Happy May 4. Aka, “Star Wars” Day. Like Chewbacca losing in space checkers, I’m about to get angry.
When Disney announced its brand new “Star Wars” trilogy, fans went insane. The idea of more epic space battles, compelling and dynamic characters, and more of that old-fashioned magic made the fanbase tingle with excitement.
Yet, as the sequels — “The Force Awakens,” “The Last Jedi,” and “The Rise of Skywalker” — hit theaters, launching in 2015, it resembled someone turning off the Force.
The creators just couldn’t provide the epic feeling we were promised. But, hey, at least we got cool special effects, right?
Let’s talk about planning — or the complete lack thereof.
George Lucas, for all his quirks, had a cohesive vision for the original trilogy, and even the prequels. Plus, he wrote his own sequel trilogy, but Disney decided to say, “Hey, let’s make our own story and leave the franchise’s founder out of this.”
But the sequels? It’s like they handed the keys to three different drivers and asked them to drive in whatever direction they felt like.
J.J. Abrams kicked things off great, with a nostalgia-fest in “The Force Awakens.” Then, Rian Johnson decided to turn the entire trilogy on its head with “The Last Jedi.” By the time Abrams came back for “The Rise of Skywalker,” they were practically begging us to forget every little thing that happened in the first two movies. Like a Jedi mind trick, or something.
It was like watching someone build a house with a roll of duct tape, chewing gum, and popsicle sticks.
Character development? What’s that? The original trilogy offered us Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia — personalities with depth, growth, and charm. As for the prequels, sure, we obtained some cringe-worthy moments: “I don’t like sand. It’s coarse and harsh and irritating, and it gets everywhere.” But they also provided a fleshed-out story of Anakin Skywalker’s descent to darkness.
The sequels, however, brought us Rey, the protagonist who could do anything without breaking a sweat, as well as Finn and Poe, who began strong, but ended up as sidekicks without a pulse.
Kylo Ren was an angry, emo kid with parental issues — intriguing at first, but then just puzzling. He could have been a great bad guy, but the creators kept playing with those rolls of duct tape.
And let’s not forget the Force. What was once a magical, enigmatic energy was turned to a convenient way to fill plot holes. In the original trilogy, the Force was something you had to learn — training, technique, the whole nine yards.
But by “The Last Jedi,” it was something anyone – and I mean, anyone – could master with a little bit of concentration. Heck, I’m convinced I might have it.
And “The Rise of Skywalker” bringing back Emperor Palpatine? These three words made me upset in the theater: “Somehow, Palpatine returned.” Nice writing, guys.
Also, it totally didn’t destroy Darth Vader’s redemption arc or anything…
Here are the important things — the original trilogy and its innovators had something the sequels totally missed out on: heart. The originals were about a ragtag group of rebels fighting an evil empire, and the creators revealed that to us through an unfortunate story of power and redemption.
But the sequels? They were more like a puzzle in which half the pieces aren’t there and there’s no picture on the box.
In the end, the “Star Wars” sequels were a missed opportunity to build upon one of the most beloved franchises in history. Rather than creating a new story, they left us with a complex jumble of storylines and characters that never paid off.
Disney is trying to make amends with the shows on Disney Plus, its paid streaming platform, but it’ll take a great deal to wash away the aftertaste of the sequels.
So, what’s the moral of the story? Even in a galaxy far, far away, you can’t always count on a happy ending.
But hey, at the very least, we got porgs. Those little guys were adorable.
Sam Deeb is the Item‘s Chief of Staff and Art Director. He can be reached at [email protected].
