The thing about TLJ, specifically the Admiral Holdo bit, is that yes, her refusing to explain her orders to anyone in the face of low morale and mass confusion was stupid.
But that’s not character stupid, that’s writer stupid. That’s Rian Johnson “I can’t think of a way to propel this plot without an easily avoidable miscommunication between professionals who should really goddamn know better” stupid. That’s throwing in a woo-oo-oo plot twist that shouldn’t be a goddamn twist just so you can demand a cheap emotional reaction stupid. That’s an easy and almost definitely unnecessary way to write out a female character stupid.
So when I call it stupid, I’m not calling Admiral Holdo stupid. But TLJ supporters keep reacting like it is a direct attack on that fictional character, like ooo you’re just mad that there’s a WOMAN in POWER!!!
Nah. I’m mad that the woman in power was written by an idiot.
Tag: star wars
Personally, I don’t really see anything wrong with giving Luke to Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. What else was Obi-Wan gonna do? (He pretty much raised Anakin and look how that turned out, he’s not gonna risk Round 2.) (He could have given both kiddos to Bail and Breha Organa, actually. Luke and Leia Organa is a cool as heck AU.)
I like Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru. As much as people like to say Luke really is Padme’s son, he didn’t get those morals from her. (Keeping in mind I have read no comics or novelizations, and not seen the Clone Wars TV show) It’s pretty clear that Luke’s iron spine and goodness and refusal to abandon his friends come from his upbringing. Owen and Beru Lars are kinda the Ma and Pa Kent of the Star Wars universe.
And they are Luke’s family. Owen is Shmi’s stepson. Owen and Beru probably knew Anakin’s mother for years. It’s a neat circle, and in some ways it has the feelings of an apology, for Obi-Wan to bring Luke back to his family on Tatooine in the same way that Qui-Gon took Anakin. Obi-Wan can’t undo what’s been done, and he can’t start over, but he can give Luke what the Jedi denied Anakin: a loving family and normal upbringing.
Tatooine is Darth Vader’s home planet? Yeah, sure, but did Anakin ever go back to Tatooine? (Probably once or twice, I’m guessing, in the comics at least.) Darth Vader hates that place. Bad memories. Damn sand would fuck up his suit. He’d burn it all down and then the Hutts are gonna be pissed. And how many people actually know that Darth Vader is Anakin Skywalker? Like, about five? (Bail, Obi-Wan, Yoda, R2-D2, and Ahsoka?) Dude is not exactly getting invites to school reunions and the weddings of childhood friends, is all I’m saying.
Even if Darth Vader ever went back to Tatooine, Tatooine is a big place. The Lars Farm is in the middle of nowhere and Obi-Wan is hanging out left of the funky rock five miles past nowhere. Anakin met his stepbrother once in the entire film trilogy and idk if they even exchanged words, much less space e-mail addresses. I kind of doubt that Uncle Owen and Darth Vader are sending each other Life Day e-cards. (That’s really funny, actually.)
Anyway, the point of this rant is that I want you to imagine new parents Owen and Beru Lars caring for toddler Luke, it’s just after Life Day, and someone rings the doorbell. Owen Lars opens up to Darth Vader holding a fruit basket, because he didn’t know what else to do for Life Day and spontaneously decided to visit distant family rather than mope in his Evil Castle again.
(Everything Obi-Wan hoped would never happen, just… happening.)
Owen, after introductions, panicking, “Uh… the suit is… new.”
He has to invite Vader in, because it’s Life Day and how exactly do you tell Darth Vader to fuck off? Then Owen and Beru have a hushed argument in the kitchen while Darth Vader is sitting awkwardly in their living room with a drink that he can’t actually drink but took to be polite. When they come out, they introduce Luke as Luke Whitesun, Beru’s late brother’s kid, which they guess makes Luke… Darth Vader’s… nephew. (They can’t hide him, Vader’s already seen this 2-3 yr old Luke and the house is COVERED in baby and kid stuff.)
And Darth Vader just… fucking falls for it.
