For fans of stylish action flicks, the wait for John Wick: Chapter 2 has been an ordeal that has fostered tremendous impatience, but it’s almost over. In a few weeks, Keanu Reeves‘ supernaturally talented assassin of the title will arrive back in theaters to face-off against a whole new host of friends, villains, and colleagues, played by the likes of Common, Ruby Rose, and Riccardo Scamarcio, amongst others. The movie will also see Reeves reuniting with the great Laurence Fishburne, in the role of The Bowery King, and will feature a variety of returning performers like Ian McShane, Bridget Moynihan, and Lance Reddick.

It’s rare that a sequel to an action film would have me counting down the days to release but here I am, crossing out dates on my Far Side calendar like waiting for release from prison. There are plenty of reasons why the original John Wick continues to stick out as a paradigm of modern action filmmaking, right up there with The Raid, its sequel, and the Mission: Impossible franchise, but my reasons tend to wander back to its star. Though endlessly ridiculed for the spaced-out tone of his voice and a perceived lack of acting talent, Reeves is a bonafide star, one who very few directors have known how to utilize correctly. Martin Scorsese figured out a perfect outlet for him in his exceptional adaptation of The Age of Innocence, and Kathryn Bigelow made a spectacle of his chemistry with the late Patrick Swayze and his charming presence in the classic Point Break.

John Wick, however, is the ideal project for him, one in which his own personal philosophies about life, money, mentality, and Hollywood are reflected in the character’s specific perspective of his own ugly business. The latest batch of images for John Wick: Chapter 2, which you can take a look at below, don’t give much of any idea about whether the sequel will live up to the violent neon bliss of the original. That being said, with such paltry samplings from America’s big studios being flung into the multiplex these days, even if John Wick: Chapter 2 turns out to be a by-the-numbers shoot-em-up, it would qualify as a small triumph.

Here are the latest batch of images from John Wick: Chapter 2:

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate

Image via Lionsgate