Re: Star Wars: Episode IX - December 20, 2019
Rian Johnson didn't put Luke on that island after having spent years in exile because he felt responsible for what happened with his nephew. JJ did that. Is a-dev the only other person around here who understands that?
Rian Johnson didn't have Rey use mind tricks on a Stormtrooper and beat Kylo in a lightsaber duel before meeting a single Jedi. JJ did that.
Even C-3PO and R2 get mentioned in your post for being relegated to background extras. Were they not more prominent in TLJ than TFA!? Let's see: in TFA, C-3PO says hi and shows his red arm; in TLJ, he actually has several interactive scenes throughout the film. In TFA, R2 is "sleeping," or "in a coma," or . . . something; in TLJ, R2 has one of the best scenes of the ST in the Falcon with Luke.
But, yes, the unceremonious Ackbar death is all on Rian Johnson. He could've, and should've, done better with that. I agree.
I continue to be surprised by how many people forget that TFA established Luke as having turned away from everyone and everything he was supposed to care about. For years!! Can someone please explain to me how TLJ could have taken Luke and brought him back to being the "good ol' Luke" without completely making him look stupid for being gone all that time by just having some young girl show up and change his mind? Please give me a non-ridiculous scenario for bringing "good ol' Luke" back after he'd been set up in TFA as having left everyone behind just as the First Order was starting to assert their power in the galaxy (when he'd be needed the most).
And how did Rey become more powerful in TLJ? By lifting rocks? At least in her only power struggle with Kylo (the two of them fighting for control of the lightsaber), it was a draw. Unlike TFA, where she defeated Kylo soundly!
I guess it's just too much fun to crap on TLJ for everything people don't like about the ST; even when TLJ didn't actually create those scenarios that are being objected to.
Late to the party, but I've trying to follow the lengthy (and interesting) discussion.
Here's my thoughts on this.
Mind you, I haven't seen these movies since they were in theaters.
1. It's not a matter of having put Luke in the island, it's a matter of
why he
stayed there for so long.
I like the idea of Luke having realized the errors of the Jedi (one of the main themes in the PT), but just turning his back on everyone and leaving his friends and the entire galaxy to their own means is just, uhm, cowardly? Yes, Yoda went into exile, but only after being defeated, outsmarted and outmaneuvered by Palpatine and seeing the entire Jedi Order be wiped out. And he made sure Luke was looked after, heck, he kept an eye on him and was ready to train him after his first misgivings. Also important to note, Yoda had a very different set of values and a very different character than Luke. He was the consummate Jedi: aloof, dispassionate, devoted to the Order (remember his (mis)handling of Anakin's fears, his coldness in sending Obi Wan to kill Vader). Luke was very much a Skywalker: passionate about his ideals, devoted to his friends, close to people. So, that Luke would simply leave everyone behind makes no sense.
Again, the point is not that Luke went into exile, but why he went, and why he spent so much time there.
Wouldn't it have made much more sense that he indeed was studying and looking for the answer in how to break the cycle of light and dark? Instead of just being a hermit and sucking on alien ****?
2. Rey's powers in TFA and TLJ: Somebody else answered that much better, and it made perfect sense to me, the opening of oneself to the Force, and how once that door was opened it just flowed through you. Still not entirely satisfying, but again, the point is... you could give the whole thing some foundation. But no, RJ just ignored it and made it worse.
3. I don't really care either way about R2's and 3PO's roles...
4. Ackbar. Ugh. At least we agree on that one. I mean, fine, kill the dude, but at least make some kind of acknowledgement to the terrible loss, some commentary on the cruelty and futility of war. ROTS did better at that just with the opening scroll...
5. Back to point #1: TFA only established that Luke left for some remote, hidden location for years. It didn't state
why. And that is what is really important. Luke went away and left his friends in terrible peril! Gasp! He failed at establishing the New Jedi Order! Double Gasp! His nephew turned to the Dark Side! Triple Gasp! Those are all awesome starting points! The terrible sin committed by RJ was not to satisfactorily follow up on those starting points.
Picture this: Rey walks slowly up to Luke, offers him his lightsaber. Luke hesitates and then, with a sense of foreboding mixed with relief, he takes it. He has been trying to find the answer to break the cycle of light and dark for so many years, and now he finally realizes the answer was always him. But now he's not alone anymore. Now there is someone to share the burden. Now he sees someone to teach. The opposite of what he saw in his nephew... now he literally sees the Light in Rey.
With all the knowledge of the Force he has learned in his years of exile, and the powerful Rey at his side, he feels he can face Kylo Ren and his Knights (yeah, remember those? RJ didn't), and he can take on Snoke. Maybe Luke's ultimate goal is to succeed where he failed the first time around: turn someone back from the Dark Side (after all, Anakin died), 'cause maybe he sensed the connection Rey and Kylo have.
So they go together and save the fleet, but alas, Kylo couldn't be saved. Maybe he dies and Snoke escapes. Or maybe they succeed on killing Snoke, but by doing so finally loose Kylo to the Dark Side. You can even kill Luke at the end, but he's passed the torch on to Rey.
That wasn't that hard was it?
6. Again, somebody else explained this better and it made perfect sense, Kylo was wounded, unprepared and taken by surprise.
I'm not a fan of TFA, but it left the door open to so much potential. TLJ squandered it. Besides, I really think it's a bad movie. Pacing, story, characters... everything is poorly done, IMHO.
