Marvel City
Inspired by the mecca for Marvel comic-book superheros and villains, the newest land at Disney's California Adventure will be themed to the Marvel Hollywood version of New York City directly adapted from the film cinematic universe, featuring an eclectic variety of your favorite characters.
The land will be situated in the expansion pad behind Tower of Terror. There will be two entrances to the area. One from A Bug's Land and the other from Cars Land.
The transition from both of the areas will be somewhat similar, as you will enter a small brownstown city street from both sides, as a smoother gateway into the larger "city."
The main "weenie" of the land will be Avengers Tower...
Avengers Tower
A 110 ft tall structure relying on forced perspective from different angles of the park will be home to the main E-ticket of the land, Avengers: Assemble.
Avengers: Assemble is an exhilarating hybrid dark ride using a first of its kind ride system that WDI recently patented called a RAV - Rotational Automated Vehicle - with the capability of immersing guests in a 360 degree visceral ride experience with unparalleled technology. The RAV can extend vehicles out into the action, up, down, left, right, to create a one of a kind dark ride attraction unlike anything seen in Disney Parks.
The interactive queue will take guests on a tour of Avengers Tower where you are shadowing the Avengers for a day.
You are greeted by an Iron Legion AA and are whisked through the tower, walk through the labs, see the sleeping quarters, take an "elevator" to the top (using the old hydrulator effect - except this time going up), walk through the lounge/party areas, and ultimately to the quinjet hanger.
It is there you are briefed by Maria Hill that HYDRA has gotten hold of Tesseract, probably from Loki trying to cause problems, and the Avengers are called into action. Tony Stark recommends that we (the guests) go with the Avengers on the mission. Cap and Tony bicker back and forth, some jokes are thrown, but ultimately we get to go with them.
You then proceed to the load area...
Scene 1 - Avengers Assemble to retrieve the space gem from Hydra in Sokovia
Scene 2 - Arrival and Cap giving orders (slow dark ride scene with AAs)
Scene 3 - The Hulk (Hulk picks up your vehicle and you go sailing around smashing stuff)
Scene 4 - The Battle (A mix of physical sets and projection screens)
Scene 5 - Cap taking down the shield to the HYDRA base
Scene 6 - You dive with Falcon and enter the base
Scene 7 - Ultron arrives, clashes with Iron Man and the Avengers arrive (slow dark ride scene)
Scene 8 - The team battles Ultron bots and HYDRA - Ultron defeated...but amid the chaos the space gem opens the portal to Thanos
Scene 9 - Thanos arrives with Infinity Gauntlet and raises the base in the air (slow dark ride scene as your vehicles ascend)
Scene 10 - Thor taunts Thanos as the landscape elevates further to the Mad Titan, Thanos as he grins.
Scene 11 - Suddenly, the Guardians of the Galaxy show up and help save the day by destroying the portal to space and Thanos' ship
Scene 12 - Portal destroyed, but the landscape begins falling to earth, Iron-Man and Thor team up and use force to destroy the landscape before it crashes down. Vision saves a trapped Scarlet-Witch just in the nick of time. As the ride ends, Hulk saves Iron Man and the team celebrates with a victory.
Below is a storyboard simulation of the scenes above. While riding on the R.A.V, the technology puts you face to face with all of these characters as if you're the star of the films. Just pause the music and give it a try!
Sanctum Sanctorum
After the smash-hit film in 2016, Dr. Strange, the Marvel Cinematic Universe was introduced to the world of magic. Sanctum Sanctorum, the home of Dr. Strange, is located near Midtown and Avengers Tower. It will house a brand-new theater experience for guests when it opens along with the rest of the land.
The Sorcerer Supreme
A 25-minute theater show journeying with Dr. Strange on his quest to complete the Ancient One's task by entering the Dark Dimension and battling Dormammu throughout the different realms of the MCU.
For reference:
Dr Steven Strange - former narcissistic neurosurgeon who lost his hands in a car accident and travels to the Ancient One in the Himalayas, who teaches him magic and how to travel to other dimensions. His ego has somewhat dwindled without hands and Dr. Strange is on a desperate quest to gain his career back but at the same time learns all these amazing magical realms.
The Ancient One - a "Yoda" type figure, but one with a less-pure history. Sometimes Dr. Strange's best interests are not thought of.
Dormammu - arch-enemy of Dr. Strange in the comics and film. Ruler of the parallel universe Dr. Strange is traveling to in order to accomplish the Ancient One's task.
Overall, this one of a kind 3D show will bring guests along for the ride through the bizarre yet mesmerizing visuals from the film and comics.
Act 1 - The Dark Dimension
You travel with Dr. Strange carrying the eye of Agamotto (allowing him to travel through other dimensions) and you happen upon the Ancient One's request of entering the Dark Dimension. As seen by the imagery, the Dark Dimension is a parallel universe with distorted time and space. Steven Strange continues on the journey, stepping over the three green leaps of faith (seen above) to proceed. A few 3D effects stream by the audience as he ventures into the unknown.
