Trailer Breakdown & Reaction: Rogue One - A Star Wars Story Part 2

Welcome back! (maybe I should say that to myself... Real life got in the way last week)

I decided I'd approach the Rogue One in two parts simply because the trailer itself is really broken into two parts - an exposition introducing Jyn narrated by Mon Mothma and a slam-bam montage narrated by Forest Whitaker's character. We covered the exposition in the first part which can pretty much be summed up like this:

• Jyn Erso has been on the wrong-side of the law for a long time
• The Rebels need someone to get the plans for the Death Star
• The Rebels need someone who doesn't love the Empire and is willing to go the extra mile
• Jyn Erso likes to "rebel"

Now we get into the machine gun that is the end of this trailer. Regardless of the arguments you can present about the prequels vs the originals vs the new era, the one aspect that I appreciate is that the governing minds behind the aesthetics of the SWU are great at setting the scene. Love or hate (or despise/loathe/forget) the prequels, the atmosphere seemed less militaristic and far more shiny and new. I almost think of the prequels as if they were a memory someone had of "the good ol' days" before the Empire, much like Obi-wan's speech in A New Hope. Everything seems clean and maintained and there's a general lack of concern for the dirty stuff that still existed. Best real-world parallel I can offer is thinking back to how it felt to play my old 1st gen Gameboy, but glossing over the fact that I had to make sure the space I was in was lit by a 250W lightbulb in order to see the screen.

Then you have the originals, where everything looks pretty basic, kinda mundane, and even pretty dirty. I'm not sure if this is more an appreciation for the brilliance of the set design in the originals or an apologetic argument for the CG in the prequels, but the original trilogy's set design really had you feeling like you were in a time where "new and flashy" was a premium most couldn't afford in a galaxy both recovering from a galactic war and dealing with an active uprising. Even from the trailer for Rogue One, you can tell this has been upheld and it's a major plus. Rogue One has to look like it fits in. Like Felicity Jones could walk by a young Carrie Fisher in some "Back to the Future"-esque scene.

Regardless, then we come to the crux of the trailer. Mon Mothma's briefing gives way to Forest Whitaker's grizzled speech. Good point to make here is the difference between these two characters. Mon Mothma is clothed in white, clean, adorned clothing which personify respect and authority. Forest Whitaker's character is crippled and wearing what looks to be half-functioning armor with a breathing mask. I almost wonder if his character was someone that the Rebels may have used in the past, failed at his task (whether by the Imperial juggernaut of some selfish consequence), and was discarded by the Rebels. It would make sense for his speech, which I assume is to Jyn Erso.

As we get this cryptic speech, we get a great series of snapshots from the movie. First we see...

Bad boys, bad boys...

A collection of Rebel pilots being captured.

Insert Beatles guitar riff...

Jyn and Poe's daddy, plus an unnamed droid running from the equivalent "A Hard Days Night crowd" group of stormtroopers.

There be monsters here...

 And finally a "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" like run for freedom by the protagonists at the end of the trailer, which I'm sure doesn't go well for them. That being said, four Imperial walkers (the design isn't too bad to be a "prototype AT-AT") is one hell of response to a Oceans-Eleven-team of Rebels.

Interspersed through these scenes, there were a few other interesting catches I saw. First would be the homage to the Hoth Trooper uniform from Empire Strikes Back.

A second Abrams lens-flare in one trailer!

Elements of the First Order shuttle design before there was a Kylo Ren.

And boom goes the dynomite...

The appearance of who I ultimately think will be a tragic character in the story. Initially, I thought that he would be some kind of scary Imperial Inquisitor/Rebel Hunter, but then I remembered he is apparently part of the team. I imagine he will be some kind of Echani-style fighter who will rather fight then be captured by the Imperial troops.

Could also be a former Royal Guard since the fighting style is likely the same

Finally we get to the last couple interesting visual notes from the trailer - the Stormtroopers. Aside from your standard Stormtroopers who could be straight from a local 501st fan legion, you have some new types show up in trailer. Fans of the Imperial Assault board game should be pleased. First, there's the Imperial Tank trooper you catch a momentary glimpse of here:

On top of the tank

While that's an interesting variation, let's get to the big scary ones...

