Am I the only one that is unimpressed with SWGE - where is the juice?

[monkyby87]

My point is simply that one should NOT have to conduct research ahead of a visit to a Star Wars land. There is a general expectation as to what it should be like, to anyone who is familiar with Star Wars. To suggest that all the millions of people who visit Disneyland and WDW are going to research and learn about Batuu BEFORE visiting is just ludicrous.

I am not taking anything away from the people who like the land. I am happy for those people. I am just curious how the land is going to perform in it's current iteration long term and it has been mentioned by several people online that the "suits" at Disney are NOT happy with the land's reception at Disneyland so far and are basically in a panic right now. After visiting the land a few times, it's abundantly clear that it's not performing as expected. It is the most sparsely populated area of the park, with wide open pathways and no lines for anything except the one ride.

It's far, far, far too early to be saying the land is underperforming, and the WDW one isn't even open yet. DL can't be compared to DW, and a lot of people are actually waiting to go to the parks out of fear for how busy it will be. It's kind of funny actually. But let's not sit here and pretend that the crowds are always going to be low for a Star Wars park.

 

[Farro]

It's far, far, far too early to be saying the land is underperforming, and the WDW one isn't even open yet. DL can't be compared to DW, and a lot of people are actually waiting to go to the parks out of fear for how busy it will be. It's kind of funny actually. But let's not sit here and pretend that the crowds are always going to be low for a Star Wars park. That's just ignorant.

The crowds will be large at WDW because crowds are large at WDW.

It is amazing how uncrowded Disneyland's version is. I'm shocked. Spin it any way you want, this has to be a BIG disappointment to the powers that be.

I plan to go and enjoy it. I did not study for it (how silly to think one should study). I don't think we will spend hours and hours, but maybe a morning and then an evening for a while.

 

[andyw715]

Negative reviews? Meh.....

Meanwhile there is a 48 hour or whatever line for D23. Disney isn't scared.

 

[fla4fun]

I don’t think we can really judge the final product until Rise opens. I kind of liked that the area felt like everywhere and no place in particular all at the same time. It felt like Star Wars, but with a blank slate that they could use for any portion of the story, even parts that haven’t happened yet. I think if they had gone too specific in any one “era” there would have been more disappointment for people who didn’t get the specific theme they wanted. I enjoyed what I experienced during the AP preview enough that I am looking forward to the finished product.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

The crowds will be large at WDW because crowds are large at WDW.

It is amazing how uncrowded Disneyland's version is. I'm shocked. Spin it any way you want, this has to be a BIG disappointment to the powers that be.

I plan to go and enjoy it. I did not study for it (how silly to think one should study). I don't think we will spend hours and hours, but maybe a morning and then an evening for a while.

Why is it silly to think one should exclude an aspect of the parks from their research when planning a trip?

 

[Farro]

Why is it silly to think one should exclude an aspect of the parks from their research when planning a trip?

Because I'm not studying special languages, story/character history, etc. before vacation.

Have a great trip everyone!

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

Because I'm not studying special languages, story/character history, etc. before vacation.

Have a great trip everyone!

That's the point of the land: so you don't have to study those things and be aware of canon to enjoy the land. But Disney is always changing and one should always know what to expect with those changes.

 

[monkyby87]

The crowds will be large at WDW because crowds are large at WDW.

It is amazing how uncrowded Disneyland's version is. I'm shocked. Spin it any way you want, this has to be a BIG disappointment to the powers that be.

I plan to go and enjoy it. I did not study for it (how silly to think one should study). I don't think we will spend hours and hours, but maybe a morning and then an evening for a while.

By that token the crowds at DL aren't near what they are at WDW, which may contribute.
I really don't think it's a big disappointment to any of the powers that be with Disney. At all, no matter how you spin it. It's still a very new park, one of their signature rides isn't even open, and many people haven't gone simply to avoid crowds. The number of people on these boards alone indicating they won't go for a few months is a good indication that the crowds will only go up.
You don't have to study for it. But you should plan ahead. Just like you would for Magic Kingdom, Epcot, HS, etc. I suspect many people will do the same as you, spend a few hours throughout the day. But it's not designed for someone to spend a whole day there. It's one section of the park. Much like Harry Potter at Universal. No matter how cool that theming is, there's only so much you can do there.

