Watch: our first look at one of the most anticipated sequels of the decade, starring a swimming sloth

At long last, we have our first look at the highly anticipated sequel to one of pop culture’s greatest franchises: Planet Earth.

Picking up where its predecessor left off a full decade ago, BBC America’s Planet Earth II — a six-episode docuseries set to debut sometime before the end of the year — reunites some of the series’ classic characters, from burrowing insects to galloping giraffes to a variety of big cats lurking and prowling in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

But as the music in the first trailer swells, you may notice a few new faces popping up in the Planet Earth cinematic universe.

There’s a majestic flying lizard (scientific/superhero name: "Draco blanfordii"), soaring over the tree canopies to patrol the activity below.

BBC America

There’s a sinister Komodo dragon, his tongue darting out menacingly as he broods along the surf. (Or maybe he’s a good guy and we’re reading the scene all wrong; honestly, who knows, this trailer doesn’t contain much in the way of plot details.)

BBC America

And for comic relief we have this sloth, taking a leisurely swim by raking his weirdo claws through the water.

BBC America

All the while, a mysterious figure guards over a cityscape, watchful, vigilant, and fuzzy-eared.

BBC America

The one hero we need and deserve from Planet Earth II doesn’t pop up until the very end of the trailer. But fear not: Narrator Sir David Attenborough will, in fact, be returning to lend his pleasing British baritone to every episode of Planet Earth II: Age of Higher Def Cameras.

Fans have been clamoring for more Planet Earth ever since the series wrapped up in 2006, but unlike many sequels, this one couldn’t be rushed into production. The jaw-dropping scale of Planet Earth — which spans the globe, filming in environs ranging from the rainforest to the frozen arctic — requires time and patience to capture its subjects.

And from the looks of this stunning trailer, Planet Earth II will be worth the wait.

Planet Earth II will premiere, in the words of BBC America, "soon."

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