To say a lot is riding on the long rumored and discussed Avengers Campus e-ticket attraction is an understatement. Much like the Avengers in Infinity War, I think Disney needs to do “whatever it takes” to make this ride a success. The ride has already gone through a number of iterations in under a decade. Last year it was announced that the original Wakanda-based version of the ride had been scrapped. And to be fair, that version looked pretty cool.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE AVENGERS E-TICKET RIDE AT DCA DISNEYLAND
The ride “vehicles” for the original version are seen below and included a “jet” that would breakout into individual flight suits.
As far as I could piece together, the original version of the Avengers Ride was a hyped-up version of Flight of Passage, the Avatar ride in Pandora at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Florida. If you’ve been on FOP imagine that Quin-Jet room, seen in the artwork the right, as the room where you first mount your Banshee on FOP. Instead of getting synced to your Avatar, the the walls drop and you’re now in the middle of the fight, as seen in the artwork on the above right.
Pretty cool but, like those lost in the blip, that idea is no more and, unlike those in the blip, is probably not coming back. That was four years ago. And the new version, announced last year at the D23 Expo in 2022, featured a more traditional ride vehicle for a new multiverse focused story involving a world where “Thanos had won” and had become “King Thanos”. It was introduced along with some updated artwork and I wrote about that new theme and artwork here: https://noscoopsclub.com/2022/09/11/d23-concept-art-king-thanos/
I think I actually like this story better. That’s right, even with all the revisions and delays, I’m still excited about this ride. And the ride HAS to work. It HAS to be awesome. I know that MANY are doubtful. But I don’t think Disney can miss this time. Considering the other two rides within Avengers Campus are (1.) a (disappointing to some) shooting gallery ride in WEB SLINGERS: A SPIDER-MAN ADVENTURE and (2.) GUARDIANS: MISSION BREAKOUT – a Tower of Terror re-theme that pre-dated the actual Avengers Campus opening (and even announcement!) by a few years and isn’t even Disney’s best GUARDIANS ride anymore (that belongs to Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT in Florida)! Don’t get me wrong – I love both of these rides. But I just don’t think they have the “OH WOW” factor that a Cosmic Rewind, Rise of The Resistance, or even Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway have for a lot of people. So a lot is riding on the success of the King Thanos ride to solidify the relevancy of DCA’s Avengers Campus and to mark it as THE Marvel destination.
THE NEW RIDE VEHICLE HAS SOME SIMILARITIES TO ANOTHER SOON TO BE OPENED RIDE
So when Disney offered a small update this morning at Destination D23, their bi-annual fan event that occurs at the Contemporary Resort at Disney World my ears perked up and the imagineers had my attention. The new artwork is below:
Now after seeing the King Thanos concept art, some have speculated that the King Thanos ride might be using a similar ride system to the Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland or Transformers at Universal Studios. But I don’t think that’s the case. I don’t think Disney would copy anything Universal did 10 years ago, let alone something that Disney themselves did 25 years ago. Instead of a re-tread, last year I speculated that the vehicle pictured was similar to Shanghai Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean ride, a high tech souped-up version of the classic ride found at Disney parks across the globe and also similar to the highly anticipated Peter Pan’s Neverland Adventure ride coming to Fantasy Springs at Tokyo DisneySea.
The reveal this morning confirmed that it is wildly similar to the latter: the upcoming Peter Pan’s Neverland Adventure at Tokyo DisneySea.
When Peter Pan’s Neverland Adventure was announced back in 2018, Disney hinted that the ride would take guests on a journey both on the high seas and up into the skies.
A few months later, they officially described the ride as this: “Join Peter Pan in an adventure to rescue Wendy’s younger brother, John, who has been kidnapped by Captain Hook and his pirates. Guests board boats and follow the Lost Boys down a river. When Tinker Bell sprinkles the boats with pixie dust, Guests find themselves flying through Never Land on an unprecedented adventure that features iconic music and dynamic 3D imagery of the characters from the film.” These descriptions are important because the boat appears to be built to be a dual simulator capable of multiple distinct motions; specifically sailing and flying in the case of Peter Pan.
WHAT THE RIDE VEHICLE MEANS FOR THE RIDE
My hope is that the King Thanos Avengers ride comes with a similar multi-purpose capability. And if we turn to the description of King Thanos ride vehicle from this morning, we start to see dual narrative objectives for the ride vehicle – just like the one used for Peter Pan. This morning, the King Thanos ride vehicle was described by Disney as a “vehicle that can transport guests to remote worlds in a matter of moments. This new vehicle combines portal technology and flight capabilities to maneuver through the skies, meaning heroes can deploy anywhere they’re needed.” So look at that. Even the descriptions are starting to sound like the rides might be aimed towards similar capabilities in story (sea and air/ land and air) therefore further hinting at similar ride systems. But what is this system?
SO WHAT IS THE RIDE?
Well, a ride system showcased in the Imagineering Story on Disney Plus looks similar enough that it might be the prototype, hidden in plain sight, for both Peter Pan’s Neverland Adventure AND the King Thanos ride. The rides system below could then be theoretically integrated with a Soarin’ or Flight of Passage type boarding system and operational capacity to give a brand new high-tech high-energy version of these classic rides. The screenshots below are from the Walt Disney Imagineering story, previously seen on Disney Plus. And while there was no confirmation that these were at all associated with the Avengers Campus King Thanos e-ticket ride – or even Peter Pan’s Neverland Adventure, I think they look like they might be. The photo on the left showcases the prototype and the photo on the right shows a POV of the riders as they look ahead at a river.
That being said, to the dismay of some, this would mean that King Thanos would at its heart still be a “screen ride” but, due to the ride vehicle and the new technology, I think it will be original and revolutionary enough (like Soarin’ was 20 years ago and Flight of Passage was 5 years ago) that it could become a banner e-ticket ride for the park for years TO COME.
If we get something that is an innovative, high capacity, and fun ride (like Flight of Passage – also a “screen ride”) then its legacy is assured. And at least we know now to keep an eye on Peter Pan’s Neverland Adventure when Fantasy Springs opens at Tokyo DisneySea next spring. That ride may give us an idea of what the King Thanos Avengers Ride just might be. So yes, I still have high hopes for King Thanos. Disney knows they need to deliver and make Avengers Campus an even more desirable destination and a true anchor for DCA. And having the best Marvel ride on the planet at Avengers Campus (and not on the other side of the country) is a definite step in that direction.
What do you think – are you still excited for King Thanos’ Avengers ride? If you enjoyed the blog, please give it a like – and thanks for reading!
No Scoops Club 
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