Analysis of The Force Awakens second trailer

[Andy 60]

The new trailer for The Force Awakens is out, and we've been watching on repeat, but have we really fully digested the new information? Here we take a closer look at the second trailer and point out a few things we've spotted. I'm sure it goes without saying that this article contains spoilers!The trailer opens with a vehicle racing across desert scene, could this be the speeder we saw Rey (Daisy Ridley) driving in the first trailer? Apparently the desert planet is not Tatooine, as previously speculated, but is instead a new planet known as Jakku.

0:30 - The vehicle passes a Star Destroyer and a crashed Rebellion-era X-wing (note the classic trilogy style engines on the wings). They seem to have been there for quite a while, judging by the general decay and amount of sand that has gathered around the larger starship.

A voiceover, which sounds a lot like Mark Hamill reciting a version of his talk with Leia from Return of the Jedi, says "The Force is strong in my family." If you listen carefully there is a creepy Sith-like whispering echo repeating the words.

0:35 - "My father has it." Darth Vader's melted helmet rests on a plinth; clearly somebody has this on display.

0:45 - "I have it." A cloaked figure sits at a campfire and rests a cybernetic hand on R2-D2: Is this Luke Skywalker himself?

0:52 - "My sister has it." We see a very familiar looking lightsaber being handed to female character by an unidentified alien. The lightsaber appears to be the lightsaber once owned by Anakin Skywalker, which was passed by Obi-Wan Kenobi to Luke in A New Hope. The lightsaber was lost after Luke's duel with Vader in The Empire Strikes Back and has seemingly resurfaced.

The hand looks too young to be Leia, but it was rumoured previously that Carrie Fisher's daughter, Billy Lourde, had been cast to portray Leia in a flashback scene. If so, this could be it. Pay attention to the background, as there seems to be an audience.

The trailer fades to black and the voiceover finishes with "You have that power too." Given the preceding speech about family, we could surmise that he is referring to one of the newer cast members, who may be a descendant of one of the Skywalker twins.

1:05 - Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and his T-70 X-wing squadron skim across a body of water surrounded by forest. We see Poe inside the cockpit, interestingly his helmet bears the insignia of the Rebel Alliance.

1:08 - A brief flash of Kylo Ren slashing his infamous cross-guard lightsaber. A stormtrooper is lurking in the background.

1:09 - Rey and Finn (John Boyega) flee as a TIE fighter pursues them, while BB-88 wheels along behind them.

1:10 - Kylo Ren shows his face again, or not; he is sporting a metallic mask and appears to be involved in a battle of sorts. Stormtroopers in the background appear to be holding civilians while multiple fires burn around them.

1:12 - Stormtroopers assemble outside some kind of base. A large banner with a new logo reminiscent of the Imperial insignia adorns the building, which seems to be heavily armed with turbolasers similar to those seen on the exterior of the Death Star. An updated TIE fighter can be seen clearly to right of the picture. Some important people appear to be on the balcony above them; a new Imperial leader, perhaps?

1:15 - Somebody seems to be making a getaway in a TIE fighter while the garrison tries to stop them. As we have seen Finn in a stormtrooper uniform, and removing his helmet in the previous trailer, could this be how he ends up on Jakku with Rey?

1:19 - A new model of Star Destroyer makes an appearance, as we see several shuttle-like craft approach.

1:20 - A chrome plated stormtrooper walks a corridor in what is clearly an Imperial facility, although the rocky wall suggests it may be an underground base rather than a space station. The character is rumoured to be played by Gwendolin Christie and known as Captain Phasma.

1:21 - Various character shots, including BB-8 peeking around the corner on board the Millennium Falcon and Rey giving Finn a helping hand.

1:25 - The Falcon appears, sporting it's updated squared communications array, and unsurprisingly behind chased by a TIE fighter. Some things never change. In a classic Han Solo move, it dives down inside a crashed starship, which judging by the array of engines visible may be an upside-down Super Star Destroyer. Like the previously seen Star Destroyer wreck, it appears to have been there a while.

1:28 - In case you were wondering what an updated TIE pilot looks like, here you go! Apparently the Empire only has one colour of LED for the internal displays.

1:34 - "Chewie... We're home." In an obvious nod to the original 1977 Star Wars promotional stills, Han Solo and Chewbacca strike a pose. Han seems to have gained a few more greys than his copilot.

Did you spot anything we didn't? Let us know!

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[Mara 29]

Anyone else think that the snowy planet where the stormtroopers are is reminiscent of Hoth?

Though since we all thought Jakku was Tatooine, my guess is it might be an entirely different planet. But the environment and the weapons emplacements in the background remind me of Hoth.

[Andy 60]

I don't know why we always assume the entire planet is the same.

 

*looks at Tatooine, Hoth, Coruscant, etc.* Oh yeah.

 

 

I don't know if it would be Hoth, but it is of course feasible that the Empire left a garrison on Hoth after they displaced the Rebels from Echo Base.

[Mara 29]

Hahha, I dunno.

 

 

And yeah, a lot could have happened in 40+ years.

[Andy 60]

Apparently the Empire is now the First Order and the rebels are now the Resistance. According to pictures from Celebration, at least.

[Mara 29]

Hmm...

 

 

We might find out  more when the companion novels come out in the fall.