Pressing Questions From the Final 'Star Wars' Trailer

In light of the release of the much-anticipated third and final trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens this past Monday, many, many demanding questions were aroused by fans all over the world. With the new trailer doing as all trailers should do these days, evoking some string of emotion and teasing us more and more towards scenes of unknown excitement (all without spoiling too much), I decided rather then breaking down the trailer like usual, I would do my best to speculate on some questions. Be warned this speculation may contain minor spoilers to the uninitiated, or may just be a bunch of hogwash...Yes, I just said "hogwash".  

Who are the new faces? - Ever since this film was announced those many months ago, fans have been speculating as to who or what to expect from the new cast of characters. Throughout the numerous teases we've gotten so far, we now know that the seventh episode in the saga will introduce at least three new heroes: John Boyega's Stormtrooper-turned lightsaber-wielder Finn, Daisy Ridley's mysterious desert dweller Rey, and Oscar Isaac's rebellious pilot Poe Dameron. In the new trailer, we begin to get a bit more insight as to who these new faces are, as we see a troubled Rey go from her scavenger days in the desert to holding someone dear to her dead in her arms, as well as some insight on how she meets the always-frightened Finn. As for Isaac, we learn little more about his character, Poe, other than that he is likely captured by the First Order (aka the new Empire) at some point in the film. Even as we know little about these new heroes, this new trailer definitely gets the ball rolling in our ever-developing speculations.    

Will Rey steal the show? - One of the highlights in the trailer, at least for me, was the great display of what ultimately might become Rey's story. What we know of the newcomer to the galaxy so far is that she's basically the female version of our once-desert-bound hero Luke Skywalker. As we see in the new trailer, Daisy Ridley's scavenger Rey might very well face similar odd-and-ends as young Luke did back in the original trilogy, as we see her encounter a strange person(s) in the desert (similar to how Luke met C-3PO and R2-D2) and also lose someone dear to her (RIP Ben Kenobi). One of the most profound lines in the trailer for me, was when Leia (supposedly) asks Rey who she is, and the lone scavenger answers simply: "I'm no one." Just as Luke did in "A New Hope", the young character could see more in life than traversing the desert all day, and be provoked to travel into space. Hoping that Rey will become just as essential and defining as Luke did in this saga, I really want her to become yet another strong female lead to add to the list this year.
 

What side is Finn on? - Another important character in the trailer is the always-sweaty, always-fearful Finn, played by John Boyega. As I mentioned, in the trailer we see Finn as a once-loyal Stormtrooper of the First Order, possibly turned away from the dark side of things when he loses his urge to fight. If my speculation is correct, we then find Finn struggling to escape his old life, ultimately crash-landing on Jakku, the desert planet where Rey lives. Alternatively, another theory as to who Finn may really be is that he's only impersonating a Stormtrooper, with the goal of infiltrating the First Order. While my first idea may seem more likely, it begs the question: How the hell does he get a lightsaber? Nearing the end of the final trailer, we see a frightened Finn wielding a blue lightsaber (reminiscent on young Skywalker in Empire Strikes Back), going up against the mysterious new villain, Kylo Ren. Where he gets the lightsaber, and whether or not he's a Jedi, is not clearly defined yet, but what is fairly clear is that Finn ultimately ends up playing for the light side of the Force. Probably the most mysterious of the new heroes, Finn's motives are not fully established yet, making for many awesome surprises that await us in the theater.  

Jedi, Stormtrooper, Lando's son...pick your poison!

Who is Kylo Ren? - Even more ambiguous than the trio of heroes is the First Order and its leaders, most importantly the newest red-bladed assassin to meet our eyes, Kylo Ren. Confirmed to be played by Girls star Adam Driver, and not entirely a Sith, not much is known about our newest villain. In this trailer, however, we do learn something that may come to define Ren's motives in the film, as we see him kneeling before the charred remains of Darth Vader's helmet. Predicted to be a follower of Vader's legacy, saying in the trailer that he will "finish what you started", we can easily see that Kylo Ren won't be a very nice guy. Supposedly a member of the "Knights of Ren", many questions have risen, everything from "Who is he?" to "What's with that lightsaber?". With speculation going through the roof, with fans saying that he's either the son of Han and Leia, or more unlikely an apprentice to an evil Luke Skywalker (or even Luke himself), Kylo Ren remains shrouded in mystery...and that's just the way we like it.  

What is the new "Death Star"? - As we see in the newest poster for the film, and alluded to just a bit in the trailer, there seems to also be a new weapon of mass destruction present in the new film. As we've seen many times in the original trilogy, the Empire has somehow been able to construct numerous massive spheres of death and destruction in a short amount of time. Set approximately 30 years after the events of Return of the Jedi, where Luke and the rebels took one final blow to leave the Empire in rubble, it can easily be inferred that this new First Order has constructed a more efficient, and even more powerful planetary weapon than we've ever seen before. With parts of the trailer looking to be set on this new "Death Star", dubbed the "Starkiller Base", it may be possible that this new weapon could actually be a inhabitable planet, rather than the metallic shell of trenches and easily-accessible targets we've seen previously. Whatever this new weapon may be, it's still not completely clear as to who may be pulling the strings of it all.

I guess they loved Hoth so much, they recreated it?

