The Mandalorian & Grogu Final Trailer Released!

 

© Disney, Lucasfilm

Several disturbances in the Force have happened in the past couple of days, with an extremely active news week for the galaxy far, far away that we all know and love (Star Wars Celebration 2027 tickets now on sale! First looks at Han and Leia at Galaxy's Edge!). 

The biggest news, though, is that of The Mandalorian & Grogu's final theatrical trailer releasing at CinemaCon! 

 

The trailer gave us more glimpses of what we know about the film's plot, and the theories are already buzzing in my head. Since it first released in 2019, the Mandalorian has been no stranger to building up to the sequel trilogy, setting up Palpatine's eventual return and the New Republic's negligence and corruption that allowed the First Order to rise. 

It seems as though those are the very same themes the film is going to be revisiting, with Sigourney Weaver's Colonel Ward telling Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) that the mission she has for him isn't about revenge, but preventing another war (something we've also seen General Hera Syndulla struggle to be taken seriously over, in the Ahsoka series regarding Grand Admiral Thrawn's return). Could it be possible we'll see even more of the beginnings of the First Order in this film? 

With the inclusion of the Hutt crime family, I'm leaning towards yes. In Star Wars Resistance, we learn that the First Order worked closely with the underworld to cover up their own activities, or to ensnare planets or stations with the promise of security from threats they themselves caused. The potential that remnants of the Empire might have aligned with the Hutt Clan is too much of a similarity to how the First Order operates, to be a mere coincidence.

We also learn that Ward is an X-Wing pilot, which has me especially excited since pilots are my favorite niche in the galaxy far, far away. I cannot wait to learn more about her, since - according to the Empire spread a few months ago - Dave Filoni described Ward as:

“Ward exists in a lineage of women who dismantled the Empire on the frontlines who “really went through it” like Mon Mothma, Hera Syndulla, Amilyn Holdo and Leia Organa”

 More rebellion ladies to love! I'm so here for it. I would also love if we get some comics down the line that give us some lore about Ward working with Leia (whom Sigourney Weavey describes Ward as "going way back" with), or even showing her flying alongside other Rebellion era pilots like Evaan Verlaine or Shara Bey!

I'm also anxious about the separation that clearly is happening between Din and Grogu: my current theory is that Din is captured trying to cover Grogu's retreat from the Hutt's bounty hunters and the film is about the father and son duo trying to reunite. If you'll excuse me, I'll be crying over the inherent parallel of Din and Grogu's separation in the trailer with Poe sending BB-8 away in the Force Awakens, until probably after I've seen the movie!

Tickets for The Mandalorian and Grogu are now on sale, and the movie releases May 22nd!

 

 

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Disney Dreamlight Valley Unveils "Droid Dreams"

 

Disney Dreamlight Valley © Disney, Gameloft, Lucasfilm. Screenshot by me.

        

After teasing something celestial coming to the shops in the near future on social media, Disney Dreamlight Valley updated its in-game shop this morning to reveal a new section called Droid Dreams, showcasing two companion skins to join the player on their adventures, in the form of BB-8 and R2-D2!

I only began playing Dreamlight Valley last Summer, and was fortunate enough to be able to collect Artoo then with the moonstones (the in-game currency that can be unlocked for free by searching the valley for chests containing moonstones or by contributing and voting in the weekly DreamSnaps challenges. You can also purchase moonstones for as cheap as $5 if need be, according to DLV's shop), but never saw BB-8 last year, so I'm uncertain if he's a new addition or just one I've unfortunately missed in the past.

Luckily, I had enough moonstones saved up this morning to be able to unlock him! He's so cute, and far chattier than Artoo typically is while following me around. And when you pet him? He spins! It's so adorable.

Screenshot by me.  © Disney, Gameloft, Lucasfilm 

 

Last year, they updated the shop with Star Wars themed items for May the 4th such as Padme's lake dress and Anakin's Jedi robes, and I'm excited to see if they'll do so again this year. 

My guess is that if they do, it'll be to tie in with the Mandalorian and Grogu (out May 22nd!), but my biggest dream is that they'll do another DLC in the future that brings in characters from the Star Wars universe to the valley! I genuinely see no reason not to, when we already have companion skins for two of the best droids in the Star Wars galaxy, and Star Wars is essentially a space fairytale. I really think it'd fit right into the themes of the game.

