Luke Skywalker
This is a tough movie for the young Jedi apprentice; Luke, who is training under the tutelage of Obi-Wan Kenobi finds himself transferred to the spiritual Yoda to complete his studies. He also takes a hard emotional hit, finding out that the father he had always been curious about is none other than his arch enemy Darth Vader. Physically he fares little better; he is captured by a wampa whilst looking at a probe droid, narrowly escaping by defending himself with his light saber, and suffering from hypothermia. For his survival of the latter he has Han Solo to thank, both men being rescued by a search party after a perilous night outdoors.
Luke begins to have premonitions in this movie, especially when Leia is in danger. After one such premonition he leaves training to rescue them from what he is sure is certain death. During a lightsaber battle with Darth Vader, Luke's hand is severed. When he rejoins the rebel fleet, he is fitted with a prosthetic.
Han Solo
Space pirate Han Solo saves Luke's life during the course of the movie, restoring enough of his body temperature to keep him alive until the pair are rescued. Increasingly attracted to Leia, Han travels more with her as his partner, and consequently the two are also captured together by Darth Vader, who wants to use Han as an experiment to see if his plan to hold Luke in suspended animation will work; he freezes Han in carbonite and promptly gifts him to his ally Boba Fett. Fett's plan is to give him to Jaba the Hutt, who has placed a bounty on his head. Although Lando, loyal to Han, attempts to free him, by the time he has freed Chewbacca and Leia, Fett has already taken Han with him. The fact that Lando is still loyal to HAn speaks very highly of the esteem in which he is held by those who know him. At the end of the movie his precise whereabouts are unknown.
Princess Leia
Feisty Leia is becoming increasingly attracted to Han Solo. The two grow closer as they hide out in an asteroid field after the Falcon is raided. They are also captured together when Darth Vader plans to use Han in an experiment to see if it is possible to freeze someone in carbonite. Leia finds that she is able to communicate with Luke telepathically but she does not understand why. Consequently when she and Han are traded to Boba Fett, and kept prisoner, she is able to use her mind to reach out to him for help.
Leia is rescued by Lando and manages to fight her way back to the safety of the rebel forces and the Falcon. She persuades Lando and Chewbacca to turn back for Luke, whom she has sensed is in trouble.
Lando Calrissian
Lando is the administrator of Cloud City, but before he took on this legitimate kind of role, he was an old friend of Han Solo's and consequently had a life filled with piracy and gambling. The two remain friends and his loyalty to his old friend is strong, despite having lost the Falcon to him in a bet once. He bravely frees Leia and Chewy from Boba Fett's men, and is intent upon rescuing Han as well, but finds that he is too late. He takes Han's place manning the Falcon alongside Chewy, and ultimately saves Luke as well when he agrees to turn around and go back for him at Leia's behest. He becomes a fundamental part of the team.
Darth Vader
Sith lord Vader is extremely powerful and his power is only matched by his evil. In this film we learn more about Vader's own history; he was born Anakin Skywalker and was a promising Jedi knight until he was lured to the dark side and he is now the chief enforcer of the Galactic Empire.
Vader is accused by Luke of killing his father, at which point he reveals that he is Luke's father. Their relationship does not prevent Vader from trying to kill Luke in a lightsaber battle, and wounding him by severing his hand. He also tries to lure Luke over to the dark side with him.
Yoda
We meet Yoda when Obi-Wan Kenobi's spirit asks him to become Luke's mentor. Yoda lives in self-imposed exile. His speech pattern is extremely short and he imparts his wisdom with brevity. He is almost philosopher-like in his verbiage. He is the ultimate Jedi master, having also mentored Obi-Wan.
Boba Fett
Fett is a bounty hunter and his intent is to cash in on the bounty placed on Han Solo"s head by Jaba the Hutt. He is a man of action and very few words.
Chewbacca
Chewy is a Wookiee and co-pilot's the Falcon with Han Solo, with whom he is close friends. He is extremely iintelligent and an integral part in defeating the Galactic Empire. He is also a skilled pilot. He is captured alongside Leia and Han and given to Boba Fett, but is fortunate to be rescued with Leia by Lando, with whom he then co-pilots the Falcon in Han's absence.
C-3PO
C-3POis a humanoid droid on the side of the rebel alliance. He was built by Anakin Skywalker and consequently Darth Vader knows far too much about him. He is fluent in over six million forms of communication and he is a stickler for manners. He flees the Falcon with Han Leia and Chewbacca when it is raided but he manages to make his way back on again and escape.
