“The Last Jedi” actually includes a huge “Rogue One” Easter egg

What, did you think the Skywalker family was the only clan in the galaxy that knows how to toss in a well-placed Easter egg? While we already know all the Star Wars movies are connected — for obvious reasons, of course — the latest installment in the saga didn’t just reference the original trilogy and the Force Awakens. Oh no, The Last Jedi has a Rogue One Easter egg, and it’s pretty great.

And no, it’s not just the fact that Rogue One’s director, Gareth Edwards, is the dude next to the dude who licks the salt on Crait. That is an Easter egg, but this Last Jedi one is even bigger and better, and is actually *the whole plot of the movie*.

There are spoilers ahead for the latest Star Wars film, but it’s safe to assume that you saw it, considering it made over $200 million at the box office in three days. You maybe even saw it twice.

As you know, much of the plot of Last Jedi revolves around the Resistance trying to outrun the First Order. The Resistance is running out of gas, so they don’t want to jump to hyperspace. They also can’t jump to hyperspace, because the First Order has figured out how to track them via hyperspace. This is a bad situation. It’s also a brand new technology, and you can see this from General Leia and Commander Poe’s look of shock when they realize that no matter what they do, the First Order is tracking their every move.

This, of course, leads Finn and Rose to go on a top secret mission to infiltrate the First Order and shut the tracking device off so the Resistance can safety escape (and we know how well THAT works out).

While our heroes are just learning about this technology now, it’s not actually the first time we — the audience — have been clued into it. Jyn Erso in Rogue One actually discovers it.

Oh yes. Go back and watch Rogue One right now (and you can, because it’s on Netflix). But if you don’t have the time to do that, just listen up: One of the files stored away in the Empire’s database on Scarif is for “hyperspace tracking.” Jyn comes across it while she’s looking for the Death Star plans.

Just think — if only Jyn had also grabbed the hyperspace tracking plans, the Resistance WOULDN’T BE IN THIS MESS RIGHT NOW. Also, wow, Empire/First Order, it took you like, 30+ years to actually figure out hyperspace tracking and put it to use? Wow, you guys, someone dropped the ball on this, and someone’s probably going to end up blaming Hux.