Forget all that. For "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" screenwriter David Koepp, there’s just one Indy goal that matters.

"The ones that went before were pretty great," he said. "You've just got to hope to God you don't screw up."

Call it "Indiana Jones and the Quest to Not Be Awful." Of course, considering it's been nearly twenty years since "The Last Crusade," just not screwing up won't be nearly enough to sate fans' hunger. In other words, may god have mercy on your soul if "Crystal Skulls" is merely passable.

How to make sure it's so much more? It’s the penitent man who passes in the Indy universe, and for Koepp that means genuflecting before the altar of "Raiders of the Lost Ark," the film in the series he says "Crystal Skulls" most resembles.

"I hope it's along the lines of the first one," he said. "It's certainly not as dark as the second one and it's certainly not as humor driven as the third one. Hopefully it will have its own place [but] it's closest to ['Raiders']."

Koepp's statement of tone echoes what George Lucas told MTV News two months ago, when the maestro detailed how, in his mind, "Skulls" consciously harkened back to "Raiders."

In the end, though, has it met this lofty goal?

"I've seen some footage and it's really thrilling," Koepp exclaimed. "When you first see Harrison Ford back in Indy garb -- it's just really cool."