So Excited! Cinemark had a snafu and was selling tickets 30mins early. Good thing, got several opening night tix for me and the crew =D

No Luke anywhere? What is going on here?

Isn't that his hand on Artoo?

Yes. But where is he the rest of the time? So far, that's the only shot of him.

That Kylo Ren = Luke rumor is gaining traction. "Finish what you started"? Sounds a bit like something a son might say... Guess we'll find out!

I don't know why that people are even assuming that even though it has been officially established Adam Driver is Kylo Ren. Perhaps they're conflating his Luke-like background with Luke Skywalker himself.

Btw the trailer is mind-blowingly awesome! Those dogfights......good lord.

I want a Boba Fett card for The Resistance.

Oh god

1:45

How could those bastards do it

It can't be real, they wouldn't spoil THAT in the trailer surely? Not like this, it has to mean something! He can't be dead, he just can't!

Hey Scum players, you see what I see?

Do we actually know where that symbol comes from? Is it the hut cartel emblem or something else?

It's the Mandalorian Sigil. Always has been.


http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Mythosaur

Am I the only one who feels weird about the plot discontinuity?

I mean here we are: Battle of Endor ends, the Sith Lords are destroyed and the Empire fleet crippled. The Rebellion, which has been picking up steam so far, seems to have won the big one. And it has the super powerful Luke Skywalker Jedi Master, who was able to defeat Vader.

Sure, there's mopping up to do, there may be a Thrawn popping up here or there, but otherwise it seems we're starting out with the new republic idea.

And then, it's a couple of decades later, there's a new Empire in charge, the gargantuan space battles from the past are a LEGEND, there's no Rebellion and its heroes are now hermits because... reasons?

But as soon as a disgruntled stormtrooper meets old Han, the Resistance starts up again?

I guess what I'm saying is that the "young guy starts a seemingly doomed fight against evil tyrant with the help of an old and wise mentor" trope is popular (see: Eragon, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter), but we've literally JUST DONE THAT with this series in Ep 3-6. Couldn't we do a different trope now?

I like how she's basically a Tusken Raider.

(..)

I love it. My first thought as an old roleplay GM (actually among others for systems like Fadings Suns), seeing the earlier trailers, I was immediately thinking "man, lot of broken tech to loot in a Star Destoyer wreck!". And now the figure in the beginning is exactly doing this (hangar 0:17 with destroyed Lambda and TIEs) - really fitting.

No Luke anywhere? What is going on here?

These are not the Lukes you're searching for.

I am SO excited for this. Cannot wait.

Oh god

1:45

How could those bastards do it

They seem to be doing doing even more.

However, I like it. Real heroes have the right to die heroically?/tragically? to drive some point home. No overly cheesy, happy-fluff Disney/Hollywood endings for me, please.

Am I the only one who feels weird about the plot discontinuity?

I mean here we are: Battle of Endor ends, the Sith Lords are destroyed and the Empire fleet crippled. The Rebellion, which has been picking up steam so far, seems to have won the big one. And it has the super powerful Luke Skywalker Jedi Master, who was able to defeat Vader.

Sure, there's mopping up to do, there may be a Thrawn popping up here or there, but otherwise it seems we're starting out with the new republic idea.

And then, it's a couple of decades later, there's a new Empire in charge, the gargantuan space battles from the past are a LEGEND, there's no Rebellion and its heroes are now hermits because... reasons?

But as soon as a disgruntled stormtrooper meets old Han, the Resistance starts up again?

I guess what I'm saying is that the "young guy starts a seemingly doomed fight against evil tyrant with the help of an old and wise mentor" trope is popular (see: Eragon, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter), but we've literally JUST DONE THAT with this series in Ep 3-6. Couldn't we do a different trope now?

So who is in charge?

And who is the resistance resisting?

I am glad that the trailer doesn't answer these questions. If it would, this would be so 50's...!

So who is in charge?

And who is the resistance resisting?

If you knew this now, what would be the point of watching the film?

Am I the only one who feels weird about the plot discontinuity?

I mean here we are: Battle of Endor ends, the Sith Lords are destroyed and the Empire fleet crippled. The Rebellion, which has been picking up steam so far, seems to have won the big one. And it has the super powerful Luke Skywalker Jedi Master, who was able to defeat Vader.

Sure, there's mopping up to do, there may be a Thrawn popping up here or there, but otherwise it seems we're starting out with the new republic idea.