Act 2 - Battling Shuma Gorath in The Dark Dimension
Suddenly, the large beast, Shuma Gorath, defender of the Dark Dimension, arrives and Dr. Strange uses magic and mysticism to ward off the evil foe. Theatrical special effects, 4D effect such as water and seat rumblings when a curse is thrown at the monster, add to the intensity of the scene, however after time, Dr. Strange bests the beast and continues on his journey while the Ancient One can be heard saying that "the journey has just begun"
Act 3 - Unlocking Another Realm
As Dr. Strange continues through the Dark Dimension he happens upon a doorway to another dimension. He suspects that the Ancient One's request is in the next dimension. The doorway is open and out steps Dormammu, Dr. Strange's arch-enemy andevil ruler of the parallel universes. Dr. Strange knows he must fight Dormammu if he hopes to accomplish the Ancient One's task.
Act 4 - The Final Confrontation
Dr. Strange battles Dormammu in an epic battle with spectacular special effects and imagery on screen as they fly through these other-worldy scenes. Dr. Strange ultimately bests Dormammu, but travels back to the Ancient One with the eye of Agamotto, saying that the task is to great, however the Ancient One replies that he has passed his task successfully, as the task all along was just to develop the courage to enter that new realm.
Midtown High School
In 2017, Disney/Marvel and Sony's joint film, Spider-Man, re-branded the character as a 15-year old high schooler who not only has to deal with being a kid, but also the tribulations of being a superhero in this expansive universe. Much of the film took place in Peter Parker's High School and now, we bring that experience to you.
As you enter Midtown High School you realize the inside actually looks like a high school. Lockers line the walls, the principals office is down the hall (the principal's door has the initials J.J.J. - a reference to J.J. Jameson, Peter Parker's boss at the Daily Bugle.)
In front of you is the school's gymnasium where today, Midtown High School is hosting a "Spider-Man" day, where they have fun-filled interactive games, and a chance to meet Spider-Man himself at certain times of the day!
Walking into the high school's gymnasium, you see a wide variety of games and activities, with a banner above that reads "Interactive Spidey-Zone". This area is equipped with places to charge your phones, benches to relax on, and many things for everyone in the family to enjoy.
Based on the blueprint above, here's a rundown of some of the features this area has to offer.
Interactive Spidey-Zone
A - Web Slingers -test out your own web-shooters in this interactive area where you get to aim your web shooters at targets on the wall and win prizes.
B - Spidey Sense - see if you have the perception of Spider-Man as play this virtual reality game and attempt to react before the Green Goblin gets you!
C - Goblin's Quest - Play this arcade style game where you travel to the Goblin's cave and face off in a one on one showdown.
D - Spider-Shop - try and take good photos of Spider-Man for the Daily Bugle as you test your photoshop skills in this booth.
E - Wall Crawlers - a rock climbing wall themed to Spider-Man as you try to be the spider and climb up the incline.
F - Bug Eyes Club - a club for all superheros named after bugs. In this small, walk-through exhibit, you see corny pictures of the club's meetings, with Ant-Man, Wasp, Black Widow, and Spider-Man in attendance.
G - Design Station - try and design your own version of the Spider suit in this center.
Midtown High School Cafeteria
While cafeteria food may not seem appealing to some, in the comic-book movie world at Midtown High School, the food is not only healthy, but delicious. This buffet-style cafeteria boosts an assortment of fruits, veggies, soups, meats, pastas, and fish.
The Bookstore
Midtown High School's bookstore adjacent to the cafeteria acts as the gift shop in this land, selling all kinds of Spider-Man merchandise unique to Disney's California Adventure...like the Spider-Man hoodie, worn in Captain America:Civil War, or the Spider-Goggles.
Spider-Man Meet and Greet
In the school's library, meet Spider-Man, have him sign an autograph, and have it be a way to bring out the kid in everyone.
Hell's Kitchen
The last "attraction" component of the Marvel City is themed to The Defenders, a team of street-level superheros whose stories are told through the episodic series on Netflix. The members of the team are Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist. In the MCU, Hell's Kitchen is a dangerous place, and in this land, it will be no different. Acting as our "Knockturn Alley-type" location, this area will be grimy and grim, with seedy brownstones hovering over the guests.
However there is light at the end of the tunnel, as you can see the law offices of Nelson and Murdock, or the Alias Investigation office of Jessica Jones, or have a drink at "Luke's" - the bar Luge Cage owns in the series.
Overall, Hell's Kitchen is an area that entices exploration. It is a completely transparent landscape, allowing free access to guess to discover all the areas of the land on their own, most of which they will recognize from the series, such as an art gallery on the corner of Hell's Kitchen and Midtown...
Overview of Restaurants/Shops
Shawarma cafe from Avengers next to Avengers Tower
Midtown High School Cafeteria
Luke's - bar from Jessica Jones.
Merchants of S.H.I.E.L.D - located by Avengers Tower
The Punisher's Goods - "stolen" merchandise themed to The Defenders - located in Hell's Kitchen.
