Rogue One: Many Bothans Died to Bring Us This New Trailer

[Aeson]

I still hope that the movie turns into a slasher flick staring Darth Vader once they get their hands on the plans, though.

While I expect that the original trilogy's characters, and perhaps some of the prequel trilogy's characters, will show up, especially considering that the movie is about the first Death Star, I'd honestly rather they didn't, and that those that do don't play that important a role in the movie.

I think you may want to remember that stories are about exciting people doing exciting things. Even if the EU inadvertently created hundreds of force-adepts and partially trained Jedi characters, they still fall within the "exceedingly rare" category. They just seem like theyre all over the place because they end up doing stuff instead of working on a farm their whole lives.

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One problem is that the larger the proportion of small groups of exciting people doing exciting things that have Jedi or Force sensitives or whatever is, the more difficult it is to believe that Jedi or Force sensitives or whatever are actually all that rare.

There also an issue in that Tarkin believes Vader to be the last of them, and is in a position where he'd probably know enough about the Inquisition to know that at least some of the Inquisitors are Force sensitives and may be former Jedi. He's in a position to hear credible reports about Rebel operatives who do things which are implausible for mundane operatives, not just likely-exaggerated rumors. He's in a position where he's likely to be told why, or be able to find out why, certain people are wanted by the Imperial military and government or by the Inquisition; something like "suspected Rebel operative, highly dangerous, do not engage without overwhelming force, report any sightings up the chain of command or to nearest Inquisitorial Office" may be enough for your average grunt, but it's also something that would attract curiosity, especially if the special agents sent out to capture or kill the target do not do a very good job of concealing their Force sensitivity.

Having Force sensitives involved in a large proportion of 'exciting' or important events also creates issues for the apparent belief of the galaxy at large that the Jedi are extinct and the Force is nothing more than a myth. If there are enough reports out there of people pulling off feats which are implausible for a mundane person, people are going to start to wonder, and some people might investigate it further. If there are Imperial agents scouring the galaxy and hunting for anyone suggested to have performed such implausible feats, and the people taken by these agents have a tendency to disappear, turn up dead, or turn up as Imperial agents, it starts looking suspicious, especially if the agents themselves don't exactly do a great job of concealing their own nature.

[hamishspence]

Tarkin actually says "You, my friend, are all that's left of their religion"

Plenty of room for him to not count ex-Jedi, if he believes Vader still self-identifies as one.

[Rodin]

While I expect that the original trilogy's characters, and perhaps some of the prequel trilogy's characters, will show up, especially considering that the movie is about the first Death Star, I'd honestly rather they didn't, and that those that do don't play that important a role in the movie.

It depends on whether they go on board the Death Star or not. If the plans are elsewhere, then there's no reason for the heroes to board the Death Star and hence no reason for Vader to show up.

If they DO go aboard the Death Star, however...

I think they'd be fools not to have Vader show up. Don't have him as the main villain of the movie - you need someone that the heroes can defeat for that. But having Vader's presence looming over things emphasizes the stakes, and provides a "Bigger Bad" to explain how we got from Rogue One to the beginning of Episode IV.

Vader is also possibly THE single most popular character from the entire franchise (with the possible exception of Han Solo). Han is difficult to include for obvious reasons, but Vader? He's a suit and a voice. I'm not sure if James Earl Jones is still up for doing the voice, but getting a good imitator can't be that hard. Giving Vader a secondary role seems like a no-brainer to me.

[Cikomyr]

Having Vader not the main villain of the piece, but merely the unstoppable juggernaut secondary villain that looms in the background would be fine.

You only need one real action scene with him; maybe two. Make it count.

[The Glyphstone]

It depends on whether they go on board the Death Star or not. If the plans are elsewhere, then there's no reason for the heroes to board the Death Star and hence no reason for Vader to show up.

If they DO go aboard the Death Star, however...

I think they'd be fools not to have Vader show up. Don't have him as the main villain of the movie - you need someone that the heroes can defeat for that. But having Vader's presence looming over things emphasizes the stakes, and provides a "Bigger Bad" to explain how we got from Rogue One to the beginning of Episode IV.

Vader is also possibly THE single most popular character from the entire franchise (with the possible exception of Han Solo). Han is difficult to include for obvious reasons, but Vader? He's a suit and a voice. I'm not sure if James Earl Jones is still up for doing the voice, but getting a good imitator can't be that hard. Giving Vader a secondary role seems like a no-brainer to me.

JEJ is reprising the voice-acting role for Rogue One, it seems.

