J.J. Abrams whetted our appetite for more lightsaber dueling action with the first Episode VII teaser last year, but today’s release of a new trailer has got us counting down the days until Christmas.
We’re still eight months away from Star Wars: The Force Awakens‘ public release, and while plot details for the highly anticipated movie are being kept under wraps, there’s a ton of fresh info to glean from the new trailer. We’ve diced the entire trailer up into GIFs so you can rewatch each scene to look for new clues.
Here are 18 things we learned from the new trailer:
The Galactic Civil War isn’t quiet be over yet
The Empire is still alive in some form and now calls itself “the First Order.” Notice how their insignia has changed
They’ve got some new Star Destroyers
And they’ve got some new, mean-looking dudes fighting for them
The Resistance is still kicking ass in their X-Wings
There’s a new team ready to stop the Empire
John Boyega as Finn, who may or may not be a real stormtrooper
Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron
Daisy Ridley as Rey (no last name yet)
Rey and Finn get into some trouble on a desert planet that J.J. Abrams say is not Tatooine
Finn may have escaped in this rogue TIE fighter that’s blowing up the place
Kylo Ren is the new Sith bad guy with a lightsaber inspired by Jony Ive
His Sith mask looks a lot like Darth Revan’s from Knights of the Old Republic
Han and Chewie are back home
They’re still dodging the Empire by hiding in trash
Luke and R2 are back in action too
BB-8 is taking R2’s spot as the cutest droid in the galaxy
Luke’s old lightsaber plays a big role in the plot
The ghost of Darth Vader looms large. Will he make an appearance?
What did you see?
Spot something in the new trailer that we missed? Watch it for yourself and drop your Star Wars bits below in the comments.
Buster Hein is a freelance writer who lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Twitter: @bst3r.
75 responses to “18 things we learned from the new Star Wars trailer”
*whet
Wet my pants
A couple of things…
1) Luke says, “My Father HAS it.” Not “My Father HAD it.”
2) I believe that is Darth Vaders light saber being handed off…not Lukes.
Also…I wonder if BB-8 is pronounced 2B8 or something like that?
Regardless…I don’t know if I’m more excited for this or my Apple Watch next week!
Pretty sure that is the saber Luke was holding when his hand gets chopped off in Empire Strikes Back
There’s said that the movie will begin with Luke’s lightsaber from Episode V along with his chopped hand floating in space . . . :O
nope DigitalBeach, you’re correct Toejo, that is in fact Vaders/Anakins light saber that is featured in the trailer. Luke still has his too though. The one he was using on cloud city was Anakins old saber remember.
Already addressed that. It was Anakin’s not Vader’s.
You do know, they are the same person?
Yes, Dan. I know that Anakin is Darth Vader. As Obi told Luke… Anakin was seduced by the dark side and then became Darth Vader. The saber Luke had was constructed by Anakin… not Darth Vader.
Here is a chart…
Where are Count Dooku And Darth Sidious’ lightsabers?
Not everyone is a lightsaber collector like general grevious or arrua sing
In the case of General Grevious, who never constructed any lighsabers, no specific chart would be necessary since he only used the ones he collected from Jedi he captured/killed. But I’d like to see up close the lightsabers of Sidious and Dooku. Dooku’s was really unique looking.
Don’t know… Don’t care…
Guess what, YOU do!!! Thanks for the reply. *rolling eyes*
I didn’t even watch episode 2 or 3.
About the lightsaber topic, I agree because if you remember back to episode six, Luke has a new green lightsaber with a totally different hilt
How is it Luke’s voice sounds identical to the OT? Thought Hamill’s voice was more gravelly these days. And why use a phrase in the movie that is sooo close to identical to a line in ROTJ? I’m thinkin’ it was for the trailer, and won’t be used in the movie.
It has to be in movie! HINT: Jedi female in trailer
That is because that is voice over recycled from Return of the Jedi.
