Ok…I’m definitely seeing this one. With the emotionally draining shitshow that’s ever present in our lives, a little magic and innocence is definitely in order.

I can’t begin to express the skepticism I had upon hearing that Disney was “remaking” Mary Poppins. Ok, scratch skepticism. It was outright exasperation.

With all their live-action remakes that are ironically lifeless, plus the endless barrage from the Marvel franchise (I just can’t anymore), Disney has sort of blown it with me. I wasn’t remotely interested in checking this out. I loved the original Mary Poppins – even as all the nastier elements came out about how it was made and how much the book’s author hated it – I still hold it as one of the childhood favorites I want to see passed down to the next generation. Then I watched the actual trailer for Mary Poppins Returns…

So it’s a sequel and NOT a remake! And here is Emily Blunt emoting the perfect blend of playfulness and prissiness that made Julie Andrews’ Mary Poppins so wonderful (seriously, after Dorothy Zbornak, I wanted to be Mary Poppins when I grew up. Hell, I still do.). Plus, the cast is everyone you want to see in a British fairy tale. Now, there are definitely some homage elements to it. For instance, there’s a Bert character, though it’s not Bert, who’s played by Lin Manuel-Miranda. The animation has a Bed Knobs and Broomsticks feel to it (more so that the animation that was in the original Mary Poppins), which is appropriate given that Angela Lansbury is one of the featured performers. Finally, wonder of wonders, Dick Van Dyke is even in this and still as spry as ever, apparently.

The trailer has kept it heavy-handed with the whimsy, so it’s not clear that they’ll have the same infectious humor as the tea party scene or the pathos of Mr. Banks keeping his upper lip ever stiff as he goes to receive his marching orders from the bank. But around Christmas time, I’ll be looking for something sweet and fun to take my mind of the troubles. Maybe I’ll look up at the clouds when wind changes and find a little magic floating down to earth.