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/06/23...-one-star-wars

[Legato Endless]

For the dude in the movie specifically, as long as he isn't as powerful as Luke, Yoda, or Obi-Wan I don't really see the problem. If he's untrained with minor Force Powers like letting him fight better and limited sensing of disturbances in the Force he can still fill the role of "wizard dude" without being a realistic threat to Vader.

I am getting more excited for this one, since it looks like they're going for a Dirty Dozen style. Underdogs send a specialized group of misfits in on an important mission for the greater war. Better still, it's a prequel movie that isn't slated to have any follow-ups, making it a perfect movie to have expendable characters like all the best WWII commando movies have had.

It'd be poetic if after the team's been winnowed down by the mission, one of the escaping survivors ends up going to ground on Alderaan.

[An Enemy Spy]

Honestly? For me? No.

Because it's still the same paradigm. Whether he has Batman's no-really-I'm-not-superpowered-honest-powers or actual super-powers/space magic. I'm really kind of tired to death of the noble-warrior-melee-swordguy/magic-space-samurai/etc etc etc thing at this point, in or outside of Star Wars¹; especially as whatever way you approach it, it's going to seem like Jedi-Lite.

Look let me put it this way: when I was a child I didn't give diddly squat about Luke or the Jedi. I'd take their lightsabres (while it was novel), sure; but I didn't care the least bit about the Force powers and really, all that was VERY much runner up to the interesting bits (i.e. the starship combat).

Just be nice if we actually just left all that alone for five minutes, y'know?




¹Naruto at least started out] being 50-60% Being Smart and Devious with it, but there's a reason I've stalled out halfway through the final ninja wars arc.

Yes, why can't everything be specifically tailored to your personal tastes? I'm sure they make these movies about Jedi just to spite you and not because the Jedi are the major thing that Star Wars is known for.

[Aeson]

Tarkin actually says "You, my friend, are all that's left of their religion"

Plenty of room for him to not count ex-Jedi, if he believes Vader still self-identifies as one.

That feels rather like splitting hairs to me. Vader and any extant ex-Jedi share at least a bit of a common background and training, and whether or not either still self-identifies as such, they were both shaped at least in part by their experiences as members of the Jedi Order.

I would also wonder whether or not Tarkin and others are particularly capable of distinguishing Force sensitives of one philosophy from Force sensitives of another, particularly if the interactions are limited to the kinds of interactions we see in A New Hope between Vader and Tarkin, or in the original trilogy between Vader and his subordinates and the Emperor. Jedi and Sith both look like people with supernatural abilities who make use of weapons which should by rights be ridiculously impractical, and while there are some key differences in ideology, there's still quite a bit of overlap in the philosophies of the two orders.

People like Tarkin may be sufficiently well versed in Jedi philosophy to make some kind of distinction between Vader and other ex-Jedi and Force sensitives, and maybe Tarkin specifically is sufficiently familiar with Vader and perhaps some Inquisitors as to be able to draw a distinction between the two, but it's at least as possible that they'll see as little difference between any two Force sensitives who were trained in different traditions as someone who has no more than a passing familiarity with the subject would see between two forms of martial arts or between two religious orders.

[DoctorFaust]

Having Vader not the main villain of the piece, but merely the unstoppable juggernaut secondary villain that looms in the background would be fine.

You only need one real action scene with him; maybe two. Make it count.

The director's Gareth Edwards, right? If he is, I don't imagine that Darth'll be showing up on screen all that often, even if he is a major presence in the film.

[cobaltstarfire]

I like this trailer better than the first one. They kind of overdid it with the imperial march though...well not overdid it, but the whole time I was like "I want to hear the whole thing now not just the first bar and a half of the melody!"

It also looks like it's going to have a different feel from other Star Wars movies...which doesn't bother me, but I could see it bothering the fanbase.


I already know what the guy is going to say tomorrow when I show him "it doesn't sound like Star Wars"


...

Also there's a ten hour version of the Imperial March on youtube...well I suppose that's pretty tame compared to some of the other super long versions of songs out there.

[Wardog]

Does anyone else think the tank at 1:21 looks like its on loan from the WH40 universe?

[The Glyphstone]

Nah, it would need a comically oversized cannon in the middle of the front armor plate. Also, not nearly enough skull decorations.

[Palanan]

Saw the trailer. Quasi-meh.

The female lead is still generic, unimpressive and almost devoid of personality. I learned nothing more about her in the new trailer; she's still a cardboard juvenile delinquent who gives me no reason to empathize with her.

