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Everyone remembers the scene stealing stormtrooper from ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ who battles Finn and knocks the lightsaber from his hand. It was a memorable moment and there have been countless memes. Heck, the trooper even got named by the fans (TR-8R) and is referred to as such across the internet. And it seems that the creative forces behind the new ‘Star Wars’ films are well aware that they struck a chord with TR-8R and have decided to include another new, hopefully memorable stormtrooper in ‘Star Wars VIII.’

All we know so far about the new stormtrooper is that he is being dubbed the ‘Executioner’ Stormtrooper, and that the report comes to us by way of ‘Making Star Wars.’ According to them, the new stormtrooper has a black matte line that runs over half of his helmet and uses a weapon similar to TR-8R, except that is has three spinning blades on the end this time. Also, there might be a shield involved in the costume, but it was unclear whether that was going to be included in the final design that would make it into the film. Lastly, it is said that Finn will be going up against this new stormtrooper as a callback to when he went up against TR-8R, which could also be a moment where we see some character growth for Finn, as he was easily bested by TR-8R. According to reports we have heard, Finn has grown stronger since his time healing from his injuries sustained at the hands of Kyle Ren, though whether that just means physically stronger or if that also means he has been training I do not know. Also, interesting will be what weapon he uses, as clearly the lightsaber he used against TR-8R is now with Rey. Perhaps his new weapon will be part of his new strength, maybe something he is more comfortable with/ trained with while he was a stormtrooper. Who knows, but I like the idea of Finn having a good fight scene, and the idea that the Stormtroopers are not the easy pickings that they were in the original trilogy.

What do you think of the Executioner Stormtrooper? Do you like the idea of another specialized unit of trooper to go up against the Rebellion? Are you worried (as I’ve heard others are) that it is another trooper that will take screen time away from Captain Phasma, who was already a let down in ‘The Force Awakens?’ Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!