Thanks, I used the wipes because they tend to soften a quick transition. I’ll try it without and see how it works.

@Kexikus: Originally I thought that the natural place for the scene was after ‘I need your help’, but after putting it there it just didn’t work for me. The problem is that you expect an immediate response to Finn’s line, and cutting to a somewhat arbitrary bit of exposition is too much whiplash. At least with its placement just after Finn’s arrival, he could be taking in the sights. This allows the audience to take a momentary break from his story.

I also cut the entire resistance base section into pieces to try and work it in later, but there’s just no place. As George Lucas once said, if you move just one piece all the rest don’t work.