In The Incredibles, superheroes were cast out of society for their destructive antics and forced to hide their powers while living regular lives. That appears to be changing in this summer’s Incredibles 2. While it’s been 14 years since the original movie, much less time has passed in its universe (the sequel is apparently going to pick up right where The Incredibles left off, in a showdown with “the Underminer”).
In Incredibles 2, a megarich superhero enthusiast, Winston Deavor (voiced by Bob Odenkirk), wants to bring superheroes back into the spotlight. “Elastigirl is our best play,” Deavor says in the film’s first full trailer, released Friday.
“Better than … me?” Parr family patriarch Bob (Craig T. Nelson) asks somewhat incredulously. Elastigirl/Helen Parr (Holly Hunter) gives him some proper side-eye, and from there, the trailer sets up two story lines for the new movie: Elastigirl fighting crime, and Bob fighting to keep his sanity as a stay-at-home dad with three children going through very different stages of their lives. While I’m stoked for Elastigirl—who was definitely a bit underused in the first Incredibles—it’s amazing how miserable Bob looks at home.
Bob is going through at least six different existential crises in this trailer, so we’re going to rank them by order of stressfulness. Let’s work our way from the bottom, and please keep Bob in your thoughts.
Angsty Teen Violet
“Is she having adolescence?” middle child Dash asks Bob about eldest child Violet. (Yes.)
Fingers crossed Bob doesn’t discover Violet’s moody Tumblr and begin prodding into her personal life.
Dash’s Math Homework
What better way to encapsulate the cruel passage of time than having Bob help Dash with his math homework, only to discover that whatever methods he used in grade school math class are now obsolete. To quote Bob himself: “I DON’T KNOW THAT WAY! WHY WOULD THEY CHANGE MATH? MATH IS MATH! MATH IS MATH!”
If simple problem sets are enough to cause a complete breakdown, imagine what the Incredibles 2 trailer isn’t showing us.
Jack-Jack Combusting
The good news first. Edna Mode—with her perpetually sassy tone and chic, Instagrammable home—is officially back making super-suits. And she even has one for Jack-Jack.
The bad news is Jack-Jack’s powers are all over the place, and if he’s going to occasionally combust, that is very bad news for the Parrs’ literal house. Imagine the insurance claims Bob’s gonna have to deal with!
Jack-Jack, Generally
Yes, that is, in the span of three seconds, Jack-Jack setting himself on fire, shooting out lightning, and firing green lasers out of his eyes. If that’s what happens when Jack-Jack sneezes … what happens when he has to poop?
Insomnia
You know how you can tell the age of a tree from the rings in its trunk? For each day Bob goes without sleep, the bags under his eyes continue to swell. By my estimation, he’s lost about four days here. Might I suggest melatonin gummies?
The Crippling of His Fragile Masculinity Caused by His Wife Being a Better Superhero
No, I’m definitely not reading too much into this children’s movie.
