Jedi Training Academy to close to reopen later this year as 'Jedi Training - Trials of the Temple'

doctornickSep 20, 2017

The new trilogy isn't done yet.

doctornickSep 20, 2017

It's certainly easy to miss the details of the show and how it "works" if you aren't paying close attention to the dialogue. And, indeed, most people are probably just watching the kid they know and squealing with delight as they swing the light saber around. I don't think there's any big issue with that -- and no one here is making fun of people for not picking up the details of Force Illusions or whatnot. But Disney has thrived on intimate details. I'm sure not the only one who is constantly amazed when historians here can point out tiny details on Disney attractions that exist to make things "work" or be meaningful on another level. The kind of things that make the 30th ride on an an attraction even more meaningful because you've discovered something new. So, I don't get why some might be offended to learn that Disney put a lot of thought into Trials of the Temple to having it "work" with Star Wars canon. To that I say kudos to Disney for telling a proper story, not making fun of them for being "convoluted". If your kid is just excited to fight Darth Vader, great. That's awesome. But at the same time, if you are someone who is wondering how Disney "messed up" by having Kylo Ren and Darth Vader on stage at the same time, Disney actually has explained it for you. Nothing wrong with experiencing things on different levels.

GoofGoofSep 20, 2017

For me personally I would rather have a different IP for the echo lake area. I love Star Wars but I would prefer 1 all inclusive Star Wars area and then another IP like Indy added as an additional land.

GoofGoofSep 20, 2017

Since there is only one Jedi left in the new trilogy that doesn't leave much room for a JTA type attraction. I think it will probably go when Star Tours goes.

doctornickSep 20, 2017

The difference in Stormtroopers and even vehicles is minimal to most people. The hardcore people who would notice will appreciate the attention to detail in the new land. As for having "classic" stuff, who says they can't? The setting is after the original trilogy and old things can still exist. We already know there's freaking AT-ATs in the Battle Escape ride. I'm sure Disney will be more than happy to toss in homages to the original trilogy whenever they can in a story consistent manner.

doctornickSep 20, 2017

For the type of immersion they are aiming for with SW:GE, the correct move was to pick a specific setting -- which includes a specific time frame -- and be consistent with it. There could be arguments for using a different setting, but just doing a random mix of stuff from Star Wars would have been far from ideal and would be less impressive. By using the new trilogy, they actually can involve a lot of classic characters. Chewie will almost certainly be involved in the MF ride. C-3PO and R2-D2 can join BB-8 in the land. Luke and Leia can be around -- yes, older versions, but still those characters. There's always the possibility of Han too. Even Obi-Wan and Yoda (and Anakin, I guess) could appear as Force Ghosts. So, there's at least options to satisfy original trilogy fans while keeping the story consistent. I do agree that having the opportunity to have characters from the original trilogy would be cool too. But the solution for that is to build a second land based on that timeline. That way, they can continue to have fully immersive storytelling while providing some fan service. Honestly, I'd be fine with keeping Star Tours (even getting rid of the anachronistic elements from the new films) and building a second land distinct land around that. But back to SW:GE, I do wonder if there is plans for a JTA type attraction in the land. I hope there is.

21stampsSep 20, 2017

I asked because most kids I know, including my own and his friends, will play with their toys and mix up all of the characters. Poe can shoot at Darth Vader, Yoda can train Rey, and so on. They know they are from different movies- but the kids don't care. Here's my son's backpack this year- one that he "just had to have" Last year it was a solid black Darth Vader, the year before was R2D2, his lunch box this year is BB8. His bedding is Kylo Ren. Room decor is a hodgepodge of a Millennium Falcon painting, a large framed hologramish picture of Stormtroopers, and two smaller Yoda and Luke paintings. With a Darth Vader alarm clock and Kylo Ren's lightsaber as a wall mounted nightlight. He's a huge fan, and he couldn't care less about the timeline, he loves the characters for what they are.

