Late last night the first part of the two-part prequel to Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy – and Dear Lord, that’s a mouthful. I present the teaser trailer to The Hobbit.

At first blush, I get a distinct “gettin’ the band back together” vibe coming off this thing. Maybe that’s to be expected since Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Hugo Weaving, Cate Blanchett, Christopher Lee, Ian Holm, Elijah Wood and Orlando Bloom will all be reprising their roles from the LotR movies.

I know when I saw the title card reading “Next December…” I was taken aback. Mostly because it seems like a long way off to start an advertising campaign. But, when you consider that The Fellowship of the Ring first premiered in theaters almost a decade earlier, I can kind of understand wanting to capture that symmetry of time.

I was also struck by the sheer amount of footage they managed to cobble together for the trailer. With a year to go, it makes me wonder how much effect work is left to lay in? I’m sure WETA’s render farm will be overclocked in 2012.

What’s your reaction to the new trailer for The Hobbit? Personally, I’m a little underwhelmed. It feels like more of the same to me. But then again, I like the idea of revisiting these characters and hanging out with them again for a little while.

Good times, man. Good times.