The Size of the Rebel Fleet

Throughout the film, the Rebel Fleet has been greatly reduced in size. Consider IH 1

and compare it with its final form: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8A6PTCf6dVc

There are certainly less ships. Or consider RF 1, the first time we see the Rebel Fleet.

This one surprises me, because the storyboard was revised in mid-November, as part of the Black Friday cuts, yet the final shot is very different from the concept. Instead of seeing a long view, stretching “as far as the eye can see”, we’re given a 3/4ths view that shows a few ships but obscures the size of the Fleet. Was this done because it looked better in some way, or just because it was easier & quicker to shoot? We can never know, but I’d bet on the latter.

This issue is found throughout the Space Battle and I’ll do my best to note it in later posts.