Oh my word. Disney caught us all by surprise by launching the latest teaser trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens late last night.
The trailer had been widely expected to run with the launch of Avengers: Age of Ultron at the end of this month, and while there's no official reason to assume a new Star Wars trailer won't appear with that movie, it does look very much like this is the one we were waiting for.
The new trailer gives away somewhat more than the last one. It appears to be narrated by Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), who talks mostly about The Force.
Intriguing point No 1:
He uses the present tense when he says "my father has it," accompanied by an image of a melted Darth Vader mask and the trademark bronchial breathing. Is Vader somehow still alive? Luke burned his father's dead body at the end of Episode 6: Return of the Jedi, and the line is, in fact, repeated from that film. But Vader's been through a lot in the previous six films, so it doesn't seem inconceivable that he could somehow be brought back. If he is. Well. Crikey.
Intriguing point No 2:
Luke also tells us his "sister has it." That would be Leia. And she appears to be handed a light sabre in the trailer. Her innate sense of the force has been hinted at in previous films, though largely unexplored. It appears to be the light saber Obi Wan gave to Luke in Episode 4: A New Hope. Leia with a light saber could be the step too far that takes the world's geek population over the edge.
Intriguing point No 3:
A robotic hand reaches out to touch R2D2 while the voice over adds: "I have it." We can safely assume this to be Luke, who lost his hand in a light saber dual with Vader (yes, his father) back in Episode 5: The Empire Strikes Back. But why has the fake skin and hand disappeared? Has Luke somehow embraced his cybernetic self?
Intriguing point No 4:
Luke adds: “You have it.” Who? Who? Who? Does he have a son? A new padwan? Does he mean the entire audience has it? Is it December yet?
Abu Dhabi desert point:
Yes, the trailer opens in the desert, which we can probably safely assume to be Abu Dhabi. We don’t want to undermine Abu Dhabi’s excellent role, but LEIA HAS A LIGHT SABER!!!!!
Millenium Falcon point:
That’s there too. Along with Han and Chewie. It gets chased into a giant spaceship by a TIE fighter, and there’s an amazing closing shot to the trailer where Han says: “Chewie – we’re home.” I seriously cannot wait for this.
Three bladed light saber point:
Yes. That’s there again. I may need a sedative.
John Boyega and Daisy Ridley point:
We still don’t know exactly who their characters are, but we see a TIE fighter destroying a bunch of storm troopers, followed by Ridley helping a seemingly stressed Boyega in the desert. This would seem to lend credence to the rumours that Boyega will play a (possibly force-infused) storm trooper who turns against the empire.
I may actually have a stroke from the excitement of rewatching this trailer before December. If I make it that far, this really has started to look as if JJ Abrams may rescue the franchise from George Lucas’ last trilogy, and I seriously can’t wait!