And the Lars family has to spend the holidays with Uncle Darth Vader who is super keen to have a step-nephew-in-law. Beru is showing off her cross-stitching to Darth fucking Vader as Luke plays at their feet. Owen is in the kitchen sending a desperate space text to Obi-Wan, who basically has a heart attack on the spot when Owen sends a shitty stealth-pic of Darth Vader on their couch.
Bonus points if the Lars’ don’t even move after this, because Vader left without issue and Uncle Owen afterwards was like, “It turned out fine. I don’t want to move, that’s too much hassle.” So, every major holiday, Luke gets a visit from his Uncle Darth Vader, which works out fine so long as they instigate a “Don’t Talk About Politics” rule when Luke starts getting excited about Rebellions and starts bad-mouthing the Empire (Vader making small talk at a Star Destroyer water cooler to his terrified staff: “Ugh, I’m going to have to debate my liberal 13-yr-old nephew at the dinner table again.”), and Vader even helps with the dishes and stuff, and every time Obi-Wan ages an extra year from stress.
Guys, please, the way this continues is that the general events of the Star Wars universe continue as normal (Leia, having literally just left a space battle: “Darth Vader, the AUDACITY of attacking an innocent diplomatic vessel!”) UNTIL the stormtroopers show up at the Lars Farm. (Luke is desperately chasing down the droids he lost and properly meeting Obi-Wan Kenobi.)
At first, it’s business as usual, y’know? Stormtroopers break down the door and interrogate the occupants and start prepping to burn the place down, and the leader is in the middle of shouting, “TELL US WHERE THE DROIDS A-” when he pauses and just… stares… at the mantlepiece.
Because on the Lars family mantlepiece and walls are, like, a hundred family photos and roughly half of them have Darth Vader in them. There’s Darth Vader wearing a Life Day party hat at a dinner table. There’s Darth Vader holding a toddler and playing with model ships. There’s Darth Vader and a pimply thirteen year old in the stands at the Boonta Eve Classic. There is a cross-stitched pillow on the couch that says OUR FAMILY on it, consisting of a man, a woman, a boy, and Darth fucking Vader.
Stormtrooper Grunt #1: “What… what… what the fuck.”
Aunt Beru, who has HAD it with these guys wrecking her house, already angrily jabbing at their space phone: “I am calling Mr. Vader RIGHT NOW about this.”
Darth Vader, excusing himself from the bridge of his Star Destroyer to take a call from his stepsister-in-law: “Beru. This isn’t a good time-”
Beru: “Well, MAKE TIME, because your stormtroopers broke down our door and tracked SAND all over my nice clean floors and they won’t stop yelling about the droids we just bought! You better have a good explanation for this!”
Darth Vader does not, actually, have a good explanation for this. The stormtroopers can feel his wrath from across the galaxy. It’s a work thing and he’s very sorry and he’ll make the stormtroopers fix their door, but he does really need those droids and could they hand them over, please? He’ll have the Empire compensate them. Yes, he’ll pay them back and send new droids. Yes, kicking doors down is very rude, Beru, you’re absolutely right.
So Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru promise to pick up Luke and the droids, and hop in the spare Landspeeder to go looking for them. Owen is Not Happy to find that Obi-Wan’s given Luke a lightsaber, and Aunt Beru is Not Happy to find out that the Empire’s made some superweapon. Of course they have to get these plans to the Rebellion! Yes, she promised Vader, but he should have told her it was for such a terrible thing! Yes, Owen, they’re all going to Alderaan.
So the Lars family runs away to Mos Eisley and get on the Millennium Falcon to Alderaan, while the stormtroopers are standing around like, “Are they… coming… back???” And Han Solo does not know what the hell is going on or what to do about the Weird Old Wizard talking about “universe-penetrating magic”, or the Grumpy Farmer who keeps trying to fix his “piece of junk” ship that excuse you does not need fixing, or the Sunny Farm Boy waving a light sword around, or the kindly old woman who is currently cross-stitching in his back seat and gossiping with Chewie like he’s not even there.
Later, after the Death Star’s been destroyed, Owen and Beru Lars are now a part of the Rebellion with Luke. Beru sends Darth Vader a piece of fabric in the Space Mail, and it’s the little cross-stitched Vader from her OUR FAMILY pillow who’s been cut out because she’s mad at him. (Except her note says DISAPPOINTED and that’s worse.) Darth Vader is more upset about this than the Emperor being mad at him for the destruction of the Death Star.
