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| Dawn is on the ground at SDCC 2018. Read her coverage of the Jack Ryan Experience. |
Amazon Prime's new Tom Clancy inspired
series Jack Ryan is set to be
released at the end of August, and the company has been heavily
promoting the show at SDCC this year. Starring John Krasinski as Dr.
Ryan, the pilot episode was debuted to Comic-con attendees on
Friday. In addition to this, Amazon has also set up an off-site Jack
Ryan Experience in downtown San
Diego, available throughout the weekend to pass holders
and non pass holders alike. I was lucky enough to get through the
massive lines for the attraction and, even though I'm not a huge fan
of Tom Clancy or spy genre films, I have to say it was a lot of fun.
Upon entering the compound, you are
issued an 'Analyst' badge with your picture and a chip that records
your activities throughout the experience. Set up to look like an
apparent middle eastern, war torn town, there are three distinct
areas from which visitors can choose: An escape room, A VR training
experience and a bazaar where you can obtain snacks, water and
additional Jack Ryan swag. It was really hard to ignore my
feelings while being surrounded by this display of late capitalism.
The U.S. wages war in third world countries and then creates
television shows and amusement park attractions out of these wars for
consumption by folks back home. And here I am standing in the middle
of one such attraction, trying to decide which amusement to choose
first. Needless to say, the irony wasn't lost on me.
I decided to go with the VR Training
experience first because, honestly, it looked bad ass. In groups of
4, participants are sent into a military style tent where they are
fitted with a climbing harness and a VR headset and associated
backpack. We are then given a mission: get through the training
obstacle course as fast as possible. The course itself is roughly
three stories off the ground, on top of a makeshift building
resembling that which has been damage by war. The whole setup is
rounded off with a replica of a U.S. Military helicopter. This is
where the course begins. Participants are asked to sit on the floor
of the helicopter with feet dangling out of the door. Their harness
is then clipped to a rope and pulley system, meant to lower them out
of the helicopter, and their VR headset is put securely over their
eyes and turned on. Once all safety checks are complete you are then
pulled by the rope system and lowered to the course below.
The next four sections of the course
consist of a plank walk, a crate filled room with enemies to shoot, a
zip line to the ground, and a driving simulation. After being lowered
out of the helicopter to the area below, I was trembling so badly
that a staff member had to hold me up while I did the plank section.
It was a little embarrassing. Then, once I fired off some rounds at a
few 'bad guys', my harness was re-clipped to the zip line, where I
blindly stepped off the side of the building, and zip lined to the
ground. This was a serious exercise in trust, and in my sheer terror,
I cannot even imagine the facial expressions I made. The VR part of
the experience was moderately glitchy but overall it was totally
worth all the waiting in line.
I was lucky enough to experience both
activities and get my Fire Stick. Although, the escape room involved
less adrenaline, it was equally as fun. To be honest, I think the
Jack Ryan Experience was significantly more entertaining than
almost anything inside the Convention Center. The attraction, which
sits on First Avenue between Harbor Drive and Island Ave, will be
open for the rest of the weekend, and if you are able to fit it into
your schedule, I highly recommend it. For those unable to be in San
Diego this weekend, Amazon's Jack Ryan series will be
available for streaming on August 31st.
-Dawn Stronski