And then, it's a couple of decades later, there's a new Empire in charge, the gargantuan space battles from the past are a LEGEND, there's no Rebellion and its heroes are now hermits because... reasons?

But as soon as a disgruntled stormtrooper meets old Han, the Resistance starts up again?

I guess what I'm saying is that the "young guy starts a seemingly doomed fight against evil tyrant with the help of an old and wise mentor" trope is popular (see: Eragon, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter), but we've literally JUST DONE THAT with this series in Ep 3-6. Couldn't we do a different trope now?

Well, in fact it's stranger that the end of ROTJ is as triumphant as it is currently portrayed. The empire has lost it's Emperor, Vader and the Death Star II. It still has millions of troops, thousands of ships, immense resources and firepower, as huge command structure with a new power vacuum and a presence in much of the galaxy.

So it stands to reason that here we are 30~ years later and the Empire (First Order) is still the dominant force in the galaxy.

Luke is a fully fledged Jedi by the end of ROTJ, but he's still just one man. The rebellion is in the strongest position it's ever been in but it's still locked in a war of attrition with the empire.

I think Luke's probably felt that being alone in the universe as the only true force user is too much for him. He's struggling to hold it together. And he's afraid of becoming his father, despite his heroics in the face of the Emperor and his final conflict with Vader. And afraid of training anyone else. So he's in a self inflicted exile.

The events of the OT are now legend, rather than celebrated facts - because the Empire (First Order) is still at large and is still the dominant force. They're a totalitarian authoritarian regime. They control EVERYTHING they can. Including history, information and knowledge.

The events of the OT are known to the rebellion and known first hand by Luke, Leia, Han and a handful of other individuals, but that's out of a galaxy of trillions and of billions of stars/systems. Their word vs the Empire? Most 'normal' people will believe it as a myth or legend.

That scene with the temple and flags ... The droid on the right side of the screen ... Is that her speeder bike we saw in the other trailers? Maybe going into sentry mode...

And nice screen grab with the scum flag...

As for the spoiler that everyone is talking about. Remember this is JJ Abrams here. He loves throwing things out there as bait to throw us a curve ball. Wait until the movie is out before we speculate on these spoilers.

Who remembers the whole "Benedict Cumberbatch is not Khan" that he gave for Star Trek. We all see how that worked out.

Just my 2 cents.

That shot from behind of Ren without his helmet sure looks like Adam Driver's hair. I don't think the Ren=Luke theory has much traction.

That and we have seen a picture in vanity fair with Adam Driver facing the camera.

That scene with the temple and flags ... The droid on the right side of the screen ... Is that her speeder bike we saw in the other trailers? Maybe going into sentry mode...

And nice screen grab with the scum flag...

That droid looks like one used in the Clone Wars series. In the animated Clone Wars movie, it's the one Ahsoka dropped a wall on when they were disabling the shield generator.

http://clonewars.wikia.com/wiki/Retail_Droid

Did anyone else notice the HWK tail at 0:25?

Did anyone else notice the HWK tail at 0:25?

That's an AT-AT 'toe'

Probably as seen from Rey's 'home' -

Am I the only one who feels weird about the plot discontinuity?

I mean here we are: Battle of Endor ends, the Sith Lords are destroyed and the Empire fleet crippled. The Rebellion, which has been picking up steam so far, seems to have won the big one. And it has the super powerful Luke Skywalker Jedi Master, who was able to defeat Vader.

Sure, there's mopping up to do, there may be a Thrawn popping up here or there, but otherwise it seems we're starting out with the new republic idea.

And then, it's a couple of decades later, there's a new Empire in charge, the gargantuan space battles from the past are a LEGEND, there's no Rebellion and its heroes are now hermits because... reasons?

But as soon as a disgruntled stormtrooper meets old Han, the Resistance starts up again?

I guess what I'm saying is that the "young guy starts a seemingly doomed fight against evil tyrant with the help of an old and wise mentor" trope is popular (see: Eragon, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter), but we've literally JUST DONE THAT with this series in Ep 3-6. Couldn't we do a different trope now?

You might consider reserving judgment until you've seen the entire movie, and not just a two-minute series of clips.

What you're calling a "trope" is actually the fundamental narrative structure of the Star Wars saga: a three-step waltz that observes the rise, maturation, and fall of both light and darkness in the galaxy. It is a cycle, and cycles repeat. (There's much more to it, if you're willing to do a bit of reading.) That The Force Awakens mirrors the first film of both the original and prequel trilogies is hopeful; it shows JJ Abrams has been paying attention.

