Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout announced for Disney California Adventure

GiveMeTheMusic

GiveMeTheMusic

Well-Known Member
DDLand said:
It's incredible how much they think through this stuff.

When all is said and done, this may actually be the most meaningful attraction in Disney California Adventure. This ride is bringing the park to levels of detail and thought previously unseen. Unlike the fluff filled Radiator Springs Racers that is all about essentially nothing, this attraction's meaning is starting to come into focus.

A commentary on rejecting normal. Being willing to circumvent bad systems. The power of an individual to overpower the collective. The idea is to "Breakout." Breakout of conformity.

This is a ride with a message.

Interestingly, Disney California Adventure has never featured an attraction directly relating with California Hacker Culture. Their beliefs included the idea individuals could hack their way to a better society. That rampant individuality and a rejection of the system would create a better world. That the man (IBM) was out to control you.

Seem familiar?

Did Joe Rohde and his team just sneak a celebration of California Hacking Culture into a Guardians of the Galaxy ride? It's hard to say, but the ideals that this ride espouse are almost perfectly in tandom with their beliefs.

It actually fits into Disney California Adventure much better than even I realized. What brilliance.

This may actually be the most layered and best designed attraction in the park. It's amusing, this overlay that has been described as "cheap" or "rushed" will actually deal with themes and undercurrents that are far more in line with California than the flagship Cars Land. The level of sophistication here is next level.

I wasn't predisposed to liking this attraction, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense.


Its placement isn't perfect, but they're working with what they have. It should get better, but yes, this is suboptimal.
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It's an interesting theory, but why can't Rohde or the Imagineers on the project articulate that? So far they've been able to give zero answers about the design or theme or message.
 
EPCOTCenterLover

EPCOTCenterLover

Well-Known Member
DDLand said:
The building's architecture remains fascinating. I've said this before, and I'll say it again, it's one of the most interesting buildings I've ever seen. It's not meant to be beautiful in a classic sense, but push boundaries. This building manipulates the functional, and makes it decorative.

The building is a fortress, but also appears to have some serious technological punch. I wouldn't be shocked if there's some sort of weapon mounted onto the top. Why does the collector need all that power? Why is the collector based in this building?

We'll find out soon.

One of the things Joe and his team seem to be doing here is working with visual cues we already know to get across story. The Collector is a thinker. He's ruthless and analytical. While he's somewhat ecentric, he's on a singular quest to collect everything and categorize it. The individual isn't important in the Collector's world. The individual can be captured and used as merely a spectacle.

How does the building represent this?

The artistic philosophy wasn't as clear to me when I was first inspecting the model. I didn't look close enough. However Rohde mentioned in an interview the idea that this whole building is being designed to look like a computer chip. What is a computer? Cold. Analytical. On a quest to categorize.

It's also somewhat alive. Thinking. Processing. At work.

Who are the Guardians of the Galaxy? The very opposite of this cold analytical world. They're rebels. They're hackers. They're individual and unique. They are about to break the system.

So when guests walk up, they may find it beautiful, but as an eerie beauty. Something's supposed to be just so slightly off. This is an embodiment of a world that we're going to be rejecting.
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There's even that same black line!

Like I said before. There's got to be some type of weapon or device that needs all this power. Another of the sources of inspiration comes from oil refineries.

What is the need for that power? We'll find out soon!
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You should write for Disney marketing! :)
 
DDLand

DDLand

Well-Known Member
GiveMeTheMusic said:
It's an interesting theory, but why can't Rohde or the Imagineers on the project articulate that? So far they've been able to give zero answers about the design or theme or message.
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This is an interesting question. Honestly much of the information that has come out was from a press event from January. The only official Disney information has come from two rather strangely edited YouTube videos. Short productions in both cases. While there's maybe one more interview out there, honestly there isn't an enormous amount of content about this attraction.

More explanation about this attraction should come in short order. What we do know is this building is all about containment. It takes cues from computers. It's designed to make it look like there's a constant flow of energy. It's all at once industrial, but also a reflection of a snobbish rich man who seeks nothing more than control. Control over his staff (they're apparently in on Racoons Plan), control over the Guardians, control over all the life inside.

He is the very embodiment of "the man."

The Guardians, listening to classic rock music no less, have infiltrated and are ready to disrupt. The corporate power of Tivan Industries is going to collapse from the inside. The contained will end the containment.

Chaos will reign supreme.

One interesting quote from Rohde encapsulates this:
"Though now, it won’t be Rod Serling speaking to you, but Rocket Raccoon. I asked Rohde how we will see Rocket and he replied, “We are still working on the Rocket depiction because we want to try to find a way to stretch the metaphor of it. The idea is that he’s loose in the ducts [above the guests] and is running around in here. When we see it on the outside, you’ll see a vent that’s been pried open. We want to get the idea that he’s in the system. He’s rewired everything. He’s rattling around in the system.”"


