Experiencing Galaxy’s Edge In Person

Star Wars

Aug 9

My family and I were very lucky to go to Disney World last month. We had quite a few good milestones occur, so what better way to celebrate? Even my parents joined us as this was a true family celebration. We planned the trip for months, and the boys and I agreed right away on the first part of our itinerary: we wanted to go to Hollywood Studios first and go to what we affectionately called “Star Wars Land” - Galaxy’s Edge.

From our hotel, we were able to ride the Skyliner to Hollywood Studios, which was truly a dramatic experience to get to our first Disney Parks Destination. Getting off, we joined the line of people who also were up bright and early for morning exploits. We didn’t go directly to Galaxy’s Edge, as my son’s wanted to start our their day by going on the Aerosmith Rock & Roll roller coaster. But, as soon as they got that out of their system, off we went!

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We followed the signs to Galaxy’s Edge which was off in its own section of the park. As soon as we got near to this entrance, the whole atmosphere seemed to undergo a transformation: the Galaxy’s Edge section has its own landscape, looking like a less sandy Tatooine, and it’s supposed to be a trading center. Indeed, its official name is the Black Spire Outpost, set on the Outer Rim planet of Batuu. My mom said that it felt like she “was in another world once she entered Galaxy’s Edge”. There were many rocks in the terrain, and the main color that caught my eye was brown. The many trading centers (read: gift shops) were set into the rocky caves and had dim lighting, adding to the effect. Personally, I could feel tears forming in my eyes because I was so happy to be there!

As soon as we entered Galaxy’s Edge, we saw the signs for the interactive experience, “Rise of the Resistance”. I asked if it was like a roller coaster because, unlike my very adventurous children, I do not enjoy roller coasters! I was assured that it was not, and that assurance was enough for even my REALLY non-adventurous mother to give it a try! This was the only ride that all seven of us went on together. This was the attraction that had the longest wait time, but it wasn’t too bad - my husband texted a friend of his while we were in line, and his friend told him that when “Rise of the Resistance” first came out, the line could take over half of the day! So, the almost hour we waited wasn’t that big of a deal by comparison.

As we wound our way through the setting that served for us to get on the Resistance ship to become Resistance fighters, the line did move right along. There were props set up to make it a very realistic experience, which really hit home with my mother. She was rather spooked by the environment, and she later explained to me that to her, “it was presented that you were going down, one-way, away from everyone, and there’s no way out”.

We finally made it onto the Resistance transport, and I was thrilled to see Nien Nunb, and Admiral Ackbar! The technology used to make this ride was outstanding, as the whole ship had windows that opened up to different scenes outside the transport, and you really felt like you were in the fight, then getting captured.

And this is where this attraction really differed from any other ride I had ever been on: once you get captured by the First Order, you get off of this part of the experience and you are herded by cast members who, according to my husband, make the experience VERY authentic!) into a different ride where you are split into small groups in order to escape from Kylo Ren on the Star Destroyer! As the trackless pod zips around, Kylo Ren is after you!

My oldest son said that his favorite part of this ride was having Kylo Ren push the the pods back and forth using his Force powers! My youngest son said that it was “Very cool! Especially the part where the ceiling fell in on Kylo Ren”. There was a slight drop, which caused my mom and I to clutch onto each other, but we got through it in one piece!

After this very awesome, immersive experience, my youngest said that it was time for him to fulfill his life-long dream he has had since he was three years old (he is now eleven): building his own droid, like he had seen on commercials. He had mentioned this before we left for our trip, so it was no surprise, and I told him that we could look into it. When we found the Droid Depot, we were asked if we had made reservations, but, even though we hadn’t, we could walk right up to the counter and pick out what he wanted to build. I was concerned about the cost, but compared to what a similar Lego set or even a sophisticated toy like this would cost at Target, it was pretty reasonable, especially for a remote-control movable, light-up with sound effects droid. Plus, he had some of his own money, too.

Naffy picked out an R2 model droid, and he was able to pick out the needed parts from a moving conveyor belt. We then headed over to the workshop station, where a nice cast member gave Naffy directions to make his droid. This involved using a small drill, which, of course, was exciting to my tween child. Of course, I also got to use the drill as we assembled, realized something wasn’t quite so, disassembled, then reassembled. Finally, the droid (later named Roddy) was finished! Naffy told the cast member who helped us that he must make a lot of money with all of the droids that were being build there. The cast member nicely told my little tyke that he had to work off his debt to the Hutts. Again, proving what my husband noticed about the cast members - they were definitely authentic!

When finished, Naffy, my oldest son, and I decided to continue our Star Wars journey, but our fellow travelers chose other paths within Hollywood Studios. We followed the maps to find Smuggler’s Run. This line moved a lot faster than “Rise of the Resistance”. Once we got up to the front of the line, an animatronic Hondo Ohnaka gives directions to the waiting crowd on how to help him on his smuggling mission!

Honestly, this was one of the most exciting parts of the entire park for me and my oldest son - WE LOVE HONDO! I was also happy to realize that Jim Cummings, who we have met at Motor City Comic Con twice, has done the voice for Hondo for this ride. We were split into groups of six: the first two were the pilots, the two in the middle were the gunners, and the two in the back are the engineers. I was an engineer, and it was pretty nifty to press the buttons and try to figure out what they all did. My sons were the pilots, and they realized that if they steered the wrong way, they would crash our ship, the Millennium Falcon. We had a lot of fun on this ride.

It was a very special day. My sons and I fulfilled a dream to really be in the Star Wars Universe, and I have a very supportive family that may not share these dreams, but they encourage us to follow them. And now we have a droid that follows you around the house.

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