Han and Leia, still together or broken-up? - Easily the most important couple in the galaxy, Han Solo and Leia Organa began as two stubborn loners in the galaxy, and soon became a part of the most defining trio of characters in the Star Wars universe. Now, with the two coming together again after defeating the Empire 30 years ago, it begs one of the most essential questions: Are the two still a couple? While it may be fairly certain that director J.J. Abrams wouldn't put these two on-screen again without them having their fan-favorite love story, it could be seen that maybe an aged Han parts from Leia somewhere in those 30 years, the scoundrel being tied up in whatever scoundrels do, or even Leia leaving him to commit to leading the new rebels. While it's highly unlikely that the two will part ways, with the rumor that Han might bite the dust soon spinning an emotionally heartbreaking effect on Leia as his wife, everything is really up in the air as to what may go down.  

That's it, ignore what I said. Keep these lovebirds together, Abrams!

Who will bite the dust? - Back to the topic of who may be rumored to die in the new film, we already know that Han Solo may or may not meet his fate, but one scene in the trailer makes us question if it may be someone else entirely. Said scene, which sees an emotional Rey balling her eyes out over a fallen comrade, makes for one of the trailers most mysterious questions. Some speculation has said that it could be a number of possibilities, from Han or Chewie to Finn or Luke Skywalker. While it could certainly be Han, as we see Rey gain a friendship to the scoundrel as he becomes her and Finn's guide to the galaxy, I still remain skeptical about Han being the one to die. The character being such a staple in the franchise, just as Luke, Leia, and Chewie are, it seems unlikely that the film would see any of those characters bite the dust. However, with new characters flooding into this new universe, it can't be ruled out that this death of one of our beloved heroes could certainly provoke the newcomers to take hold of the reins. While it's also unlikely that newcomer Finn to die, the fallen comrade in Rey's arms could also turn out to be someone we'd never expect...and that leads me to my next question.

It's Chewie! No, Han! No, Finn! Damn you, you mysterious bastard!
(But also R.I.P)

Are Kylo Ren and Rey related? - Of all the whirling speculation to pop up on the internet, the most intriguing would have to be the question of whether or not Kylo Ren and Rey are related. Rumored to be the children of Han and Leia, Jaina and Jacen Solo, the two may never interact in the new trailer per se, but it's definitely a worthy theory. Growing up isolated from the world and in the protection of their mother, the twin siblings soon grow up into two separate personalities, with Jaina progressing into a Jedi under the teachings of Luke Skywalker, and Jacen falling to the Dark Side of the Force. In what very well could be a fantastic nod for fans of the Extended Universe of Star Wars, the reveal that Rey is Jaina and Kylo Ren is Jacen could provide an awesome edge to the new story. 

There may be some sliver of resemblance here, don't you think? 

Luke Skywalker, where the hell is he? - With no Luke in the poster, and no Luke in any of the trailers other than a voice-over, fans have been wondering and wondering where the hell the hero of the galaxy may be. Clearly confirmed to appear in the new film, and most likely the films that follow, the absence of Luke is both misleading and, at the same time, perfect. What I mean by that is that while it may be sad for fans not to see the face of the staple hero of the original trilogy yet, it's also quite thrilling to know that he's there, somewhere, just pulling the strings behind the scenes. With Mark Hamill not being the spry, young Jedi knight he once was back in Return of the Jedi, Luke could most likely be a Ben Kenobi-type character, who recites philosophical and motivational lines here and there, and also slices some limbs off when necessary. While he may the hero we know and love, who successfully made us look upon a lonely farmboy from the desert as a legend, it's a bit exciting not to know what stage in his life Skywalker is at in the new film. Whether he's still kicking ass as a Jedi master, struggling to stay alive in his old age, or even losing his faith in the Jedi cause and switching sides by the end of the new film, we'll just have wait and see.
     

Luke, is that you?

How does this play into the future of Star Wars? - While we may have not even seen the film yet, one of my most burning questions was how this new installment will ignite a whole new plethora of films in the extended saga. Most definitely introducing more and more new characters, from new Luke Skywalkers to new Han Solos, as well as showing us an array of unexplored worlds full of even more new characters to meet, The Force Awakens looks to be a new beginning for the franchise. With upcoming films from spin-offs like 2016's Rogue One to Episodes 8 and 9 coming soon after ready to rock our world, the sky is not the limit for where these fantastic stories can go. With fresh eyes taking the reins, from J.J. Abrams to Looper's Rian Johnson, the future of Star Wars is fairly uncertain, but we do know that it'll definitely be a ride for both long-time and new fans alike.

Will we see the return of Darth Vader, in either prequel films or as a ghost?

So, in conclusion, the final trailer of Star Wars: The Force Awakens was probably the best thing I've seen all year. With just enough character reveals, ambiguous narration, and flashy nostalgia to get me even more hyped for this film than I already was, I couldn't say a word of anything negative about this trailer right now. What did you think of the newest trailer? Was it everything you had hoped for? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below.

As you may have noticed things have been a bit slow here, but I'm still trying to get you guys my reviews of The Intern, The Martian, and whatever else I might see this Fall. Stay tuned following those for my overview of the best films to see this Winter, from violent Shakespeare in Macbeth to space battles in you-know-what.