At this year's Comic-Con convention fans were denied a new trailer, but instead got a glimpse behind the scenes. The stormtroopers are still very badass indeed. That footage managed to drop some important clues about the sort of film we can expect when The Force Awakens... awakens. Here is what we managed to glean.

1. The lunatics have taken over the asylum ... ... and it's plainly a great thing. The film's director is a self-declared Star Wars geek. Everyone working on the film seems to have grown up with the original trilogy and its impact on them oozes from every frame. Lucasfilm even hired a couple of fan "astromech" droid makers they found at a convention to produce the new R2-D2 model. There is a certain madness which comes when the lunatics take over the asylum, but if the success of the rebooted Doctor Who, which has been hand-crafted by a couple of mad Whovians in Russell T. Davies and Steven Moffat, is anything to go by, Star Wars: The Force Awakens ought to be a masterpiece. 2. "Chewie, we're home." The real potency of the new Star Wars films - the so-called "sequel trilogy" - is that unlike the prequels, which took us far from the familiar, the new films will return us, at least as the story kicks off, to places we know, and to people we trust. And no place in the Star Wars universe is closer to the beating heart of its fandom that the Millennium Falcon, the battered YT-1300 Corellian freighter famous for making the Kessel run in less than 12 parsecs. The sense of connection between the new Star Wars films and the 1977 origin of the saga is strong: even the "standalone" Star Wars films planned both touch that, one focusing on the theft of the Death Star plans, and the other an origin story for Han Solo.

3. Practical effects are back. It's difficult to interpret this as anything but a swipe at the CGI-heavy Star Wars prequels, and through that, indirectly, a swipe at Star Wars creator/director George Lucas. It's likely not the case, as Lucas's influence is everywhere, and Abrams respect for Lucas is obvious, but it is a potent reminder that the beating heart of Star Wars was never special effects, but rather rich characters and varied, magnificent settings. Here we can see the miniature used to create the new TIE Fighter, the frontline starfighter of the Empire. (Or, as it is now known, The First Order.) That reality, and the attention to detail which comes with it, will knit for the new Star Wars saga a rock solid foundation. 4. The new stormtroopers are badass.

Like, really badass. We've already met them in an earlier trailer, but fans at Comic-Con were treated to several glimpses of the new stormtrooper in the behind the scenes footage. What we know is that after the fall of the Empire at the end of Return of the Jedi, its forces scattered. The most dominant of those, The First Order, is in the new film clearly making its first parlay for a return to power in the face of the rebel alliance, now known as "the resistance". Though it is not explicitly stated in the footage, the First Order is known to have several Star Destroyers and an armada of TIE fighters. The First Order's headquarters is known as Starkiller Base - a nod to an early draft of Star Wars in which Luke Skywalker was known as Luke Starkiller. 5. There are new TIE fighters. Okay, so they largely look like the old TIE fighters, which at first glance is a little underwhelming. The name, incidentally, is an acronym for Twin Ion Engines, the propulsion system used in them. The new TIE fighters have one change, a red mark on the hull, presumably to identify them as fighters from the First Order. There is little detail about the film's plot, however there is speculation that the fighter featured in this concept art (which crashes on the desert planet of Jakku) is piloted by Finn (John Boyega), and this crash landing brings him to Jakku where he meets Rey. (More on her, and who she might be, later.) A toy version of the new TIE fighter is already on sale from Hasbro with $US169.99. Put that down to Galactic inflation.

6. BB8 isn't a special effect. Even though it seems impossible for him not to be. The BB8 robot is a working prop, thanks largely to a couple of curious developments at Disney before they even invested in Star Wars. The first is a device known as a Sphero, which is a Bluetooth-controlled rolling ball which has an internal mechanism made up of gyroscopes and accelerometers. The second element is BB8's head which is, essentially, connected to the body using magnets. There's a bit of lean when he moves fast, but essentially the system keeps his head upright while his ball body rolls. Though there is little detail from the plot available, speculation suggests BB8 droids are the new generation of astromech droids (the class to which R2-D2 belongs) and are used in the resistance's new X-Wing starfighters. 7. Kylo Ren is badass. (With an honourable mention for Captain Phasma.) Like, really, really badass. Kylo Ren is the film's villain, seen here escorted by First Order stormtroopers on a mission. The presence of green-screen suggests it's a wholly CGI environment, so neither perhaps Jakku nor Starkiller Base, which we know are live sets. Seen here, Ren wears a sinister-looking hooded cloak and is prone to sweeping through scenes with all the authority of Darth Vader. The film's other villain, Captain Phasma, is also badass. Speculation is she will pilot a "Special Forces TIE fighter". Captain Phasma will be played by Gwendoline Christie, better known as Brienne of Tarth in Game of Thrones. Oh, be still my beating fanboy heart before it brings on a cardiac event.

