Controversial Opinions

[Experience he/him]

Driving is fun! 

[Aspiring Writer]

10 minutes ago, Experience said:

Driving is fun! 

Don't rub it in. The fact I have postponed it this long is embarrassing 

[Kingsdaughter613 she/her]

Slytherin house is (nearly) every European anti-Semitic stereotype shoved together.

[Orlion Blight he/him]

Promoting writers who have not released an installment in their series for 10+ years over newer writers is irresponsible and as readers, we should stop it.

No, Sanderson is not one of those writers, put your pitchforks down... everyone disarmed? Good.

......

I was inferring Patrick Rothfuss! Mwahaha, you can't do anything to me, because you're all unarmed! 

Edited October 29, 2020 by Orlion the Platypus

[Dunkum he/him]

6 minutes ago, Orlion the Platypus said:

Promoting writers who have not released an installment in their series for 10+ years over newer writers is irresponsible and as readers, we should stop it.

No, Sanderson is not one of those writers, put your pitchforks down... everyone disarmed? Good.

......

I was inferring Patrick Rothfuss! Mwahaha, you can't do anything to me, because you're all unarmed! 

The Slow Regard Of Silent Things (which I coincidentally just reread today) and The Lightning Tree are both 2014 and even if you don't count those Wise Man's Fear is 2011; still got a bit to go before he hits 10 years

[+Slowswift]

6 hours ago, Aspiring Writer said:

Don't rub it in. The fact I have postponed it this long is embarrassing 

I mean, I'm 22 and I still haven't, sooo...

[Aspiring Writer]

Just now, Slowswift said:

I mean, I'm 22 and I still haven't, sooo...

Two people being late doesn't make it better, and it doesn't give me my license. 

[Eluvianii he/him]

Also 22. Can't drive. Buses are enough for now. 

[Orlion Blight he/him]

5 hours ago, Dunkum said:

The Slow Regard Of Silent Things (which I coincidentally just reread today) and The Lightning Tree are both 2014 and even if you don't count those Wise Man's Fear is 2011; still got a bit to go before he hits 10 years

They don't count, and it will be 10+ years when/if it is released 

Though full disclosure, I also include George R R Martin in this criticism. Release some shelf space, bookstores! 

And why did Barnes and Noble separate science fiction and fantasy?! It's soooo inconvenient with certain authors! 

[Use the Falchion]

4 hours ago, Orlion the Platypus said:

Promoting writers who have not released an installment in their series for 10+ years over newer writers is irresponsible and as readers, we should stop it.

No, Sanderson is not one of those writers, put your pitchforks down... everyone disarmed? Good.

......

I was inferring Patrick Rothfuss! Mwahaha, you can't do anything to me, because you're all unarmed! 

I don't disagree. Although I've learned to simply celebrate all of the cool things that have happened since Rothfuss and Martin's last full-fledged book release. To recognize a few things: 

Community and Parks and Rec ended, but Brooklyn Nine-Nine came out.

Star Wars released its sequel trilogy, two spin-offs, and The Mandalorian. 

A new generation of manga/anime was born in My Hero Academia, Black Clover, Seven Deadly Sins, The Promised Neverland and more, while (relatively) old classics such as Naruto, Bleach, Toriko, and Kuroko no Basket ended.

Miles Morales was introduced in one comic universe (the Ultimate universe, or Earth-1616) only to travel and become a mainstay in the main one (Earth-616). Before all is said and done, he'll have had several comic-book runs, appeared in a Spider-Man cartoon (voiced by Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino) and was a main character in a different Spider-Man cartoon, will have starred in at least one animated movie (that won an Oscar in a year where Disney had two animated films), and will have starred in his own videogame. That's a LOT of exposure for a character that's not even ten years old yet. 

Going along with that, Kamala Khan was introduced into the Marvel family, and now she's one of the most popular characters. And she's even younger! 

