Analyzing the Trailers for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (theories)

Hafa Adai! Island Boy Manuel here ready to talk about Star Wars! We finally have the final trailer for Rogue One: a Star Wars Story and here are my predictions on plot elements based on these trailers. Now I feel the need to drop a spoiler warning even though these are my thoughts and could be completely wrong. That said if your interested in taking a peak into the galaxy far, far away these are my thoughts on Rogue 1!

Who is Galen Erso?

While more and more will be revealed next month when Rogue One: Catalyst hits shelves...or kindles...or... I don't know how books works anymore.

Mads Mikkleson as Galen Erso

Any who based on the excerpts that have been released we know that Galen (Mads Mikkleson in the film) is a pro-republic scientist during the Clone Wars, and that at some point he was held captive by separatists, only to be rescued by an old friend, Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn in the film). It is shown in the excerpt that Krennic is far more rash and violent than his friend, but that Galen semi-approves of Krennic's all is fair in war attitude. While Galen's wife pleads with Krennic to spare the separatists since they are free now, Galen sits silently as Krennic destroys the base.

In the trailers we see an older Krennic showing up to Galen's farm with a compliment of black clad Death Troopers. It appears from the trailer that Galen hasn't embraced the empire that arose from the republic after the Clone Wars. He doesn't appear to be a rebel but instead is living a quiet life with his wife and daughter. Since we saw the plans for the Death Star in the prequel films, I would assume that he already designed the weapon by now and Krennic is letting him know that the Empire is finally moving ahead in building it. Based on his previous experiences with his old friend Krennic he tells his wife and Jyn to hide in case Krennic decides that like the separatists mentioned earlier, "they chose the wrong side."

Galen in imperial garb

Here is where I deviate from some of the other internet commentators out there. I don't believe Galen is a good guy. I think he has a doctor Frankenstein obsession with the Death Star. That's why later in the trailer we is seen wearing an imperial uniform. I think it's  a mistake to assume that since Mon Mothma says they intercepted a transmission from Galen that he intended it to be intercepted. This man has been apart from his wife and daughter for many years, I think it is more to do with his wife's distaste for war than his desire to go home.

I actually believe that his wife Lyra, knows what powers the weapon and brings her to Jedha hoping for a chance to save her husband, not knowing that he is building this weapon of his own will.

Why is the rebellion scared of Jyn?

Like I said above I think that Lyra brings a young Jyn to Jedha. It's the not Tatooine, not Jakku desert planet for this movie. It's a holy place to the extinct Jedi, hence the Lord of the Rings style statue, and I think it's where the Kyber Crystals are stored. They power lightsabers and I believe are also the power source for the Death Star.

This also happens to be the base of operations for a little terrorist known as Saw Gerrera and his Partisans. I think that sometime after arriving in Jedha, Lyra is killed by imperial soldiers (possibly on Krennic's orders) and Jyn turns to the Partisans and is raised by Saw to be a anti-Empire terrorist.

Saw aging in the trailer

I think that Saw raising Jyn makes sense considering how much he ages in trailers. I also think that Chirrut and Baze (Donnie Yen and Jiang Wen) are also members of the Partisans. You never see them interact with the folks on Yavin 4 and they appear on Jedha or Scarif in every scene you see them in.


 Jyn being a Terrorist makes sense considering the level of distrust that she receives from the rebels. However, they need her to recover the Death Star plans from the Empires base on Scarif. Which is the tropical planet you've seen in the posters and trailers.

Where is the Empire Hiding those Plans?!?

I think that Scarif houses the base that Jyn, Cassian and K-2SO are breaking into in the final trailer. I don't believe it's the Death Star, I think bad disguises would only work once and Han and Luke do that in a little while. Also the biggest complaint people have about Force Awakens is how similar it is to A New Hope. I doubt Disney will open that door again.

I think that Scarif is the mission but that the team will make it out with the plans. However, I think that from the plans they will discover that the weapons power source is on Jedha, Jyn will realize why her mother brought her there all those years ago, and they will decide to go there to try to stop the Empire from getting the Kyber Crstals. I believe this is the Alamo moment. I think this final stand is where most of the characters will bite the dust.  I think this mostly because of these two shots...

Bodhi looking grave on Scarif, and then standing in front of this massive blast on Jedha. I don't think he is walking away from the second one, which I think is caused by the crystal mine exploding in the battle (after the Empire has what they need).

How much Vader will we see?

My guess is not much. I think he will show up after the battle at Scarif, reprimand Krennic and possibly kill Galen (after he helps his daughter escape) off screen. I say not much purely because the original trilogy had a boring lightsaber duelist in Vader and he doesn't over use the force either so to give him a lot of cool Sith Lord stuff to do would put him out of place, power-wise, with A New Hope.