I can’t seem to stop poking at The Last Jedi. On the plus side, I
figured out something that was bothering me the whole way through.
Stuff under the cut, and it’s spoilers all the way down!Thank you for putting into words something that bothered me about the movie, and I hope you don’t mind me tagging on to this because I have Thoughts on this. Spoilers ahead.
The car is on fire, and there is no driver at the wheel. And the streets are all muddied with a thousand lonely suicides, and a dark wind blows. The government is corrupt, and we are all on so many drugs with the curtains drawn and the radio on.
We are trapped in the belly of this horrible machine. And the machine is bleeding to death.
The sun has fallen down, and the billboards are all leering. And the flags are all dead at the tops of their poles.
It went like this: the buildings tumbled in on themselves. Mothers clutching babies, picked through the rubble, and pulled out their hair. The skyline was beautiful on fire, all twisted metal stretching upwards, everything washed in a thin orange haze.
I said “Kiss me, you are beautiful. These are truly the last days.” You took my hand and we fell into it. Like a daydream. Or a fever.
We woke up one morning and fell a little further down, for sure this is the valley of death.
I open up my wallet, and it is full of blood.
….anyway, that’s my spoiler-free review of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Sorry it’s a bit late.
So what do you think of TLJ being like the BvS of the franchise in terms of deconstructing it’s core concept?? What about luke character?? Heard he is now much more jaded and cynical similar to BvS batman
I don’t necessarily think it’s a fair comparison.
For starters, say what you will about the tone of BvS, but at least it was consistent with itself. The Last Jedi is all over the place, trying to tug at heartstrings with a dramatic slow-mo death scene of a total stranger barely five minutes after literally starting a space-battle with a prank phone call. And while it plays the ‘deconstruction’ angle with Luke Skywalker to attack the tropes of the classic pulp-adventure hero, it then plays the same tropes completely straight with the new characters. It wants to have its cake and eat it too, telling you that old-school adventure stories are silly and outdated while also still trying to tell an old-school adventure story.
Secondly, I don’t believe BvS and TLJ use deconstruction to the same effect. BvS was about cracking a pair of timeless characters open and exposing them to a harsher and more critical world than they typically inhabit, then ultimately putting them back together better than they were before. Clark starts the movie rudderless and unsure of himself, but finds his foundation and is willing to sacrifice himself for the woman he loves. Bruce starts off consumed by his rage and anguish, but is shown there’s still a good person underneath all that and begins to become himself again. It’s not the reverent kid-gloves treatment that many expect or demand, but IMO it still comes from a place of respect for the characters, in that they trusted the core of the characters would be strong enough to withstand a supreme stress-test and still come out on top.
TLJ, on the other hand, breaks Luke Skywalker and the Jedi Order down really just for the sake of breaking them down. After watching him grow up from a wide-eyed farmboy to a principled adult, seeing him meet failure by running away and throwing out everything he ever learned comes off less as an attempt to flesh out his character and add more emotional depth to him, but rather an attempt to make him less likable and worthy of admiration in order to get him out of the way for Rey and company (much like how the Disney-owned Marvel Comics have spent the past four or five years making classic characters like Peter Parker and Steve Rogers more unrelatable and unlikable to more easily replace them with Miles Morales and the rest). BvS puts Bruce and Clark through the shit in order to make you appreciate Bruce and Clark more. TLJ puts Luke through the shit in order to make you appreciate Rey more.
And this may not matter to a lot of people, but I find it at least somewhat important that there’s a massive difference in how the actors playing these characters responded to the interpretations. While audiences and critics may not have liked Snyder’s takes on Superman and Batman, both Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck (at least initially) have been extremely positive when talking about the director’s vision and his intent for exploring their characters. Mark Hamill, on the other hand, has openly stated on multiple occasions how strongly he opposes Rian Johnson’s interpretation of Luke, and comes off as increasingly bitter and disillusioned about working for a studio that doesn’t value his input as a performer and a director that assumes he knows better than him.
