‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ ride is truly far out,
There’s a scene in Guardians of
the Galaxy Vol. 2 (in theaters now) where a planet-jumping Yondu (a blue-skinned Michael Rooker) warns Rocket (Bradley Cooper’s genetically modified raccoon) that “it ain’t healthy for a mammalian body to hop more than 50 jumps at a time.” Regardless, the heroes pinball through 700 planets, their faces distorted along the way.
Yeah, the new Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: Breakout! ride felt kind of like that. I previewed Disney’s renovated California Adventure Park attraction ahead of its May 27 opening. As a result, I’m writing this feeling giddy, lightheaded and hoarse.
Did I scream? Yes. Did the G-forces make my stomach feel weird? Definitely. Did I laugh? Hysterically. Did people ask me if I was OK afterward? Several, yes. Do I regret riding? No way.
The high-speed elevator attraction, which is included in the price of a park ticket and replaces the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (which is still standing at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando), is more thrilling than its predecessor all around. It has more humor (courtesy of the Guardians’ quirky dialogue), speedier drops (the first one is a doozy), better technology (the animatronic Rocket is lifelike) and catchier music than before. (There are six song options inspired by Peter Quill’s Awesome
Mix.) It’s the first ride in what will become an expanded superhero universe in the park.
I’d like to tell you exactly what happened on the ride, but all I can recall from the relentless, two-and-a-half-minutes of rises and falls is that Rocket saved his fellow Guardians on a screen, and Hit Me With Your Best Shot played. Sorry, it all just went so fast.
But before that, here’s what goes down during the ride experience: You’re a visitor at the fortress of “The Collector,” Taneleer Tivan (a character from the first
Guardians, played by Benicio del Toro, who’s obsessed with gathering and displaying unique species and artifacts), and he has a new exhibit that encloses the Guardians — Quill (Chris Pratt), Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Baby Groot (Vin Diesel), Drax (Dave Bautista) and Rocket — in glass cases for public viewing.
In line to see the rare species, you encounter artifacts out of the superhero universe including an Asgardian war hammer (think Thor), Ultron Sentry (as in Aveng
ers: Age of Ultron) and the robotic, that-looks-like-a-living-dog Cosmo (a dog sent to space, who also appears in Marvel comic books).
On your way up to the exhibit, the furry, animatronic Rocket breaks out of his case and joins you in The Collector’s office to explain his jailbreak plan for the others: “He’s gonna put you on a gantry lift for your tour. I’m gonna sneak on top of your lift and take us all the way to the big ol’ generator control room” and turn off the power so the Guardians can bust out. (It’s this power outage that, presumably, causes the unexpected rises and falls of the ride.)
“It’s a foolproof plan,” Rocket says.
And, indeed, I looked like a fool on the ride cam: arms up, mouth agape, hair flying. But the rescue effort — and ride — were a success.