Apart from the blind monk, most of the other characters seem equally generic and dimensionless, although I did like the droid, who comes across as Assassin Baymax. If nothing else, it'll be great to have a droid who isn't cuddly and lovable. I liked BB-8, but I also miss IG-88.

The Death Star eclipse was a nice touch, and the desert fortress is a gorgeous design: stark, forbidding, immense in itself but dwarfed by the might of the Empire. If that's any indication, I'm expecting this film to be a visual treat, heavy on action and light on everything else.

But that's what we saw in the first trailer, plus more juvenile attitude, so this doesn't tell us much more. I'll be looking forward to it, and I'm sure it'll be a fun ride, but not expecting anything else.

.

[J-H]

Initial reactions:

This is the first time we've seen a Star Destroyer in atmosphere. Why would a giant space superiority craft have antigrav sufficient to let it hover in atmo? The engine wash must do a number on the local ecology & atmosphere whenever it moves. Initmidating? Sure. Practical? No. :(

Did I see Morgan Freeman with a big beard and big hair? He's everywhere. He does a good job being an encouraging patriarch, but the whole "hooking up with his step grand-daughter" thing (I forget the details, but she's 50 years younger and not technically blood relation) is skeevy. I'm tired of him.

East Asian monk/martial artist type guy who maybe a force user. Pretty cool, but did they have to make the martial artist an East Asian, out of all their choices?

"You're 20 years old, haven't led anything before, and aren't a Jedi. Let's put you in charge because of your individual skills." - Typical for a movie even if it doesn't make sense.

I hope the tall droid is a HK-47 Expy. Meatbag!

I hope the whole movie isn't full of fog and darkness. I like to see my spaceships, not have them blur by.

Looks like a fun popcorn movie, but, canonically speaking, this team is not the one that gets data to the Rebellion. They get it to Organa and she has to courier it from there. At best, they end up stuck behind enemy lines. At worst, most of the team dies including Orso. I'm not sure people are ready for a Star Wars movie that ends with most of the main characters dying, even heroically.

Now I'm going to go back and read everything below the OP.

[BlueHerring]

Did I see Morgan Freeman with a big beard and big hair? He's everywhere. He does a good job being an encouraging patriarch, but the whole "hooking up with his step grand-daughter" thing (I forget the details, but she's 50 years younger and not technically blood relation) is skeevy. I'm tired of him.

East Asian monk/martial artist type guy who maybe a force user. Pretty cool, but did they have to make the martial artist an East Asian, out of all their choices?

That's Forest Whitaker, playing Saw Gerrera, who's spent time fighting both Separatist and Imperial occupations on Onderon.

Donnie Yen (the martial artist) is actually a martial artist IRL. It might be racial silliness in Hollywood that decided the casting role, but his action is at least going to have some legitimacy to it.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by J-H
This is the first time we've seen a Star Destroyer in atmosphere.

On the big screen, maybe, but capital ships in atmo were a regular thing in the Clone Wars animated series. Your reasoning is entirely sound, but logic never stopped anything in science fiction.

If it makes you feel any better, there was a even more ridiculous scene in one of the classic Star Trek novels from the early 80s, in which the Enterprise was hovering less than a mile above a river valley. And of course there was the nonsense with the fully submerged Enterprise in the second Trek reboot.

Originally Posted by BlueHerring
That's Forest Whitaker, playing Saw Gerrera, who's spent time fighting both Separatist and Imperial occupations on Onderon.

A direct import from Clone Wars--that's interesting. I wonder if they'll slip in a reference to Ahsoka.

[miner3203]

Trailer looks good, blind monk guy is cool, and the half-second of Vader at the end surprised me--I didn't realize they'd actually have to board the Death Star to get at the plans...

The only thing that bothers me is the machine-gun laser...this movie is set pretty much directly before A New Hope, and yet the only lasers we see in that one are effectively laser pistols. I'm not really sure how they're going to explain that...

[J-H]

Donnie Yen (the martial artist) is actually a martial artist IRL. It might be racial silliness in Hollywood that decided the casting role, but his action is at least going to have some legitimacy to it.

Good. Darth Maul was so good primarily because someone who actually knew how to move correctly (and with good footwork/balance) played him.

If it makes you feel any better, there was a even more ridiculous scene in one of the classic Star Trek novels from the early 80s, in which the Enterprise was hovering less than a mile above a river valley. And of course there was the nonsense with the fully submerged Enterprise in the second Trek reboot.

