Rise of the Resistance Review ( semi-spoilers )
Had my first turn on the new attraction this morning and below is my experience and review.
Arrival & Boarding Pass Experience
Tuesday December 10th
Arrived this morning to Hollywood Studios at 5:53am and waited in line at the entrance until 6:31am ( park was slated to open at 8am ) when we were allowed in the park. Arriving at this time placed me very close to the turnstiles and I was able to tap my pass and get boarding pass 13 right after. At 6:53am I was notified my boarding group was ready. After doing Slinky and TSMM we walked over to Star Wars Land and arrived outside Rise at 7:20am. I would say we spent about 20 minutes in the basic queue portion and then another 20 minutes with the second part of the queue and the ride. We walked off the ride at exactly 8:00am.
Queue Experience
The queue immediately made me think of numerous different queue experiences. Outdoor portions made me think of Little Mermaid at MK with its waterfalls and rock work, indoor portions definitely resembled Flight of Passage with the caves / industrial portions. I feel like there are two portions to the queue. You have the typical standing in line portion and then you eventually have a secondary queue sequence where it becomes more of an "experience" before boarding the ride. The second half of the queue is used to setup the ride similar to Tower of Terrors tv room or the Haunted Mansion stretching room. It's a very cool experience but I imagine over time it will be similar to ToT or HM where once you know what is happening you just stand closest to the door that is going to open so you can be the first person out. But overall, it is a very welcome addition to the attraction as it is not something Disney has really done as well as they have here since those older attractions. The other elements of the second half of the queue would be comparable to Smugglers Run ala standing in more queue and rooms that allow you to walk around a bit and take photos. In my own opinion, I think one of the more enjoyable elements of Smugglers Run is the portion where you are inside the MF chess room so it is welcome to see similar elements to that queue make an appearance here. One caveat I would add is that the whole thing is so well done that any break from character from the Cast Members can be slightly jarring. Every CM we encountered for the majority of the queue was in character and really playing up the part but then we heard one of the Cast Members remarking about someones Anniversary button which immediately reminded us we were in a Disney park. These are things that will just have to be accepted over time as they are in other attractions that should have Cast playing a role different than the typical happy go lucky Cast Member. Overall, I think the whole queue experience is so well done that its something that excites me to show others who have never seen it. The idea that family / friends will think they are on the ride only to realize they aren't will be a fun interaction to watch.
Ride Experience
From the moment you finally sit in the ride vehicle and depart it is definitely sensory overload. I immediately would compare the ride to Spider-Man and can see its influence on Rise. During my ride it appeared every effect was working, there was no downtime or slow down. Everything ran extremely smooth and felt like the vehicles were doing some sort of beautiful ballet as they weaved in and out stopping on their marks. Some of the show pieces are just enormous and the largest that I have ever seen, and not just the AT-AT's that we've all seen in photos. There are things that really annoy me in attractions and that is when the Imagineers don't due their work to cover up the show buildings, i.e.. Under the Sea room in Little Mermaid. Well there is none of that here, every room is fully enclosed and themed to the gills. The sound effects and musical score are top notch and really add to the experience. I've seen others mention that Imagineering pulled out every trick in the book they've learned over the years and I would have to agree. There are so many things that we've seen utilized in other rides over the years but it didn't feel re-hashed like "Oh I've seen that before". It will definitely take numerous re-rides to fully see everything and be able to take in all the details put into this ride.
Overall Thoughts
So is this the best ride in the world? Well...probably. I have to say that my first visit to Pandora and riding Flight of Passage was a feeling that I hadn't felt in the parks since my first visits to Disney World 20 years ago. But with that land, my expectations were so low that when I saw it I was really taken aback. When I rode Flight of Passage for the first time I remember being completely amazed that flabbergasted by the experience. Going into Star Wars it is the opposite effect where expectations are so high that it would be very hard to surpass what is being envisioned in my head. So did this ride exceed my expectations? I would have to say no, but that is not meant to be a knock on the ride by any means, just the level at which my expectations were set. The ride is amazing and so much fun and I can't wait to ride it again and to share it with others. I don't think anyone will walk off this attraction and not be in love with it.