the database on starwars.com is updated.

Here are some noteworthy tidbits:

Leia:

Sidelined by a new generation of political leaders, and struck out on her own to oppose the First Order as founder of the Resistance.

T-70:

The credit-strapped Resistance relies on X-wings donated or lent by sympathetic New Republic senators and local security forces. During the assault on Starkiller Base, Poe Dameron flies a customized, dark-hulled X-wing under the call sign Black Leader.

Starkiller Base:

Deep in the Unknown Regions, the First Order has constructed a superweapon that uses an entire planet as its weapons platform.

Finalizer: (first mention of any sort of treaty between FO and NR)

The first of the new Resurgent class constructed in violation of treaties with the New Republic, the Finalizer’s heavy weapons are augmented by two starfighter wings, a hundred assault craft and a full legion of stormtroopers.

First Order Pilots:

http://www.starwars.com/databank/first-order-tie-fighter-pilots

and more.....

It's kind of hard to search because you can't list 'all' entries

I think he used it in ANH in the deathstar

He got it taken away or left it on the falcon. But he wasn't using it when they broke Leia out of the cell, he was using some sort of long barreled blaster.

and maybe on endor to blow up a speeder?

Maybe he used it to blow up the probe droid on Hoth? Or was that Han?

Someone made some chewbacca supercuts and I skimmed those.

On the deathstar, hes using a heavy blaster.

On Hoth, Han blew up the probe droid.

On bespin, hes using a stormtrooper rifle

On Endor, he fired 1 shot with the bowcaster at a speeder.

I think he used it in ANH in the deathstar

He got it taken away or left it on the falcon. But he wasn't using it when they broke Leia out of the cell, he was using some sort of long barreled blaster.

and maybe on endor to blow up a speeder?

Maybe he used it to blow up the probe droid on Hoth? Or was that Han?

Han shot it while Chewie was the bait.

Chewie got to shoot his bowcaster inside the space slug and on Endor to blow up he speeder. It didn't seem all that more powerful than a standard blaster. In the last 30 years he must have done a Tim Taylor and added more power.

Also once Chewie stole the AT-ST he didn't need a dinky blaster. I guess they didn't let him keep it so he suped up his gun.

I've read through a big chunk of whatever I could find on starwars.com. The most interesting thing I've come across is that the First Order is drastically different from the Imperials in regards to their soldiers. On multiple entries talk about the importance of the quality as opposed to sheer numbers. Tie fighters now have shields and their pilots are trained from children. Storm troopers are trained from birth and focus on improvisation rather than rank and file routines.

Anyways, it made me think about the scenes where Kylo didn't Vader his own troops / commander. At first I thought it was just showing that he wasn't pure evil, but not I'm thinking its a whole different school of thought. Gone are the ways of the sith. Well, I say that, but he did murder his father.

Some of my observations:

The lightsaber hand-off in the trailer was not in the movie. I think everyone assumed the saber was being given to Leia by someone(Maze).

Why did Chewie and Leia walk right past each other when they got back to the base? 30+ years and some level of emotional bond over the course of those years and Leia goes and hugs Rey whom she's never seen.

Everyone on Starkiller base should be dead. There was no time to collet people and escape. No one was around during the saber fight in the woods to know that's where Ren was and he didn't look like he was going to get up an run somewhere all that quickly. Phasma was stuffed down a garbage shute/compactor; not like anyone knew where she was or should have been able to get out in the time allotted.

Really cringed at the attack plan meeting when the guy got up and was like "We just learned of this planetary weapon base 10 mins ago and after a brief recon we sent 5 mins ago, we have a complete understanding of its inner workings. There must be a thingamagig connected to a widget...blow that something bad will happen...probably explode.". Also, why did Finn have intimate technical knowledge of the workings of the base as a garbage trooper? He could have been assigned to the other side of the planet.

Might be a couple more things tomorrow when I wake up.

