So what happened after Return of the Jedi?

Episode VI's triumphant closing note suggests the immediate downfall of the
Empire, but it's not all fireworks and Ewok celebrations. As specified in
Chuck Wendig's first Aftermath novel, moments after the statue of the
Emperor is cut down on the central planet of Coruscant, Imperial forces start
a brutal crackdown, clearing city streets of anti-Empire protesters with lethal
force.
Some Imperial commanders are able to lock down their far-flung corners of
the galaxy, restricting access in and out in a bid to cut their losses and
maintain control, while others try and fail to elevate new Emperors to
positions of power. The largest contingent of Imperial forces coalesces
around the minor planet of Akiva, where high-ranking members form the
Imperial Future Council and discuss how what's left of the Empire can strike
back against the Rebel forces currently picking them apart. Some suggest a
military stand, while Yupe Tashu, one of the Emperor's advisors and a Sith
cultist, suggests that the fleet goes on a hunt for a font of dark side energy
that'll propel them back to power.
A font of dark side energy?
Don't worry about that part, actually.
Okay. Carry on.
The talks don't go so well, though, and Alliance ships arrive at Akiva,
pushing the Empire back yet again to the planet of Jakku. The unassuming
desert planet becomes the real last stand for the united Empire, one last do-
or-die battle that ends in an overwhelming victory for the Rebels. If you'd
like to change that outcome, you can play Star Wars Battlefront and win the
day for the Empire, but the canonical fight ends with hundreds of ships,
including iconic wedge-shaped Star Destroyers, smashing into the planet's
surface.
It's one of those Star Destroyers that we've seen Rey poking around in for
parts in The Force Awakens' trailers and TV spots. We also know one of
those ships was called the Inflictor, and was deliberately crashed into the
surface of the planet Jakku by its young captain after it was invaded by a
boarding party, led by her Rebel lover.
Speaking of, where did the Rebel Alliance go?
After Jakku, the Rebels formalize the New Republic and start the process of
beating back the last Imperial remnants across the galaxy. (A treaty between
the New Republic and the Empire was eventually signed.) The new
government moves its official capital world from Coruscant to Chandrila
famous in the old expanded universe for its history of political discourse and
beautiful architecture and invites democratically elected representatives
from more than 100 worlds to join its new Senate.
Mon Mothma, head of the Rebel forces during the insurrection and now the
boss of the New Republic, sheds both the emergency powers held by
Emperor Palpatine and the majority of the military forces controlled by the
fledgling New Republic. But with the Empire still a significant, if scattered,
force in the galaxy, Mon Mothma's government can't throw down arms
entirely. Instead, she decides to divert money so planets in the New Republic
can build their own defense forces. At the same time, Admiral Ackbar
remains head of the Republic's fleet of capital ships, kept in reserve to fight
back when portions of the Empire reject the peace treaty signed after Jakku.
So where does the First Order fit? Are they a part of the Empire, or
something else?
You can think of them more as an outside group inspired by the Empire.
Contingents like the First Order have a whole galaxy to hang out in, giving
themselves time to get all nice and cult-ish out of sight. They're not the only
such group: Aftermath introduces the "Acolytes of the Beyond," aiming to
reunite Darth Vader's lightsaber with its owner in death. The connection
between the Acolytes and The Force Awakens' Knights of Ren isn't yet clear,
but both factions seem to share the same fetish for Sith memorabilia, and
from the loving way Kylo Ren is talking to Vader's helmet in the film's
trailers, it looks like he, too, is in the midst of a scavenger hunt for the Sith
lord's things.
Enough talk about politics. Seriously, where's Luke?
That's still the big question, isn't it? Frankly, we don't know. But we have a
few ideas. Soon after the Battle of Endor, Luke resumes the pilgrimage he
started with his trip to Dagobah, traveling to the planet of Devaron home
of the devil-horned Devaronians after having visited one of the many
secret research stations on the edge of the galaxy that Palpatine set up while
he was still alive.
From there, Luke's place in post-RotJ canon trails off, but we're guessing he
didn't try to bring back the Jedi council. As Solo alluded to in the trailers, the
Force is probably still considered some hokey religion. Think about it: The
Jedi have been off the scene for more than 60 years at the time of the new
movie nobody but Luke's close friends know that he can use the Force
and even though the galaxy was ruled by one of the most powerful Sith of
all time just 30 years previous, Palpatine took great care to hide his dark side
powers. For the wider galaxy, the Sith are little more than boogeymen.
And Chewbacca? Han? Leia? What have they been up to?
There are also pretty big gaps on the fate of the main film characters, but
here's what we know so far. Leia becomes a general in the rapidly
demilitarizing New Republic, and Han and Chewie set off to save the
Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk from slave-driving Imperial remnants.
The fate of other major characters are left more ambiguous. Boba Fett's
armor makes it out of the Sarlacc Pit the iconic green Mandalorian plate
is cleaned up and sold by Jawa scavengers during Aftermath but it's not
clear what happened to the man inside. Given that Sarlacc can take up to a
thousand years to digest bodies, and Fett's wide array of wrist-mounted
weaponry, it's a good bet we'll be seeing the bounty hunter find his way in
the post-Imperial galaxy again.
Any word on Lando Calrissian? He's my all-time favorite!
Not really, but longtime Star Wars screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan seems to
think Lando might come back at some point just not in The Force
Awakens.
So what about the new kids? Do you really think their parents are
Let's stop right there and just say we don't know, but if past Star Wars films
are any indication, lineage will play a big role here with Rey / Finn / Kylo
Ren.
Here's one we do feel confident about, however: it's a fairly sure bet that Poe
Dameron (Oscar Isaac) is the son of Rebel soldiers Shara Bey and husband
Kes, introduced in the Shattered Empire comic. That background explains
how Oscar Isaac's character came to become a crack pilot he was born
and raised in the Rebellion.