Disneyland and Disney World - from a certain (Star Wars) point of view
February 2018
Alex
After spending Christmas in Hawaii, I booked in a trip to the new home of Star Wars, Disney! Making the most of my time on the west coast of the US, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to go to Disneyland. As the 'unofficial' theme park reporter for the Council, it would be rude not to pass up this opportunity.
A Brief History Lesson
While Disney may now own Star Wars, there has always been a connection between Disney and Star Wars, with a presence in most of their theme parks. The ride ‘Star Tours’, a simulator ride that initially took you into the world of the original Star Wars trilogy, was first introduced into Disneyland, California in 1987 and was the first ever 'non Disney' ride in the park. It was then introduced at Disney World in Florida, Disneyland Tokyo and then Disneyland Paris. So the Wars and Disney have always been connected. So much so, that there were a series of action figures crossing over Disney characters with Star Wars characters. Darth Goofy Vader, Jedi Mickey and Emperor Stitch are some of my favourite, not to mention Donald Duck as Darth Maul and Boba Fett! As a fan of the crossovers, I have some of the figures and art that was part of this connection.
Alex
After spending Christmas in Hawaii, I booked in a trip to the new home of Star Wars, Disney! Making the most of my time on the west coast of the US, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to go to Disneyland. As the 'unofficial' theme park reporter for the Council, it would be rude not to pass up this opportunity.
A Brief History Lesson
While Disney may now own Star Wars, there has always been a connection between Disney and Star Wars, with a presence in most of their theme parks. The ride ‘Star Tours’, a simulator ride that initially took you into the world of the original Star Wars trilogy, was first introduced into Disneyland, California in 1987 and was the first ever 'non Disney' ride in the park. It was then introduced at Disney World in Florida, Disneyland Tokyo and then Disneyland Paris. So the Wars and Disney have always been connected. So much so, that there were a series of action figures crossing over Disney characters with Star Wars characters. Darth Goofy Vader, Jedi Mickey and Emperor Stitch are some of my favourite, not to mention Donald Duck as Darth Maul and Boba Fett! As a fan of the crossovers, I have some of the figures and art that was part of this connection.
Today’s Disney Connection
When Disney bought Star Wars in 2012, the decision was taken by Disney that the crossovers, popular in the past, can no longer happen and the figures, art work and references to the crossover were halted, ensuring the 2 'brands' don’t collide. Disney are strict on keeping Star Wars, Marvel, Pixel and Disney in their own little boxes so there probably won’t be any more crossovers in the future. However, with the purchase of Star Wars, the presence in Disney Parks is growing by the year, with 'Galaxy’s Edge' (a Star Wars land) being built and which will be opened in 2019. As part of my visit to Disneyland I wanted to make sure I saw all things Wars related. With that, the first day in Disneyland, I spent in the Disneyland Park. This park is where the majority of the Star Wars action happens.
Tomorrowland, the futuristic ‘land’ in most Disney parks, is the home of Star Wars in the California Disneyland. Previously it just use to house the Star Tours ride but now the presence is growing. Last year the popular rollercoaster, 'Space Mountain', had an overlay and became ‘Hyperspace Mountain’ where the ride was set in the back drop of an X-Wing vs Tie Fighter space battle and was awesome! The overlay was removed at the end of the year (much to my disappointment) but is now live in the Paris park. While this wasn’t Wars related anymore, what has grown is the exhibition 'Star Wars Launch Bay' set in the old building that used to house the attraction 'Innoventions' (which was an exhibition on 'tomorrows technology').
The Launch Bay is a combination of exhibition, store and meet & greet opportunities. Here you can find Darth Vader, Kylo Ren and Chewbacca all available for photos and to interact with. At certain points of the day, you can also meet Boba Fett! As I had met them all before I spent most of my time in the exhibit and store. The exhibit contains a variety of different things. With The Last Jedi recently released there is a display of some of the costumes, weapons and models of the ships used in the new movie. I always liked being here around a new release and was in the park last January (2017) just after Rogue One was released and they had a similar display. As well as TLJ display, there is a range of models of ships used in all 9 movies, life size costumes/wardrobe from the movies and an array of helmets and lightsaber hilts as well. It is a dream for all Star Wars enthusiasts to visit.