Only read a couple posts in the first page. My thoughts:

I enjoyed it. It was good. Better than the prequels by far and definitely had a similar tone to the OT. Lots of stuff happening, very little time to stop and think, just leap into action. I can see the big similarities to episode 4 with it but it kind of harkens back on real life. You may prefer the more common form, "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

The First Order don't seem to learn the mistakes of the old Empire, try to take out all their threats in one fell swoop and put all their eggs in a single basket just like the Empire of old. Kylo Ren only wants to focus on the dark side and block out his natural inclination towards the light, much like the conflict of Darth Vader in Return of the Jedi.

I like Finn and Rey a lot, Poe as well but I wish he had more screentime. Phasma is definitely the Boba Fett of the film, has 2 lines and literally does nothing but looks cool.

Twist was easy to spot from a mile away and I gotta say Chewy's reaction nearly made me cry.

Not many nitpicks other than R2-D2 turning on like he somehow knew it was the right time and the awkward, abrupt, silent ending.

Fantastic Star Wars film; I need to go see it at least 2 more times in the theaters.

Poe as well but I wish he had more screentime.

I found Poe to be too cocky and flawless.

If you've seem the Starz Spartacus series, one thing that you love very quickly about the Spartacus character is that he is far from perfect. He is the hero of the show yet spends the first season getting a Colosseum's worth of pain beat out of him. He loses fights, makes mistakes, shows his vulnerability ... and it makes him very human! It's one of the things that makes the show great. The hero seems fallible.

My issue with superhero movies is that at no point do I ever feel that the hero might lose. I know, that when I turn on Iron-man, Spiderman, Thor, etc that irrespective of whatever danger presents itself .. our hero will survive .. and probably get a girl along the way.

I felt the same about Poe. He felt infallible. Compare either of the Death Star assault scenes with a TFA aerial battle featuring Poe. Poe is flying around like a 5 year old playing Mario Kart obliterating the enemy without any concern, he makes it look easy.

Finn, Rey and Kylo .. they were great!

Poe as well but I wish he had more screentime.

I found Poe to be too cocky and flawless.

If you've seem the Starz Spartacus series, one thing that you love very quickly about the Spartacus character is that he is far from perfect. He is the hero of the show yet spends the first season getting a Colosseum's worth of pain beat out of him. He loses fights, makes mistakes, shows his vulnerability ... and it makes him very human! It's one of the things that makes the show great. The hero seems fallible.

My issue with superhero movies is that at no point do I ever feel that the hero might lose. I know, that when I turn on Iron-man, Spiderman, Thor, etc that irrespective of whatever danger presents itself .. our hero will survive .. and probably get a girl along the way.

I felt the same about Poe. He felt infallible. Compare either of the Death Star assault scenes with a TFA aerial battle featuring Poe. Poe is flying around like a 5 year old playing Mario Kart obliterating the enemy without any concern, he makes it look easy.

Finn, Rey and Kylo .. they were great!

You might be right that maybe Poe was a little too awesome skill-wise, but I think his character flaw was his cockyness, so he wasn't without faults. Definitely loved Rey and Finn though, Kylo was pretty good, not amazing, but I'm actually expecting improvement for him in the next movies. Han was awesome as usual, Leia was ok, but I wasn't expecting much there, she might be more interesting later if they keep her in the movies (probably?).

As far as superhero movies go, duh yeah, they're going to win. Everyone knows that before entering the theater, but the characters themselves have flaws (well, in most of those movies anyway), that's what makes them interesting. But, to each his own.

Poe as well but I wish he had more screentime.

I found Poe to be too cocky and flawless.

If you've seem the Starz Spartacus series, one thing that you love very quickly about the Spartacus character is that he is far from perfect. He is the hero of the show yet spends the first season getting a Colosseum's worth of pain beat out of him. He loses fights, makes mistakes, shows his vulnerability ... and it makes him very human! It's one of the things that makes the show great. The hero seems fallible.

My issue with superhero movies is that at no point do I ever feel that the hero might lose. I know, that when I turn on Iron-man, Spiderman, Thor, etc that irrespective of whatever danger presents itself .. our hero will survive .. and probably get a girl along the way.

I felt the same about Poe. He felt infallible. Compare either of the Death Star assault scenes with a TFA aerial battle featuring Poe. Poe is flying around like a 5 year old playing Mario Kart obliterating the enemy without any concern, he makes it look easy.

Finn, Rey and Kylo .. they were great!

