How long does it take to remove a beloved attraction and turn it into something else? Five months. That’s the length of time it took Imagineers to strip the Tower of Terror of its Twilight Zone theme and install a brand new Guardians of the Galaxy ride in its place. Of course, they were working for months on the project before any changes happened in the park, but that’s still an impressively rapid construction schedule by Disney standards.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

One thing is for sure, fan sentiment about the pipes covered fortress of the Collector has not been overwhelmingly positive.  (Poll results below)

There seems to be three main schools of thought on this new attraction:

  1. Not happy with anything replacing the Hollywood Tower Hotel – The main argument being that Disney should have built the Guardians ride elsewhere in the park and left the popular Tower of Terror alone.
  2. Not happy with the aesthetics of the Fortress – The thought behind this philosophy is that the Pipes and chaotic design of the fortress do not mesh with the carefully thought out theme of Buena Vista Street and Hollywood Land. Many of these folks have no problem with a new ride going in, they just don’t like the look of it. (This is sort of the camp I’m in)
  3. Change is good – Walt said that Disneyland would never be complete and therefore, any change is good. Bob Chapek was giving this quote to a lot of reporters at the press event.

Of course, there are a million versions on the above and I’m simplifying, but while many fans are very excited about the new ride, concerns about its design outweighed just about any other conversation about the attraction while it was being built.

But now it’s time for Disney to face the music. Has all their effort paid off? Does the new ride meet or exceed the entertainment value of the ride it replaces?

Thoughts on the exterior aside, I really enjoyed Mission Breakout. I didn’t go in with high expectations. And, although there is clearly some corner cutting inside, it’s mostly a solid experience and a thrilling ride.

Some of you are going to absolutely love what you are going to see below. But, I know there will be many of you who just aren’t going to like what you see. . . mainly because of what it replaced. Let’s take a quick tour.

SPOILER ALERTIf you don’t want to know what the interior of Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT! looks like, please do not read any further.

I was able to ride Mission Breakout 6 times on Saturday morning. I had heard that there were 6 different songs and that there were 6 different scenes as well, and I wanted to see as many as possible.

Let’s start with my video walk-through, it’s the most efficient way for you to experience the sights and sounds of Mission Breakout. We’ll follow up with some photos.

The exterior queue is very similar to how it was before. Many of the old items are still there, they’ve just been repainted. But there are some surprises.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
There’s someone watching the the bushes.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure




, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
A statue of the Collector stands just in front of the entry into the tower (those black drapes are temporary).

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

The layout of the attraction is familiar. Everything is where it was when it was Tower of Terror. However, now everything looks different. You enter into the lobby of the collector’s museum.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

The space is filled with the items collected by Tivan. There’s also a new pre-show element here as a big screen at the back of the room includes all sorts of info and funny bits. Watch for Stan Lee and even Howard the Duck.  , Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
You’ll find all sorts of fun stuff in these cases. And I was told that they’ll be changed out frequently with new stuff.
, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
I couldn’t get a good photo . . . but one of those containers hanging from the ceiling holds Figment!

Then you move to the Collector’s study, which looks very much like the old pre-show room . . . but with stranger objects. The main enhancement here is a Rocket animatronic. I was pleasantly surprised by the entertainment value of this pre-show and of the new animatronic.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
If you have an eagle eye, you might just spot a bellhop cap in the Collector’s study. You can catch just a glimpse of it in the center of this photo.
, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
That Walkman is important. Make sure you spot it when you ride and keep your eye on it.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
Rocket will fill you in on what’s going on. He’s a very convincing animatronic.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
The Collector’s ledger on what he paid for his prized artifacts.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

You then enter the old boiler room, which now looks like . . . um . . .  the old boiler room . . . There are changes to the theme and new props, but it’s a very similar look.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
The Matterhorn’s old Abominable Snowman in front of the old boiler.
, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure
They’ve crammed a lot of stuff into this ride!

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

the highlight of the entire experience is the ride itself. They were very clear that they didn’t want us to record that portion. However, I’ve embeded some video from KTLA channel 5. It’s a hilarious look at reporters Sam Rubin and Henry DiCarlo’s reaction to the ride. Again, warning, there are spoilers and story elements in this video.

The ride empties you into a gift shop. There’s isn’t much Guardians merchandise for you yet. But they’ve filled in the reminder of the space with Marvel merch.

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

Is this attraction perfect? No. But the attempts to dazzle with props, lighting and special effects goes a very long way in hiding the flaws. And the ride itself is high energy with fun music, beautiful digital animation, and a new set of drop sequences which will help keep guests engaged and wanting to return.

The story is a simple one. The Guardians are trapped in cages by the Collector. Rocket has escaped and needs our help to free his friends. What could go wrong?

Is this attraction better than Tower of Terror? That’s very hard for me to say, and I’m going to need to let some of the dazzle of this shiny new object wear off a bit before making a decision. But, whether it is better or not, it is fun. I REALLY enjoyed myself. They’ve managed to create an experience which is similar to the previous ride but with more energy, solid storytelling, and is relevant to a younger generation than the Twilight Zone.

The ride opens to the public today and Disney is planning for epic lines (I heard they are prepared for 6 to 7 hour waits).

 

 

, Mission Complete – Guardians Breakout at Disney California Adventure

We’ll have more for you from Guardians of the Galaxy Mission: BREAKOUT on Monday, along with shots of the new Summer of Heroes campaign.

If you get a chance to visit DCA this weekend, please pop back in here and let us know your experience and your thoughts on the new attraction.

 


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Dusty Sage
Dusty is the founder and CEO of MiceChat.com. When he's not visiting theme parks and writing, editing or speaking about Disney and theme parks worldwide, Dusty is involved in multiple Disney related projects and charities. He helped save and restore the charming Walt Disney Birthplace in Chicago, launched the Dick Van Dyke Foundation, and is the curator of Walt Disney's historic 1930's estate in Hollywood. If you've got news or photos to share with the MiceChat community, or would like to book Dusty for an upcoming event, please contact [email protected]