OB1
Jedi Master
So I was one of the people who really didn't like TLJ when I saw it on opening night. After thinking about it for a while and then watching it again, I did almost a complete 180 with it. I think the film does have some really bad pacing issues and tends to tell instead of show in a few important instances that muddies the stakes and contradicts some of the themes Rian is working with. I'm still back and forth about whether it is too smart for its own good, but now that I've started peeling away its layers and seeing how well it fits in with the Saga as a whole, I'm more than willing to overlook its issues in favor of its strengths.
Quick aside, thanks to someone in the thread for reminding me that using hyperspace to take out opponents doesn't work is because it's ineffective if the opponent's shields are up. While I would have liked a simple line from the First Order to "Shields Up!" to make that explicit, it is ultimately unnecessary due to the established rules of the Universe.
Most importantly to me, what TLJ does so well is make clear the overall arc of the Saga and what the central conflict of it is. Luke almost understood, and may have at the end. It's not the Jedi that need to end, it's the Skywalkers. They are the imbalance in the force.
Both Snoke and Luke refer to the mighty Skywalker bloodline in the film. We know from TPM and RotS that Anakin, like a Greek Hero, is basically a demigod, with a mortal mother and an god (The Force) for a father. It's given the bloodline a tremendous amount of power, and that power corrupts. It corrupted Anakin, it almost corrupted Luke twice, and it has corrupted Kylo Ren. Kathleen Kennedy has stated that the Skywalker saga will come to an end with episode IX, and the clearest way to do that is to end the bloodline. TLJ prepares us for that by smartly getting rid of Snoke and leaving Kylo and Leia as the last Skywalkers. That's why it was important that Rey not be connected to the bloodline. The story of the Force in a Galaxy Far, Far Away will continue, but not of the Skywalkers.
Even on my first viewing, I was thrilled with Luke's arc and thought made complete sense for the character. Sure, the 12 year old boy in me wanted to see Luke thrash the First Order, using the force to knock over AT-ATs, but that isn't Luke. He learned in RotJ the futility of using the Force to violently impose your will, choosing to not succumb to the Dark Side and trust in the Force to bring about an end to the Emperor.
His failure with Kylo years later makes perfect sense as to why he would send himself into exile as Yoda and Ben did before him as well as the corrupting power of the Skywalker bloodline. Luke's ability to see so much of Kylo's future began to consume and corrupt him, and for a moment he forgot to keep his "Focus here and now where it belongs, to be mindful of the Living Force," as Qui-Non might have instructed him. Seeing things before they happen is central to what makes a Jedi a Jedi, and what makes powerful users powerful is the ability to see further than others. But it's a paradox, since if you see something bad happening, you naturally want to keep it from happening.
The old Jedi Order had similar issues. Rather than using the Force only for "Knowledge and Defense" they were using it to impose the will, not of the Force, but of people, through "aggressive negotiations". That was corrupting both them and the Republic, to the point that they could not see the Darkness rising within.
Which brings me to an important point about Rey. I think it's wrong to think of her as a powerful Force "user". It's the Force that is using her. That's why she doesn't need training. It's why Luke didn't need training to destroy the Death Star. He didn't take control of his Proton Torpedo and guide it into the exhaust port, he "let go" and trusted that the Force would do what was necessary to keep balance. The Force would not allow such a monstrous weapon to exist (see also the blind monk in Rogue One). The true path to the light is by allowing the Force to control your actions, not to make it obey your commands.
One final note. I'm glad they didn't change the events of the film due to Carrie Fisher's untimely passing. Rian Johnson said he considered it, but wanted to be able to give Carrie her full last performance. So how do they deal with her absence in IX?
I think it would be brilliant to start that film with Kylo's Star Destroyer chasing Leia on her blockade runner on some mission ten years or so after TLJ. Mirroring ANH, they capture Leia's ship and board it, wiping out Rebels as Kylo makes his way to the bridge, where they use a bit of stock footage to insert Leia. Kylo is obsessed with finding and destroying Rey, and demands Leia tell him where Rey and her Jedi in training are located (since he killed Snoke before he got that piece of info). His lightsaber is out and ignited. We hear Leia say (using a snip of her dialogue from ANH) "Dantoine, they're on Dantoine". Kylo goes to strike Leia down with his saber, but Leia disappears into the Force before the blow lands, her dress falling to the ground...