Trek at least has a history of the treknobabble shields, the main deflector dish, and no obvious "This way forward" exhaust from their engines.

[Legato Endless]

On the big screen, maybe, but capital ships in atmo were a regular thing in the Clone Wars animated series.

Even then, we've seen the Venator Star Destroyers lift off from the ground at the end of AotC. Although those certainly don't cast quite the same visual.

[BannedInSchool]

Why would a giant space superiority craft have antigrav sufficient to let it hover in atmo?

It's already got AG for the crew, so maybe they can just switch it from up to down.

[Palanan]

Originally Posted by Legato Endless
Even then, we've seen the Venator Star Destroyers lift off from the ground at the end of AotC. Although those certainly don't cast quite the same visual.

Good catch, I knew I was missing something.

And I think we saw the same in Revenge of the Sith as well, when Anakin and Obi-Wan part as friends for the last time.

[hamishspence]

Even then, we've seen the Venator Star Destroyers lift off from the ground at the end of AotC. Although those certainly don't cast quite the same visual.

Acclamator troopships, not Venators. It's ROTS that shows a Venator taking off after Obi-Wan boards it to go to Utapau (and one on the ground on Kashyyyk).

Rebels consistently shows ISDs in atmosphere, at least.

[DoctorFaust]

Well, at least in the old canon, Victory 1-class SDs could enter and exit atmosphere, and Lusankya did take off from Coruscant with the help of some external boosters (and at the cost of many hundreds of thousands of lives). And for what it's worth, the Imperial-class does have a max atmospheric speed given in one of the Star Wars: Rebels books.

[J-H]

Hey, could this be the same Jan that in the original EU was Kyle Katarn's lady friend?

All I really know about Jan Ors is from a fanfiction over on spacebattles...

[hamishspence]

The backstory seems a little different:

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jan_Ors

It's possible that the name sounds similar on purpose, because somebody on the movie team played the game way back when, though.

[Wardog]

Why would a giant space superiority craft have antigrav sufficient to let it hover in atmo? The engine wash must do a number on the local ecology & atmosphere whenever it moves. Initmidating? Sure. Practical? No. :(

When has that ever stopped the Empire before?

[Dragonexx]

In regards to the jedi/ex-jedi thing. I'm actually for it. I honestly have a hard time giving a **** about things in star wars that don't involve the force, jedi, sith, or lightsabers. It's what set's star wars apart from other space based settings.

[Olinser]

Much stronger trailer than the first one.

Still think the whole sliding the dish into the Death Star is utterly idiotic, but overall much stronger trailer.

Upgraded from 'meh, wait for Netflix' to 'probably see it in theatre'.

[Foeofthelance]

Initial reactions:

This is the first time we've seen a Star Destroyer in atmosphere. Why would a giant space superiority craft have antigrav sufficient to let it hover in atmo? The engine wash must do a number on the local ecology & atmosphere whenever it moves. Initmidating? Sure. Practical? No. :(

I would love to see a short story where someone tries to present that to Tarkin or Vader or somesuch as an actual argument.

"Excuse me, Grand Moff, but we've just gotten the environmental impact studies back on the new Star Destroyers and-"
-"I'm sorry. The what?"
"The, er, environmental impact studies, sir? For the new Imperial class? There's a bit of a problem with their atmospheric drives. They, um, they tend to crush trees."
-"I can't believe what I'm hearing."
"Thank you, sir! I kept telling Admiral Clausewitz that such powerful antigravity emitters would be a danger, but-"
-"But they're Star Destroyers!"
"I know, sir, and as the foremost symbol of Imperial authority it would be an utter shame if they were cause irreparable harm to a planet's environment!"
-"But that is what Star Destroyers are for!"
"I'm sorry, sir, but if I may, that's what the turbolasers are for. As I was saying, the problem lies with the atmospheric drives. Particularly the lift generators."
-"..."
-"You know what? You're quite right. Far above my department, however. I know just the man who can help you. Let me make you an appointment with Lord Vader..."

[Olinser]

Well, at least in the old canon, Victory 1-class SDs could enter and exit atmosphere, and Lusankya did take off from Coruscant with the help of some external boosters (and at the cost of many hundreds of thousands of lives). And for what it's worth, the Imperial-class does have a max atmospheric speed given in one of the Star Wars: Rebels books.

It also may not be ATMOSPHERE per se. We only see the 1 shot of it.

It may be an asteroid base with artificial atmosphere and low gravity.