One of the features of the Launch Bay is the scale model/concept of what 'Galaxy’s Edge' will look like. I found this fascinating! As a fan of the Harry Potter world in Universal Studios, I can see that the Galaxy’s Edge will be as equally themed and the level of detail going into the land is amazing! As the Land will actually be a 'real' planet in the Star Wars universe, it is actually Canon! Welcome to the planet ‘Batuu’ ! Meaning that the visitor to the park is actually part of the Star Wars universe at that time! The concept of this was first announced at D23 in 2017 and has gone down a storm with fans, including this one! I am looking forward to attending this in the near future. As part of the build up, there are actually new products in the store and I managed to get some of the items myself (see pic). As well as this, the store had a Solo t-shirt for sale, the first I have seen for the new release this year. The next installment of the 'Star Wars Stories' has a cool t-shirt for sale and I am sure in the coming months they would have more and more products as well.
The highlight of the Launch Bay store for me was the art work available to buy and the replica models and lightsabers for sale. My pictures show the variety of art available to buy and I would have left there a very poor man had my wife not been with me. Pieces from all the trilogies and movies was great to see. The figures were great as well. Ranging from the high end value of the Hot Toys 12” figures to some of the Disney Elite figures, on display they were great. One eye catching thing for me was the 'new' lightsaber you can buy. Now rebranded as 'Rey’s Lightsaber', you can get the Black Edition saber of this…when I say 'new', I mean that it is Luke’s lightsaber, technically Anakin’s actually. Still the growing empire of Star Wars in Disney parks is great for the fans.
But wait there’s more…
After my trip to California, I spent a week in Florida during February visiting the Disney World parks with my wife and two nieces. The Disney World set up is different to Disneyland as it is both bigger and has more parks. Unlike Disneyland, Disney World has the Star Wars 'bits' in Hollywood Studios. The theming of the HS park is old movie sets and referencing the world of Hollywood. All the way from having a Chinese Theatre, Hollywood Walk of Fame (with imitated stars on the floor) and a main street that is like a vintage Los Angeles. Here the rides and attractions are all movie themed. Indiana Jones, Toy Story, Muppets and of course Star Wars. Similar to Anaheim, the park has Star Tours and the Launch Bay. Similar attractions here (meet and greet, exhibitions and store) and new things as well. There was more Solo merchandise, but more interesting was that the front of the Galaxy’s Edge is now visible in the park! Like the park in California, there is major development work taking place here building the new Galaxy’s Edge land but, unlike Anaheim, we now have sight of the front of the land! My pictures don’t do justice to how big this is going to be and while we can’t see inside the land, the scale model gives us a great idea of what is to come.
An additional bonus is that the Star Tours ride now 'finishes' in Galaxy’s Edge! Yes the final scene where the Star Speeder 1000 lands is the artist impression of Galaxy’s Edge brought to CGI life! When I rode the ride I did not expect that at all. I initially thought it was Naboo before grabbing my wife’s arm and shouted “Oh my god that's Galaxy’s Edge!”
There is more to come from Disney in the parks for Star Wars and I am visiting Florida a couple more times this year, so stay tuned to our Twitter and Instagram accounts to see pictures from my adventures and stay tuned for more on all that is Star Wars related!
When Disney bought Star Wars in 2012, the decision was taken by Disney that the crossovers, popular in the past, can no longer happen and the figures, art work and references to the crossover were halted, ensuring the 2 'brands' don’t collide. Disney are strict on keeping Star Wars, Marvel, Pixel and Disney in their own little boxes so there probably won’t be any more crossovers in the future. However, with the purchase of Star Wars, the presence in Disney Parks is growing by the year, with 'Galaxy’s Edge' (a Star Wars land) being built and which will be opened in 2019. As part of my visit to Disneyland I wanted to make sure I saw all things Wars related. With that, the first day in Disneyland, I spent in the Disneyland Park. This park is where the majority of the Star Wars action happens.
Tomorrowland, the futuristic ‘land’ in most Disney parks, is the home of Star Wars in the California Disneyland. Previously it just use to house the Star Tours ride but now the presence is growing. Last year the popular rollercoaster, 'Space Mountain', had an overlay and became ‘Hyperspace Mountain’ where the ride was set in the back drop of an X-Wing vs Tie Fighter space battle and was awesome! The overlay was removed at the end of the year (much to my disappointment) but is now live in the Paris park. While this wasn’t Wars related anymore, what has grown is the exhibition 'Star Wars Launch Bay' set in the old building that used to house the attraction 'Innoventions' (which was an exhibition on 'tomorrows technology').
