all updates to the resort, after the ride opens and the hard core Disney fans get to ride it, the sooner they will start back pedaling and praising.

I was challenged as well, having it end as it usually does with the "it's not the way I like it so I'm not going to accept it" discussion. I fail to see how Bugsland or Carsland can "sort-of" fit into DCA but when Marvel doesn't when Marvel has used the real world as a setting throughout its whole career. West Coast Avengers, SHIELD is stationed all over the world, etc... It's a very clear fact superheroes reside in California as well, can't be argued (or you would think).

 

Then when they would bring up how much they don't have faith in a company they seemingly still attend every year, I used Iron Man at HKDL as a perfect example. But we all know you can throw them straight proof of a comics taking place in California in a park about California, I got told "it still doesn't fit." Whaa - whaaa?

 

Shield is stationed behind TOT, therefore superheroes are naturally nearby in the town of Hollywood. Easy for everyone but a fanboy.

That argument should start at end at, "Remember when Walt came to California and got a job washing dishes at a diner... in Monstropolis? Ah, yes. Those were the good old days."

It's just double standard from the people that don't want changes or biased against GotG.

You can see Space Mountain from Mainstreet USA, Tron from Pirates of the Caribbean, the dragon of Diagon Alley from Transformers, and how is that different than seeing ToT from Carthay Circle?

I always found it funny how most Disney fanboys will go on about how "California Adventure" isn't a Calfornia-themed park anymore.

They seem to forget that it WAS a California-themed park from 2001 to about 2008...and they didn't seem to like it too much. And now some have even said that they missed DCA 1.0.

Looks like passholder previews have gone and the new "upcharge party" is in place: https://disneyland.disney.go.com/events/galactic-premiere-party/purchase/

Get your ticket! On select nights and as the seasons change, new experiences come to life across the parks—marvel at magical decorations, discover world-class theatrical entertainment and enjoy special goodies.

 

Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! Galactic Premiere Party

 

Dance, ride and discover what you have in common with some of the galaxy’s most “collectible” heroes at a premiere party to kick off the Summer of Heroes and celebrate the opening of an epic new attraction, Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! Held on May 26, 2017 from 7:00 PM to 1:00 AM, purchase of an additional event admission ticket is required to attend.

 

Enjoy access to Hollywood Land at Disney California Adventure Park and experience all the excitement of:

 

Attraction Access: Experience all 6 versions of the thrilling Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! at your leisure throughout the party.

 

Heroic Encounters: Look out for superheroes like Black Widow, Hawkeye, Spider-Man and Captain America!

Music, Dancing and Cosplay Showcase: A live DJ will be spinning tunes at the dance floor.

 

Panel Discussion: Get behind-the-scenes stories about the making of Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! from some of the Imagineers and other creative folks who made it happen.

 

Super Hero Comic Academy: Learn to draw a classic comic book character.

 

Food and Beverage Voucher: Taste new Summer of Heroes menu items! $15 food and beverage voucher redeemable during the event at select Hollywood Land food and beverage locations.

 

Souvenir Photos and Snap Worthy Backdrops: Strike a pose while participating in fun photo opportunities—available at this event only—and enjoy Disney PhotoPass downloads of pictures taken this night.

 

Collectible Souvenirs: As you enter the party, get a decoder card for discovering hidden details in The Collector’s fortress! On your way out, receive a limited-edition pin, hat, tote bag, comic book and more (one of each available item per Guest, while supplies last).

 

Wear a Costume*

 

Event-themed attire is encouraged. You can model your creations to a soundtrack provided by the DJ in a cosplay showcase!

 

Special Merchandise

 

During this party, you can be among the first Guests to purchase commemorative Summer of Heroes and Guardians of the Galaxy merchandise at select shops while supplies last, including opening day and limited-edition merchandise. Purchase limits and other restrictions for merchandise may apply.