Of course, since unlocking BB-8 this morning made me weep tears of joy, I think maybe I need to brace myself if they ever do add the characters that are so near and dear to my heart! 

 Update: after posting this, it came to my attention that Dreamlight Valley actually unveiled its new Star Wars collection in a short teaser!

 

The short teaser highlights last year's collection (excuse me as I mourn not acquiring those Naboo inspired furniture items), before unveiling this year's! We're going to get Padme's meadow dress from Attack of the Clones, and I'm so thrilled, I absolutely love that dress. I'm definitely going to be saving up moonstones to get it! 

Besides that, they'll be releasing furniture sets themed to match Tatooine's architecture, which I'm honestly also excited about (maybe I'm having thoughts on how best to decorate my valley with it). The two collections they've released so far have been heavily Prequels-leaning, with a lot of Anidala (hooray!) inspired items, which makes me very happy as a life-long Anidala shipper, and as my best friend pointed out to me, they're releasing items that really suit the tone of the game!

 

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Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord Episode I & II Thoughts

After months of waiting, Maul: Shadow Lord finally premiered its first two episodes Monday, and pushed us into a brand new era of Star Wars animation. Although I was largely disinterested in the show upon its announcement (I was depressed at the time, and even new Star Wars projects weren't exciting me), our first look at the show quickly flipped my opinion and it became my most anticipated show in years.

Maybe that's to be expected though, since I'm a Prequels baby, who has a deep rooted love and connection with the Phantom Menace, since it released the year I was born.

Me as a baby, kissing Darth Maul's cheek (aka my dad ♡)

Without delving too much into spoilers for the first two episodes (though if you haven't watched them yet already, please do because the next two episodes drop tomorrow!), I'll say this is the best Star Wars has been in years, and that's such a highly competitive arena because when isn't Star Wars telling compelling stories?

 Ahead of the show's release, I went back and rewatched Maul's appearances in the Clone Wars, because I couldn't remember the episodes that well, and the difference in tone between Clone Wars and Shadow Lord is staggering. Although TCW matured as the seasons went on, there is a lightness to the anthology series that feels almost entirely absent in Maul, even with two characters that provide us with a certain amount of comic relief. It approaches the story it wants to tell with patience and nuance, already introducing us to characters with rich backstories and living in shades of grey.

 The animation is probably the best Lucasfilm has ever done. It has the cinematic feel of the Siege of Mandalore arc in The Clone Wars, but the improvements made on their existing style feels like the animation team watched Arcane and the Spider-Verse films and went "we can do that, too." The way they incorporate an almost watercolor style feeling to the backgrounds (particularly visible in the Janix skylines), reminds me strongly of Gwen's universe in Across the Spider-Verse. And the amount of details gone into the animation is incredible: you can see individual strands of hair on multiple characters' heads, and dust motes in the background of some sequences. 

 It's also violent and leans hard into some horror film elements (which has been promised to get even stronger once the Inquisitors have entered the fray later in the season), and the fight choreography is already amazing, and we're only two episodes in! Not to mention the score - no surprise to anyone, but the Kiners are absolutely knocking it out of the park again, I almost screamed when the first title card splashed across the screen and the show's suite played for the first time (don't even get me started on the Duel of the Fates needle drop).

 My favorite characters so far are Spybot (a talking, sassy goth cat-like droid? Sign me up), and Devon Izara. Devon's character already stands unique among a slew of other Order 66 survivors, because she's got a more hardened, pragmatic edge to her. She's aware that in order to survive in such a lawless time, morals might have to be compromised - but she's got a good heart on her, too, and I'm interested to see where the rest of the series takes her, though I have quite a few theories on where she might go.

 I'm also fond of Lawson. The on-the-nose naming technique endears me so much (he's a cop named son of the law! About as subtle as Before the Awakening making Poe's first assignment in the Resistance, being stationed aboard a ship called the Echo of Hope), and he feels like he's been pulled straight of an old detective film - which, despite being a popular character archetype, feels incredibly fresh to Star Wars. He reminds me a little bit of Legend of Korra's Lin Beifong for that reason, although Lawson is far softer than gruff Lin.

I don't think I've been this invested in a Star Wars series since Star Wars Rebels, which is still to date one of my favorite entries in the franchise, and if the rest of the season proves to be as good, I might even have a brand new favorite show in general. Thank the maker it's already been renewed for a second second! 

 

 

 

 

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