Well Poe might just utterly fail in Episode XIII AKA The First Order Strikes Back.

*EDIT*

Then again, Wedge survived the OT movies and did some pretty awesome stuff. Poe is just Wedge with more character.

In the beginning of the film, I was a bit underwhelmed. Don't get me wrong, it was enough fighting, just missed something and felt a bit rushed. Also, Kylo Ren seemed less menacing and more like just another wanna be sith lord. But, eventually things slowed down and got better. The stuff on Takodana was nice, and it precluded some future events, along with helping us better understand Rey and Finn's relationship. The final air battle was a lot like the New Hope one, but still fresh. But man that final lightsaber duel. It really showed that Kylo Ren works as a villian, and it makes an impact like the original trilogy duels had, without all the flips and fancy choreography. It went from good to my favorite one yet. Definitely going to see it again in 3d.

But I don't think its the only one. Maybe the first one. How many more do they have hiding in argentina?

Why would they be hiding in Argentina? The Soviets haven't marched on the capital of the Third Reich yet. Err, I mean "Resistance" and "First Order."

Watched the movie earlier this afternoon, and have now had some time to digest the film. I was very pleased with the overall production and I suspect that much like Guardians of the Galaxy for me, this will be a movie I enjoy more with a few extra viewings.

The setting aside, there was a lot to like about this movie. On the surface there were great moments of nostalgia that everyone notices and stellar acting performances by Daisy Ridley and Harrison Ford. I thought those two in particular stole the show and had a definite chemistry whenever they were on the screen together.

The things I usually like though, are the little things. The details that don't seem like much at first, but really give an additional dimension to the movie. In Guardians of the Galaxy it's things Quill keeping little knick knacks on his control console like Yondu, and well, that moment at the end when Yondu opens the orb and smiles.

In TFA, it's the moments like Rey remarking that she didn't think there was so much green in the galaxy, or that moment when she steps out to the cool lake air. No words, no remarking how coarse sand is, just a moment of relief.

It's the medic tending to Chewbacca, remarking how he must have been very brave, and Chewbacca cooing along in agreement.

Or the one that really got me as Kylo is carrying Rey to the shuttle and Han looking on. He just has a pained look and you're thinking it's because Rey who he's developing a connection with is being taken away. But then BAM! it hits you when he says to Leia "I saw him". You realize (or at least I did) why that moment was killing him. I'm getting a little teary even typing it.

It's those moments... A dad calling his son's name, no words a final touch on the cheek... this movie hits me in the feels. I think this one is going to hold up over time.

OK, now I'm emotional again...

So yeah, great flick.

I love BB-8

I liked Poe. He seems sassy. The origin of the name Finn was where he had me.

I LOVE how blasters feel this time around. They clearly have some impact to them, and they feel powerful for the first time.

The throwbacks! So many! Wilhelm scream! "Bad feeling about this!" The training remote in the Falcon! Trench run! More!

Stormtroopers have personality! The scene where the one yells "Traitor!" throws down his blaster, and whips out the electro-baton thingy was amazing. That was my favorite stormtrooper.

Oh, and when BB-8 reciprocated the thumbs-up with his little lighter. That was adorable.

I like the comic relief. It's frequent and well done. Particularly when the stormtroopers are walking down the hall, see that Ren is having a fit, and turn around and walk the other way. Speaking of...

I don't care much for Kylo Ren. He's so...whiney. It's nice that he's different from the other bad guys we've seen, but I just can't like him. Yet. I bet he grows up now that his face is wounded. Face wounds will do that to a person. He's okay when he has his mask on, for the most part. Got an anger problem. I bet they have closets full of extra consoles for when he flips out.

Could also do without the pseudo-romance between Finn and Rey.

When it comes to the lightsaber scene...it wasn't well done. The camera kept jumping around too much, and you couldn't tell who was hitting what and where. We vaguely see Rey poke Ren in his bowcaster wound. There was lots of confusion as to whether or not she took off his leg or hand, with that uppercut and lightsaber-chop respectively. And did Finn get hit sliced right up the spine? Because it sure looked like it! (though he's somehow not paralyzed...or dead) And did anyone notice how she kept doing the same lunge-y poke, over and over?! She's overextending herself every time with that! It's not a good technique! He shoulda chopped her arms right off!

