In case you hadn’t head, there’s a little move coming out this December called Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. And while the hype machine for the next chapter in the timeless sci-fi saga is just beginning to warm up, studio LucasFilm and parent company Walt Disney have shifted gears to promote the huge merchandise and toy lines that will be flooding store shelves (and Christmas lists) later this year.
Last year Disney released most of its Star Wars merchandise on Friday, September 4th (dubbed Force Friday). While Star Wars merch wound up being a red-hot commodity, the launch stumbled a little out of the gate. Details on some of the hotter items had been pretty sparse leading up to their launch, some items were flying off shelves faster then retailers could resupply them (Sphero’s app controlled BB-8 for instance) and some stuff was still weeks away from hitting stores.
So this year Disney (which manufactures a good deal of the merchandise themselves) changed things up a bit. Product for the next Star Wars blockbuster will hit store shelves September 30th and Disney has created a web series titled Star Wars Go Rogue to show off all their new goodies. A few minutes in length, the show uses stop motion capture instead of traditional or CGI animation (think Robot Chicken but without the sex jokes). The first episode (titled Chapter One) dropped on the Star Wars YouTube channel last week and showed off a number of product lines ranging from Lego sets to action figures to Pop dolls.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIrw_AszBvk&w=560&h=315]
Video: Star Wars
The episodes are amusing little commercials that use entertainment to advertise the next blitz of Star Wars product as well as the movie itself. You’ll be laughing and reaching for your wallet at the same time. Fans and toy buyers can expect more episodes in the weeks leading up to the big September 30th launch.
Star Wars: Rogue One hits theatres December 16th.
Photo: Disney UK
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