Star Wars Super Bowl trailer featuring The Mandalorian and Grogu disappoints
In just a few months, “The Mandalorian” and “Grogu” will leave our television screens and conquer the big screen. Our first look at the Star Wars father-son duo since their last appearance in the third season of “The Mandalorian” hinted at the return of the Razor Crest, new allies with the arrival of Sigourney Weaver, and epic cage battles—but revealed little more. Given this huge leap from television to cinema, one would have expected Lucasfilm and Disney to have pulled out all the stops with the Super Bowl teaser. But things turned out differently.
In fact, the 36-second trailer for the next Star Wars film, which shows Mando (Din Djarin) and his protégé Grogu on a cart pulled by tauntauns, left behind nothing more than a mixture of yawning emptiness and indifference. It was neither worthy of a Super Bowl trailer nor in any way meaningful.
Star Wars trailer lacking ideas
It’s been almost seven years since the film series hit theaters. J.J. Abrams’ “The Rise of Skywalker” certainly raked in huge sums of money, but relied so heavily on nostalgia and the attempt to please everyone that it ultimately achieved the exact opposite.
But even “The Rise of Skywalker” understood the purpose of a Star Wars trailer: to pique viewers’ curiosity by answering their questions while simultaneously arousing new ones. This, along with fast-paced battles and breathtaking visuals that underscored the otherness of a galaxy far, far away, drew audiences to the cinemas.
The Super Bowl trailer for The Mandalorian and Grogu, however, failed to impress even die-hard fans. What distinguishes this film from the three previous seasons of “The Mandalorian”? The Super Bowl is a major event, so one would expect Lucasfilm and Disney to put more effort into promoting their upcoming film instead of relying solely on the cuteness factor of their mascot character.
The frustrating thing is that Lucasfilm and Disney have proven they can produce fantastic trailers. Their latest trailer, “Maul: Shadow Lord,” captures the intensity of Maul’s Escape and fuels the suspense and mystery surrounding the origins of new characters – a real Star Wars-Trailer. In comparison, the Super Bowl trailer for “The Mandalorian” could advertise anything.