Quick aside, thanks to someone in the thread for reminding me that using hyperspace to take out opponents doesn't work is because it's ineffective if the opponent's shields are up. While I would have liked a simple line from the First Order to "Shields Up!" to make that explicit, it is ultimately unnecessary due to the established rules of the Universe.
Most importantly to me, what TLJ does so well is make clear the overall arc of the Saga and what the central conflict of it is. Luke almost understood, and may have at the end. It's not the Jedi that need to end, it's the Skywalkers. They are the imbalance in the force.
Both Snoke and Luke refer to the mighty Skywalker bloodline in the film. We know from TPM and RotS that Anakin, like a Greek Hero, is basically a demigod, with a mortal mother and an god (The Force) for a father. It's given the bloodline a tremendous amount of power, and that power corrupts. It corrupted Anakin, it almost corrupted Luke twice, and it has corrupted Kylo Ren. Kathleen Kennedy has stated that the Skywalker saga will come to an end with episode IX, and the clearest way to do that is to end the bloodline. TLJ prepares us for that by smartly getting rid of Snoke and leaving Kylo and Leia as the last Skywalkers. That's why it was important that Rey not be connected to the bloodline. The story of the Force in a Galaxy Far, Far Away will continue, but not of the Skywalkers.
Even on my first viewing, I was thrilled with Luke's arc and thought made complete sense for the character. Sure, the 12 year old boy in me wanted to see Luke thrash the First Order, using the force to knock over AT-ATs, but that isn't Luke. He learned in RotJ the futility of using the Force to violently impose your will, choosing to not succumb to the Dark Side and trust in the Force to bring about an end to the Emperor.
His failure with Kylo years later makes perfect sense as to why he would send himself into exile as Yoda and Ben did before him as well as the corrupting power of the Skywalker bloodline. Luke's ability to see so much of Kylo's future began to consume and corrupt him, and for a moment he forgot to keep his "Focus here and now where it belongs, to be mindful of the Living Force," as Qui-Non might have instructed him. Seeing things before they happen is central to what makes a Jedi a Jedi, and what makes powerful users powerful is the ability to see further than others. But it's a paradox, since if you see something bad happening, you naturally want to keep it from happening.
The old Jedi Order had similar issues. Rather than using the Force only for "Knowledge and Defense" they were using it to impose the will, not of the Force, but of people, through "aggressive negotiations". That was corrupting both them and the Republic, to the point that they could not see the Darkness rising within.
Which brings me to an important point about Rey. I think it's wrong to think of her as a powerful Force "user". It's the Force that is using her. That's why she doesn't need training. It's why Luke didn't need training to destroy the Death Star. He didn't take control of his Proton Torpedo and guide it into the exhaust port, he "let go" and trusted that the Force would do what was necessary to keep balance. The Force would not allow such a monstrous weapon to exist (see also the blind monk in Rogue One). The true path to the light is by allowing the Force to control your actions, not to make it obey your commands.
One final note. I'm glad they didn't change the events of the film due to Carrie Fisher's untimely passing. Rian Johnson said he considered it, but wanted to be able to give Carrie her full last performance. So how do they deal with her absence in IX?
I think it would be brilliant to start that film with Kylo's Star Destroyer chasing Leia on her blockade runner on some mission ten years or so after TLJ. Mirroring ANH, they capture Leia's ship and board it, wiping out Rebels as Kylo makes his way to the bridge, where they use a bit of stock footage to insert Leia. Kylo is obsessed with finding and destroying Rey, and demands Leia tell him where Rey and her Jedi in training are located (since he killed Snoke before he got that piece of info). His lightsaber is out and ignited. We hear Leia say (using a snip of her dialogue from ANH) "Dantoine, they're on Dantoine". Kylo goes to strike Leia down with his saber, but Leia disappears into the Force before the blow lands, her dress falling to the ground...
