Normally, the full length trailer for Disney‘s Star Wars: The Force Awakens would have been enough to drag the internet to a crawl. However, when you add the advance tickets going on sale at the same time, you see just how powerful the force still is with this venerable sci-fi franchise. As movie websites like Fandango were crashing under the strain, fans who were lucky enough to purchase tickets for opening weekend were dancing in their bedrooms with their emailed receipts. (Yes, that was me…)
Hell, some people were already auctioning off their tickets on eBay. Anyone else wish that they’d thought of that?
Anyways, we now have the final full-length theatrical trailer for the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and it was loaded with tons of goodies! Today we’re going to go through some of the best moments that the trailer gave us. These moments that not only wowed us on our first, second, or tenth time watching the trailer (but who’s counting?), but they also could be hinting and what else the movie has in store for us. There will be some speculation here based on the information we’ve been giving, so if you don’t want to worry about possible spoilers, look away now!
“It’s true. All of it. The dark side, the Jedi, they’re real.”
While sitting in the Millennium Falcon, we see Han Solo tell Rey and Finn that the stories they’ve heard about the force, the Jedi, and the dark side users are all true. Keep in mind, this movie is taking place roughly 30 years after the events of Return of the Jedi. That puts it easily over 50 years since the tragic events that took place in Revenge of the Sith, which is more than enough time for people who witnesses it to die off, forget, or go into hiding.
Over time, things that actually transpired turn into stories. Those stories later turn into legends and myths. Have the conflict between Jedi and the Sith been reduced to campfire or bedtime stories? Has The First Order suppressed information? Either way, we will get to see the eye-opening moment when a new generation of heroes learns the truth about their galaxy.
“I’m no one.” – Rey
Rey is a character with some familiar origins. From all that we’ve been given so far, we’re able to infer that she has grown up on a backwater planet, salvaging whatever she can. She’s no one of importance, at least not at the opening of the movie.
We know that she has the companionship of a more modern astromech droid in the form of the adorable little BB-8. We know she carries a staff. Aside from that, we know nothing. It’s very reminiscent of Luke Skywalker’s origins on Tatooine. For months people have been speculating that Rey could be the offspring or either Luke, or Han and Leia. We’re still not sure, but the lengths that they’re going to tell us about her humble origins tells us they’re important. She could have come from a poor family, or been orphaned. She could be a runaway, or could have been left behind to hide her from a larger threat.
Star-Killer is Real, and Camouflaged.
When the official poster for Episode VII was released on Sunday, one of the first things that really grabbed people’s attention was what appeared to be another planet killer (or should I say, Star-Killer?) type megaweapon. A few days ago, the internet was awash in rumors about The First Order being in command of a base that could not only wipe out planets, but entire star systems.
The Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer appears to have confirmed the rumors that also spoke about the massive base being camouflaged as a barren ice world. At about 1:50 into the trailer, we see what appears to be X-Wing from the Resistances Black Squadron taking on a group of TIE Fighters over an icy, hostile world. If you look carefully at the surface however, you can see several large trenches reminiscent of those that the old Rebellion launched an attack on in A New Hope.
The First Order could be using some form of holographic technology to project an environment and atmosphere, or they could have simply built this new doomsday weapon into the interior of a small moon. Whichever turns out to be the case, the idea of a weapon that can destroy or collapse a star and therefore destroy the entire system around it, dramatically raises the stakes.
Kylo Ren is Leading a Dark Side Resurgence
Several weeks ago, we speculated that Kylo Ren could be trying to either rebuild the Sith, or craft an entirely new order that is aligned with the Dark Side of the force. One particularly powerful moment in the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer showed Ren surrounded by a group of similarly dressed individuals. While it could be another elite group of warriors similar to Captain Phasma, it’s more likely that this is probably our first look at the Knights of Ren.
We don’t know if this group answers directly to Ren, or if they are all under the shroud of Supreme Leader Snoke, who is being played by Andy Serkis. Since the Sith were effectively eliminated at the end of Return of the Jedi, there’s no reason to assume that any dark side users will be working under the old Rule of Two. Those using the light side will certainly have their hands full.
“The Force. It’s calling to you. Just let it in.”
We are indeed going to be witnessing an awakening. While the Dark Side of the force appears to have been in action for a while, the awakening that we will see is the Jedi. The final trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens may not have given away much, but what it did offer up was quite telling.
Remember that Han Solo quote we mentioned a minute ago? If you look carefully at the trailer, the camera hones in on Finn as he is mentioning the Jedi. We also had another look at Finn using what we can safely assume is the lightsaber that Luke lost (along with his hand) when he faced Darth Vader in Cloud City. We cannot be sure if Finn is force sensitive, or if basic swordsmanship is included when Storm Troopers are given defensive training, but they’re certainly hinting that he could be the first in a new generation of Jedi.
The other obvious candidate is Rey. Not only was she given the most prominent placement in the new poster, but her posing was quite telling. Her staff runs directly alongside Kylo Ren’s crossgaurd lightsaber. Is it merely that they will be the two most prominent force users for their respective sides, or is it something deeper? Siblings, perhaps? Either way, I’m betting someone will come under the watchful hand of Luke Skywalker by the third act.
What did you notice about the trailer? Did you prefer the teasers, or was this the one that finally answered your fanboy questions? Were you hoping for more reveals, or are you glad they’ve kept details so close to the chest? Let me know in the comments section below!
Now if you’ll pardon me, I have to go gift shopping for my wife, who scored tickets to the first showing in the city an hour before all the websites crashed!
