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Abstract

urn*, and the clear symmetry of him being the villain of the entire saga, I can’t shake the feeling that it is a move to soothe anger over The Last Jedi and to present an easier path for Ben’s redemption.If Palpatine was always there from the start, why even bother with Snoke?I am increasingly of the opinion that outside of some very broad parameters, there was little to no over-arcing plan for the new trilogy. Even without the final piece of the puzzle, we’ve gotten enough glimpses to suggest a narrative that was piecemeal in its construction, each film concerned mostly with telling its own story versus building a cohesive whole.Which is fine in a sense: George Lucas wasn’t thinking of later movies while working on A New Hope. It was only when developing The Empire Strikes Back that he realized Darth Vader was Luke’s father.But the original films had the benefit of taking shape under the eye of a single creator. In comparison, the new films aren’t even united in purpose.After the colorful but largely lifeless Prequels, The Force Awakens needed to remind audiences what Star Wars was. What it felt like. It hewed a little closely to what we’d seen before, but damn if it wasn’t enjoyable.Equal parts good and bad, The Last Jedi largely squandered this good will. And now The Rise of Skywalker is once again tasked with soothing a disgruntled fanbase. On top of ending the trilogy, and the entire nine movie sequence.That’s a lot of heavy lifting. Of course they turned to Palpatine. Like the Dark Side itself, it was the easy way, the path of least resistance.But by resurrecting Palpatine, The Rise of Skywalker is reverting to the play-it-safe mold that so addled The Force Awakens. (Is it any coinci

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dence that both films share the same director, or merely JJ’s poor luck that he needed to play the role of hype man both times?)I don’t think I have ever been more conflicted about Star Wars. On one hand, Palpatine was one of the few bright spots from the Prequels. I could watch Ian McDiarmid chew scenery all day. But his return squeezes all the air out of the balloon. I can already picture it: around the midway point, Palpatine will arise from the ashes of his long slumber, reveal via monologue how he has orchestrated everything, and threaten the entire universe. Kylo will have a change of heart and kill Palpatine, or have a hand in it anyway.Sound familiar?Along the way, expect discussions of clones and destiny, and a recasting of Anakin’s prophecy to include his bloodline. Thus the prophecy is completed again.Ugh.In many ways, the Sequel trilogy is the best of Star Wars, draping the heart of the original films in the colorful raiment of the Prequels. They are wonderfully cinematic films, beautiful to look at, and fun.Alas, the disjointed storytelling is a result of story-by-committee and playing to the whims of a capracious audience. This is not an ideal model.Star Wars is trapped between what it was and what it wants to be. It’s trying to be all things to all people, but is only losing sight of what it actually is. And for longtime fans, that is the most disheartening thing of all.*yes, I know about the Chuck Wendig novel, and no, that doesn’t count as planning Palpatine’s return from the start. You don’t bury such a juicy story thread in a novel only 1% of your fanbase will read.If you found this arrangement of words pleasing, consider joining my <a href="http://eepurl.com/gGYaQz">email list</a>.</article></body>

FanFare

Star Wars Can’t Move Forward While it Remains Mired in the Past

A trilogy without a plan

Love or hate The Last Jedi, you can’t deny that at least Rian Johnson tried something different. You may disagree with some of his decisions (I certainly do), but after The Force Awakens, it was absolutely necessary to shake up the formula in the second stanza; otherwise the new movies would only be a pale shadow of the original trilogy, mimicry playing to nostalgia.

The Last Jedi delivered an “I am your father” moment by summarily dispensing with the mysterious Snoke and briefly uniting Kylo and Rey in a furious throne room fight. You may decry Snoke’s exit as unnecessarily abrupt, but to me he was never more than a clumsy caricature of the Emperor.

Killing Snoke in what amounts to the appetizer course was a palate cleanser. Even in spite of The Last Jedi’s faults, I walked out of the theater thrumming with possibility. It seemed as though the story could go anywhere. Imagine a conclusion in which Kylo Ren filled the role of both Darth Vader and the Emperor.

It also brought into doubt the idea that Kylo could be redeemed. After all, if he is the ultimate evil in the galaxy, against what could he be contrasted to show the error of his ways? What could possibly propel him back to the light, where the love of a father and the allure of a girl had already failed?

Unfortunately, it seems The Rise of Skywalker means to play it safe, sticking to a script older than most of its fans.

Despite assurances that Palpatine was always meant to return*, and the clear symmetry of him being the villain of the entire saga, I can’t shake the feeling that it is a move to soothe anger over The Last Jedi and to present an easier path for Ben’s redemption.

If Palpatine was always there from the start, why even bother with Snoke?

I am increasingly of the opinion that outside of some very broad parameters, there was little to no over-arcing plan for the new trilogy. Even without the final piece of the puzzle, we’ve gotten enough glimpses to suggest a narrative that was piecemeal in its construction, each film concerned mostly with telling its own story versus building a cohesive whole.

Which is fine in a sense: George Lucas wasn’t thinking of later movies while working on A New Hope. It was only when developing The Empire Strikes Back that he realized Darth Vader was Luke’s father.

But the original films had the benefit of taking shape under the eye of a single creator. In comparison, the new films aren’t even united in purpose.

After the colorful but largely lifeless Prequels, The Force Awakens needed to remind audiences what Star Wars was. What it felt like. It hewed a little closely to what we’d seen before, but damn if it wasn’t enjoyable.

Equal parts good and bad, The Last Jedi largely squandered this good will. And now The Rise of Skywalker is once again tasked with soothing a disgruntled fanbase. On top of ending the trilogy, and the entire nine movie sequence.

That’s a lot of heavy lifting. Of course they turned to Palpatine. Like the Dark Side itself, it was the easy way, the path of least resistance.

But by resurrecting Palpatine, The Rise of Skywalker is reverting to the play-it-safe mold that so addled The Force Awakens. (Is it any coincidence that both films share the same director, or merely JJ’s poor luck that he needed to play the role of hype man both times?)

I don’t think I have ever been more conflicted about Star Wars. On one hand, Palpatine was one of the few bright spots from the Prequels. I could watch Ian McDiarmid chew scenery all day. But his return squeezes all the air out of the balloon. I can already picture it: around the midway point, Palpatine will arise from the ashes of his long slumber, reveal via monologue how he has orchestrated everything, and threaten the entire universe. Kylo will have a change of heart and kill Palpatine, or have a hand in it anyway.

Sound familiar?

Along the way, expect discussions of clones and destiny, and a recasting of Anakin’s prophecy to include his bloodline. Thus the prophecy is completed again.

Ugh.

In many ways, the Sequel trilogy is the best of Star Wars, draping the heart of the original films in the colorful raiment of the Prequels. They are wonderfully cinematic films, beautiful to look at, and fun.

Alas, the disjointed storytelling is a result of story-by-committee and playing to the whims of a capracious audience. This is not an ideal model.

Star Wars is trapped between what it was and what it wants to be. It’s trying to be all things to all people, but is only losing sight of what it actually is. And for longtime fans, that is the most disheartening thing of all.

*yes, I know about the Chuck Wendig novel, and no, that doesn’t count as planning Palpatine’s return from the start. You don’t bury such a juicy story thread in a novel only 1% of your fanbase will read.

If you found this arrangement of words pleasing, consider joining my email list.