TP2000
Well-Known Member
Yeah, who knew the reality would be better than the marketing?
Laughably Staged Publicity Shot from Disneyland Marketing in Late May, 2019
Empty-ish Reality in Late June, 2019
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News Star Wars Galaxy's Edge Disneyland opening reports/reviews
- Thread starter wdwmagic
- Start date
Yeah, who knew the reality would be better than the marketing?
Laughably Staged Publicity Shot from Disneyland Marketing in Late May, 2019
Empty-ish Reality in Late June, 2019
TP2000
Well-Known Member
I agree with you, I'm sure that is exactly what he meant. But that's not what he said. He said they were waiting for "crowds to die down". The crowds are dead, get the droids out there to administer CPR to the few customers left!
It's obvious they have no interactive droids ready to deploy into the land. If that's something they budgeted for Fiscal Year 2020, then they just got caught with their pants down in 2019.
The land needs help, it needs buzz, it needs customers. It's obvious the bean counters cut the droids from the budget, and it was obvious to me last night that the land desperately needs some performers and characters out there to give it life and energy and soul. Droids would help, but it also needs a live band and walk around characters and weird aliens coming up to you trying to steal your churro.
The place was aesthetically gorgeous last night, but it felt flat and lifeless and without soul. It needs performers. And the crabby CM's staffing the hostess stand at the Cantina aren't what I have in mind.
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britain
Well-Known Member
I suspect TDA is really going to scrutinize what happens on the Fourth of July weekend. Everything that has happened so far could simply be a lull for all the many reasons people have described. Even the locals might be hard-pressed to drop everything and make a trip to Disneyland based on this “light crowd” information.
But they might choose to make a visit to the park during the Fourth of July weekend.
We shall see... if the crowds don’t show up then, THEN you got trouble.
But they might choose to make a visit to the park during the Fourth of July weekend.
We shall see... if the crowds don’t show up then, THEN you got trouble.
britain
Well-Known Member
Grr!
TP2000
Well-Known Member
Wow, that makes so much sense. Thinking back to last night and how the space around the restaurants are laid out, I think you are clearly on to something.
Back in 2017 at a Star Wars convention, Walt Disney Imagineers presented clips of the "stunt show" they were working on for Star Wars Land.
Obviously that all got cut by the bean counters and/or Mr. Chapek, but this is exactly the type of thing the land desperately needs on all those upper levels and balconies and rooftops so blatantly unused right now. (Plus a live band on a patio, or a lone musician playing some weird instrument in a creepy back alley, beeping droids zipping around, bad guys trash talking good guys, creepy aliens trying to steal your churro, etc., etc.)
Yeah... none of this cool stuff they talked about doing in 2017 is there here in 2019.
George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
To be fair, that's a pretty big open area of concrete with nothing to really do around it. There's no shade or proper benches so it's not like you can even park your butt there and watch the occasional pretty ladies strutting by.
Curious Constance
Well-Known Member
It baffles me how many things they publicly announce and then cut later. You’d think that would be embarrassing to a cagillion dollar company like Disney.
TP2000
Well-Known Member
It took them 25 years to forget that lesson, but apparently they did.
Something tells me it will be a very long time before we see a Reservations Only grand opening again.
The bosses in Burbank are just going to force the Ops folks in the parks to deal with pandemonium for grand openings, for at least a few decades until they forget that lesson again and some 30 year old upstart says in a team meeting "Hey, what if we forced people to make a reservation to get in?"
TROR
Well-Known Member
Wow, that makes so much sense. Thinking back to last night and how the space around the restaurants are laid out, I think you are clearly on to something.
Back in 2017 at a Star Wars convention, Walt Disney Imagineers presented clips of the "stunt show" they were working on for Star Wars Land.
Obviously that all got cut by the bean counters and/or Mr. Chapek, but this is exactly the type of thing the land desperately needs on all those upper levels and balconies and rooftops so blatantly unused right now. (Plus a live band on a patio, or a lone musician playing some weird instrument in a creepy back alley, beeping droids zipping around, bad guys trash talking good guys, creepy aliens trying to steal your churro, etc., etc.)
Yeah... none of this cool stuff they talked about doing in 2017 is there here in 2019.
That piece of concept art is my favorite piece of Star Wars art. Batuu's design is very reminiscent of it, which is why I think I enjoy the aesthetic of the land so much (though agree it could use more green). Notice those painted streaks of orange and the circle of yellow; Galaxy's Edge could certainly benefit from that color, as well.
The_Mesh_Hatter
Well-Known Member
Today was my third trip to Batuu. Crowds are picking up a little. Wait time for Smuggler’s Run was posted as 90 minutes for a while, mid-day.
Didn’t care much about the ride, but I was with people who wanted to ride it since it was their first time. I like it less and less each time I ride it. There’s hardly any variability. It doesn’t live up to its potential. I used single rider, however, and think it’s part of the problem. The ride would have been at least a little more fun if I stuck with my party.
On the other hand, the land has grown on me with each visit. Today I noticed lots of new details. My favorite of which is the ceiling of the toy stall. There’s a mobile made out of rocks and scrap metal depicting a space battle. There’s a Millenium Falcon following a Star Destroyer, surrounded by asteroids and Ti Fighters. The entire thing looks like it was made by children.
