Page 79 - CelebrationsSpring2020

signature red lightsaber blade cuts through the roof of the elevator. Just as Kylo is about to break through, another door opens and the ride vehicles move towards a wall of windows, where an epic battle between Resistance and First Order ships can be seen taking place outside. The ride vehicles pass directly underneath three massive laser canons blasting fire towards the Resistance forces on the outside. With each blast, the Star Destroyer canons move backwards. With the Star Destroyer taking significant damage from the Resistance forces, Finn warns you, “Attention, all Resistance personnel. Abandon ship! I repeat, abandon ship!”
Kylo Ren then appears in Audio-Animatronic form, and seemingly uses the Force to move the ride vehicles as he yells: “There’s no escape. You will tell me the location of the secret base. And then I will destroy you and the Resistance!”
Suddenly, a massive blast cracks a whole in the Star Destroyer’s hull directly behind Kylo. This is another great effect, as video screens make it appear as though there is an actual hole in the Destroyer as Kylo struggles to not be sucked through the opening. The Audio-Animatronic character fluidly bends and sways as portions of the ship’s wall are pulled out into space.
Thanks to that distraction, the ride vehicles are able to make their way to a First Order Short-Range Evacuation Vehicle (an escape pod to you and me). This is the climax of the attraction, a dramatic, heart-pumping plunge down
from the Star Destroyer. The escape pods then turn into motion simulators and dodge more First Order fire before racing back towards Batuu for a crash landing. Poe and Finn both offer congratulations:
Poe: Your escape routes came in a little off target. Ground crews will meet you outside the wreck.
Finn: Alright! Nice job recruits! Not what you signed on for. But hey, you’re Resistance now! I think I have that authority...right Bek? Where’s the Lieutenant? I need eyes on Bek.”
The vehicles then move down an exterior path when they see another escape pod that has crashed nearby. Lieutenant Bek made it back to Batuu in one piece also!
Rise of the Resistance Fun Facts
• The video screens on the Transport ship when departing Batuu and on the escape pod returning to Batuu show daytime or nighttime scenes, depending on the time of day that you ride.
• If you look closely at the flight helmets displayed in the attraction queue, you might see what appear to be small Tie-Fighter stickers attached to those helmets, presumably indicators for how many of the enemy ships that particular pilot has taken down.
• The Play Disney app can be used to interpret many items in the attraction queue that are labeled with the words using the Star Wars alphabet “Aurebesh.”
Photos © Disney
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