The final episode of the sequel trilogy was released on
December 20, 2019. Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker was an
anticipated movie as fans hoped that the questions left open in The Force
Awakens (2015) and The Last Jedi (2017) would be answered and bring
a satisfying ending to the sequel trilogy. Unfortunately, there is very little
about Rise of Skywalker I enjoyed. After watching the film, not once,
not twice but three times. I can see why so many fans were disgusted with this
film. The sequel trilogy was too rushed. All three films were released in four
years when the original and prequel trilogies were released in six years. So,
for this review, I will discuss the problems I saw with Rise of Skywalker
and the sequel trilogy. I also have a few thoughts about what it is to be a
Star Wars fan now.
There is no cohesiveness in the sequel trilogy. From The
Force Awakens (2015), to The Last Jedi (2017) to Rise of
Skywalker (2019), there is no real center to the trilogy. There is no
central villain as The Last Jedi saw Snoke killed off and Rise of
Skywalker brought back Emperor Palpatine who was not mentioned in the first
two films. The only connectedness to this trilogy is the reappearance of the
main characters: Rey, Finn, Poe and Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. The original trilogy,
Episodes IV-VI, had the fight against Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine. The
prequel trilogy, Episodes I-III, had the rise of Palpatine to emperor as well
as the development of Darth Vader from Anakin Skywalker. There was an overall
arc that connected the actions and events in the trilogies that are missing the
sequel trilogy. The overall story of the sequel trilogy feels like they
brainstormed ideas and decided to just add it all. There were too many writers
with too many ideas, and they didn’t know how, or wanted to, to edit it down. Between
the three movies, there are seven different writers with the only overlap with JJ
Abrams co-writing The Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker.
Second, there are just too many questions left unanswered. There
are questions about Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. How does Kylo Ren become a good guy so
quickly and so completely? From my reading on fan theories and comments,
the sequel trilogy could be about Ben Solo’s internal struggle between his
heroic and villainous natures which is a good idea but the movie doesn't do the idea justice. His return to the Light Side is so sudden and
left unexplained in Rise of Skywalker. What does he do to redeem
himself? Darth Vader saved Luke from Palpatine, what did Ben do? There are
questions about the Emperor. How did Emperor come back to life? How and when
did Palpatine have a son? As his personal life is left unmentioned in the
prequel trilogy, this revelation seems to come out of left field. Other
questions include: Who were the Knights of Ren? They are mentioned throughout
the trilogy; however, they aren’t really seen until Rise of Skywalker
and even that sequence was a let down to some fans. Also, what exactly is a Force
dyad? Who was Snoke and how did he become Supreme Leader? One question I was
most interested in learning was how did Maz Kanata get Luke’s original
lightsaber? How was it retrieved from Cloud City? It would have been an
interesting story to hear. It was raised in The Force Awakens as Maz
says “A good question - for another time.” However, we may never hear it now. These
are just some of the questions fans have asked. A quick search on the internet
would find so much more.
Before Disney acquired the Star Wars, fans were ridiculed
and mocked for being fans. Suddenly, now that it’s a Disney brand, its cool and
hip to be a Star Wars fan. According to these new fans, a true fan cannot
dislike a Star Wars film or have any criticisms about it. To be a fan now means
you must like everything about the franchise. Since when can’t a fan be
critical of a franchise he or she likes? Why can’t he or she point something
out that doesn’t fit? Unfortunately, it is a trend I am seeing in more and more
fandoms than just Star Wars. I have seen some fans hate something simply
because it didn’t follow what they had thought should happen. Disliking
something without evidence is just being spiteful. However, when legitimate
arguments are made, the only counterargument I’ve heard is “well, they aren’t
true fans then.” That’s not an argument, that’s being childish. I do want to
acknowledge the toxic “fans” who openly threatened and bullied some of the
actors from the films on social media, especially actress Kelly Marie Tran who
played Rose Tico. That behavior is completely uncalled for and equally
childish. While the character was not my favorite, it is not the actress’s
fault that she was given horrible dialogue in a horrible story. Even if she did
a horrible job acting, that is no reason to threaten or bully someone.
In conclusion, the sequel trilogy is like a great start to a
new book which leaves you disappointed. The opening chapter set the scene
to an exciting adventure. But as you read, doubt and confusion sets in. Rise
of Skywalker is the last chapter of a very confusing and disjointed story.
There were too many holes left in the plot. Too many questions left unanswered.
Everything, including the kitchen sink, was thrown in as fan service, or just
plain because they wanted to, which left a laughable and cringeworthy movie. If
you have seen The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, I recommend
you check out Rise of Skywalker. If you happen to like it, that’s fine.
The sequel trilogy, unfortunately, is not a trilogy I will be watching again
and again like I do with the original and prequel trilogies. It is unfortunate
since the trilogy started strong.
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