TLC Forum

I didn't mean that one *can't* look up to boys. And I know there are plenty of girls one shouldn't look up to. Just... man is so often the default "relatable" protagonist in epic fiction, it's nice for there to be a girl in the hotseat sometimes. Especially in a franchise which has been a cultural milestone for longer than I've been alive, and meant a lot to nerds and fans of the fantastical of more than one gender, but which is still predominantly perceived as being a boys' field of interest.

But such a character has to be done right, and that’s where Rey, despite what admirable qualities she has, falls flat. The emphasis was so much on “empowering girls” that it derailed her arc (and the legacy males around her, which does no favours to anyone). That’s on the writers. Leia was a stronger character in the Luke trilogy even though she wasn’t the protagonist because she was a character first before she was a female role model.
But since this would lead me on a general blathering about current culture rather than staying on Star Wars, I’ll halt there, heh-heh.

In the meantime, hi, I’m new to this thread because I’m only recently on the fringes of Star Wars. I like The Mandalorian, Rogue One, R2-D2, Han Solo’s character arc in New Hope, the excellent establishment of character also in New Hope.

...honestly I feel like Rey wasn't the only one whose characterization failed to live up to its potential out of our new folks.
Finn had a strong start and got sidelined *badly.*
Poe I have mixed feelings on, because I'm sort of ok with him being less clearly heroic than he appeared at first but that entire plot line was just... painful on the pacing and execution.
Rose, was actually a fun character, but suffered from a weak movie.
I just....
There was so much that went wrong. The first film was a blast of nostalgia while establishing new characters, and the following films were... not very well planned-out it feels like. Some interesting visual spectacle and a couple of elements that had potential, but they fell down as plot arcs.

From what I hear (because, no, I haven’t watched the Rey trilogy), Finn got the short end of the stick. His backstory provided plenty of potential to explore, and they squandered it. And then gave him pointless things to do and used him for comedic effect.
Now Rose… that’s interesting, because this is maybe the first positive thing I’ve heard about her. I tend to hear about her in the contexts of the side-quest that went nowhere, the bringing down of Finn, and the whole kiss scenario.
As for a plan… what plan? Daisy Ridley said that Rey’s parentage still wasn’t solidified before they started on Rise of Skywalker, and that’s not to mention how Last Jedi “subverted” everything set up in Force Awakens. MatPat from Film Theory would have written a better trilogy based solely on his theories from Force Awakens….

Rose's sidequest that "went nowhere" was mostly a waste *contextually*, to my mind. It made no sense in advancing the plot. It did, however, make a Great Deal of sense in advancing her characterization and the viewer's empathy for her backstory. She strikes me as a very decent side-story character stuck in the wrong film.

Ahh, I see. Thanks for expanding on that. It’s a viewpoint that starts with her character, rather than one that starts with the film as a whole, so that naturally results in a different perspective of her.

Man this has exploded. I don't come on for two days and everyone is talking squel trilogy. Based on only episode VII The Force Awakens I wrote my own versions of episode VIII and IX (at the time no trailer for episode VIII). Biggest diffrence Luke is alived at the beginning of episode IX. No Rose (didn't know about her) ect...

...so that's at least two of our TLC people who have rewrite-fics for the Sequel Trilogy?

Hi, knight! I know it’s been lonely in here for you; I didn’t think to jump in here if only to say that I watched some Star Wars stuff.
It would seem so, Lily.

I know Ariel that you commented on one of my fanfics of Star Wars that you weren't too much into Star Wars. It seems you've started looking into that universe a little. Good.