 

[MarkinNM]

The crowds will be large at WDW because crowds are large at WDW.

It is amazing how uncrowded Disneyland's version is. I'm shocked. Spin it any way you want, this has to be a BIG disappointment to the powers that be.

No spin needed, one thing not mentioned here (or I overlooked it) is Disney and DL kept the crowds in check with the invitation/reservations systems in place DURING the opening and this kept crowds in check - Plus the other big ride has not opened AND with the continued reservation system in place this will definitely limit crowds this IS what Disney wants, no disappointment on their end. With all of positive press in place and the AP reviews being so good and check out this TIME article......

https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/b...ge-named-one-of-times-worlds-greatest-places/

The negative reviewers would NEVER be happy no matter what Disney did those vloggers on youtube are almost always complaining about anything they talk about. This time next year will be a good judging point as both rides will be open and more people will have been through GE, so lets see. I did see this from that article..
"already one of the Disneyland Resort’s top-rated attractions that recently welcomed the one millionth member of Hondo Ohnaka’s flight crew!"....

Wow now that is a failure............

 

[Farro]

Wow now that is a failure............

Who is the violin for?

 

[Viking7641]

When you say Star Wars to any random person on the street, and ask what is the first thing that comes to mind, there is NO WAY that the majority says "Kylo Ren" "Hondo Onaka" (sp?) or "First Order Troopers." It's just not what people associate with the franchise. Did Disney forget about the concept of focus groups or market research? Maybe they should have utilized these things in the development of such a major land that they KNEW had some huge expectations. Instead, we got a really good real world example of what the word "hubris" means.

No they just don't want to pay George Lucas anything. They are intentionally smothering the OT and the PT to try to cram in the ST with memorable characters like Chrome Stormtrooper lady who dies and Purple haired Laura Dern.

It's not working based on toy sales etc.

 

[MarkinNM]

Who is the violin for?

Me I like music.......

 

[MarkinNM]

No they just don't want to pay George Lucas anything. They are intentionally smothering the OT and the PT to try to cram in the ST with memorable characters like Chrome Stormtrooper lady who dies and Purple haired Laura Dern.

It's not working based on toy sales etc.

Who is they, when Disney bought Star Wars they BOUGHT Star Wars, 100% of it, Lucas has very little to no say and gets ZERO money for it, NONE, NADA, ZIPPO......They ONLY way Lucas can make money off of Star Wars is "He would be entitled to some royalties under Writer's Guild rules for creating the original characters." so the talk of Lucas getting money for Star Wars is for not.......nothing.....

 

[DLgal]

Why is it silly to think one should exclude an aspect of the parks from their research when planning a trip?

Because not everyone plans everything ahead of time. My mother in law comes with us to the parks when she comes to visit since we live 15 minutes away from Disneyland. She has done this every year for the last 15 years. It's not some big vacation anyone plans for. She just buys a 3 day ticket and we go on 3 random days when she visits. We go all the freaking time. It's not an event, it's just part of our weekly routine. All she knew was that Star Wars land was coming. She saw it being built for the last 4 years. She was excited to finally be able to go in June. She knew nothing about it because she is an almost 70 year old lady who just doesn't spend any amount of time really thinking about Disney. She just likes to go with her grandkids every summer. That's the extent of it really. She was pretty vocal about her disappointment. She actually wanted to buy a shirt and didn't find anything she liked. I have to agree that the merchandise leaves a lot to be desired. The t short designs are boring and uninspired and there is no color anywhere. Everything is drab looking.

Anyway, just saying that most people just show up at Disneyland without too much planning or reaearch, because you don't really need to plan ahead here.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

She saw it being built for the last 4 years. She was excited to finally be able to go in June. She knew nothing about it .