8. Detention block decor hasn't changed much. This is, of course, a similar corridor style to that seen on the original Death Star's detention block AA23, where Princess Leia was held and interrogated by Darth Vader. ("And now Your Highness, we will discuss the location of your hidden rebel base.") It's possible this is on an as yet unseen Star Destroyer but it's far more likely it's at Starkiller Base, the headquarters of the First Order, which is being mentioned often enough now to suggest that it's one of the major settings the film will use. "It's a trap!" Just three words catapulted this old Mon Calamari space sailor into the Star Wars history books as one of the franchise's most beloved characters, and an iconic leader of the rebel forces during their attack on the forest moon of Endor, which was housing the second Death Star, at the end of Return of the Jedi. An earlier leak of costume department images suggest that Ackbar is older, with a few more wrinkles around the gills. (But looking no less delicious, particularly sauteed in some lemon and white wine.) He's also traded his white admiral's uniform for a cream undershirt and a tan tunic.

10. Nien Nunb is back! You know, Nien Nunb. Everyone knows Nien Nunb, right? Actually, they may not, at least by name. Nien Nunb is a Sullustan smuggler best known to fans of the original Star Wars universe as the co-pilot of the Millennium Falcon (along with Lando Calrissian) during the Death Star attack run during the Battle of Endor. His most famous line? "Atirizi inyui mwi hau inyouthe ukai haha!" Nunb also appeared as a B-Wing pilot in a toy released by Hasbro, which corresponded with the briefing scene in Return of the Jedi, and suggests that prior to his career peaking moment at Endor, he piloted a B-Wing starfighter for the rebel alliance. 11. Rey and Han piloting the Faclon.

And that's Finn (John Boyega) in the rear seat. Though this shot is less than a second long, we glimpse something significant here: Rey (Daisy Ridley) stepping into the co-pilot seat of the Millennium Falcon. An earlier shot of her boarding the Falcon prop identifies the setting as the desert planet of Jakku. Plus, she's sitting next to Harrison Ford, who plays Han Solo. So, what do we make of this? If you consider "Rey" is Spanish for "king", we might surmise her mother is Princess Leia which would make her father Han Solo? Makes sense that for safety Rey is in hiding as the film opens, to protect her from the First Order, because of her family's prominence in the resistance, but the arrival of the First Order at the planet of Jakku might necessitate a fast rescue from dad. Well, it's a theory ... 12. What's up with C3-P0's arm? There is no explanation for this - yet - but this and several other images confirm that the normally gleaming protocol droid is sporting an unusual change of look for the new film. Instead of his shiny gold body, his left arm is now a red, duller seeming metal. It's a suggestion, perhaps, that the galaxy of a fallen empire, a rising First Order and a struggling resistance is not as resource-rich as it once was, or that the resistance simply does not have access to enough brass to shine up C3-P0 a new arm. Either way it's a small detail in a fascinating mosaic from director J.J. Abrams which reveals a little about how he perceives the post-Return of the Jedi Star Wars universe.

13. Starkiller Base? The actual location is not confirmed, though its adherence to the Imperial design aesthetic, seen previously on Star Destroyers and aboard the two Death Star space stations, suggests that this is Starkiller Base, the headquarters of the new post-Empire faction, the First Order, which is staking a claim in the galaxy as The Force Awakens opens. Pictured here is J.J. Abrams, the director and producer who is, in effect, the new George Lucas, at least insofar as he the buck stops with him on story and "canon" decisions, and writer Lawrence Kasdan, who co-wrote The Force Awakens and also worked on The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. 14. Princess Leia Well, there's great news and even greater news. The great news is, hello, Princess Leia Organa is back, in all her regal "will somebody get this walking carpet out of my way" glory. The even greater news is there's not a hairy doughnut side-bun, or a chainmail bikini, in sight. Instead, the latest in princess-turned-resistance-leader fashion is an olive drab undershirt with a lovely charcoal vest, accented by a simple but elegant over-the-head plait. If characters are the beating heart of Star Wars, then Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia is its spirit, embodying the courage and defiance which gave birth to the rebellion. Her presence, along with that of Mark Hamill's Luke Skywalker and Harrison Ford's Han Solo makes this no mere sequel, but rather a new Star Wars film for the ages.