Typically, you'd expect the TV spots for any film to be mini-teasers for the full cinematic trailers, recut, repackaged and slapped into TV spots as mood builders. But not so for Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Though they've been notoriously tight on security and secrecy, LucasFilm have proven themselves to be surprisingly casual about spoiling further plot details and character details in the seemingly infinite number of TV spots released since the "final" trailer debuted. In fact, if The Force Awakens was coming out at the end of January and the marketing department continued on their current frequency, we would have seen the entire film by the time it hit cinemas. It's also not just a case of teasing little flashes that build hype: LucasFilm have actually made their TV Spots, international teasers and various behind-the-scenes featurettes essential viewing for spoiler-friendly Star Wars fans by including first see revelations that offer a surprising amount of detail...
16. The Anti-Lightsaber Trooper
Interestingly, the international trailers and TV spots introduced an entirely new form of stormtrooper, who plays a part in the assault on Maz Kanata's base on Takodana. That impressive looking riot baton is clearly designed to give the troopers an added defence against lightsabers, which thus far have been the scourge of badly equipped foot soldiers. There's also a lot more swagger here than you'd normally expect from the walking cannon fodder, which suggests the First Order will live up to their name as an elite force. Presumably the trooper also comes with the riot shield shown off as part of this Bandai figure.