GoofGoofSep 20, 2017

We can agree to disagree. I think the majority of WDW guests will expect to see Darth Vader somewhere in a Star Wars Land. I don't disagree that the new trilogy is popular as well. If they built the land with characters only from the original trilogy I think we would hear the same complaints of where is Kylo Ren or BB8. I think people want to see all of their favorite characters. I also don't think most people think of it as having to be limited to only one set of movies. Like I said in the beginning of this discussion the original Jedi Training Academy had both Vader and Darth Maul who shouldn't be together if you follow strict Star Wars cannon. That show was wildly popular and I never personally heard a person complain that it didn't fit a specific timeline. Most of the insiders here seem to think that Star Tours will be rethemed to something non-Star Wars once the big push of crowds settles down for the land. One of the reason a few of us were questioning why they didn't build a show theater in the new Star Wars Land for Jedi Training is that it won't have a home once Star Tours goes. It's still pretty popular for kids so I hope they keep it around but it doesn't seem like it will fit.

Jones14Sep 20, 2017

I don't have kids, so I would not be able to speak to how they view the franchise outside of my friends who have them. From what I gather, BB-8 (understandably) rules the land these days, but I don't even have enough good friends with kids to make a general statement on what they like the most. I'm not saying that there's only the two groups, but those were the two you compared (hardcore fans and the general public, which I took to mean non-fans), so those were the two I addressed. I definitely disagree with you on the notion that most casual fans will be upset that the land isn't based during the original trilogy, though. The new trilogy seems to be going over well with casual fans, and Vader will still be present as long as Jedi Training and/or Star Tours is around. There are definitely going to be outliers, but I really think that the only way the majority of visitors would be dissastisfied is if they showed up to find a land based on the prequels. Going with the new trilogy makes the most amount of people happy, and gives them wiggle room to keep a few old favorites around.

GoofGoofSep 20, 2017

I'm not getting into some sort of academic debate over which characters are most popular. I think it's pretty safe to say that outside of maybe Luke, Darth Vader is the most well known and iconic character from the series. You are implying there are 2 groups, those who are hardcore SW fans and everyone else. If I had to generalize I would say there are really 3 general groups not just 2. At one extreme there is a group of people who have never seen Star Wars and couldn't care less about it and although they probably know who Darth Vader is they don't care if he appears in the land or not. There is another large group in the middle who are at least casual fans of the movies and are pretty familiar with the characters and would have an opinion one way or the other. Then there is the other extreme which is the hardcore fan base that will worry about every detail. When I said the general public I meant the ones from the middle group who would actually care. I agree there are some people out there who just don't care. It's just my opinion that the group who are fans but not hardcore Star Wars nerds is a pretty large group and will want to see Darth Vader and other classic characters in a Star Wars Land. It's not just me, how many other people have commented in this thread just today that they were surprised or disappointed that the new land is limited to the new trilogy.

21stampsSep 20, 2017

Do you have kids? I'm asking because some of the comments here aren't taking children into account whatsoever. Ya know, the kids who's parents buy all of the Star Wars merchandise- toys, clothes, costumes, backpacks, school supplies, bedding, room decor, etc etc.

ᗩLᘿᑕ ✨ ᗩζᗩᗰSep 19, 2017

Trails of the Temple. It's so obvious! Now I understand the reasoning behind the rename. In a few years time, when "the land" is ready for ground-breaking all WDI has to do is just slap some paint on this attraction and give it a new premise that has children limbo-ing under poisonous blow darts, deciphering tribal hieroglyphs and mastering a bullwhip. Instead of bulldozing they'll just work it into the new Indiana Jones mini-land. :cautious:

Jones14Sep 19, 2017

And how do you know that the general public wants Vader and Maul and Boba Fett? Everyone I know who would not be classified as a Star Wars fan could not care less about which characters end up in the land. Hell, most of them don't even know that there's going to be more than one ride, or that the First Order is even a different thing than the Empire. There's stormtroopers, Tie Fighters, and a bad guy in a cloak with a red lightsaber. That's all they know, and all they care about. On the other hand, the hardcore Star Wars fans I know are happy that they're getting rid of the timeline issues by setting it in a particular time, and are super excited to get to fly the Millenium Falcon (a situation made possible due to the timeline and location). Not only is it not an issue, it's good for everyone, fans and average joes alike.

GoofGoofSep 19, 2017

Apples and Oranges. There is already a SW area at DHS. If they wanted to add an Indy land at DHS and there were both a Raiders ride and a Temple of Doom ride I wouldn't care that 2 bad guys who don't overlap in the films both appear in the land. All that I'm saying is it's a missed opportunity to limit the new SW land to only new trilogy characters because of some desire to appeal to hard core SW fans. Give the rest of the public what they want which is Vader and Maul and bobba Fett.