Why Avengers Campus Is Better Than Galaxy’s Edge

It’s a controversial take, I know… but I think Avengers Campus is a superior experience at the Disneyland Resort compared to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

Avengers Campus Vs. Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

Hear me out…

When you visit a Disney park, there are certain basic levels of expectation that most people have for their day.  Ride some attractions, see some characters, maybe catch a show, eat some food and shop.  But the biggest key to a Disney park experience, as they’ve repeatedly said themselves, is the MAGIC.  It’s that extra ingredient that makes a Disney park visit different than any other location.

And I’d argue by nearly every measure, Avengers Campus is a more magical experience than Galaxy’s Edge. 

Character Experiences

Let’s start with the most obvious difference: the characters.

If you’re a Star Wars fan, those characters have historically split their time between Tomorrowland and Galaxy’s Edge.

If you’re a Marvel fan, for a few years there was Super Hero HQ in Tomorrowland. And a few years after that, there was the Hollywood Backlot, which featured regular visits from Spider-Man, Captain America, Thor & Loki. Later this expanded to include Black Panther and Captain Marvel, along with seasonal visits from characters ranging from Doctor Strange to Black Widow and Hawkeye.

But Avengers Campus from its opening day was a character destination.  If you want to visit a place that averages 15-20 characters out in a single day, go to Avengers Campus. I’ve rarely even seen Fantasyland match what the Campus offers daily from opening to closing time.

Do I even need to point out, by contrast, the paltry few characters that Galaxy’s Edge has hosted regularly since it opened?  Kylo Ren, his Stormtroopers and a First Order commander, Chewbacca and Rey, Vi Moradi (who most people seem to think is just another cosplayer wandering around if they notice her at all) and if you want to count a remote-controlled R2-D2 that’s really just a large expensive toy for sale as a character, then go for it. But I’d equate that to calling a spider-bot toy a “character” or any of the Droid Depot creations as well. Or maybe a Porg puppet.

The few characters found here only emphasize the tremendous amount of popular characters who are missing from this “Star Wars land”.  There’s no Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Darth Vader, or Lando Calrissian. No C-3PO to travel with R2-D2. Not to mention Darth Maul, Anakin Skywalker, Padme Amidala, Qui-Gon Jinn, Mace Windu or Palpatine/Darth Sidious. Or Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso or Saw Gerrera.  Heck, where are Finn and Poe?! Nowhere to be seen.

To quote Master Yoda: That is why you fail.

But it’s not just about the quantity of character interactions that make Avengers Campus so special; it’s about the quality.

At Avengers Campus, I’ve danced and joked with Star-Lord, had in depth conversations with Thor about his family dynamics, been taught magic by Doctor Strange, listened to Loki debate heroes over my loyalty and had Captain Marvel question my taste in favorite characters based on my outfit. I’ve welcomed new characters to Avengers Campus and learned how they were settling in and discussed their new friendships with their fellow Avengers. I’ve been given messages to relay between characters and then sent off to provide responses in return.  I’ve watched the characters just hang out and chat with each other and initiate games with guests. In short, I’ve had more fun playing with the characters here than anywhere else in the Disneyland Resort.

Creating those core memories with characters?  Magical.

Of course, the reason you can get all these incredible interactions is because Avengers Campus doesn’t suffer from the “timelocked” issue that Galaxy’s Edge does.  In fact, no other land does.  In Fantasyland, Peter Pan can talk to Merida or Aladdin or Gaston.  Princess Tiana can acknowledge Captain Jack Sparrow or Miguel from Coco while passing through the area where New Orleans Square borders Frontierland. Nowhere except Galaxy’s Edge restricts character interactions from different stories or “timelines”.

Avengers Campus wholeheartedly embraces its shared multiverse. For instance, here are a few moments that I have caught where different characters interact with each other:

• Star-Lord & Gamora, with Captain America and Thor

• Black Widow, Captain America, America Chavez, and Shang-Chi

This flexibility of timelines allows the heroes to meet up so this kind of spontaneous fun can happen:

• Avengers charades with multiple characters

• Red Light-Green Light with Thor and America Chavez

And that’s just a few of the characters providing their own entertainment to guests!  That doesn’t begin to acknowledge the sheer amount of shows in Avengers Campus, which again, is superior to any other land in the Resort:

• The Amazing Spider-Man! – stuntronic and character encounter
• Avengers: Assemble – stunt show (which has multiple versions featuring Black Panther and Captain America helping out Black Widow)
• Doctor Strange: Mysteries of the Mystic Arts – magic show
• Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Dance Off! – interactive dance show
• Warriors of Wakanda: The Disciplines of the Dora Milaje – interactive training show

All of which run daily.

Galaxy’s Edge has… Chewbacca occasionally trying to fix a broken ship?  And Kylo Ren force-choking a First Order officer before wandering into the crowd.

Not so magical.

Avengers Campus is also constantly updated with new characters introduced with each film and streaming series release.  As soon as you’ve seen them onscreen, you can meet them on Campus!

