Disneyland Adds 'Stars Wars' Touches (and New Droids) for 'Season of the Force' Event

A monthslong "Star Wars"-themed festival called Season of the Force is now happening at Disneyland — including John Williams compositions in the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge land during the park's fireworks. SFGate reports: Before the show starts, a voice rings through the land. "Black Spire Outpost has a long and colorful history of heroes and legends, Jedi and Sith, royalty and resistance," it says. "Those who would rule and those who refuse to bow. Here we celebrate that fiery spirit tonight." Then as the first fireworks fly into the sky, the majestic "Star Wars" music begins...

During the day, the land is overrun with tiny robots. Season of the Force also includes daily appearances from the new BDX Droids, cute little "explorer companions," per Disneyland, designed to assist with "exploration and research." These new audio-animatronics interact with guests, clicking and whirring with a surprising amount of personality.

Sabine Wren from "Ahsoka" is also making appearances in Galaxy's Edge during Season of the Force, and there are specialty food offerings in the land like the Celto Slush (a green, pandan-flavored horchata cold brew coffee drink) and the return of Dewback Chili Noodles (spicy fettuccine with ginger-spiced ground pork, broccolini stems and shredded red cabbage).
For the event, Disneyland's long-running Star Tours ride now includes appearances from the Mandalorian (and Grogu), Ahsoka, and Cassian Andor, according to the article. "Also back this year is Hyperspace Mountain, the seasonal overlay of Space Mountain that puts riders into an intergalactic fight between the Resistance and the First Order."

~ These aren't the droids you're looking for. ~

[fahrbot-bot]

Disneyland Adds 'Stars Wars' Touches (and New Droids) ...

These aren't the droids we're looking for.
Move along.

Re:

[Errol backfiring]

Since Disney took over, Start Wars is from a galaxy far, far away.

Re:

[cayenne8]

They just don't get it.

Nobody cares for this new shit...bring us Darth Vader, Chewy, Han, Luke and Leia (especially in the gold bikini, but I digress).....

People want to see the "real" Star Wars and not the farce trip they've taken off the route of canon and success.

These days...it's more like "May the Farce be with You".

*SIGH*

Re:

[Osgeld]

I dont really want to se the old shit either, been there done that

What I would like is something that's not beating the same old dead horse, milking every single drop of life out of something 40+ years old

Disney ... move on

Re:

[Bill, Shooter of Bul]

I'd love to criticize all starwars fans in this post, but the reality is, that its not unique to start wars. All obsessive fandoms are terrible. Disney's not going to move on. Obsessive fandoms are their profit center.

Re:

[PuppyKhan]

Finally got to check out Galaxy's Edge recently. Two of the three rides were better than I expected. (But so was the Tron ride and a couple of others at Magic Kingdom, my expectations were low but found it not terrible overall) And I loved the ambience of walking through a Star Wars style town and market.

What bothered me was that it was mostly all in on new trilogy. I expected them to push the newer Disney material, but c'mon! Almost no original trilogy? Some of the other new stuff is actually pretty goo

Sabine from "Rebels"

[LindleyF]

Also appeared in Ashoka, but that's not where she's "from."

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

Ashoka wasn't very good. In fact none of the TV shows have been, with the exception of Andor. I think the others were victims of being too bland and listening to the most vocal fans too much.

Re: Sabine from "Rebels"

[LindleyF]

As season 5 of Rebels, translated to live action, it was fine. As a standalone show, yeah, left a lot to be desired.

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

It felt like Disney gave them a spec that said they had to have those characters from Rebels in it, but the writers didn't really know enough to give us something that would make Rebels fans happy.

Season 1 of The Mandalorian was okay, but it ran out of ideas fast. It's a little ironic that the only good one was the one that had politics in it, something many fans insisted they didn't want.

Re:

[Pieroxy]

IMO, Mandalorian season 1 was very good. No lightsabers, no universe to save, just Mando walking around in Star Wars universe.

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

My main criticism would be that it was a bit aimless in season 1. Mando softening up a bit wasn't very compelling, but it being otherwise good saved it.

Re:

[MancunianMaskMan]

I was the right age when the film first came out in the 70s but lacked interest or the right kind of pocket money, so I never went to see it.

At university, die-hard fansd couldn't believe i'd never seen it so invited me to a VHS all-nighter, but I couldn't stay awake.

Still not sure what accounts for the continuing appeal of a kids' fairytale movie, other than extremely competent marketing.

Re:

[christoban]

I am talking about Amazon Video's new Fallout TV series.

Re:

[quonset]

Amazon's Fallout is quite good, if anyone's interested. And 90% woke free!

Kindly define what "woke" is so we can verify.

Hans Kristian Graebener = StoneToss

Re:

[Kokuyo]

Function over form. Certain characters get hero status due to their skin color, sexual preference or sex, usually accompanied by a total indifference to proper story telling and character build up.
You are to venerate them without being given reason to do so.

Bonus points if beloved existing characters get killed in silly ways to make a point.

Re:Fallout

[test321]

Certain characters get hero status due to their skin color, sexual preference or sex,

You can't know why these character got their hero status (except if an interview with the scenarists say so). That would fall under the fallacy "appeal to motive". Every movie is susceptible to be called woke as soon as it includes a character with hero status that is not of the same skin color, sexual preference or sex as you. Many past movies could be called woke, even before anybody paid attention to the concept. It becomes completely arbitrary, useless criterion.

total indifference to proper story telling and character build up.

Story telling and character building are indeed important. But this cannot be quantified, therefore cannot be used to justify the "90% woke free" which was the original question.