Most importantly...HOW DOES BB-8 GET UP STAIRS?!

(before you say cabley things, what if he's outside?)

That's all I remember right now!

I know I've got lotsa complaints, but it was still great. Can't wait for the next one

I was surprised how much i liked the new characters Finn, BB-8 (that "tumbs up" scene! squeee!), and Rey. But I'm I the only one who yelled "who, slow down there Sally!" when Han mentions Luke starting a new Jedi temple and that whole thing falling apart? I wanted to see that movie!

Now TFA isn't bad but thats mainly because it's the Original trilogy condensed: Desert planet? Check. Death star escape? check. Han calling the guy with the blue lightsaber, "kid"? Check. Father and son confrontation and one falling down? Check. The bad guy in the cool armor not doing much and going out like a punk? (I mean come on! Did Phasma even do anything?) check. Cantina scene? Check. Swarm of small fighters attacking a massive weapon of mass destruction? Check!

You would think the (ex)imperials would have learned not to put all their eggs in one basket...

Also: only TIEs and Xs? (Ok, ok: and landers and a shuttle) Where are all the B-wings? Or interceptors? Would have liked to see some new fighters.

Not such a big fan of Darth Emo, err I mean Kylo Ren, altough him holding a blaster shot in place with the forceis pretty badass. And aparantly he can off-screen teleport like Jason Voorhees! (Oh c'mon! He was on that bridge in the middle of the bunker, Rey and Finn were practically outside, How did he get outside in front them? dafuq?)

Also they could have explained the setting a bit better: What's with the New Order and the Republic and the resistance? Was there a truce between the two? Is the resistance part of the republic or are they a rogue faction? (And why haven't they fixed C-3PO's arm? What happened to it anyway?)

Oh and one last nitpic: I don't think Starkiller base is mobile, right? Wouldn't it have run out of ammo after it had consumed the sun? (Wich would have also sent SKB adrift since it would have no sun to orbit around anymore.)

All in all it made appreciate how good the OT was. I'll throw this one on the "saga" pile (prequals, re-released trilogy and now the sequals)

Episodce VII? Gets a 7/10

Also: only TIEs and Xs? (Ok, ok: and landers and a shuttle) Where are all the B-wings? Or interceptors? Would have liked to see some new fighters.

Well they thought about new ships at least, from the 'Art of' book.

L-Wing? Now they're just being silly. That makes no practical sense. Why would anyone design a ship like that?

There's a mountain of non-sense artwork in the book for plot lines that were never followed, like the millennium falcon underwater. I get the impression that they were mainly done as a brainstorming exercise before the final story was nailed down.

Up through pre-production, Kylo ren was labeled as Jedi Killer, kind of a mixture of darth vader and boba.

There's even a few pics of Darth Talon (the red twi'lek sith). I can strongly recommend the book as its chocked full of interesting tid-bits.

L-Wing? Now they're just being silly. That makes no practical sense. Why would anyone design a ship like that?

Meh SW has a lot of off center cockpit spaceships, from the B-wing tot the Falcon. I approve of this L-wing.

Just as long as they stop before we get a "Q" wing...

Anyone catch the shot that was reversed during the movie. Bad editor just canned the Oscar nomination for editing.

L-Wing? Now they're just being silly. That makes no practical sense. Why would anyone design a ship like that?

Meh SW has a lot of off center cockpit spaceships, from the B-wing tot the Falcon. I approve of this L-wing.

Just as long as they stop before we get a "Q" wing...

It's not the asymmetry that bothers me. It's the little part of the L. The bit that goes up. If anything, it should go down, then fold in for landing. The way it is would put a huge unnecessary blind spot on the pilot's right side

L-Wing? Now they're just being silly. That makes no practical sense. Why would anyone design a ship like that?

Meh SW has a lot of off center cockpit spaceships, from the B-wing tot the Falcon. I approve of this L-wing.

Just as long as they stop before we get a "Q" wing...

