Star Wars The Rise of Skywalker teaser released

A teaser, especially a Star Wars teaser, should captivate without spoiling. It should ask questions without offering any answers. And in my case it should bring out the boy in me and make me want to fly the Millennium Falcon, become a Jedi master, fight Tie-fighters with just a lightsaber (spoiler alert) and praise John Williams as a genius. And to top it off, it needs to be able to that until the end of December of that particular year.

First montage

The first scene of the teaser takes it slow, just like with The Force Awakens. It shows a desert planet, could be Jakku, could be Tatooine, or it could be a new planet we have not seen before. It shows Rey (played by Daisy Ridley) finishing a training / meditation session. She holds the old Skywalker lightsaber in her hands as she stares into the distance. Luke’s voice can be heard as a voice-over speaking to Rey: “We have passed on all we know. A thousand generations of Jedi live in you now”

The sight of a lone approaching tie-fighter ensures Rey readies her lightsaber. She defiantly allows it to come closer as the craft shoots just over the desert floor. The pilot of the craft is deliberately obscured, but they choose to accelerate. Rey runs from the fighter but just it runs her over she leaps into the air allowing it pass underneath her. With her lightsaber engaged her obvious intent is to cut it in half.

Second Montage

Then we move on to the next scene. It is an ensemble of quick shots. A resistance A-wing fighter approaches a city located high up in a mountain range, Kylo Ren fights on a planet with a red coloured atmosphere. We then see Kylo Ren’s repaired helmet. Poe and Finn searching for something on the desert planet. BB-8 with a new best buddy. Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian piloting the Millennium Falcon with Chewbacca.

Third montage

Then there is a third scene with shows a quick montage of a chase on the dessert planet. Poe, Finn and C3-PO are being chased while flying craft similar to the one scene at Jabba’s Sail barge. Then we see General Leia hugging Rey. Luke has one more voice-over: “We will always be with you”. Which is as much directed as Rey as it is as to the fans.

The teaser ends with a shot of the ocean on a unknown planet. Besides the waves beating the shoreline there is an outline of a Deathstar mainlaser battery. This shot raises thousands of questions. How did the empire possess a third star destroyer? What if had been used against the rebels? And why did it crash on this planet?

The teaser then ends with the cackling laughter of none other than Palpatine – Darth Sidious. That seems to confirm that Palpatine (played by Ian McDiarmid) will be back and presumably play the ‘main’ villain. The title for Star Wars Episode 9 is then confirmed as THE RISE OF SKYWALKER.

Observations from the teaser

As all good teasers should this one raises millions of questions, and most of those because of the last 15 seconds. Is Rey confirmed to be Palpatine’s daughter? Is Kylo Ren now destined to turn to the light and be reborn as Ben Solo? Will we see Reylo confirmed? My first instinct on all these questions is yes – and yet…

And then there is the title – The Rise of Skywalker. What does it mean? At first The Force Awakens made little sense. I mean, how could the force be a sleep in the first place. But it makes sense in the context of Kylo and Rey. So how does The Rise of Skywalker make sense. Kylo is the last of that bloodline and his real name is Solo.

Well, fans have got to December to speculate. Star Wars Episode XI The Rise of Skywalker is directed by J.J. Abrams, produced by Kathleen Kennedy and stars Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Billy Dee William, Mark Hamill and perhaps Ian McDiarmid. Of course there is larger extended cast