As part of "Force Friday," all of the tie-in toys planned for Star Wars: The Force Awakens have finally been unveiled.
Every toy company from Lego to Hasbro to Mattel and many more are producing brand new products based on the movie and its characters, planets and vehicles. But Lucasfilm is exhibiting extra caution in avoiding spoilers in its tie-in materials for The Force Awakens — utilizing a level of secrecy that George Lucas rarely aspired to.
Despite this strict veil of mystery, the product descriptions on a few of these items provide new clues about the characters and plot of the movie.
Needless to say, there are potential spoilers ahead.
No, really, there are.
Spoilers! Ahead!
You need to turn back now and go no further.
This is your very last chance...
Still here? Okay, then.
Kylo Ren has a "fiery temper."
Jakks Pacific has some gigantic figures coming that sound pretty amazing. Among them is a Kylo Ren figure in 31-inch and 48-inch varieties. His product description reads, "Kylo Ren commands First Order missions with a temper as fiery as his unconventional lightsaber."
You'd expect nothing less than severe anger issues from a Dark Side Force-user, right? But it's still interesting because this makes it sound like Kylo won't be a conflicted villain, like the Sith Lord he idolizes (Darth Vader). He's just straight-up evil.
Poe Dameron commands "Black Squadron."
A new X-Wing toy states that while playing as Poe, kids can "lead Black Squadron into battle." This bit may have been rumored before, but this counts as official confirmation. Poe Dameron, self-described by actor Oscar Isaac as "the best damn pilot in the galaxy," is a big hotshot pilot in the Resistance. He's a big enough deal that he leads an entire squadron of X-Wing fighters, and this doesn't look to be any old squadron.
The black-and-orange paint job suggests overtones of a covert/"black ops" kind of unit, as does the squadron's name. But that's pure speculation.
Finn will fight Kylo Ren in a lightsaber battle.
A line describing Micro Machines' "First Order Star Destroyer Playset" states plainly that "Finn battles Kylo Ren."
It didn't take a genius to see this coming, especially since we already knew from an official poster that Finn will wind up with a lightsaber — very possibly Luke Skywalker's original lightsaber, recovered after it was lost when Darth Vader cut off Luke's hand on Cloud City. (Which is ironic considering it was originally Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber!)
But this begs the question: How will Finn stand a chance against a powerful Force warrior like Kylo Ren? All we know of Finn up to this point is that he starts out the movie as a Stormtrooper before defecting to the Resistance. And he's capable of wielding a lightsaber, which suggests that he can use the Force. But if he was a Stormtrooper not long before he fights head-to-head with Kylo Ren, how will have any chance of putting up a fight?
Is it possible Luke (or someone else) could train him quickly enough to believably fight an enemy as strong as Kylo Ren? Or might he have prior training that we're unaware of? (See below.)
Finn is "highly trained" and Rey is a "resilient survivor."
A line of die cast action figures available only at Disney Stores has product descriptions that reveal juicy new bits about several major characters. And we can extrapolate even more when matched up with what we already know.
Chief among this new info is Finn's description as a "highly trained warrior." Is this his Stormtrooper training being referring to? Some other training that he underwent before joining the First Order? Or brand new training he receives after defecting to the Resistance? Whatever this description is talking about, it lends a bit more credibility to the notion that Finn can stand up to Kylo Ren.
Rey is labeled a "resilient survivor." Based on what little we know about her so far, it sounds like Rey is a scavenger living on Jakku. We're guessing she meets Finn after Kylo Ren comes to the planet and razes a village for unknown reasons, which is probably the reason Finn defects, after witnessing the death and destruction Kylo Ren and his Stormtroopers cause.
We also know that director J.J. Abrams is intentionally keeping the surnames of both Rey and Finn out of all promotional materials (and toys), because they're names we would recognize. Likewise, Kylo Ren's original name was not "Ren." It's long been speculated that Rey is Rey Solo, the secret daughter of Leia and Han Solo. Or maybe she's a Skywalker, related to Luke. Either way, who is Finn? Another Solo or Skywalker? A Kenobi? Calrissian? Windu???
Also mentioned in this product listing is that Captain Phasma is a "loyalist" to the First Order, meaning she's a true believer in the cause. So don't expect her to be swayed in her convictions; she's likely very single-minded in her purpose.
The majority of the Force Friday products will be available in stores starting Friday, September 4, 2015. Star Wars: The Force Awakens hits theaters on December 18.
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