Hiya!

So the next and final chapter of the new Star Wars trilogy, The Rise of Skywalker, is coming out in just a couple of months. Just a couple of years ago, a new Star Wars film was something to be celebrated and it was a sure thing that Episode IX would make Disney tons and tons of money. It was sure to be both a critical hit and a well received movie that fans would adore.

Funny how things can change after just a couple of years.

Ever since The Last Jedi hit theaters and polarized the fanbase, Star Wars is in a bit of a quandary. Solo: A Star Wars story was the very first film in the franchise that flopped at the box office. Some fans have all but given up on Star Wars and have even pledged to not watch Episode IX to show Disney their displeasure with the direction the franchise has taken. To say that Disney has a lot riding on The Rise of Skywalker is an understatement as, if this flops as well, it could mean freezing Star Wars in carbonite for the foreseeable future until they can, hopefully, revive it once all the unpleasant memories of this current trilogy has died down.

Of course, Disney is hoping that they can turn the fandom’s opinion around with Episode IX and the best way they can lure them back into theaters is with a kickass trailer. Well, they did release a new and final trailer for Episode IX and, well, it’s kind of underwhelming and kinda meh.

Truth be told, I think the final trailer and even the previous trailers for Episode IX are rather problematic for Disney and LucasFilm as they don’t really show fans reasons why this will be different from The Last Jedi. The reason is that they’re too vague when they should really be showing fans the actual plot.

I usually don’t want trailers that show too much, however. Trailers are just like little commercials that are shown to give potential viewers a little taste of what to expect. There are so many trailers lately that do reveal a little too much than desired. It sometimes even gets to the point when the trailer reveals major spoilers or a viewer can even imagine the entire film’s story from beginning to end because of how much the trailer shows.

I will have to commend Disney and LucasFilm for giving us glimpses of what Episode IX is going to look like. The issue is that fans who didn’t like any of the previous two films, namely The Last Jedi and Solo, have been burned so badly that they need more than a peek at what to expect. They need a clear idea of the direction The Rise of Skywalker is taking. They want to know if it’ll redeem the mistakes of the past or will it be the final nail in the coffin of the franchise. The trailers that they’ve released so far look cool, sure. Unfortunately, they don’t really say if the plot will be too far removed from what they’re expecting.

I do believe that the trailers are strategically made to hide the plot. You can sort of say this is a trademark for JJ Abrams and all the films he makes. He’s a guy that has a lot of big concepts and loves to veil his projects with a lot of secrecy. This is evident in JJ Abrams’ previous projects like Lost and even Star Trek II: The Bad Guy Is Not Khan Or Is He. Okay, the 2nd thing isn’t the real title for that film but that’s what JJ Abrams wanted you to think. This is par for the course but, right now, that method is working against Star Wars!

Like I said, fans need some reassurances that The Rise of Skywalker will tell a story that’s worthy of the franchise. At the very least, the trailers should tell us more than just “Emperor Palpatine is gonna show up in Episode IX.” At this point, fans need much more than fan service. They need to know if the fan service actually services the film. Will it make sense to see the big baddie that died at the end of Return of the Jedi pop up, even if he wasn’t mentioned at the least in Episodes VII and VIII. Oh, sorry. Spoilers for Return of the Jedi, I guess.

There are rumors circulating that The Rise of Starwalker, despite it scheduled to be shown in just a couple of months, is still undergoing reshoots and edits. Honestly, I can believe that as there is a lot riding on The Rise of Skywalker being a hit with both critics and fans alike. I also feel sorry for JJ Abrams in a sense because the success of the franchise does seem to be on his shoulders right now. He has to make it a hit that the majority of moviegoers enjoy. Since that’s the current scenario, I do believe that he and everyone is trying to figure out what will appease everyone and they’re trying various things to figure out what will work. Maybe this is another reason why the trailers are still so vague; they have no idea what’s the story actually going to be all about!

From my perspective, a girl who likes Star Wars but isn’t a die hard fan, I can say that I found the trailers to be interesting but only because it’s Star Wars. If it was a trailer for any other movie, the 2 trailers Disney and JJ Abrams put together don’t really say much about the movie. It makes me ask too many questions but not the right questions. I have no idea about the plot or what is the current situation of the Resistance or The First Order. All I see is the new generation of Star Wars characters on a planet, looking at… something. Any other movie franchise, I would give it a pass.

I will say that I am eagerly awaiting The Rise of Skywalker but not because of the trailers. I’m more looking forward to it for more morbid reasons. I want to see if critics and audiences will agree if The Rise of Skywalker is good or bad. Moreover, I wanna know if this will be the film that kills the franchise or will it resurrect it in the eyes of the Star Wars fandom. That’s going to be interesting.

The trailers for The Rise of Skywalker, however…

Byee!

What do you think of The Rise of Skywalker trailers? Better question: do you think the movie will save or kill Star Wars? Let me know in the comments section below!