Now, obviously, I’m extremely biased– I’ve made it no secret that I’m an unabashed fanboy of most of the DC movies and that I’ve grown incredibly weary of Disney’s properties. And hey, maybe my opinion of The Last Jedi will soften over time, given another viewing or two and something to cleanse the palette of all the salt my first viewing generated. However, I don’t believe this will be the case, and I don’t believe the various articles proclaiming the movie “genius” because it trashes the things I love about Star Wars to be anything more than people trying to piss on my leg and tell me it’s raining.
Well at least i know one thing for sure. All this review of TLJ by critics have downright shown me just how much hypocrites and double standards they are. Critics are literally praising TLJ for the same thing that they have rejected from BvS years ago and this is really pissing me off the more i read their review on TLJ. They praising on how much riskier and bolder TLJ is, and willing to shown just how much flawed characters are and that they are not the perfect character and this so called break down or deconstructionist are necessary in order to move the franchise forward. They literally praising all the stuffs that BvS have done it before and they are really so bias on that.
To be honest I never really fans of star wars ever since i last watch Revenge of the sith and force awaken literally make me lose interest in whatever the story they plan to do moving forward.
One last question about TLJ. What do you think of Luke trying to kill kylo in his sleep due to luke see promotions of kylo going to dark side?? Most critics find luke action are acceptable because he is now much more jaded and cynical and given that there is 30 years time gap betwen RoTJ and TLJ, of course luke will be a different character than the OT given that he must have experience alot things already during that time gap, therefore make it reasonable for him to become this jaded and cynical over time. Plus some people find it justifiable that luke would be scared of kylo future given that what we have seen of his action in force awaken but luke action literally is the reason why kylo going to dark side. This totally reminded me of looper effect which is another movie directed by rians johnsons about time traveller travel to the past trying to kill the child that will in the future will bring about the destruction, without realising that his action of travel into the past is the reason why that child become evil. Of course there are another interpretations that luke igniting his lightsaber when sensing kylo future is just him simply being too reactionary and that kylo awoken up at the wrong time. What do you think? Did the movie give enough context on what exactly push luke to even willing to kill his own family member when the OT have established that luke care so much for his own family including his father even if his father have done so many bad things?
It’s even worse because BvS is just one portrayal of Batman and Superman. There will be half a dozen of each at least in our lifetimes. There’s only one Luke Skyalker and Rian Johnson’s stuff is canon and forever.
So I can finally read all of the TLJ spoilers and reactions I’ve been half avoiding.
I didn’t have a terrible time – well, except for cringing away from the screen at being forced to watch Ben and therefore also making more than half the Rey scenes terrible for me. But I’m glad I’m not a big SW fan anymore. It wasn’t nearly as bad an experience as watching JL – but it couldn’t get anywhere close to the enjoyment when watching any DCEU film.
I did get a little teary up internally at the Star Wars opening crawl fanfare- but that was mostly because of PT nostalgia.
Turns out we are waiting for final sibling to get in for the holidays until going to see The Last Jedi. Ironically she’s the most causal Star Wars fan in the family and probably the most excited to go see it. Rest of us are various shades of reluctant.
replied to your
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Well, it’s a good thing that The Force Awakens…
Nah it was good. Don’t listen to Tumblr nonsense. It was great
Haven’t seen it yet. My concerns aren’t coming from tumblr but twitter, anyway. And the thing is, my ideal for The Last Jedi would be if Kylo Ren had at most, and I’m being generous, ten to fifteen minutes of screen-time. You talking to a PT, not OT, fan here. Anakin Skywalker fan. I proudly claim Attack of the Clones as my favorite Star Wars film. Also someone who disliked the vast majority of the EU (Legends). And who wasn’t impressed with 90% of TFA. So TLJ is working against a stacked deck with me is what I’m getting at.
I want it to move away from TFA and the stuff that reminded me painfully of what I disliked in the EU. But there are choices I don’t want that would count as a move away from TFA, and I don’t know if all these non-spoiler backlash I’m hearing is for choices I wish for or yet more choices I will hate. I’m going to go watch TLJ because of a lingering fondness for Luke and because I fell in love with Finn. And I wish I was more confident that I’m not getting my heart broken.
