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Monday, December 30th, 2019 04:06 pm
Saw this yesterday morning, quite enjoyed it.

I kind of want to write more than that but...I don't feel like I have the brain.



I think it was pretty decently handled. A little all-over-the-place maybe, but good character growth on all the main characters (Rey, Finn, Poe, Ben/Kylo). If they had to redeem Ben, then I'm glad they killed him off at the end. He'd just done too much to be allowed to survive in the universe.

The use of the 'original cast' was good - highlights and key scenes without taking over the story. Han Solo turning up was absolutely a surprise - I didn't even know that Harrison Ford was in the cast. And the scene where Rey hears all the Jedi voices was cool after the credits ran and I realised that all the Jedi are ones that have previously appeared in the movie/TV series - not just Yoda and co, but also Jedi like Qui Gon Jinn and Ahsoka Tano.

I wasn't wholly convinced by the Rey/Ben relationship - connection, yes. Romance, unlikely. But Rey telling Kylo that she wanted to take Ben's hand was a good distinction to make. It didn't bother me that they made Rey a Palpatine; it balanced out the weight of the Skywalkers in the movie. Also, I can imagine Palpatine's son realising (after Endor, perhaps) that Vader's children chose not to follow in their father's footsteps and that he could break away, too. It makes for a nice circle: from Vader and Vader's son defeating Palpatine to Palpatine's granddaughter and Vader's grandson defeating Palpatine.

I guess it did the best it could given that it was three fairly disparate chapters of a story - someone started Chapter 1, then someone else wrote Chapter 2, taking a whole bunch of things in different directions, and then the author of Chapter 1 took the reins again to finish the story, so they're trying to work off both what they had in Chapter 1 and what they were given to work from in Chapter 2. (If that makes sense.)

In some ways, it's a bit like the MCU in that sense. There was maybe a general overarching plotline to it, but the characterisation of individuals suffered for the sake of Tying Things Up Nicely.

Thinking it over, it's a bit of a pity that we didn't get to see either what Rian Johnson had in mind for Ep 9, or what JJ Abrams would have done for Ep 8.

Disclaimer: I'm not hugely invested in the world or worldbuilding of Star Wars - I kind of clocked out of major Star Wars excitement with the prequel trilogy, but I've enjoyed the sequel trilogy enough.And I've never been hugely in the Star Wars fandom, so I haven't followed much beyond the general shape of what's going on.
Monday, December 30th, 2019 01:07 pm (UTC)
Fandom is a dumpster fire, glad to hear it basically worked for someone whose opinion I actually trust. I might even try the trilogy now. :)
Monday, December 30th, 2019 04:56 pm (UTC)
I was satisfied with it too.
Tuesday, December 31st, 2019 02:29 am (UTC)
I enjoyed it. It had it's issues but it was fun to watch.