Someone's on the inside of this machine. This impersonal, manipulative, and analytical machine. A group of rebels that value their own individuality. Guardians of the Galaxy are going to take on this oppressive force. They're going to disrupt the status quo.

While it's true that I can't be certain that this is what Joe and his team intended, I lean towards the idea. Why? Because me sitting here on a message board finding deep meaning in an attraction is far more likely than just making it up. This comes from the same team that brought us Disney's Animal Kingdom, the pinnacle of symbolism and metaphor.

All signs point to this having deep meaning. A meaning that actually finds its roots in a Californian context.

Edit: I'll also add that the gift shop at the end is actually going to be on the "black market." Just another way this team is making it "real" by infusing a society's response to oppression and cheating the system. A little like blue boxes.

britain said:
Methinks you praise too much.
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Virtual Insanity said:
There's an awful lot of trying to talk yourselves into excusing/liking this monstrosity.
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Well as I said, either I'm here making all this up, or it actually is the message.

With Joe, think deep. Think like Cars Land never made you think.

mandstaft said:
You should write for Disney marketing! :)
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HaHa Nah, I think we can both agree that is filled with a little too much fluff. Anyway, I hardly give Disney a blank check either. I could create a nice list of grievances, but that can wait for another time... ;)
 
sedati

sedati

Well-Known Member
Virtual Insanity said:
There's an awful lot of trying to talk yourselves into excusing/liking this monstrosity.
Click to expand...

I'll put it on par with those who praise the DCA TOT as a masterpiece, ignoring or arguing away its own cost cutting that lead to what many saw as a bland and inferior execution.

They're doing this for a reason. They know about the impact and are going this way anyway. That's not a decision that's cheap. Cheap and safe would be simply changing the inside. Cheap "paint and glitter" doesn't require a crane to lift huge fabricated elements. Could they have spent more? Certainly- just as they always could. But the cheap argument is lazier than the big beige tower.
It is a monstrosity, but intentionally so. Why? We can at least wait and find out.
 
Disney Irish

Disney Irish

Premium Member
DDLand said:
It's incredible how much they think through this stuff.

When all is said and done, this may actually be the most meaningful attraction in Disney California Adventure. This ride is bringing the park to levels of detail and thought previously unseen. Unlike the fluff filled Radiator Springs Racers that is all about essentially nothing, this attraction's meaning is starting to come into focus.

A commentary on rejecting normal. Being willing to circumvent bad systems. The power of an individual to overpower the collective. The idea is to "Breakout." Breakout of conformity.

This is a ride with a message.

Interestingly, Disney California Adventure has never featured an attraction directly relating with California Hacker Culture. Their beliefs included the idea individuals could hack their way to a better society. That rampant individuality and a rejection of the system would create a better world. That the man (IBM) was out to control you.

Seem familiar?

Did Joe Rohde and his team just sneak a celebration of California Hacking Culture into a Guardians of the Galaxy ride? It's hard to say, but the ideals that this ride espouse are almost perfectly in tandom with their beliefs.

It actually fits into Disney California Adventure much better than even I realized. What brilliance.

This may actually be the most layered and best designed attraction in the park. It's amusing, this overlay that has been described as "cheap" or "rushed" will actually deal with themes and undercurrents that are far more in line with California than the flagship Cars Land. The level of sophistication here is next level.

I wasn't predisposed to liking this attraction, but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense.


Its placement isn't perfect, but they're working with what they have. It should get better, but yes, this is suboptimal.
Click to expand...

This is one aspect of it that I didn't think of. I kept looking at it and seeing the microchip design and it never clicked until your post. The counter culture symbolism of Guardians of the Galaxy completely takes its cues from California of the 1960s and 70s. And with MB you hit the nail on the microchip with the hacking aspect. Who on the team would be representative of a hacker, Rocket, and who is the one rooting around the system to break the system in MB, Rocket. You can even see in some of the new trailers for GotG2 they are using Fleetwood Mac which has some of its roots from California. So I wouldn't be surprised if some of the music picked for MB has its origins from California.
 
mickEblu

mickEblu

Well-Known Member
sedati said:
I'll put it on par with those who praise the DCA TOT as a masterpiece, ignoring or arguing away its own cost cutting that lead to what many saw as a bland and inferior execution.

