50 Most Iconic Star Wars Costumes

15. Imperial Uniforms

Gone are the greenish-grays deployed in ROTS through the original trilogy for Imperial officers. However, TFA represents an evolution of design for the next iteration of the Galactic Empire.

However, let’s start by discussing the original trilogy. Visually speaking, not dressing the officers in black visually contrasts them with Darth Vader. They’re still in the same dark family, and their insignia and badges have similar shapes to the front of Vader’s suit, but those nods are more subtle than dressing most of the Rebellion in white or neutrals.

The dialogue backs this up: Vader generally clashes with whichever admiral or Grand Moff he’s dealing with at the moment, to the point of occasionally killing them and putting someone else in charge. Moreover, the officers tend to express disbelief in his powers, which tends to put him in a bad mood.

However, in TFA, that changes. All of a sudden, General Hux, who leads the military operation of the First Order, wears black, just like Darth Vader’s successor, Kylo Ren. This doesn’t completely dismiss the conflict, however.

Actor Domhnall Gleeson, who plays Hux, told Entertainment Weekly prior to the release of TFA that Hux and Kylo actually have what he terms an “individual and unusual” relationship. EW puts it more simply: they’re frenemies.

So sure, they wear all-black together, but hey, we see Hux’s face, and we usually don’t see Kylo’s, dividing them in that way.

In terms of design, TFA changes very little, although you’ll notice that Hux loses the asymmetric tunic that Imperial officers have. He also puts a jacket on, but that’s probably because he’s outside on Starkiller Base. His cap also has side brims, and the original trilogy caps don’t.