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SWW Reaction/Feedback

Discussion in 'Star Wars: Disney Weekends' started by Xinau, Jun 1, 2015.

  1. Xinau

    Xinau Rebelscum

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    Shared these thoughts on another board (mostly in the context of the TFA anticipated box office), but thought they would be appreciated here as well -- enjoy!

    A couple of random, admittedly anecdotal, observations from attending Star Wars Weekends 2015 at Walt Disney World in Orlando, yesterday. Some of this seems at least tangentially related to some of the discussions we've been having here:

    1. Spoke to one of the workers about attendance during SWW. He said they are consistently seeing more attendees every day than expected. Sometimes by as many as 15k guests/day.

    2. Disney Hollywood Studios (where SWW is held) is REALLY getting long in the tooth. Long, long overdue for a revamp. I don't know what the business case looks like (or what the current rumor mill is on this subject), but as a park-goer, and a Star Wars fan, it seems there is more than enough room to AT THE VERY LEAST carve out an entire section of the park for Star Wars themed attractions. I'm thinking something along the lines of what Universal has done with the Harry Potter franchise at their park, at least.

    3. They've added about a 2-second clip from the first TFA teaser to the Star Wars/sci-fi segment at the end of The Great Movie Ride (a close-up shot of the Falcon, seen from the rear, low/near to the desert sand, during the pursuit sequence).

    4. Rebels hasn't really made a breakthrough impression, yet, IMO. They had two "walkaround" characters from Rebels there -- Sabine & Ezra. The Sabine character was played by an absolutely drop-dead gorgeous young lady, and yet most park visitors didn't seem interested to get pictures with her (or Ezra), nor to know who they were. People would go nuts over an opportunity for a pic with one of the Modal Nodes, or a Jawa, or Chewie, but Sabine & Ezra did a lot of standing around. At the big finale/homage where they brought out numerous characters, Sabine/Ezra (and they had Chopper for that, too) were greeted with mostly silence. I don't think they're disliked; I think that many just don't know who they are.

    5. My wife & I attended with another couple who loves Star Wars and their soon-to-be-in-6th-grade son. They had never heard of Rebels. Their son seemed bored with the whole experience generally. I don't know if it was just this particular kid, or kids his age in general, but he was lukewarm towards Star Wars -- of any variety, PT, ST, or OT.

    6. They were selling TFA T-shirts, but with several weekends to go they are already sold out of all adult sizes except S, XXL, XXXL. Saw a lot of those shirts walking around. Got the sense there is enormous enthusiasm for this movie, but it's not coming from kids.

    7. The fireworks display and the accompanying edit of JW music from the films at the end of the day is truly special. Magnificently done. If you go, stick around for it-- it was a highlight of the trip.

    8. I'm probably the last person to know this, but they've revamped Star Tours quite a bit since I was there a few years ago, and made it 3D now. The 3D (as usual) was kinda meh, but the new visuals were terrific. There's a great opening sequence that I won't spoil that I found delightful, and instantly puts the riders into the GFFA. Really well done. Worth the 60 min wait in line. Met a delightful couple who had traveled all the way from Paris (to attend SWW specifically) who had much to say about how the Orlando ride is much better than the one at Paris Disneyland.

    9. It is truly wonderful to see so many people there who are either in costume or wearing Star Wars themed apparel. That was another unexpected highlight for me -- lots and lots of people waving their Star Wars flag & waving it proudly.

    10. The whole "Darth's Mall" thing was a bit of a disappointment. I'm not much of a collector so I don't know what I was expecting. I have a vague memory that this attraction was better last year -- had more & more interesting merchandise, particularly some of the fine art.

    11. The character appearance by Queen Padme Amidala is a sight to behold. She is magnificently realized. Whatever you may think of the PT, it is worth keeping your eyes peeled for her appearance. The young lady who plays her is cast perfectly, and the costume/hair/makeup -- just stunning. She literally stopped traffic everywhere she went throughout the park.
     
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  2. Rebo

    Rebo Nearsighted Whill Guardian
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    Current Rumors have a drastic overhaul over the next 5-6 years with Star Wars being one of the primary components. Due to budgetary reasons they are trying to stagger it with the construction of Avatarland going on at The Animal Kingdom park. Rumors currently point towards a very limited announcement at D23 in August with more details coming in next year after the release of TFA. Its coming. Disney is just slow as molasses in getting it going. Current projections have it opening 2019 or so.

    As to Darth's Maul. I've never tried it. but I have heard that the best merch goes quickly on the first weekend. So, if you don't get there super early, you'll be leaving mostly unimpressed.
     
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  3. ChrisI

    ChrisI Force Sensitive

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