"I've felt this raw strength once before..."

I vote Palpatine or Vader here in my reply, but not above because I don't believe anyone is reincarnated.

 

The beauty of this line is that while it very much gives us some snippets of what is in the movie, the context of that line could very well be something different. If i was to be conservative, I do believe Luke is talking about Ben and how much of a wildcard he was when training him. But he could very much talk about Palpatine as well. I could see a combination because let's be honest; ROTJ Luke was a bit too cocky.

Mind you, I loved Luke in ROTJ, that is my favorite era of Luke as he is no longer that naive, headstrong farmboy, but someone who has been seasoned. But really, when you consider how he underestimated Palpatine and nearly died, I can see him being a bit cynical. Especially, with his entire Temple being destroyed. So that line really does do such a wonderful job if that is indeed the context.

 

While all the other theories are interesting to discuss, the most logical answer to who he is talking about Ben/Kylo. As more and more is released about TLJ we are getting a good idea that one of the main focus of the Force in this movie is centered around Luke, Rey, and Kylo. Take in what we have learned in different interviews and articles. Rian said Rey and Kylo are two different halves of the protagonist (something along those lines) as well as the quote Mark made about Luke thinking Kylo is the Chosen One leads me to believe Ben/Kylo is the one Luke is talking about.

 

He might refer to Snoke both times. He wasn't scared, so he lost Ben, now he is and Rey won't be lost (and even bring back Ben?) because he is more cautious now.

 

I refuse to vote on that poll!
He's talking about Ben. Clearly.

Luke was successful when he faced Vader and Palpatine and thus wouldn't speak negatively about it. But with Ben, everything went wrong. Luke thought he was the chosen one and clearly put aside his worries. It backfired. And now he is faced with the same scenario with Rey.

 

When I first saw it, I initially thought that he was talking about Snoke. I thought that maybe confronted each other once before, but it ended in a draw. I thought he exiled himself to look for a way to defeat him. Now, however, I do think he was talking about Kylo Ren, but not because he is her brother. There seems to be so much misdirection in the trailer, where in the beginning Snoke was talking to Rey (not Kylo), and Luke was talking about Kylo (not Rey) to a force ghost IMO.

 

90% sure he's talking about young Kylo.

10% he's talking about Snoke

He's not talking about Palpatine or Vader. Because what he's alluding to happened BETWEEN RotJ and TFA.

 

Exactly. Stop overthinking it guys!

There was nothing raw about the Emperors power! For the love of Luke’s beard, He was a Sith Master who was only second to Plagueis. But let’s not go there...

 

I'd be very cautious about your initial assumption : the trailer could very easily be misleading here (just imagine i this line occurs before Luke has a chance to witness Rey's power, for example). Luke could very easily be scared of something or someone else.

So to me the question is double : What was this power Luke underestimated the first time ? and What is he really scared of now ?

You could interpret this as Luke being scared of Snoke now, after underestimating the Emperor back in the days. The same could apply to Kylo Ren and Darth Vader.
Heck, you could even imagine this line refers to Snoke in both instances (also works with Kylo Ren).

 

I'm taking it as Ben Solo. Luke felt his "raw strength", it did not scare him, Luke trained him and it completely backfired. Luke is feeling the "raw strength" again in Rey and training her scares him. This interpretation is based on what we currently 100% know. Occam's Razor. But we shall see in December.

I'm not voting though because I do not agree with the reasons given in the voting.

 

The Misdirect Awakens

 

I think it is sort of funny that Snoke and Luke use the term "raw" in describing someones force abilities in the trailer. Just a term I haven't heard much in Star Wars movies to this point.

 

I think the point is that Snoke talks about it in a positive sense but Luke refers to it in the negative.
That again is all about the Dark Side vs the Light.
The Dark Side is the quick and easy path - it's not about discipline, it's about unleashing power.
The Light Side/Jedi is a harder path (ultimately more rewarding), where discipline is vital.

 

None of the above. I think he felt it in Rey as a child (which is why he hadn't feared it before)

 

There's no indication whatsoever that he even knows who Rey is. She was left on Jakku years before his academy fell. Putting that aside, what would he have feared about it in Rey as a child? He says it didn't scare him as much as it should've then...why would he fear it more now Rey turns up and she's all nice and stuff?!

 

He didn't fear it in Rey as a child. That's the point.

Now that he knows better, now that he's seen the extent of her power, he fears her.

Just a theory. I'm sure as a Rey Solo advocate, you can respect that.

 

But he says "it didn't scare me enough then..." - as in, it did scare him but he thought he could handle it. And why would Rey turning up "scare him now", if it were always about her? I mean, she's good at this point. She wants to help. If he were always talking about her, it doesn't make sense that he would fear her power more now.

Ergo, he is talking about how he wasn't originally fearful enough of Ben's power but has learned that lesson and is thus now fearful of Rey's power.

 

Sure, maybe.

I think the wording doesn't really create a contradiction, though. Maybe he was startled by her power, but now sees her for what she is. Who knows?

We can't really get too specific or pedantic until we've seen the film, of course. I just personally think this is a possible direction.

 

I hope he is talking about himself.

I really liked those early rumors that said Luke exiled himself because he did something bat$h!t crazy with the force, so to protect others he hid himself.

To me, that is a GOOD reason Luke would hide away.

I don't want coward Luke. Self-sacrificing Luke I can handle.


So, I hope he is talking about himself.


He wasn't shook by the emperor, that's the point of the ROTJ.

He never saw Annakin's raw power, so that's out.

It is probably Ben, but I just don't see Ben as that impressive I guess. How could "raw power Ben" struggle so much in TFA?

Maybe he is talking about Snoke, or Rey as a child (another cool idea), or whatever.


But I really hope he is talking about himself.