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“You may not know how Naboo (in Force Awakens) came to be, but you got a sense that the palace has a sense of history to it. The filigree on the walls has a story to it.”

“I’m envious of people who are going to be stepping into this land for the first time knowing nothing, because they’re going to be amazed,” story editor Margaret Kerrison added.

It sounds like hyperbole, but Kerrison is right. The Sun was the only Canadian media present for an early look at Galaxy’s Edge, which is still a construction zone.

During a three-day tour that included a look at a full-size Millennium Falcon, we uncovered some of the secrets that await Star Wars fans when the new lands open later this year.

FAMILIAR FACES

Galaxy’s Edge isn’t just going to seed elements for what’s to come in the Star Wars Universe — it will be paying tribute to the past.

Key characters from the films and animated series make appearances throughout the land and as part of the attractions. On Rise of the Resistance, for example, visitors will interact with new trilogy stars Rey (Daisy Ridley), Poe (Oscar Isaac), Finn (John Boyega), Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and beloved droid BB-8. Nien Nunb, who was seen in Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, also makes an appearance.

On Smugglers Run, guests will encounter an animatronic Hondo Ohnaka (who looks stunningly lifelike, I might add). Of course, everyone’s favourite ball of fur shows up as well.

Elsewhere in the land, Dok-Ondar, first mentioned in Solo: A Star Wars Story, will operate an antiquities shop (where fans can purchase unique Star Wars items from different eras of the franchise). And RX-24 (a.k.a. Captain Rex) from Star Tours, a Star Wars simulator ride that operated at Disney parks worldwide, is now a DJ spinning space tunes at Oga’s Cantina (where you can try alcohol-infused Jedi juice).