Magical!

Galaxy’s Edge has finally started to copy some of the Avengers Campus’ model by belatedly adding a few limited-time appearance characters who don’t even interact with the regular characters there.  Because wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey.  Or whatever.

Definitely not magical.

And even those few new characters have shown up in a less than timely manner.

Attractions

Let’s move on to one of the biggest arguments: attractions.

Yes, the E-Ticket Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT was a refreshed version of an existing attraction annexed into a new land.

But it’s still one of the most popular attractions in the park.  And it gets a holiday overlay every Halloween Time.  And it works more reliably than the much newer Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.

As for the D-Ticket in each land, WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure beats Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run on every metric: it can be ridden by those of all ages, with no height restrictions and everyone can participate equally – not just the two people piloting a spaceship while everyone else presses a button and stares at the back of the seat in front of them!

A grandma and a toddler getting to help a hero together on a family-friendly attraction? Magical.

Guests not allowed onto a thrill ride at all or staring at a chair while other people have fun playing pilot? Not magical.

Shopping

Once you’ve exited the attractions in either land, you may want to hit some of the stores. Ironically, while there are plenty of buying opportunities in Galaxy’s Edge, there aren’t enough shops in Avengers Campus! In fact, the main merchandise location to buy Marvel stuff is in another land completely!  Can you imagine Disney building a land without enough stores in it?!  But there Avengers Campus is – not shouting “spend spend spend” from every nook and cranny. Yes, it has a Guardians of the Galaxy-themed store, a Spider-Man-themed store and one lone kiosk.  If you want to shop Marvel, go over to the Backlot!

By contrast, the entire center of Galaxy’s Edge is a marketplace and two of the major activities – build a light saber or build a droid – are upcharge shopping experiences.

Food

When it comes to food, Avengers Campus features a themed quick service (as does Galaxy’s Edge), a bar that everyone can easily access without requiring reservations to enter (unlike Galaxy’s Edge), and multiple themed snack carts.

Theming

Okay, let’s talk about that theming.

True, the Galaxy’s Edge rockwork is nice. Though even Cars Land’s rockwork is grander, warmer and more inviting. In fact, it’s an argument for another day that Cars Land is one of the best lands at the Disneyland Resort, behind only Fantasyland and New Orleans Square. However, cold-toned rockwork in a war-torn town – even with a beautiful nostalgic spaceship in it – does not a great land make.

Yes, even given the one “wow” moment the first time you see the massive Millennium Falcon parked in front of you.  Which granted, is really impressive… until you realize you don’t actually get to go inside of it.

You only pay attention to the rocks at Galaxy’s Edge because there’s not much else to look at in this rundown spaceport with junked droids and ship parts. It’s all just one big mix of brown and grey… stuff.

By contrast, you don’t pay attention to the plain concrete and brickwork of the majority of Avengers Campus because there’s so much activity constantly going on there.  I’m not saying it wouldn’t have been wonderful to see Wakanda or Asgard brought to life, but they simply didn’t fit the chosen overall theme of “Disney California Adventure,” and perhaps a very limited budget. So it is what it is.

I will also point out that Avengers Campus is home to one of the smallest but most beautiful corners of the Disneyland Resort – the Ancient Sanctum, which is fantastically evoked from the golden Sanctum ruins with sparkling lanterns overhead to the mystical portal photo spot to the vivid Orb of Cagliostro, which changes colors along with its mood throughout the day and night.

This place is literally magical.

And I’ll argue the view of the Quinjet against the Mission: BREAKOUT backdrop is gorgeous, morning and night.

Which brings me to another point – it may look generically industrial by day, but the Campus looks fantastic in the evenings, really reiterating that Disney California Adventure as a whole is far more attractive with all its lights on at night than it is by day.  See: Cars Land, Pixar Pier, the Carthay Circle, the winding path around Grizzly Peak, etc. 

And one last big one: atmosphere music.

Avengers Campus has stirring Marvel themes playing constantly throughout the land. The Collector’s Warehouse store plays an awesome mix ongoing overhead. I sometimes go in there just for the tunes!

The last time I went to Galaxy’s Edge I heard… crickets. Okay, I heard spaceship noises.  Where is the John Williams soundtrack?! As I said… crickets.

Showdown Outcome?

So let’s run down that checklist for Avengers Campus:

• All the characters – Win
• Not timelocked – Win
• Regular updates – Win
• Entertainment/Shows – Win
• E-Ticket that breaks down less – Win
• E-Ticket holiday overlay – Win
• D-Ticket that all ages can enjoy and actively participate in – Win
• Not a themed shopping mall – Win
• Dining/Beverage locations everyone can easily access – Win
• Ancient Sanctum’s small corner of bright and colorful beauty vs. anywhere in Galaxy’s Edge gray rocks and beige town – Win

Hopefully now my love for Avengers Campus seems like a less controversial take, and the next time you stroll through the land, you’ll appreciate it just a bit more for everything it has to offer – marvel and magic!

 

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