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I was watching A New Hope on Netflix, when I noticed that in the scene with the stormtrooper riding a dewback, we see some of the other stormtroopers wearing the coloured shoulder pauldrons that signify their rank.

I don't recall having seen them before, so when (out of universe) were these added?

I thought they were a new invention for The Force Awakens.

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  • Wookieepedia says that A New Hope is their first appearance (presumably in a released movie). I’ll have to see if Lucas edited them it. ;)
    – Adamant
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:35

3 Answers 3

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Those shoulder pads have been there since day one. So to speak. ;-)

A behind the scenes picture. Notice the shoulder pad.
A behind the scenes picture. Notice the shoulder pad.

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The first work that they appeared, by order of release, was A New Hope. Here they are in the famous “these aren’t the droids you’re looking for” scene, from a version of Star Wars that comes from the original prints.

enter image description here

Here is a version from a later Blu-Ray edition of A New Hope:

enter image description here

They also were seen in many other works before The Force Awakens. For example, Clone Troopers in the Clone Wars series wore pauldrons.

enter image description here

So they definitely weren’t created specifically for The Force Awakens.

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  • The uppoermost image appears to be from the blu-ray release, hence the letterboxing to make it widescreen
    – Valorum
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:43
  • @Valorum - Sure, because the old versions are grainy. But they are there in the originals.
    – Adamant
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:44
  • But the OP was looking for proof-positive that they were in an earlier version.
    – Valorum
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:44
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    @Valorum - Fine, let me find a picture then.
    – Adamant
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:44
  • @Valorum - I’m seeing if I can find a clip from the Silver Screen Edition, made from an original film print.
    – Adamant
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:53
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They were seen in the original 1977 theatrical release.

enter image description here

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  • I don't know how I could've missed them.
    – SQB
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:44
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    @SQB - I like the new blu-ray quality, but I detest the additional crap that Lucas has shoved into the frame.
    – Valorum
    Oct 23, 2016 at 10:47
  • Jabba, you're a wonderful human being -- solo
    – Theraot
    Oct 23, 2016 at 23:06
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    @Valorum: Look for Harmy's Despecialized Edition... HD quality, original 1977's frames.
    – DevSolar
    Oct 24, 2016 at 7:12

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