The Launch Bay is a combination of exhibition, store and meet & greet opportunities. Here you can find Darth Vader, Kylo Ren and Chewbacca all available for photos and to interact with. At certain points of the day, you can also meet Boba Fett! As I had met them all before I spent most of my time in the exhibit and store. The exhibit contains a variety of different things. With The Last Jedi recently released there is a display of some of the costumes, weapons and models of the ships used in the new movie. I always liked being here around a new release and was in the park last January (2017) just after Rogue One was released and they had a similar display. As well as TLJ display, there is a range of models of ships used in all 9 movies, life size costumes/wardrobe from the movies and an array of helmets and lightsaber hilts as well. It is a dream for all Star Wars enthusiasts to visit.
One of the features of the Launch Bay is the scale model/concept of what 'Galaxy’s Edge' will look like. I found this fascinating! As a fan of the Harry Potter world in Universal Studios, I can see that the Galaxy’s Edge will be as equally themed and the level of detail going into the land is amazing! As the Land will actually be a 'real' planet in the Star Wars universe, it is actually Canon! Welcome to the planet ‘Batuu’ ! Meaning that the visitor to the park is actually part of the Star Wars universe at that time! The concept of this was first announced at D23 in 2017 and has gone down a storm with fans, including this one! I am looking forward to attending this in the near future. As part of the build up, there are actually new products in the store and I managed to get some of the items myself (see pic). As well as this, the store had a Solo t-shirt for sale, the first I have seen for the new release this year. The next installment of the 'Star Wars Stories' has a cool t-shirt for sale and I am sure in the coming months they would have more and more products as well.
The highlight of the Launch Bay store for me was the art work available to buy and the replica models and lightsabers for sale. My pictures show the variety of art available to buy and I would have left there a very poor man had my wife not been with me. Pieces from all the trilogies and movies was great to see. The figures were great as well. Ranging from the high end value of the Hot Toys 12” figures to some of the Disney Elite figures, on display they were great. One eye catching thing for me was the 'new' lightsaber you can buy. Now rebranded as 'Rey’s Lightsaber', you can get the Black Edition saber of this…when I say 'new', I mean that it is Luke’s lightsaber, technically Anakin’s actually. Still the growing empire of Star Wars in Disney parks is great for the fans.
But wait there’s more…
After my trip to California, I spent a week in Florida during February visiting the Disney World parks with my wife and two nieces. The Disney World set up is different to Disneyland as it is both bigger and has more parks. Unlike Disneyland, Disney World has the Star Wars 'bits' in Hollywood Studios. The theming of the HS park is old movie sets and referencing the world of Hollywood. All the way from having a Chinese Theatre, Hollywood Walk of Fame (with imitated stars on the floor) and a main street that is like a vintage Los Angeles. Here the rides and attractions are all movie themed. Indiana Jones, Toy Story, Muppets and of course Star Wars. Similar to Anaheim, the park has Star Tours and the Launch Bay. Similar attractions here (meet and greet, exhibitions and store) and new things as well. There was more Solo merchandise, but more interesting was that the front of the Galaxy’s Edge is now visible in the park! Like the park in California, there is major development work taking place here building the new Galaxy’s Edge land but, unlike Anaheim, we now have sight of the front of the land! My pictures don’t do justice to how big this is going to be and while we can’t see inside the land, the scale model gives us a great idea of what is to come.
An additional bonus is that the Star Tours ride now 'finishes' in Galaxy’s Edge! Yes the final scene where the Star Speeder 1000 lands is the artist impression of Galaxy’s Edge brought to CGI life! When I rode the ride I did not expect that at all. I initially thought it was Naboo before grabbing my wife’s arm and shouted “Oh my god that's Galaxy’s Edge!”
There is more to come from Disney in the parks for Star Wars and I am visiting Florida a couple more times this year, so stay tuned to our Twitter and Instagram accounts to see pictures from my adventures and stay tuned for more on all that is Star Wars related!