It should come as no surprise that the Toku Toy Store team dig giant robots to a level that can only be rivalled by Megas XLR. However, it’s fair to say that only the biggest and baddest robots can be found wading around the Pacific Rim and with a brand new trailer hitting our screens, I think it’s time I entered the Shatterdome and gave you the run down for Pacific Rim: Uprising.
YEAH BOY(ega)!
With a tasteful lick of the original Gipsy Danger theme on a mournful guitar (followed by the most god awful trailer song I’ve ever heard), we get a look at, and some sweet monologue from, John Boyega as Jake Pentecost and boy(ega), is he a fantastic choice to play the son of Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba, in the original film). We’re treated to what I imagine is his own rallying cry and while it’s no cancelling of the apocalypse, it shows that Jake is already a fine leader and is more than up for the task of filling daddy’s Drivesuit.
Old’s Cool
With only ten years passing between films, we thankfully get some returning characters in the form of Mako Mori, Newt Geiszler, and Hermaan Gottlieb (played by their reprising actors; Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day and Burn Gorman, respectively). Shame Charlie Hunnam couldn’t make an appearance and somewhat redeem himself for his performance in Guy Ritchie’s King Arthur movie.
Teenagers with Attitude
No one man makes an army (even if it’s Boyega playing Elba’s son) and we need to fill out the cannon fodder – cast with more Jaeger pilots. Not much to say on them since I bet most of them will barely make an impact outside of their respective robots but they’re really pushing the “New Generation” thing hard.
Wir sind de Jaeger!
Intercut with shots of kaiju destruction we get glimpses of the new Mark 5 and Mark 6 Jaegers. It’s interesting that these newer models are literally launched like rockets into crisis zones. I’m not a fan of most of their names – Gipsy Avenger, Saber Athena, Guardian Bravo, Titan Redeemer, and Bracer Phoenix – they lack the lunacy of the likes of Brawler Yukon, Matador Fury or Striker Eureka but I will admit that Gipsy Avenger is a belter of a name.
Dark Rangers
Something the trailer hints at heavily is the inclusion of an antagonistic force of Jaegers but I can’t find any information about them or their seeming leader who goes toe-to-toe with Gipsy Avenger in multiple different battles. Are these new Jaegers man-made or have the kaiju reverse-engineered their own super-robots? Hard to say until the film gets released but I’m sure it’ll be fun finding out!
Monster Mash
The last few shots of the movie give an indication of what the actual fleshy kaiju have been up to and, frankly, they’ve been taking cues from the giant robots because now they can COMBINE! That’s a neat new twist on the giant monster genre and I can’t wait to see how that fight plays out.
Overall, Pacific Rim: Uprising is being targeted to a much younger demographic while trying to maintain a series continuity and retain the original’s audience. Bringing back original cast members and casting John Boyega as the Son of Pentecost will go a long way to do so. Despite it’s new Saturday morning cartoon aesthetic, I can’t wait for this movie to be released on March 23rd, 2018!