It's not the asymmetry that bothers me. It's the little part of the L. The bit that goes up. If anything, it should go down, then fold in for landing. The way it is would put a huge unnecessary blind spot on the pilot's right side

I totally agree, it's not just that it's wrong and doesn't make since (which is usually excusable in sci-fi/fantasy, especially Star Wars), it's that it's very wrong and makes the opposite of since, like they went out of their way to make it non functional. And why make it non functional if you're not at least going to make it pretty or cool looking?

Someone pointed out above that there was a lack of fighters (apart from x-wings and TIEs of course).

Do we think this was

A. A bid to give it that OT SW feel.

B. An intentional decision to show that only these ships are manufactured and used.

C. Laziness on the film maker's part.

I understand there were Y-Wings at Yavin, but I'd argue most 'fair weather fans' would only recognise, Xs, TIEs and the Falcon.

Im going with 70% A and 30% B.

Regardless, it sucks for our game that we only get a few new ships/shuttles. Maybe Rogue One will deliver some more diversity in a years time.

I watched the movie yesterday and had FUN!

Good mix of nostalgia, some new characters, and many many little details. The little parts of the crashed star destroyer getting snipped of during the pursuit, the ´Chess´ game you don´t let a Wookiee lose if you want to keep your arm, the training ball, the X-wing pilot helmet, the Obi-wan like dude in the village, the Sullustan Pilot (is it Ten Nunb?).

As a friend pointed out as well; the moment Rey is pollishing her scavenged stuff she looks up and sees an old lady doing the same, hinting towards her future without screaming it to the audience. Nice, really nice.

Also a very clear statement the Empire is not changed into a more benevolent dictatorship as it seems in several EU books; kill everyone. Also at the same time killing the EU stuff permanently...

On the other hand, they did take stuff from the EU, Solo and Leia having a kid turning towards the Dark Side, Luke trying to train Jedi and failing at one, Luke looking for a Jedi temple.

And why doesn´t Chewie run to Leia? Because he knew she knows? Because he couldn´t emotionally? I did wonder, but honestly it didn´t bother me for some reason. He didn´t look like he was cellebrating either. Maybe he needed to deal with it by himself?

My one point of critiscism is the Supreme Leader. Where the h**l did they find this one? His name must have been taken from a pile J.K; Rowlings decided not to use in a Harry Potter novel and his appaerance probably was second choice for Smeagol....

But who cares? The moment the triangular shadow floats into the screen, the Millenium Falcon being named garbage, the slap-stick sense of humour, great battles. It was all there.

I watched the movie yesterday and had FUN!

Good mix of nostalgia, some new characters, and many many little details. The little parts of the crashed star destroyer getting snipped of during the pursuit, the ´Chess´ game you don´t let a Wookiee lose if you want to keep your arm, the training ball, the X-wing pilot helmet, the Obi-wan like dude in the village, the Sullustan Pilot (is it Ten Nunb?).

As a friend pointed out as well; the moment Rey is pollishing her scavenged stuff she looks up and sees an old lady doing the same, hinting towards her future without screaming it to the audience. Nice, really nice.

Also a very clear statement the Empire is not changed into a more benevolent dictatorship as it seems in several EU books; kill everyone. Also at the same time killing the EU stuff permanently...

On the other hand, they did take stuff from the EU, Solo and Leia having a kid turning towards the Dark Side, Luke trying to train Jedi and failing at one, Luke looking for a Jedi temple.

And why doesn´t Chewie run to Leia? Because he knew she knows? Because he couldn´t emotionally? I did wonder, but honestly it didn´t bother me for some reason. He didn´t look like he was cellebrating either. Maybe he needed to deal with it by himself?

My one point of critiscism is the Supreme Leader. Where the h**l did they find this one? His name must have been taken from a pile J.K; Rowlings decided not to use in a Harry Potter novel and his appaerance probably was second choice for Smeagol....

But who cares? The moment the triangular shadow floats into the screen, the Millenium Falcon being named garbage, the slap-stick sense of humour, great battles. It was all there.

Did you get a light/darkside bracelet (ING bank) to?

It is Nien Numb (from ROTJ) he is mentioned by name in the credits.

So what happened to C-3PO's arm? Did he win a game of holochess against Chewbaca?