[do action=”sw-menu”]
Po Dameron is a pilot for the Resistance, an extra-territorial force allied with the New Republic, who meets with Lor San Tekka on a distant planet. Tekka has vital information that will help the Resistance, led by Princess Leia Organa, find Luke Skywalker, the last surviving member of the Jedi Order. Dameron’s meeting is interrupted by the First Order when a strike force led by Kylo Ren (aka Ben Solo, son of Han Solo and Leia) arrives. Dameron sends his droid, BB-8, off into the desert wilderness with the memory module while he is captured.
FN-2168, one of the Storm Troopers in the strike force, cannot bring himself to kill the unarmed civilians in Lor San Tekka’s camp. After returning to the First Order’s command ship he abandons his post and rescues Po Dameron, striking a deal with him. Meanwhile the First Order searches Jakku for BB-8, who has by this time met up with Rey, a scavenger who barely survives by salvaging old parts from ruined Imperial warships. Finn and Dameron become separated, but Finn joins up with Rey and BB-8. Together they escape from Jakku in the Millennium Falcon, which is then captured by Han Solo and Chewbacca. From this point onward it becomes a race against time for the ragtag group of heroes as they struggle to return BB-8 to the Resistance before the First Order finds and destroys their base.
This movie marks a sharp departure from the George Lucas tradition. Lucas was heavily criticized by long-time fans of Star Wars for evolving the series beyond the space opera-like quality of the first movie. Unable to satisfy anyone regardless of what decisions he made, Lucas wisely sold Lucasfilm Ltd. to The Disney Company. But in doing so he found himself cut off from any further development of the Skywalker family saga. Despite all the fan complaints about the movies, the first six films in the series were tightly connected to the fortunes of Shmi Skywalker and her descendants. Now Disney is shifting focus away from the Skywalkers to other characters.
While this is a typical move for Disney it makes it difficult for fans to reconcile the earlier movies with the current franchise. Episodes VII onward almost tell a completely different story from that of the Skywalker family, even though Kylo Ren is a key player in the story.
The audience’s curiosity is guided toward Rey, whose mysterious past hints at possible relationships and connections to the Skywalker family (although these hints turn out to be red herrings). Po Dameron, who was originally intended to be an early casualty in the first movie, rises to a more important role. In fact, Po, Finn, and Rey are the new Luke, Han, and Leia. The new trilogy is about them, not about the Skywalkers, although Luke and Leia both make appearances in this and the next two movies.