Princess Leia is handing the Lightsaber to Rey. Since Luke is still around, it might be Vader’s.
That’s Luke’s saber. Google image search Luke’s saber Empire Strikes Back.
Google Dath Vaders Lightsaber
The tip of Vader’s saber is black. Luke’s is chrome. The one in this trailer is chrome.
Luke’s light saber didn’t have the black ribbing.
Look
Though I believe the saber Luke first used was technically Anakin’s saber before he was Darth Vader.
Actually I figured it out. It is the same lightsaber from “A New Hope” that Obi-Wan gives to Luke and tells him it was his fathers and that his Uncle Owen didn’t want him to have. So…actually it’s originally Vaders…or Anikans…and then Luke’s.
Yep that’s what I am saying
A saber chart…
Luke’s
Luke’s saber
Here is a nifty chart!
Luke lost Anakin’s original blue blade saber in Empire when Vader cut off his hand. In Return of the Jedi, after he turns himself into Vader on Endor, Vader notes that Luke has built a brand new light saber, one with a green blade, and that his training is now complete. From the way it was presented, the original blue bladed light saber is long gone.
Yep
It probably ended up stuck between the cushions of one of Lando Calrissian’s nauga-hide (<– intentional pun) couches.
I wanted to cry when Hon said “we’re home”
But where is home?
*Han
Look carefully. Both Han and Chewie have weapons drawn. I think Han is being ironic. “We’re home” might mean “oh, look, Chewie, a whole army showed up to kill us… again…”
(to chutch 15, not Randy) Home is the Falcon – I don’t think Han has had the Falcon for some time.
I saw 5000+ fans cheer and weep and demand to see it again. It was awesome.
Rey’s last name is Solo. Daughter of Hans and Leia.
I’m guessing the chrome Stormtrooper will end up being Boba Fett. Just look how he nod’s his head and holds his blaster?
Please no…his mandalorian armor is way better looking
His Mandalorian armor would have been destroyed by the Sarlacc. In the EU, he was rescued out of it by another bounty hunter, but the armor was mostly gone.
It’s Captain Phasma (played by Gwendoline Christie). News about her character has been out for a bit now (hunting Finn – John Boyega).
Why havent chewie aged a bit look at old han, and a crash landed stardestroyer in the sand is pretty weird, besides that weird looking 3 blade light saber ehh rigth when do mickey mouse show up.
Wookies have an average life span of 400 years.
Wookies live a few hundred (about 400) years. Episode VII occurs 30 years after Episode VI. That’s not even 10% of a Wookie’s lifespan. It’s about 30-40% of a human lifespan. It’s approximate to a human aging 7.5 years. How much does a human’s appearance change from 30 to 37?
One thing I noticed is that the ships, namely the amount of them, is thankfully cut back to the original glory. I’m glad, as the ridiculous amount of CG ships at the beginning of SW3 was totally annoying and a huge distraction. Something tells me that JJ may be one of the original fans of ANH theatrical release, and is bringing some of the old school magic back.
Pffft. The beginning of ROTS was a HUGE battle in Coruscant’s atmosphere. OF COURSE there would be a crap-ton of ships, much like there were at the end of ROTJ.
“The Galactic Civil War isn’t quiet be over yet”
So it’s loud, and they speak in ebonics, or something, while skipping commas?
*Empirebonics?
If you look at the sides of the scene with the Stormtroopers they seem to be on an Icy/Snowy planet
Nice! Can’t wait.
Your first point has a big gramatical issue.
Did anyone else notice Anakin’s signature droid hand, cause I don’t remember Luke’s being that spiffy.
And it looked like Mustafar. But it wouldn’t make sense to be Anakin’s hand, b/c if he were “cloned,” he’d have his original human hand. It’s more likely it’s Luke with an upgraded hand – much like the droids getting buffed and shiny at the end of ANH.