So there you have it folks, these are my thoughts for Rogue One. I could be completely wrong but this is what I think based on the trailers. But hit me up in the comments, you can also follow me on Twitter and be sure to watch Chamorro Cinema on YouTube for Nerdtastic News with an Island View. Thanks for reading. PEACE!

Marvel's Agents of Shield Season 4 Review| Chamorros Watchin TV

Hafa Adai! Welcome to Chamorro Cinema, I'm Island Boy Manuel and it is upon us...FALL TELEVISION! And you know what that means...I'm going to be breaking down all the good? Bad? And more than a little of both (and getting very little sleep).

Marvel's Agents of Shield Review Episode 1 (The Ghost)

Here it is ladies and gentleman the moment we've all been waiting for since the rights were given back to Marvel, the introduction of Ghost Rider to the MCU. Marvel quickly (masterfully) incorporated Punisher in a big way into Daredevil on Netflix. So I was cautiously excited to see how they handled Ghostrider. Unlike most of my geeky brethren I am very nervous about incorporating the supernatural into the relatively sci-fi based MCU. I'm worried about it becoming a device to let the writers lazily explain thing away as magic or demonic.

That said I am digging the time jump. I know that this show does its best work when the ensemble is well...assembled. However, the splitting up of the team makes sense, and it's fun to see them in their new roles. Without giving too much away, Daisy is still a vigilante, Fitz and Simmons are still together and super adorable, May is kicking ass and teaching others to do so, and Mack and Coulson are partners. There is also a new director that is more anal than the ending of Kingsman.  

Ghost Rider is played by Gabriel Luna and he does a tremendous job as Robbie Reyes the 4th incarnation of the spirit of vengeance...don't worry if you've never heard of Robbie that's why God invented Wikipedia. His version of Ghost Rider drives a muscle car and didn't last very long. The key to his character is that he is the fast and the furious version, he illegally street races cars for money, he has a sick brother that he cares for...and he kills a lot of baddies. 

The action starts out big and bombastic then the center of the episode is all setup and catching up on the characters. The slow parts are interwoven with the Rider violently interrogating a member of the Aryan Brotherhood to break up the monotony. Mostly the characters have a one on one scene with one of other main characters. Mack and Coulson, Mack and Yo-Yo, Fitz and Holden, Fitz and Simmons, Simmons and May, Yo-Yo and Daisy, Daisy and Robbie...all these scenes stands out and it's a true testament of how well this cast works together in any configuration. 

The story has plenty of nuggets that help setup future episodes. Holden and Fitz further work on the Aida (life model decoy) that was teased in the last season finale, Mack and Coulson stumble on a supernatural weapon that makes people bonkers and seems to be tied to the upcoming Dr. Strange. Ghost Rider is not explained at all which was nice but I know it'll have to handled eventually... so how they explain demons with Sam and Dean Winchester showing up is any ones guess.

It was a stronger premiere than last season by far, and I'm excited to see where this ride takes us.

The Exorcist (TV Series) Review | Chamorros Watchin TV

Hafa Adai! Welcome to Chamorro Cinema, I'm Island Boy Manuel and it is upon us...FALL TELEVISION! And you know what that means...I'm going to be breaking down all the good? Bad? And more than a little of both (and getting very little sleep).

Today's review is the premiere episode of The Exorcist on FOX.

Antonio Banderas v. Alphonso Herrera

The episode starts out with a young Antonio Banderes...wait that's not El Mariachi? Huh could've fooled me...They not only look the same but the accent and the smoldering sensuality that punctuates the delivery of every line, makes me think this guy is doing his best to be the next flash in the pan "it guy" that eventually voices a cartoon cat.

That doesn't mean that he isn't really good in this role. I believed him as Father Tomas Ortega. He comes across as a nice guy, who wants to do his best as a priest, but also has some of the baggage of dealing with his pride and ambitions. Think Joseph Fiennes in American Horror Story, but more layered. The premiere does a great job setting him up as the altruistic hero while adding depth and conflict. This is masterfully handled slowly through character interaction and small scenes that build up our understanding of Tomas and his struggles.

Ben Daniels as Father Merrick...I mean Marcus

I wish the same could be said about our introduction to his counter-part, Father Marcus Keane, played by House of Cards Alum Ben Daniels. He is set up right away as the bad-ass. He is practically introduced like on of those retired secret agents in an action/thriller.  Tell me if this setup doesn't sound familiar...He is literally sitting on a rooftop, in a slum. When another person is dispatched from his bosses to tell him he needs to come back. He tells him he can't return until he finishes his business here. They argue in veiled threats, then the Marcus scares the other priest away with a gun. It could fit easily into any Rambo/Bourne/XXX/Bond movie out there.

Again though, this does not discount his portrayal of the guilt ridden and world weary Father Marcus. Ben Daniels delivers a tremendous performance, albeit mostly in flash backs. The issues I have with the character is just how on the nose he is. Also if they were going to pattern the priests after Kerras and Merrick, why make the Kerras character so different but make the Merrick character so similar? Heck even the names are similar. 