Well, it’s a good thing that The Force Awakens killed my Star Wars love, or else all these The Last Jedi reactions (and I’m still trying to avoid spoilers) would have me worried.
The big problem is that yeah, I want something that isn’t TFA; I’m not invested in its mysteries, or the heavy pandering and reliance on nostalgia, but I hate Kylo Ren and I am not willing to put up with a story that exonerates him and says his plot line is the only one that matters. And that’s what it sounds like I’m getting. Which- dammit.
Because again- I’m getting reaction takes from serious BvS fans who are laughing at how there seems to be a similar audience backlash over making a character piece instead of nostalgic action movie, so am I going to get a movie with depth and heart, or am I walking out of the theater even more disappointed than TFA. I would say the anticipation is hurting me- but honestly? That would require caring about Star Wars again.
People still think of Lando as “The Guy Who Betrayed The Trio” and that’s some grade A bull.
I mean what would you do if you had people to protect and Darth Vader, Scariest Dude in the Galaxy, comes marching up to your door with a whole battalion of soldiers? Like? How much choice do you think he actually had here? Not much because Vader literally changes the rules on him every scene they’re together so the deal goes from “Trap the smuggler and his friends” to “Han’s being tortured and frozen in carbonite and taken away and the others that were supposed to be left untouched are also being taken capture indefinitely right now” and Lando has all of no control over any of it.
And then the second he realizes what’s happened he risks everything to help Chewie and Leia out. Leaves his cozy home to help them. Joins the Rebellion? Frees Han? Blows up the second Death Star?
But sure he’s just that sleaze ball who betrayed the gang. Sure.
I do not trust people who rag on Lando.
Seriously? Did they just sleep through Return of the Jedi?
Also, “They showed up here just before you did” gives us context to when Han arrives unannounced, and Lando tries to get Han to lose his cool and book out?
“ Why you slimy, double-crossing, no-good swindler. “
Lando opens with giving Han an excuse to say “Same to you Bantha herder, Chewie, we’re out”. Lando insults a smuggler known for his pride, hoping to get a rise and a reaction and risks his life to try to insult Han off the trap
“ You got a lot of guts coming here, after what you pulled!”
Also, assume that Lando’s just been ambushed by the Empire, and told that Han Solo is headed here, and that it’s the same Han Solo who just ran a blockade on Hoth, and Hoth is within non-hyperdrive flight range of Bespin.
Lando literally opens with a coded “You ran an Imperial Blockade and now you’re flying in openly at the nearest system?”
If the Han Solo of ANH and, as recently as Hoth base (Who’s scruffy looking?), had been as a hot headed as Lando expected, he would have walked back up the ramp and flown off in a huff. Lando tries to salvage the situation from before we even know there’s a problem
Lando was administrator and responsible for tens of thousands of lives. From the radio play “You should have looked around more, Han. You’d have recognized a lot of faces. A lot of people here are at the end of their ropes. This is their last chance for any kind of life.”
Yup. Lando’s actions are “Try to get Cloud City out this, try to get his friends out of this, try to get out of this himself, got out? EVACUATE THE CITY. Then save friends and self”
He could have flown off quietly, Lobot could have been instructed to prepare the escape vehicle. No, Lando gives the evac signal by announcing it’s him, and announcing the Empire has control of the city. Yeah, way to paint a target on your back there. No “Hit the fire alarm” button and run, no sneak off in the night.
Lando Calrissian was trying to save the most people possible without being willing to simply sacrifice his friends for the most efficient gain
Lando Calrissian is one of the most ethical characters in the original trilogy. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place, but he also turned on Vader/helped Leia and Chewie as soon as he could do so. We last see him in Empire setting off to help track down where Boba Fett took Han.
We see him next in Return of the Jedi, saving Han. And then volunteering for a possibly suicidal mission. Lando’s proven himself a hundred times over.
Bless you
Every time I rewatch return of the Jedi I have forgotten Lando blows up the second Death Star. HE FLIES THE FALCON INTO THE DEATH STAR
And I get to relive a great moment over and over
He saves the god damn Galaxy
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