Didn’t care much about the ride, but I was with people who wanted to ride it since it was their first time. I like it less and less each time I ride it. There’s hardly any variability. It doesn’t live up to its potential. I used single rider, however, and think it’s part of the problem. The ride would have been at least a little more fun if I stuck with my party.
On the other hand, the land has grown on me with each visit. Today I noticed lots of new details. My favorite of which is the ceiling of the toy stall. There’s a mobile made out of rocks and scrap metal depicting a space battle. There’s a Millenium Falcon following a Star Destroyer, surrounded by asteroids and Ti Fighters. The entire thing looks like it was made by children.
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George Lucas on a Bench
Well-Known Member
I accidentally walked backstage.
Nirya
Well-Known Member
The hilarious part is that Fourth of July has turned into one of the nicest day at the parks in recent years. And why would the locals come when you can just drive up and down the 605 and see all the fireworks?
DLR>WDW
Well-Known Member
MoonRakerSCM
Well-Known Member
The fact that they're treating the fireworks in such a downright odd manner is terrible. No museum, trying to 'act' and not refer to them... what a misguided attempt at theming. Imagine Star Wars Land having its OWN soundtrack for the show? Crank up some Phantom Menace celebration music, some Yub Nub, or the pleasant song that replaced it etc...
That is sad yet hilarious. I will say that this is something that Disney should be absolutely ashamed of. The world leader in themepark design has failed on one of the FOUNDATIONS it came up with about luring people into different areas around the park. The entranceways to the land are bland uninviting passageways with nothing to draw you in. In hiding the land, they've taken away any visual draw it SHOULD have had.
My group had the same thought, it is cold, awkward, and confusing. It seems like such a horrible exit for an experience...
Heh.
TP2000
Well-Known Member
Yeah, you mentioned that earlier and on my second ride last night as I exited that long boring hallway I thought of you. You are right.
To be fair, I could tell this Aussie Mom was the type to complain and swear about any minor issue that occurs during her day, whether she's at Disneyland or her local supermarket in suburban Melbourne.
It's been my experience that Australians in general can go from happy to infuriated quite easily. Much of the time they are sunshiny fun and Throw another shrimp on the barbie, mate! while they pass you a cold Foster's.
But if something goes wrong or they perceive that you have disappointed them in some way, they throttle up to stark raving crazy mad in about 4 seconds. It's an odd country. Their toilets also flush the wrong direction, which may be part of it.
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Figments Friend
Well-Known Member
And I am willing to bet 20 Republic Credits it was probably a lot more exciting then what is currently going on 'onstage' at the moment.
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mickEblu
Well-Known Member
I said this the other day in regards to the land but it just seems that they tried to check so many boxes that they forgot to ask the basics like “is this a place people want to visit” or “is this ride fun (for all 6 people)?” Like with the Falcon, they decided to give it the 38 inch height requirement so younger people could ride it. They didn’t give it too much movement so people wouldn’t get motion sickness. Then making it interactive of course added a whole other component which led to a fun ride for 2 people but an awkward distracting ride for the other 4.
I just think sometimes when you re trying to check too many boxes it makes hitting a home run difficult.
I just think sometimes when you re trying to check too many boxes it makes hitting a home run difficult.
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drod1985
Well-Known Member
Agreed. Just say that when business is booming Oga shoots off celebratory fireworks. Pump some Cantina music into the park, and boom, fireworks justified.
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180º
Well-Known Member
I think you’re onto something. Among other things, it’s weird that the Millennium Falcon isn’t getting the hype I thought it would. I know it was never meant to be the #1 ride in the land, but it is the centerpiece and it has the potential to resonate strongly with guests.
(I’m about to go on a huge tangent, but I would like to clarify that I’ve been to SWGE several times so this counts as part of my review!
)I don’t buy the anti-Hondo theories, that we needed some main character from the movies to host. I think that would have been a crutch at best and would not have saved the ride. I’m not too familiar with Hondo but I like him! I suspect it all comes down to the ride itself not being that great.
It sort of suffers from the Mission: Space problem of feeling like what you’re doing just isn’t that important. Regardless of how you may have felt about the Falcon before, the ride keeps reminding you over and over again that you’re just low-level Ohnaka employees taking the jalopy on a glorified Target run (thanks, @TP2000 ) for Hondo. I think the Imagineers predicted that treating this as mundane would just add to the realism (IMMERSION!) and involve you more, but it just comes across as a drag. That’s kind of why I think Star Tours II is more exciting: Things happen unexpectedly, someone on your ship is—maybe even YOU are—a fugitive fleeing the bad guys, your pilot doesn’t know what he’s doing (also made the original Star Tours iconic), and many characters announce themselves along the way to either assist you or kill you. As I said before, they don’t need to be well-known characters. Maybe generic stormtroopers, Max Kanata, and General Hux aren’t your favorite characters, but the way they interact with you is basically effective.
On the other hand, you could go the route of Flight of Passage and cut down on the characters and chatter significantly. FoP pumps you up by telling you that what you’re doing is exciting, significant, and rare. The rest of the ride is pure aesthetic rapture.
Or take a simple example like Space Mountain. Space Mountain’s simple backstory is that Space Flight is mundane in the future. But the success lies in that the ride itself knows that YOU don’t think Space Flight is mundane and it empathizes with you.
In any of the cases mentioned above, Star Tours, Flight of Passage, or Space Mountain, the ride feels eventful.