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:: A trilogy of fan-fic set after Episode VI Return of the Jedi, and inspired by George Lucas' historical draft concepts ::
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| April 2015 |
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Second Teaser Trailer for The Force Awakens !
30th April 2015 |
On April the 16th, the Star Wars Celebration convention at Anaheim in California premiered the second teaser trailer for Episode VII : The Force Awakens ! At one minute fifty seconds, a little more was revealed but still maintaining the cryptic enigma that is the plot. Those who have been following some or all of the spoiler reports have been able to piece together a certain amount, but there are still elements that remain a puzzle !
The now-confirmed desert planet of Jakku opens the trailer with Daisy Ridley's character Rey speeding along on her salvage hover-tug, with a crashed Star Destroyer and a crashed X-Wing Fighter in the landscape.
Then, with The Force Theme playing in the background - and the trailer music is assessed here at JohnWilliamsFan.com - we see Vader's helmet, burnt and part-melted, presented on a small dais. Luke Skywalker's voice confirms that the Force is strong in his family, as we then see a kneeling robed figure - Luke probably ? - place a hand upon Artoo Detoo amidst blowing embers, and then a scene with an alien lady handing Anakin's final lightsabre - the one lost on Cloud City - to a human lady believed to be Leia.
After a brief pause of black, triumphant X-Wings fly low over a stretch of water [confirmed to be the UK's Lake District !], with Poe Dameron shrieking in glee ! Black-robed, crossguard-sabre wielding Kylo Ren is briefly seen striking his sword downwards towards the camera with fiery destruction in the background. Rey, BB8, and Finn - without his stormtrooper armour - are seen fleeing a Jakku settlement under TIE fighter attack. And then Kylo Ren is seen again, this time with his sword sporting a single red blade and pushing his hand out towards the camera in a Force move !
Then a sombre fascist rally is shown, a battalion of storm troopers turning to face the camera, their leader and their modified Imperial-logo banner in the background, set against a snowy escarpment. A new inverted black & white TIE fighter design can be seen. Confirmed at Anaheim was the Empire's new organisational name of 'First Order', and the old Rebel Alliance as 'The Resistance'.
A large close-up of Rey follows, with a misty white object out of focus in front of her.... could it be a white crystal ??! Then an airborne attack by two old-design, squared wing, TIE fighters, followed by one TIE fighter firing amok inside a Star Destroyer's hangar bay ! Finn removes his bloodied stormtrooper helmet, and appears to be shaken. Then a primary shuttle and four support shuttles returning to a snub-nosed Star Destroyer.
An armed 'chrome-armoured' stormtrooper - Gwendoline Christie ?? - is seen marching through an Imperial corridor, but with what appears to be a cave wall on one side. We then see the droid BB8 peeking around the ring corridor of the Millennium Falcon looking up the cockpit tunnel. A close-up of Rey, then her hand offering to help Finn get up.
Then we see the Millennium Falcon, pursued doggedly by a TIE fighter, skirting around the engine fuselage of a wrecked Super Star Destroyer - ah ! So there was at least more than one ! - before, with a cutaway shot to the TIE pilot - the two ships dive inside the skeletal wreckage ! Then, after a pause to black, we hear and then see Han Solo say to his Wookiee co-pilot, "Chewie, we're home !", and then the title card closes the trailer.
The trailer can be seen here.
There is still much in question, even for those following the accurate and potentially inaccurate spoilers ! What is the agenda of the villain(s), and the justification for the attack glimpsed in both trailers ? What roles do the Skywalker Twins have ? How do the newcomers fit in to both the plotline as well as the familial lineage ? What's happened for Han to say "We're home" once he and Chewie are aboard the Falcon ?
With the trailer entitled 'Teaser *2', we can hope for at least another trailer between now and December !! And perhaps more will be revealed... ?
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| Later in April, fansite StarWars7News discovered hidden gems within the second teaser : based on comparisons made with material newly-released at the Anaheim Celebration, we see such things as Rey and Finn running towards a waiting Millennium Falcon ; director JJ Abrams filming Artoo Detoo and what is very likely Luke Skywalker in the embers scene from the trailer ; the ornate finger ring on Leia's hand as she takes her father's old lightsabre ; concept art for Finn with a belted lightsabre and Rey with a hand blaster reminiscent of Han Solo's !
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Following the teaser trailer reveal and the tidbits at Anaheim, starWars7News also published a very lucid speculative essay on the historical precedents for the current state of the Imperial Empire and the Rebel Alliance. It also talks about the new labels for the organisations, namely 'First Order' and 'Resistance' respectively. In addition, one of the site editors also found a cross-reference to 'First Order' on the SW Wiki under the 'Order 66' entry, where this infamous command from Palpatine was supported by 'Order 1' which, essentially, demanded every Imperial to loyally protect and defend the New Imperial Order.
Now, if true, that would be a really clever tie-in to the controversial Prequel Trilogy.... and according to several disparate sources, there are indeed many subtle references across the six episodes !
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| Also at 'Celebration', it was revealed that the first of the stand-alone films, Rogue One, scheduled for a 2016 release, and currently in pre-production in the UK, will be part of a series entitled 'Anthology'. Artwork was revealed of rebel soldiers running in jungle rain, and a short teaser trailer was shown of a TIE fighter flying above a jungle canopy, with the misty silhouette of the first Death Star in the blue sky. It was confirmed that the premise of the plot, conceived by ILMer John Knoll, follows the rebels who undertake their "first great mission" in stealing the plans of the first dreaded superweapon !
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| This month, the Official Site confirmed that the six-episode saga will now be available on digital platforms. This package will also have a vast content of behind-the-scenes material too !
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| The illustrations continue for the Kessel attack run in our Virtual Edition of Episode VII : Plague of Doom : we have the Devil Squadron Jedi pilots pushing deeper into the twisting geyser-filled canyon, and finding to their dismay that the fog has thickened considerably ! |
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| Leia belatedly realises that the geothermal activity in the rift canyon is more violent, the mists completely obscuring the pilots' view ! When Han had previously led them in under the Imperials' noses, the geyser cycle had been much calmer and more subdued. Now, they are flying in a dangerously hostile environment, with several TIE fighters still hot on their tails ! Leia closes her eyes as she re-focuses in the Force.... |
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| Relying on the Force to guide them, Leia leads her squadron tight to the canyon wall, barely evading stone pillars jutting out from the ground ! The lead TIE fighters aren't so deft, and smash into the rocky outcroppings ! |
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| You can see the VE artwork in the 'Kessel' art gallery as well as in the online illustrated story, and you can discuss this in the forum here ! |
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| In other virtual edition news, I have been amending and adding to the current draft story synopsis for Duel of the Fates, our virtual Episode IX. The action moves from Corellia to Coruscant to Tatooine ; from Neimoudia to Serenno to Had Abaddon ; and to Kashyyyk. Darth Monstross and his bogan hordes have all but swept across the galaxy, the Alliance heroes led by Luke and Han and Leia valiantly hold them back, and Leia, within the Netherworld, discovers her destiny and a solution for the dormant Force...... |
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| Nathaniel Reed, 30th April 2015 |
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