Am I the only one who feels weird about the plot discontinuity?

I mean here we are: Battle of Endor ends, the Sith Lords are destroyed and the Empire fleet crippled. The Rebellion, which has been picking up steam so far, seems to have won the big one. And it has the super powerful Luke Skywalker Jedi Master, who was able to defeat Vader.

Sure, there's mopping up to do, there may be a Thrawn popping up here or there, but otherwise it seems we're starting out with the new republic idea.

And then, it's a couple of decades later, there's a new Empire in charge, the gargantuan space battles from the past are a LEGEND, there's no Rebellion and its heroes are now hermits because... reasons?

But as soon as a disgruntled stormtrooper meets old Han, the Resistance starts up again?

I guess what I'm saying is that the "young guy starts a seemingly doomed fight against evil tyrant with the help of an old and wise mentor" trope is popular (see: Eragon, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter), but we've literally JUST DONE THAT with this series in Ep 3-6. Couldn't we do a different trope now?

I'm guessing you haven't read the novel Aftermath yet, or even the comic series Shattered Empire. These stories fill in some gaps.

here are some SPOILERS from aftermath:

The empire gathered together some if the remaining leaders to figure out what to do.

Go outside the galaxy to find the spurce of the darkside

Surrender

Sign a peace treaty

Now none os these are decided upon in the novel. Now this is conjecture on my part, but i suspect the New Republic will be in charge, and an armistace is founded with the remnanta of the empire. However, a group in the empire will take all the chosen sons and daughters to form the First Order - a group that maintains the vision of the Empire

Where does the resistance fit in? Well, Mon Mothma reestablishes the senate on Chandrilla, and vows to cut the funding for war by 90% or so. Effectively, the new republic is disbanding the military except for a token force to train militias to defend their worlds with their own independant forces. I suspect that the resistance will be alliance personnel who don't trust the empire to "be good and play nice". They work without support of the republic to keep them in check, believing the armistace is a trick, and defend worlds and such that can't fight against the empire/first order as they have a paltry/no independant military.

As said, this is conjecture, but can explain the use of resistance and first order

It is important to know that at this time, the jedi, never a widely understood and in the limelight organization, have been absent for nearly 50 years. 18 passed since the end of the jedi/clone wars, the rebellion years that we see in the movies, and 30 years between the Return of the Jedi and the Force Awakens.

Besides, ot will be explained in the opening crawl.

The Rebellion itself isn't the legend. The legend is that the Emperor and Vader were actually Dark Siders and they were defeated by a lone Jedi knight. In a battle only one person witnessed. In a universe where the Jedi were already looked on as a myth as best and as a bunch of troublemakers at worst.

Am I the only one who feels weird about the plot discontinuity?

I mean here we are: Battle of Endor ends, the Sith Lords are destroyed and the Empire fleet crippled. The Rebellion, which has been picking up steam so far, seems to have won the big one. And it has the super powerful Luke Skywalker Jedi Master, who was able to defeat Vader.

Sure, there's mopping up to do, there may be a Thrawn popping up here or there, but otherwise it seems we're starting out with the new republic idea.

And then, it's a couple of decades later, there's a new Empire in charge, the gargantuan space battles from the past are a LEGEND, there's no Rebellion and its heroes are now hermits because... reasons?

But as soon as a disgruntled stormtrooper meets old Han, the Resistance starts up again?

I guess what I'm saying is that the "young guy starts a seemingly doomed fight against evil tyrant with the help of an old and wise mentor" trope is popular (see: Eragon, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter), but we've literally JUST DONE THAT with this series in Ep 3-6. Couldn't we do a different trope now?

Now none os these are decided upon in the novel. Now this is conjecture on my part, but i suspect the New Republic will be in charge, and an armistace is founded with the remnanta of the empire. However, a group in the empire will take all the chosen sons and daughters to form the First Order - a group that maintains the vision of the Empire

Where does the resistance fit in? Well, Mon Mothma reestablishes the senate on Chandrilla, and vows to cut the funding for war by 90% or so. Effectively, the new republic is disbanding the military except for a token force to train militias to defend their worlds with their own independant forces. I suspect that the resistance will be alliance personnel who don't trust the empire to "be good and play nice". They work without support of the republic to keep them in check, believing the armistace is a trick, and defend worlds and such that can't fight against the empire/first order as they have a paltry/no independant military.

The armistice is covered in the novel Lost Stars.