Bonus points if beloved existing characters get killed in silly ways to make a point.

Like Kenny in South Park?

Re:

[RobinH]

Except in this case we have insider information from people who work in the industry, and things that executives have said to the press, so we actually can infer motive. They've been very plain about their agenda.

Re:

[christoban]

Story telling and character building are indeed important. But this cannot be quantified, therefore cannot be used to justify the "90% woke free" which was the original question.

Good storytelling can't be quantified? Yeah, it can, in box office receipts. In reviews, in viewership numbers. Imperfectly, but it sure as hell can. Look at Disney!

Re:

[test321]

Box office receipts quantify revenue, not storytelling. I agree storytelling can be graded by reviewers, but I still don't see which mathematical model that goes from the reviewer grade (e.g. the RottenTomatoes or Metacritic numerical result) to the "percentage of woke" that is in your original claim.

Re:

[ravenshrike]

Or the fact that Disney literally has an internal grading system for proposed and ongoing projects based on diversity, which has a tiny disclaimer at the bottom saying you can't actually use any of these things for hiring decisions but we'll give you this sheet anyway and what happens happens.

Re:

[test321]

I think that better answers qonset's question "define woke" which is "internal grading system based on diversity".

My next question (to the several who answered, thanks) is why you believe that would be any different than what Disney had done before. Their classical children stories (e.g. Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, Puss in Boots, Snow White, Little Red Riding Hood, etc.) were borrowed from the Grimm's 1815 Fairy Tales, which also had an agenda (romanticism, German nationalism, hiding the fore

Re:

[ravenshrike]

Ignoring the fact that the violence and unhappy endings was largely sanitized from the Disney version of the fairy tales and thus any original meaning is irrelevant, the point of the stories in both instances was basic shit for children like listen to your parents, don't talk to strangers, don't lie, don't break your word, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is, and don't wander off. The other bullshit you spouted is nothing more than humans recognizing patterns where there are none.

Re:

[test321]

the other bullshit you spouted

Can you please be more specific?

Re:

[test321]

You miss the historical perspective. Italian writer Giambattista Basile wrote down tales from the kingdom of Naples in 1604. Nearly a century later, French writer Charles Perrault, a modernist famously in dispute with traditionalists of his time, publishes revised versions in the taste of his time in 1697 (Mother Goose Tales). Another century later, German storyteller Dorothea Viehmann adapts the Perrault's tales to the needs of children of her German village; her close friends the brothers Grimm publish th

Re:

[Black Parrot]

Kindly define what "woke" is so we can verify.

woke, adj. - "Not a knee-jerk reactionary like me."

Re:

[Miles_O'Toole]

"Woke" is a word incels use to when they attempt to explain why never getting laid means they're morally superior to people who treat women like actual human beings.

If you're getting banged half to death by a hot lady who makes at least as much money as you, you're probably "woke". If you're still trying to persuade yourself that sleeping alone is your choice, you're probably not "woke".

mods on crack

[Iamthecheese]

"woke" is the descriptor for a hateful group of power hungry ninnies afraid of everything they can't control. They demand group control and ownership over culture and the attitude is being pushed by billionaires. They incidentally hate men, families, fatherhood, feminine sexuality, and anything standing in the way of female supremacy.

Re:

[Miles_O'Toole]

Let me guess...getting laid regularly isn't now, and has never been, a thing for you. Message received, loud and clear! ;)

Re:

[Bill, Shooter of Bul]

You know that definition, full of racist, msygonistic, anti-Semitic dog whistles is coopting the of the term defined by and for African Americans and other minorities when they suddenly recognized that racism, mysogyny,etc wasn't just personal interactions but systemic encoded into our laws, streets, schools and other institutions that caused the harm to be generational.

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

Interestingly the only good Star Wars TV show is the woke one, Andor. Lots of politics, diverse cast.

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

I think your anti woke outrage ruined it for you.

Re:

[christoban]

If you liked Episode 8, you're a fucking moron. That's all there is to it.

Re:

[ravenshrike]

To be fair, there was one good thing about episode 8. Holdo died.

Re:

[christoban]

Oh yea, the chick who apparently got promoted all the way up the military ranks to #1 general without ever learning a single thing about leadership traits!

Yeah, a nice positive.

Re:

[AmiMoJo]

You make a compelling argument.

Star Wars is a dead franchise ..

[Mirnotoriety]

Star Wars Is A Dead Franchise [youtube.com] (10:04)

Star Wars is DEAD [youtube.com] (11:02)

Star Wars - Death By Mary Sue-icide [youtube.com] (12:10)

Re:

[Bill, Shooter of Bul]

I mean , it was always terrible. In the sense that it was meant to be and is enjoyable on a disposable basis. A nickel paper back from the 50s.

Star Wars magic is dead

[RobinH]

I grew up on Star Wars and was happy to take my kids to see episode 7, and they enjoyed it. Our kids dressed up to go to Disney world, one of them as Poe Dameron. We enjoyed the Star Tours ride. But episode 8 went completely off the rails, and the TV shows (other than Andor) have featured really poor writing and a disregard for existing canon. None of my kids are interested in Star Wars anymore, and neither am I. I don't understand how a company with as much experience as Disney could completely destro

Re:

[fleeped]

I understand stupid short-term decisions to milk a franchise until its dead, but by other corporate vampires other than Disney. Disney is ALSO very heavily invested in parks, which have a looong long life cycle, and parks are VERY profitable (at least were 10 years ago iirc). So, short term gains via milking in movies/series can have a really damaging effect on the parks.

Re:

[Opportunist]

Disney is left now?

Things sure have changed since I was a kid.