Here we are, less than 12 hours after Lucasfilm premiered the second Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens trailer at SWCA and already the official YouTube versions has tallied over 12 million views.
And why not? The trailer, presented by director J.J. Abrams and producer Kathleen Kennedy, reeks of Original Trilogy nostalgia from the get-go. It begins with imagery of a desert planet not named Tatooine where a speeder races past a crashed and decrepit X-Wing and Star Destroyer, relics of a bygone era and conflict. Its a striking image that serves of a tease of what’s to come.
From there the Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer kicks up some famous John Williams as Mark Hamill recreates a passage from Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi where Luke reveals to Leia their family connection. He mentions his father as Darth Vader’s charred helmet is revealed. He mentions himself as a robotic hand reaches out to R2-D2 next to presumably a campfire. And he mentions his sister as an alien hands a female’s hand a familiar lightsaber.
From there the trailer kicks into high gear with new imagery including characters and vehicles from both the Resistance, the new Rebellion; and the First Order, the new Empire. New core cast members played by Daisy Ridley, John Boyega Oscar Isaac all make solo appearances, and villain Kylo Ren makes his presence felt on more than one occasion.
The Star Wars Episode 7 trailer kicker is the return of Harrison Ford as Han Solo and Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca in the final shot. Abrams has framed the scene as a play off a publicity still from Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope used in the old Topps Trading card series, among other places.
I’ll be back with a deeper Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer analysis with spoilers. In the meantime, watch the trailer again.., and again… no matter how many times you’ve watched it already.