 

Food & Beverages

 

If all that dancing makes you hungry, the new Summer of Heroes-themed food, beverages and snacks will be available for purchase at select Hollywood Land locations.

 

All attractions, experiences and event elements are subject to restrictions, change or cancellation without notice.

 

The last day to purchase this event ticket online is May 25, 2017. Tickets can be purchased at any Disneyland Resort Ticket Booth up through the day of the event, while supplies last. The number of tickets available is limited and tickets are valid only for the specific event date and hours. Limit of 8 tickets per person, and no discounts apply. Tickets not required for Guests ages 2 and younger. Tickets are non-transferable, non-refundable and may not be resold.

 

Event ticket provides admission to Disney California Adventure Park up to one hour prior to the event’s start time. Parking fees are not included in the ticket price, and parking can be purchased on the day of the event or online in advance of arrival. Party Guests should park at Mickey and Friends parking structure, which will extend its tram operating hours for this event.

 

Disney PhotoPass photos captured during the event can be downloaded from your Disney account as many times as you want, for 45 days after capture. Disney PhotoPass is subject to the Disney PhotoPass terms and conditions.

 

*Costume Information:

 

All Guests may dress as their favorite character, but may not pose for pictures or sign autographs for other Guests.

Costumes must be family-friendly and may not be obstructive, offensive, objectionable or violent.

Costumes may not contain any weapons that resemble or could easily be mistaken for an actual weapon.

Layered costumes or costume props that surround the entire body are strongly discouraged and may be subject to additional security screening.

Costumes may not reach or drag on the ground. (e.g., full-length Princess dresses).

For Guests Ages 13 and Under

 

Costumes and some masks may be worn, as long as the mask does not cover the entire face and eyes are visible.

For Guests Ages 14 and Older

 

Capes may be worn if the length does not go below the waist.

Themed T-shirts, blouses, sweatshirts and hats are acceptable.

Acceptable accessories include: transparent wings, plastic light sabers, toy swords and tutus.

Headwear may be worn as long as it does not cover the face.

Masks of any kind may not be worn, except for medical purposes.

Costumes may not be worn if entering Disney California Adventure Park before the commencement of the event or in Disneyland Park.

Guests who do not adhere to these guidelines may be refused entry into, and/or removed from, the event, unless his or her costume can be modified to meet the above standards.

 

While we encourage creativity, we also value safety and good judgment. The above rules would apply only during the hours of the event. Please note: all rules, regulations and guidelines are subject to change without notice.

 

* The number of tickets available is limited. Events may sell out early. Online purchase is not available on the day of the event. Tickets are valid only during specific event dates and hours. Entertainment, ticket types, entitlements and prices subject to change without notice. Tickets may not be resold. Tickets are non-transferable and non-refundable.

It's too expensive for me, but seems like a fun event for the new version!

AP's will swarm the park when it soft opens anyways, so more power to Disney for coming up with an upcharge event. They should do special events for all their E-tickets.

AP's will swarm the park when it soft opens anyways, so more power to Disney for coming up with an upcharge event. They should do special events for all their E-tickets.

Agreed. If anyone wants to pay for perks, they will. Disney owes its AP's NOTHING but what's outlined in their pass perks. BTW, the building is really looking great at night. I wonder if they're going to use any digital mapping for the outer facade.

photo found on facebook

Some mapping effect would really bring the building to life. Something like Rocket crawling around the outside or one of the "cell" looking things opening up to show whose inside.

That looks amazing.

That's spectacular.

Some mapping effect would really bring the building to life. Something like Rocket crawling around the outside or one of the "cell" looking things opening up to show whose inside.

When comparing the concept art to the final product, there is one difference that makes me hopeful for some digital mapping. That blacked out area of the building in the center could be used for some cool mapping effects.

Unlikely, as projecting on black is terrible. It would be grey if they had that in mind. Its totally possible, just not ideal.

It would be rad if they dropped some sort of flag or tapestry down that area.