The supporting cast is made up of Alan Ruck and Geena Davis as Henry and Angela, the parents of two teenagers, played by Brianne Howey as Kat and Hannah Kasulka as Casey. This is the family the exorcists need to help.

The daughters and Henry aren't given much to do in the premiere but Davis does her best to portray the matriarch, Angela in the way only her non-expressive face can. The issue I have with the family is that throughout the episode I couldn't place why they thought a demon was afflicting them. A few scratching noises and a moody teenager sounds more like mice and puberty than ancient evil.

The show doesn't really address this either, whereas in the first movie Kerras started off skeptical, this show has Tomas jumping on the belief train with both feet.

The rest of the episode deals mostly with Tomas searching for Marcus and Marcus in flashbacks performing an exorcism in Mexico. The Marcus scenes are horrific and tense. The Tomas scenes are more psychological and dramatic. The episode ends without the priests teaming up and that's okay because I'm enjoying the slow burn of it all.

The Verdict

The visuals are stylish, the acting is great and the show was creepy enough for my wife to ask me if I was sure this was on network television. So much of this show works, but there are a few places where it's budget betrays it particularly in on CG Crow that looks straight out of a PS3 game. If you are a fan of 70's moody and slow paced horror films this show is definitely worth a watch.

Thanks for reading!

Peace!

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Tenfly Glow in the Dark Dual USB Wall Charger

Hafa Adai! USB Wall Chargers...nuff said...but wait this one glows! Tonight on Chamorros Reviewing Tech, Island Boy Manuel is checking out Tenfly's cool looking charger. Is it good? Bad? Maybe a little of both? Find out in this installment of Chamorros Reviewing Tech.

The product arrived in a small square plastic box with a paper inserts lining the outside. The product was bagged and placed inside, so long story short not much to say there. The product is painted with a matte white paint that has a cracked texture allowing the blue plastic body and LED lights to shine through. The cracks definitely add texture to the surface but that makes me think that the paint might easily scrape off if your fingernails get into the cracks. The USB ports on the face are 3 amp and feature some sort of intelligent charging that can go down from 3 amps to 2 amps to 1 amp depending on what you have plugged in.

The lights are cool, not to the touch though, as it does get plenty hot. Even though the unit boast over-temp protection I was amazed at just how hot it gets. This is only evident when the device is charging something. The unit seems to do exactly what they set out to. I didn't have any issues and it charged as fast as the one that was included with my LG G5. So what can I say it does what it says, and if you're willing to shell out $19.99 for a wall charger because you wanna ride the lighting and feel like Zoom from The Flash it'll be money well spent.

**  Island Boy Manuel received this item at a discounted rate for his honest and unbiased review. **

Fifine USB Wireless Microphone with Sound Card Review | Chamorros Reviewing Tech

Hafa Adai! Another day another tech review...hey there party peeps it's me Island Boy Manuel, bringing you the deets on the Fifine USB Wireless Microphone with Sound Card. So is it good? Bad? Maybe a little of both? Let's find out in this edition of Chamorros Reviewing Tech.

Unboxing and Setup

The Mic arrived in that pretty, white box emblazoned with that black Fifine Technology that I've mentioned in previous reviews. It looks sharp and modern and I really like the aesthetic. The product is protected by foam and bagged. All the included accessories (two double A batteries, a USB receiver, and an Auxiliary cable) are kept below a cardboard divider.

Admittedly I was underwhelmed by the look of this mic. The steel mesh looks like a flat painted chrome, the only branding is a generic text wrap at the base of the mesh that simply says UHF Professional Microphone. The switch has a textured slider that has good tactile feedback and makes a solid clicking noise so you can be sure you have it in the correct position. I also don't understand why the bottom is bright blue...if I had to venture a guess it'd be that the body style is generic so that they can use it when manufacturing standard XLR wired mics or wired USB mics and they just change out the guts and plug the hole with blue plastic.

The USB receiver is plastic with a small green LED and a 3.5mm port for the auxiliary cable, and unfortunately it seems a tad too light to elicit any sort of ooo or awww factor. The Auxiliary Cable has a good length to it and fits snug. The batteries are generic AA styles and they fit into the compartment well. I got roughly three solid hours of use before they needed replacing.

Audio Test

The Mic actually has a great sound to it. I belted out everything from Broadway to Five finger death punch, from One Direction to Chase Rice and all the Audio rang clear with very little plosives or shifting in volume. The mic does pick up a lot breath noise but little to no ambient noise. I was very happy with the result.

The Verdict

I am very happy with my purchase of the Fifine wireless mic. I'm deducting a point for the generic look but it works well and that's what matters. Check it out for yourself here: https://goo.gl/1QoO4L