"The Force Awakens" (with SPOILERS)

Maybe none of this is an issue if George Lucas hadn’t peddled that bullshit about it being a nine-part, cohesive narrative from the beginning.

 

Snoke is also the one who turns Kylo to the Dark Side. I imagine we could get a little more of that story in Episode IX as a way of dealing with trying to bring him back to the light. But beyond that, you're right, I'm not sure we need much more.

 

He also set the “shocking origin reveal” in every episode expectation.

 

I agree completely with this. You can't get too obsessed with certain details. You just have to keep the movies and books somewhat separate, and essentially, become a fan of both, seeing value and entertainment in all of it, even regardless of one or the other format. Sometimes, it can be difficult to keep timelines straight, just because there are so many books out there. But as long as you know characters and enjoy Star Wars or Star Trek, or whatever, both formats of stories can be enjoyed in and of themselves.

That's what I do with Star Wars and Star Trek, and I'm a voracious watcher and reader of both franchises.

 

Not sure I buy that. Vader and Leia were the only ones six episodes (I'm not counting Kylo Ren since that was out of Lucas's hands). I think your earlier allusion to "Lost" has more to do with fans looking deeper into every last detail than the Vader and Leia reveals.

 

The one line of criticism I saw that I could see as relevant was from a Ringer article:

Spoiler

The movie is way darker than it seems. Think of how Return of the Jedi ends - Darth Vader finds redemption, the Empire is in shambles, Han and Leia are happily in love, etc. In the span of two movies, Han is dead and had split from Leia well before the start of things because their son had turned into a psychopath, Luke is in exile in a worse way than Obi-Wan was, and the rebellion is in way worse shape than it was in any of the previous movies, except maybe the end of Revenge of the Sith. When you consider the totality of events, it's a pretty big bummer, even if Wren is showing some spunk.

 

The people complaining about the lack of on-screen details about Snoke and the rise of the First Order confuse me. The Emperor is literally in about five scenes in the first trilogy, and except for knowing that Darth Vader is/used to be Luke's dad, we don't really know shit about how they came to power. And, when Star Wars did get into the minutiae of how things work, we got three fucking horrible movies about galactic trade treaties and Senator Jar Jar Binks.

 

Well put.

 

Count me among those who like what they did with Rey's history and how little we know about Snoke's.

I also agree with the reviews that this was Hamill's best work in the series, including his interactions with a three characters that I won't mention by name until a bit farther down the line. Too early for those spoilers yet.

I didn't love Finn's subplot, but I didn't hate it, either. I do like what they did with Luke and Ren and adding some complexity to how that story unfolded.

 

The difference with LOST is that was the show’s entire shtick. And the show runners insisted all along that all those questions would get answered and would “fit” into the whole, grand mythology.

Then, fast-forward to the end, and you get them saying “Walt was special just because he was,” and a 10-minute DVD extra throwaway about him going back to the island, just because.

 

Something funny is going on with Rotten Tomatoes.

Did Audiences Enjoy ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’? Deciphering Online User Reviews From Exit Polls

 

I really enjoyed it, but my wife was put off by the length. It probably is about 15-25 minutes too long, but most movies these days are. The pacing, as with Force Awakens, is miles better than the prequels. There are a couple of plot holes, but it's a fun movie. I would've enjoyed visiting another new world with some new creatures, though.