“The world is coming undone.”
The Star Wars universe is in a precarious position in the time before A New Hope. Emperor Palpatine has slowly and carefully maneuvered the Empire into the role of galactic domination, and countless citizens are suffering. The Rebellion changes that, and the events in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story lead to their first big victory. The first full length trailer for Rogue One gives us some quality face time with the rebels charged with stealing the plans to the Death Star–an action that sets in motion the downfall of the Empire.
Let’s talk about the Sith-shaped elephant in the room first, shall we? Since he’s at the right hand of the Emperor, Darth Vader has a role to play in Rogue One. It’s not a huge role, but his presence and importance in the galaxy at this particular time can’t be ignored… and Disney and Lucasfilm can’t ignore how much fans adore the villain, so of course he has a brief cameo in the trailer (less is more) and “The Imperial March” plays under many of the scenes.
Seeing Vader is awesome, but I’m a rebel through and through and I was fascinated by the balance of optimism and pessimism among the rebels in the footage. Saw Gerrera is the practical voice, telling Jyn Erso, Cassian Andor, and co. about the imposing threat of the Empire. As for Jyn? She seems to believe they can make a difference. They all appear to understand the stakes of their mission. Well, maybe everyone except the droid K-2SO; he wants to tell them about the likelihood of failure. He would get along well with C-3PO.
Rogue One will be here on December 16, and no, that is not fast enough. Was this trailer everything you hoped it would be? Share your thoughts with me in the comments.
Image: Disney/Lucasfilm
