Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

[The Missing Link]

the general consensus among critics seems to be "well this movie has flaws but that's ok cause the new characters are cool and it's star wars!!11"

Yeah, I totally feel you on this. It so far seems that because JJ has managed to capture the essence of Star Wars and strong (and diverse!) characters that the flaws can be forgiven. And in that regard, yes, the flaws don't magnify the problem, but there are still flaws, and I don't want them just swept under the rug because "lol that's the point of Star Wars" or some such nonsense.

[spoiler]I accidentally had Han Solo's death spoiled for me, but all in all I wasn't that miffed by it in hindsight, because as you're watching the movie it becomes painfully obvious that it's going to happen.[/spoiler]

[spoiler]It became painfully obvious when Leia told Han to go and bring their son back. I pretty much said, nope, you're now dead because that's what you're going to do, and if you were successful, that pretty much screws over VIII and IX.[/spoiler]

^ It's not like it was ever going to be anything but fanfiction, at least it's not going to erode the credibility of the existing films like a Lucas production would.

This is true, but JJ certainly didn't attempt to make any attempt to mask the fact that fanfiction is what he's doing.

[spoiler]I mean, bloody hell, Rey and Finn are all like fanpersoning "OMG YOU ARE HAN SOLO? THIS IS THE MILLENNIUM FALCON??? YOU'RE PRINCESS LEIA???? *SWOON*"[/spoiler]

[Auron]

I just saw it yesterday, and while I really did like it, there were a couple of things that bothered me.

[spoiler]I was not a fan of Rei. The more I think about her character, the less I like her. I mean, here you have a character with absolutely no faults. She can do hand-to-hand combat better than anyone else, she can pilot better than anyone else, she can fix things better than anyone else, she can understand every and all languages without ever seeing the creature before (WHY CAN SHE UNDERSTAND BB-8?), she mastered the force with zero training, and she beat the crap out of a trained Sith after never having used a lightsaber ever before. Her middle name better be Mary-Sue because that's what she is.

And the other thing that bugged me was the First Order space station. It just seemed a little too cliche. To be honest, it might not have bothered me if they used it two movies from now, but it was probably the least original thing they could have down after basically remaking the first half of a New Hope up to that point already. Sure, it looked cool, but I was hoping for something a little more original.

I still give the movie a thumbs up though. I just hope that they can branch out a little more in the future. There's so much potential for Star Wars on a whole that I just hate to see so much retreaded area here.[/spoiler]

[I REALLY HATE POKEMON!]

[spoiler]

ever[/i] before. Her middle name better be Mary-Sue because that's what she is.

[/spoiler]

[spoiler]I could tell from the trailer alone with her screaming and shooting all tuff that she was going to be a feminist's dream. Glad my intuition is still there.[/spoiler][DOUBLEPOST=1450631087,1450630977][/DOUBLEPOST]

[spoiler]I mean, bloody hell, Rey and Finn are all like fanpersoning "OMG YOU ARE HAN SOLO? THIS IS THE MILLENNIUM FALCON??? YOU'RE PRINCESS LEIA???? *SWOON*"[/spoiler]

That sounds like a pretentious fanfic, for sure.

[Softguitar]

[spoiler]I hope Rey has been brainwashed or has repressed her powers. There is no way she could be that powerful just from scratch.[/spoiler]

[CaptHayfever]

[spoiler=Not a real spoiler; I just feel left out.]I heard there are space battles in this film. Confirm or deny?[/spoiler]

And remember, "I'm-a Luigi, number one!"

[Marilink]

Rey is amazing.

[United Nations]

I loved Rey. I can't wait to see more. I think they had to be mostly unoriginal to hook fans. I think the next ones will be more original.

[Calamity Panfan]

Yeah Rey was probably my favorite character in the entire film (though I really liked Kylo Ren as well)

[Sim Kid]

[QUOTE="Softguitar, post: 1578233, member: 37690"][spoiler]I hope Rey has been brainwashed or has repressed her powers. There is no way she could be that powerful just from scratch.[/spoiler][/QUOTE]

[spoiler]There's a lot we don't know - one thing I have assumed based upon KOTOR 2 is how quick the Exile is to be able to train the Force Sensitive party members (Disciple, Handmaiden, Atton, Bao-Dur, Mira) with such a relative ease may give indications that being force sensitive or having repressed powers (Atton Rand and Handmaiden, I assume) or incomplete training (in the case of Disciple) somehow allows you to get an aptitude with this. Plus, while we're on the subject of KOTOR, mind-screwery is a full possibility - remember how easily Revan picked up the force despite being an adult when he apparently picked it up - then again spoiler alert! he knew the force all along! :P [/spoiler]


Additionally... is it just me or...

[spoiler]1. Hwo'd Kylo Ren get out so fast after killing Han Solo? Does he know a shortcut? Why didn't the janitor know about that? He worked there!
2. Why do stormtrooper masks only filter smoke... but NOT poisonous gases? Is chemical warfare unknown now?
3. Finn is a sanitation worker... why oh why is he on a mission planetside?
4. Why oh why did you let a stormtrooper suspected of wavering OUT OF YOUR SIGHT and NEARBY A KEY PRISONER?! IDIOTS!
5. Not even the edge of teh galaxy. I get that space is big.... but has nobody ever heard of a "scout" or "Recon droids"? How can the first order have all of the map but that one piece... yet never thought to try and use their vast resources to scour that area of space? Is Luke shielding himself from their perception?! Why is the map literally EMPTY?! Luke has a big "Look here - I'm here!"[/spoiler]

[Softguitar]

[MEDIA=youtube]F77Tg-jTLns[/MEDIA]
Oh well... I think she's kissing the apple.

