Since Star Wars fans first saw Kylo Ren's lightsaber ignite in the first teaser trailer for The Force Awakens, the new crossguard design of the blade has been at the center of more than a little controversy.
Fans debated among themselves whether the design was practical, what its real-world inspirations were and even made videos of how one might fight with such a weapon. Many assumed the blade was inspired by medieval claymores, which featured crossguard hilts to protect the user's hands.
Turns out that might not exactly be the case. As revealed at a new Star Wars: The Force Awakens exhibit at Disneyland in California (via StarWarsNews.net), the two mini-lightsabers seen on the hilt of Kylo Ren's lightsabers don't appear to be a crossguard at all. Instead, the two openings on either side of the hilt are, apparently, exhaust ports for the weapon.
It makes sense when factored in with what we've seen of the weapon so far. Ren's lightsaber doesn't behave like that of the sabers we've seen before, appearing more unstable and volatile than the lightsabers used by Luke Skywalker or Darth Vader. It even makes a different sound from that of the lightsabers we are used to. The description below from the exhibit describes the two mini-sabers as "raw power" vented from the central blade.
So, what exactly does this mean? Is Kylo Ren's lightsaber more powerful than your average lightsaber? Can he cut through objects faster than we've seen before, or might he even be able to break through the blades of other lightsabers? We simply don't yet have all the details, but this latest piece of information certainly casts the intimidating weapon in a new light.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens is in theaters Dec. 18.
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