
Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters - 20th Anniversary
Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin in Florida (also known as Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters in California, Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast in Paris and Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue in Shanghai) is an interactive shooting dark ride attraction located in the Tomorrowland area of the Disney theme parks. Designed by Walt Disney Imagineering, this attraction combines a carnival game and a third-generation Omnimover system. It is inspired by Disney/Pixar's Toy Story franchise, and contains several elements loosely based on the cartoon series Buzz Lightyear of Star Command. The attraction first opened at Magic Kingdom on November 3, 1998. Subsequent versions can be found at Disneyland, Disneyland Park in Paris, and Shanghai Disneyland. Although each ride may have a different name, all share the same major plot and characters. The ride formerly existed at Hong Kong Disneyland under the name Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters, but was closed in September 2017, and Tokyo Disneyland Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters, but was closed in October 31, 2024. For a brief period from the Shanghai version's opening in 2016 until the Hong Kong version's closure in 2017, and Japan version's closure in 2024, the attraction was only one of two that could be found at all six Disney castle parks worldwide (the other attraction being Dumbo the Flying Elephant). The backstory of the ride revolves around the attempts of Evil Emperor Zurg (voiced by Ken Mitchroney[4] in Space Ranger Spin, Tesshō Genda in Astro Blasters at Tokyo Disneyland, Andrew Stanton at Astro Blasters in Disneyland and Hong Kong Disneyland and Laurent Gamelon in Astro Blasters in Disneyland Paris, and an unknown actor in Planet Rescue) to steal the batteries (known as "crystallic fusion cells") used to power the space vehicles of the "Little Green Men" (voiced by Jeff Pidgeon). Participants are "Star Command" raw recruits sent to defeat Zurg. The queue area is awash in the chartreuse, white, and bright blue hues of Buzz Lightyear himself (voiced by Pat Fraley, who does voice for all Buzz Lightyear attractions [minus the Shanghai and Japanese rides]). Since Buzz Lightyear is a toy, the attraction is cleverly scaled to give the illusion that one has just been reduced to the size of an action figure, featuring such detail as giant, exposed Philips screw heads and an explanation of the interactive phase of the ride that resembles a toy's instruction sheet, only on a gigantic scale. An Audio-Animatronic Buzz Lightyear figure and giant Etch-a-Sketch (Disneyland) and/or View-Master (Walt Disney World) provide explanation of the "mission" to destroy Zurg's secret weapon with your blasters. While his body is audio-animatronic, Buzz's face is actually a screen with a projection of computer animation, allowing better lipsync and more expressive features, making him look like a more realistic representation of the character from the films.
Buzz Lightyear of Star Command © Disney, Pixar, Walt Disney Television Animation
Buzz Lightyears Astro Blasters © Disney Parks, Pixar Animation Studios
Buzz Lightyear of Star Command © Disney, Pixar, Walt Disney Television Animation
Buzz Lightyears Astro Blasters © Disney Parks, Pixar Animation Studios
Category Artwork (Digital) / Fanart
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Other / Not Specified
Size 1920 x 1080px
File Size 742.8 kB
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