[The Missing Link]

[QUOTE="Sim Kid, post: 1578242, member: 22276"]Additionally... is it just me or...

[spoiler]1. Hwo'd Kylo Ren get out so fast after killing Han Solo? Does he know a shortcut? Why didn't the janitor know about that? He worked there!
2. Why do stormtrooper masks only filter smoke... but NOT poisonous gases? Is chemical warfare unknown now?
3. Finn is a sanitation worker... why oh why is he on a mission planetside?
4. Why oh why did you let a stormtrooper suspected of wavering OUT OF YOUR SIGHT and NEARBY A KEY PRISONER?! IDIOTS!
5. Not even the edge of teh galaxy. I get that space is big.... but has nobody ever heard of a "scout" or "Recon droids"? How can the first order have all of the map but that one piece... yet never thought to try and use their vast resources to scour that area of space? Is Luke shielding himself from their perception?! Why is the map literally EMPTY?! Luke has a big "Look here - I'm here!"[/spoiler][/QUOTE]

[spoiler]
I have to address #5 first. Because I had a debate with a friend who had seen the movie, and for some reason she was convinced that Kylo Ren never said the First Order had the rest of the map (we were debating on the existence and plausibility of there even being a map to begin with), and suddenly I doubted one of the tenets of my argument. But that someone else brings this up makes me feel really strongly about what I remember hearing. Yes, it is really really dumb. It's dumb for multiple reasons:

a. The "rest" of the map was supposed to be contained within R2D2, which is safely in Resistance hands, and presumably the First Order never had R2. How does the Empire even have a copy of that map?
b. The map was split up into two parts, with the (arguably) most important part (i.e., the part having the actual destination) being in the least secure hands (seriously on Jakku what?).
c. The fact that the First Order never bothered to follow the 96%-complete map for Luke bugs me incredibly. (Unless Kylo Ren was just bluffing, but at that point you need to establish to the film viewer that it is a bluff or else we'll all take it as canon.) I mean, the 96%-part of the map literally has a BIG HONKIN' LINE on it meant to follow from one place into the missing place. >_>
d. Someone told me that Luke splitting up the map was brilliant from the start? Uhm, why? The Resistance held the most important piece of the map (and said map should have been arguably protected).
e. Why did R2D2 even reveal the map at the end? Why was he programmed, at that moment out of all moments, to reveal Luke's location? This is never explained why R2 suddenly decides to be relevant (except for the necessity to move the PLOOOOOOOOOT).
f. Perhaps this will be explained in VIII, but suddenly Kylo Ren turns all Dark Side on everyone, and Luke's response is to GTFO and just hide away on a remote planet like Yoda? That's a pretty ****ty thing for Luke to do.

It just reeks of standard videogame BS logic.

As to the others...
1. Yeah, there's definite teleporting going on. Definitely not something that was considered. Unless Rey and Finn managed to get lost or something, but again, that's not presented.
2. Sounds like the writers wrote themselves into a corner.
3. Sounds like the writers forgot a detail so that they could add JUST ONE MORE A New Hope reference into the film because they didn't have enough already...
4. Stormtroopers have always been conveyed simultaneously as the Empire's/First Order's elite officers and as bumbling idiots. Go fig.[/spoiler]

[United Nations]

[spoiler] To address the Luke/Kylo Ren situation, I think Ren is playing the long game, and I think killing his dad was his way of convincing giant hologram guy that he's serious. [/spoiler]

[Apiary Tazy]

Watched the movie. It's good.

That's all I care to say at the moment.

[I REALLY HATE POKEMON!]

Question. [spoiler]Did they kill off Jar Jar as rumored?[/spoiler]

[The Missing Link]

[QUOTE="I REALLY HATE PRESENTS!, post: 1578259, member: 18119"]Question. [spoiler]Did they kill off Jar Jar as rumored?[/spoiler][/QUOTE]
[spoiler]For all intents and purposes, Episodes I-III are unmentioned.[/spoiler]

[I REALLY HATE POKEMON!]

[QUOTE="The Mistletoeing Link, post: 1578261, member: 19860"][spoiler]For all intents and purposes, Episodes I-III are unmentioned.[/spoiler][/QUOTE]

I see. I read that he was supposed to place [spoiler]Jar Jar's bones somewhere as an indication he was dead[/spoiler]. I'd have liked if he went through with it.

[Marilink]

Why not just go see the movie?

[Softguitar]

[spoiler]Who thinks Finn is Mace Windu's grandson?[/spoiler]

[I REALLY HATE POKEMON!]

[QUOTE="Marilink, post: 1578308, member: 23215"]Why not just go see the movie?[/QUOTE]

Me? The main reason is that I don't go to the movies unless someone drags me, or it's DBZ.

[Marilink]

[QUOTE="Softguitar, post: 1578309, member: 37690"][spoiler]Who thinks Finn is Mace Windu's grandson?[/spoiler][/QUOTE]
[spoiler]nah. He's not even force sensitive. And I think it would be a bad move to give him any familial connection.[/spoiler]

Btw, I'm more in love with Rey than I have been with any fictional character for a while