They're doing this for a reason. They know about the impact and are going this way anyway. That's not a decision that's cheap. Cheap and safe would be simply changing the inside. Cheap "paint and glitter" doesn't require a crane to lift huge fabricated elements. Could they have spent more? Certainly- just as they always could. But the cheap argument is lazier than the big beige tower.
It is a monstrosity, but intentionally so. Why? We can at least wait and find out.
Click to expand...

I would like to point out, as I have said before, that the reason this is cheap is because they re overlaying an attraction that didn't need fixing instead of building a purpose built attraction to meet Chapeks Mandate/ deadline.

Overlay is cheaper than purpose built.

Wait to find out? What could we possibly find out during the ride that makes it ok to destroy harmony from so many vantage points in the park? How could one strong story/ attraction be worth sacrificing all that?
 
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Rich T

Rich T

Well-Known Member
DDLand said:
He is the very embodiment of "the man."
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I think at this point the Walt Disney Company itself is the very embodiment of "the man," and that they will use any PR B.S. to make a (relatively) cheap makeover look like more than what it is in the service of pulling every nickel from your pocket and selling you today's most popular plush according to the data their marketing department pours over 24/7.

I believe you're overthinking this ride a wee bit...and that's awesome. What else are theme park forums for. You obviously love Guardians of the Galaxy and hacker culture...even if your hacker tale is told to you by one of the greediest, most manipulative corporations on the planet--because that corporation happens to be a fascinating blend of art and ruthless business with an incredibly colorful history. We all love this particular greedy company for one reason or another. For some, it's princess stories, for others, it's E-tickets. For me...they've got huge chunks of my childhood locked in their vault and I can't look away...yet.

I don't care for GotG and hacker culture, but that's me. I prefer haunted hotels and Cars Land (which I could argue has far more emotional depth than you give it credit for).

Anyway, you posted a good read, nicely thought out, so thank you! :)
 
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October82

October82

Well-Known Member
sedati said:
I'll put it on par with those who praise the DCA TOT as a masterpiece, ignoring or arguing away its own cost cutting that lead to what many saw as a bland and inferior execution.
Click to expand...

You don't need to overstate the position that people hold with respect to DCA's ToT in order to make your point.

They're doing this for a reason. They know about the impact and are going this way anyway. That's not a decision that's cheap. Cheap and safe would be simply changing the inside. Cheap "paint and glitter" doesn't require a crane to lift huge fabricated elements. Could they have spent more? Certainly- just as they always could. But the cheap argument is lazier than the big beige tower.
It is a monstrosity, but intentionally so. Why? We can at least wait and find out.
Click to expand...

The reasons that they're doing this are well documented in this thread - and the chief reason is cost. People have been clear in specifying what is meant by "low cost" in this context, and this post doesn't address or even show an awareness of those comments.

There's not going to be some "reveal" of why they made the design choices that they did - they've been quite clear about their design choices and the reasons behind them.
 
Ismael Flores

Ismael Flores

Well-Known Member
IMG_6677.JPG
flynnibus said:
Whut? They are shaped to their purpose... their purpose may just not be a familiar use to what earth does. The forms are still justifiable, just foreign. Try justifying why a warehouse a 13 story tall vertical building on a gravity planet...
Space Mountain is not masquerading as a practical structure... try again.
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Just came back from the UAE and I have to say that I saw quite a few buildings in Abu Dhabi and Dubai that the shape really had no purpose. Some of them were twisted and bent for no practical reason and the new building they are doing that will be larger than the Burj will be even more crazy and serves little purpose except to make the skyline interesting.

Just wanted to throw it out there
 
Travel Junkie

Travel Junkie

Well-Known Member
DDLand said:
Well as I said, either I'm here making all this up, or it actually is the message.

With Joe, think deep. Think like Cars Land never made you think.
Click to expand...

Joe's signature quote regarding MB is "Kablam!" He has yet to say anything on record indicating he thought long and hard about this project at all. His energy is focused on AK. That is his love. It's a loud building. Maybe that's your thing. I call it obnoxious. Your comment makes it sound like you can read his mind, because again he has never said anything to indicate there is some deep meaning behind the visual look of the outside.

sedati said:
I'll put it on par with those who praise the DCA TOT as a masterpiece, ignoring or arguing away its own cost cutting that lead to what many saw as a bland and inferior execution.
Click to expand...

If there is someone out there who called DCA's TOT a masterpiece I have yet to meet them. It was a solid attraction, but very flawed.
 
Curious Constance

Curious Constance

Well-Known Member
Virtual Insanity said:
There's an awful lot of trying to talk yourselves into excusing/liking this monstrosity.
Click to expand...
I understand this look isn't for everyone, and that's just fine with me, but it seems kind of as though many people assume it's impossible for someone to like this just because they do. I like it. I do not think it's a monstrosity or need to talk myself into it. And that's okay too.
 

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