We're here for your protection...

Halo 3: ODST or Star Wars?

The minute I saw these guys I began hoping beyond all hope that we'd seen an on-screen version of the venerated Dark Trooper. I doubt that this is the case, but they could be a kind of Shadow Trooper (another reference to the Dark Forces series) or essentially some kind of counter-terrorism, wet-work, black ops Stormtrooper specialist. Still, they look fantastic.

Overall, I really liked this trailer and even after a couple weeks since it was revealed, I still find it very exciting. I feel like Rogue One has the possibility of becoming one massive hype-train though and could suffer from the both attempting to live up to "The Force Awakens" and also having a sufficient epic feeling meant to be told in one movie.

Rogue One has a very dubious distinction of being the first major Star Wars story that isn't considered an "episode #" in the Star Wars movie lexicon. It has to be a stand alone story without the benefit of another two movies to tell it's story. Honestly, I think this could be its biggest challenge.

Let me explain it this way. If you look back all of the Star Wars films, I contend that A New Hope is the only Star Wars film that can really be viewed alone without any of the other movies. Empire may be the best story in terms of acting/defining moments, but it is also the middle child in terms of the trilogy and really needs both A New Hope and Jedi to tell the complete story (as Empire really lacks the necessary character introductions). If you only viewed one Star Wars film, A New Hope really stands on its own without the rest of the saga.

Rogue One has to be a singular story and that may be a difficult accomplishment considering all of the other movies were written from the standpoint of either building on previous movies that built the universe or being able to tell a story that can be finished in another movie. Sure, Rogue One will tie into A New Hope, but unless they pull in other major connecting characters besides Mon Mothma, it can afford to be sufficiently detached from the main story. Rogue One can exist on its own SWU island, and I personally think it should.

So what do you think? Leave your comments below. Hope you liked the breakdown and reaction. I'd love to do more (perhaps a bit more brief in the future). Later sithspawn!

You can find part one of my breakdown here: Rogue One: Breakdown and Reaction pt 1

Please note, all images are screenshots from the Rogue One trailer found on Star Wars Official Youtube channel located here: https://www.youtube.com/user/starwars. Dropship Inbound is a non-profit blog and all images are protected under Fair Use. All rights reserved for the images of the trailer are Lucasfilm and Lucasfilm-affliates.

Trailer Breakdown & Reaction: Rogue One - A Star Wars Story Part 1

The newest teaser trailer of the new era of Star Wars films dropped yesterday and all geekdom rejoiced. The reason for all the joy? The fact that, love or hate, they had yet another Star Wars film to endlessly debate. Aside from Marvel, DC, and the Star Trek reboot, the renaissance of Star Wars has further solidified that Hollywood wants even more of that hard-earned geek-cash.

After the advent of The Force Awakens and the absolute box-office steamroller it was, we knew that we'd see additional side stories in the following years apart from the main Episodes VII, VIII, & IX. The first non-roman numeraled Star Wars film looks like it will come out swinging though and so I thought I'd take some time to breakdown the "teaser" trailer and cast some theories of my own into the argument. (Why this got the moniker "teaser" is beyond me. It's a friggin trailer.)

Overall, the information about Rogue One has been kept very "hush hush". Honestly, I think the CIA and NSA wishes they had this kind of security. Unlike a Clinton inbox though, the information that has been leaked has been very vague and high-level. We know that the story has to do with how Princess Leia received the plans for the original Death Star. Ostensibly, we can also assume that we'll see some kind of nods to what put Darth Vader onto Leia's trail at the beginning of A New Hope since all we've had until now is the first title scroll.

Alright, let's dive right in. Unlike the first Force Awakens teaser that was basically a heavy-breathing prank phone call followed by a series of flashy costumes and punctuated by Millennium Falcon pulling an Immelman, Rogue One's "teaser" has a lot more meat and a lot less creeper to it.

Immediately, we are introduced to the second strong female lead of the new era - Jyn Erso.