If I were to make a guess of what the plot is about based on the latest trailer and title, I’d say that Vader has been resurrected from the DNA of his remains (protected by the helmet when he was cremated) to become a powerful ally of the Dark Side and Luke’s daughter is the only person young and strong enough to stop him.
who really cares…
Fans of the star wars saga? Gotta be a dickboy?
There are various types of troopers in the army shot.
2nd row look like space troopers (different helmets/backpacks).
Mid center back is a Commander Trooper. Has short white skirt and different helm.
Sand troopers on the upper balconies.
Black trooper armor is just for TIE pilots. It’s got a little life support built in. It’s a flight suit analogous to the Rebels’ orange jumpsuits.
Why is Vaders skull shaped like his mask? is it a fossil of his mask? In ROTJ we see him take off the mask and has a normal human head, so why the long cranium and mask features in the skull we see here? Seems kinda stupid or a big oversight. Just my two cents.
That is not Vader’s skull. That is the helmet he wore and it was melted and distorted after his body was burnt on on the funeral pyre at the end of Return of the Jedi.
Harrison Ford gives hope to all us aging boomers. He looks absolutely terrific.
252 days to Christmas as of this post.
Chewbacca is supposed to have blue eyes.
Anyone think Luke and R2 were on Mustafar?
just a thought…
1. It seems Luke is in seclusion either by force or of his own choice.
2. There’s a new Sith in town leading a newly formed Empire of some sort.
3. For some reason Luke doesn’t seem to have started a jedi academy or trained any jedi for that matter. If that’s true, why?
4. Rey is rumored to be just a parts scavenger at the beginning of the movie.
5. Princess Leiah sends an X-Wing pilot on a special mission.
My theory:
Luke DID train a jedi. His son…(hence the line from the trailer that seems to imply he’s talking to a new member of his family.) For some reason,maybe a cataclysmic use of the force or mother dying (it is Disney after all), that son turns to the Dark Side and becomes the NEW SITH LORD!
This would explain why,
1. Luke would take it so hard as to never again (at least for the last 30 yrs) try to train a new jedi.
2. where the new sith lord comes from and who trains him
3. why Kylo Ren possibly exchanging his mask for a Darth Vader look would be significant and ironic
4. It would provide J.J. Abrams with a lot of irony and surprise to work with (which he loves by the way). Luke’s character would undergo a lot of internal development and struggle about having to fight his own son.
5. It would be overall a great way to gap the last 30 yrs and start in fresh with a new set of heroes for the Disney Star Wars.
What do you think?
When it says Flinn escaped the rogue tie fighter, it’s most likely him and Poe Dameron inside of it, escaping the empire after they both were locked up (because Flinn saw the evil, explaining his face when he takes the helmet off) and Poe after he was captured. They teamed up, Flinn, a storm trooper, and Poe a xwing pilot, in hopes of getting out of there. This explains why it’s shooting the other storm troopers. I saw this rumor and didn’t think much of it until the trailer. Whew. Had to get that out.
“The Galactic Civil War isn’t quiet be over yet”. wtf ?
If the clues are true then why Luke Skywalker’s ROTJ comments to Leia on Ewok bridge before meeting his father Anikan and Emporor meant something else I have been waiting for since 1983 I am that old
Surly Chewie would have grey hair by now. My Wookie does.
Most new character have a last name, one doesn’t. Maybe because we shouln’t know she is a Skywalker.
Interesting how they’re throwing out so much of the Extended Universe content. In the EU, it’s explained that Han is from Corellia, but it looks like they’re tossing that out. Unless he’s speaking metaphorically about having been away from the Rebellion for some time and finally being “home”, perhaps.
Also it’s insane how close Kylo Ren’s design looks to Darth Revan.
Lastly…looks like Finn and Rey went to the Prometheus school of running away from things…
The first order has made their new base on an ice planet where they live in a hidden base. In that base, there is a temple where the remains of Vader are venerated a-la Lenin’s’ tomb.