Last December, I wrote a little preview piece talking about how, yeah, whatever, "The Force Awakens" may be coming out – yawn; old news – but "Rogue One"? The little side anthology movie coming out the next year about the stealing of the Death Star plans? That was the "Star Wars" movie to be excited about.

Thankfully, now that we've gotten a glimpse of some actual footage from the movie this morning, thanks to its trailer debut, the excitement has only increased. Take a look for yourself:

Well, that is an impressive job of cramming a whole lot of awesome into less than two minutes.

Don't get me wrong: "The Force Awakens" was a good time at the theater and a fun reminder of why we like "Star Wars." But it didn't really feel like a new adventure in this galaxy far, far away, instead cycling through a lot of familiar characters, familiar locales and familiar plot beats. 

"Rogue One," however, already looks like the new "Star Wars" adventure I've been hoping for. Why? Brand new characters (I'm already pumped about Felicity Jones' Jyn Erso and evil caped Ben Mendelsohn), a fresh look and tone that seems intriguingly grimy and gritty without becoming drubbingly dark, a tighter glimpse into a corner of the rebellion we haven't really seen before and some just plain really cool shots of tense ground-level war action.

In pre-production interviews, director Gareth Edwards talked about how he wanted to capture the actual war part of "Star Wars," and from this brief look, it seems like he's done exactly that – this grand galaxy-spanning battle from a smaller, boots-on-the-ground (and occasional espionage) angle. 

Overall, from the music to the actual footage, there's a really great blend of old classic "Star Wars" stuff – oh hey, Mon Mothma! – played with some new perspectives. And, I mean, just look at some of these shots.

LOOK.

AT.

THESE.

SHOTS.

It is worth noting that director Gareth Edwards has yet to make a good movie, and both his previous attempts – "Monsters" and "Godzilla" – had terrific trailers for lukewarm final products. However, it's also worth noting that Imperial freaking Walkers are back. I've wanted more of those awkwardly stompy giant metal deer of death ever since I saw "Empire Strikes Back."

This movie is going to be genius – or at least that's what we can hope from watching the mere 90 seconds we've been given so far. For all we know, it's actually a giant pile of bantha poo. But I guess we'll find out when it comes out on Dec. 16. DEC. 16?! I will not be able to wait that long.