She knew it was being built. She had a reservation after others experienced it. If she didn't look into what the land was like despite there being plenty of reviews before you all went, that's on her, local or otherwise.

 

[DLgal]

She knew it was being built. She had a reservation after others experienced it. If she didn't look into what the land was like despite there being plenty of reviews before you all went, that's on her, local or otherwise.

Okay.

 

[Farro]

She knew it was being built. She had a reservation after others experienced it. If she didn't look into what the land was like despite there being plenty of reviews before you all went, that's on her, local or otherwise.

So I think we have different ideas of research and planning.
I research good places to stay, eat. Bus times. Best parks for what days. Order for fast passes. Etc.

Most people going to GE will equate Star Wars with the 70/80's movies. That's just the way it is. They won't understand the backstory of all the books, series, etc. (that honestly, most people won't even know exist). And I, personally, have no desire to study this.

But I'm sure we'll have fun, I'll just have no idea who or what anything is.

 

[DuskKodesh]

No they just don't want to pay George Lucas anything. They are intentionally smothering the OT and the PT to try to cram in the ST with memorable characters like Chrome Stormtrooper lady who dies and Purple haired Laura Dern.

It's not working based on toy sales etc.

Forgive me because I love toy trends and have no one to talk to IRL about them aside from when corporate comes calling! Toy sales are my forte' and I hate to break it to you but ALL Star Wars toys really kinda went into the clearance bins. I'm not talking Solo, we all know how that went down. I'm talking even black series classic figures. Han, Chewie, Luke. I'm the toy expert, I've been working toy and video game retail for ten years now. None of it sold well. I'd get the occasional collector in but I've seen a steady decline for the last six years in any of the SW toy lines. I still the occasional lightsaber to a child that just wants an excuse to smack their sibling with a plastic tube, but that's about it. Been seeing a rise in gross toys that I think will bottom out soon as parents tire of the slime trends, board games are going up, Marvel is as popular as ever, but if you want to use toy sales to say what's not working then kids really aren't into the classic movies either. You can't use it to disparage the new movies then ignore the clearance wookies and R2D2s, that would just be unfair. Now if only people will stop buying those pop vinyls that stare into my soul...

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

So I think we have different ideas of research and planning.
I research good places to stay, eat. Bus times. Best parks for what days. Order for fast passes. Etc.

And normally this is true for me as well. But when it's regarding a new land, I would argue that throws in another element that does require planning.

Though I don't expect people to know who anyone is outside of the movies. But as I said, Han wouldn't let you near his ship and I wish people would understand that.

 

[Viking7641]

Forgive me because I love toy trends and have no one to talk to IRL about them aside from when corporate comes calling! Toy sales are my forte' and I hate to break it to you but ALL Star Wars toys really kinda went into the clearance bins. I'm not talking Solo, we all know how that went down. I'm talking even black series classic figures. Han, Chewie, Luke. I'm the toy expert, I've been working toy and video game retail for ten years now. None of it sold well. I'd get the occasional collector in but I've seen a steady decline for the last six years in any of the SW toy lines. I still the occasional lightsaber to a child that just wants an excuse to smack their sibling with a plastic tube, but that's about it. Been seeing a rise in gross toys that I think will bottom out soon as parents tire of the slime trends, board games are going up, Marvel is as popular as ever, but if you want to use toy sales to say what's not working then kids really aren't into the classic movies either. You can't use it to disparage the new movies then ignore the clearance wookies and R2D2s, that would just be unfair. Now if only people will stop buying those pop vinyls that stare into my soul...

I would argue the new movies have contributed to people (particularly children) getting kinda "meh" about Star Wars. Rebels being cancelled is also a big red flag.

Sure there is a "space" argument, in so far as Marvel has crowded out most everything else at this point, but Star Wars hardly put up a challenge.

And yes POPs are awful and will be currency in our post apocalyptic future, and archaeologists will think they were some form of religious idol we mass produced. Talk about a bubble.