Of course, geekdom has exploded trying to figure out who she is much like if you've ever seen a girl walk into a miniature gaming store. As of now, there isn't a lot out there that clues us into who she is. On the surface, it looks like she's the typical scoundrel that the Rebellion seems to attract - most of whom look like they haven't showered in weeks. Still, I like the casting of Felicity Jones.

Before we go any farther though, gotta call out somebody...

My eyes are up here buddy...

Didn't think we see it, huh, Mr Guard? Sneaking a peek at the goods? Dirty old man...

Anyway, as the trailer continues, we are shown Jyn has been taken to the Rebel's main base of Yavin IV. Nice to see the old digs again.

Uh-oh, there's some Abrams lens-flare. It's sneaking in already...

The base looks fairly well established at this point in time and we see a T-65 X-Wing in the background. Costumes all fit the aesthetic established in the original film as well. Accompanying our entry into the base, though, was a voice-over listing off all of her crimes against the Empire. All of these are explained by this guy...

Get Netflix on that Holotank?

... and Mon Mothma! Surprise?! She gives a very motherly introduction to the main character of Jyn. Aside from it being pretty much rank-and-file for pretty much any scoundrel in the SWU, we can tell Jyn has been an outlaw, neither beholden to the Rebel's idealism nor the powerful Imperials. I'd count Mon Mothma as another plus for this movie. In terms of the original movies, she's a drastically underused character and the casting director did an amazing job getting an actress who is a dead-ringer for a slightly younger version of the venerated ex-Senator.

I'm just gonna brood over here...

We also meet this handsome gent. Again, no identification or introduction, but I agree with some other sources that I think this could be maybe Poe Dameron's daddy. They look pretty similar and considering it looks like there might be a possible love-interest developed between himself and Jyn, it would give us one hell of a great origin to one of the new core characters.

The trailer continues on to show Jyn acting out her rage with a droid buddy of hers. Effectively, we find out despite her small stature, apparently she is some sort of elemental bad-ass. Not only is the vaunted "stormtrooper accuracy" in question, but I question their martial prowess. Dude, you just got beat up by a girl...

We introduce Jyn Erso-Bourne...

And boom goes the thermal detonator!

So after the soon-to-be iconic Jyn catchphrase is uttered ("I rebel..."), I loved Mon Mothma's smirk.

You go girl...

It's now we get to the money of the trailer. First we see the mission ahead of her. Of course, we already know this movie is about the stealing plans for the Death Star, but why not treat us to some new shots of the tragic monolith.

DirecTV or Dish?

I will admit this is a great scene. Very awe-inspiring, but I'm not really a fan honestly. Considering the lore I grew up with have the central spine reactor, superstructure ribs, and the superlaser in place before the rest of the Death Star was built, the fact that we get treated to a scene where they insert a continent-sized focusing dish in place again looks cool, but it just doesn't jive for me.

That and this...

Good looking Star Destroyer, except for what appears to be a giant drying rack or rabbit ears on top of the bridge? That or they worship the evil Chaos God Khorne...

Now we're greeted by the classic Imperial klaxon and a series of quick snapshots. On top of this we are introduced to who will likely be the foil of Mon Mothma's brilliant white outfit, Forest Whitaker's grizzled old character who is yet to be identified.

Despite the limp, I wouldn't mess with him...

His character is a giant unknown to me, but I think I am safe in saying he's probably going to be the type of character who will help our team of protagonists, but also stab them in the back. His speech about how far Jyn will go sticks to a very common pragmatism that movies tend to use for those grey-area villian/anti-heroes that end up being the guy you should have shot much earlier in the film. Ya know, not before they effectively sacrificed your whole team for some Judas-like sum of money.

Stay tuned for part 2 of my breakdown of Rogue One. There's a whole lot more to cover, and that's best done in a second post. Overall, I am really looking forward to this movie, as you will see in my next post.

Until then, may the Force be with you.

You can find part 2 of my breakdown here: Rogue One: Breakdown and Reaction pt 2





Please note, all images are screenshots from the Rogue One trailer found on Star Wars Official Youtube channel located here: https://www.youtube.com/user/starwars. Dropship Inbound is a non-profit blog and all images are protected under Fair Use. All rights reserved for the images of the trailer are Lucasfilm and Lucasfilm-affliates.