The MCU and the superhero genre as a whole exploded during that time, changing the geek landscape. We've had all four Avengers movies, a new Superman (two if you could the CW Superman), two new actors in the role of Batman, a whole host of C-list heroes transform into household names, and so much more. 

Gaming-wise, a generation and a half has passed (we were halfway through the PS3/Xbox 360's lifecycle when those books came out). If you really want to see the differences, go play PS3's Uncharted, or Mass Effect 2, or even Assassin's Creed 4. And then go play God of War. The gains we've made are exceptional! 

Fire Emblem nearly died and is now experiencing a sort of renaissance,* as did the Persona franchise. Since 2012/13, we've had the release of: three original Fire Emblem games, two spin-offs, a remake, the lifecycle of a trading card game (RIP FE Cipher 2015-2020), and now a QoL updated, localized version of the first game. And the Persona franchise isn't going anywhere either. Persona 5 has had a remaster in Royal, an anime, a stage-play, multiple audio dramas, and a Musou spin-off/sequel.  

Pokemon made the switch (heh) to the 3DS and the Switch in that timeframe; and Pokemon Go was a worldwide phenomenon!

In terms of books, we saw the death of the YA post-apocalyptic dystopian future genre.** Sarah J Maas came onto the scene in 2012, and her popularity within the YA fantasy genre has exploded ever since. Her work paved the way for other talented women such as Marie Lu, Leigh Bardugo, Veronica Roth, and Marissa Meyer. You have Sabaa Tahir's An Ember In the Ashes series, Pierce Brown's Red Rising series, the massive popularity of The Expanse, the ending of The Wheel of Time (and a television show that will most likely air before Doors of Stone and The Winds of Winter release). And there are so many writers that are POC or members of the LGBTQ+ community that are doing so well now!  It's honestly really inspiring. 

Oh and Brandon wrote: three Stormlight books (with the latest two being larger than The Wise Man's Fear), two Mistborn books, one Rithmatist book, one Alcatraz book, one Wheel of Time book, the Reckoners trilogy, two Cytoverse books, and a plethora of novellas. And counting. 

YouTube has become...something, and streaming is now a Twitch thing. The social media craze has died down a lot. Vine was founded and died, giving way to Snapchat and now Tik-Tok. Audiobooks and podcasts are the things right now. ASMR is something that everyone knows everyone else knows about and probably listens to, and is popular enough to be joked about. And now we all have Zoom meetings!  

Y'all, we've lived multiple seasons of life while waiting for these books. I know people who were single and not even thinking about marriage in 2011 who are married with kids now. It's scary to think about, and the wait may or may not be worth it, but it's kind of exciting when I think about  how I can compare my mindset when I first read these books to where I will be. 

 

1 minute ago, Orlion the Platypus said:

And why did Barnes and Noble separate science fiction and fantasy?! It's soooo inconvenient with certain authors! 

Did they do that recently? I know during the pandemic they rearranged the stores, but I didn't notice a giant change in the Sci-fi/fantasy split. 

 

*I'd call it the second stage of the renaissance, to be more accurate. The first stage was the Awakening/Fates/Echoes era. The Switch era is benefiting from this, but its atmosphere is different. 

**Because what's the point in reading about it when you're already living it?

[Orlion Blight he/him]

3 minutes ago, Use the Falchion said:

Going along with that, Kamala Khan was introduced into the Marvel family, and now she's one of the most popular characters. And she's even younger! 

Kamala Khan is the best Marvel character. I know this forum is for "controversial opinions", but I figured I would state the obvious anyway

[Use the Falchion]

1 minute ago, Orlion the Platypus said:

Kamala Khan is the best Marvel character. I know this forum is for "controversial opinions", but I figured I would state the obvious anyway

Kamala's awesome! I have the first volume of her first comic run around the here somewhere...I still need to read it... But for me, the best will forever be Peter Parker. Spider-Man has had my Marvel heart for decades, and my superhero heart as a whole for about 15 years or so. 

 

But we can make these controversial opinions! Nightwing is better than Batman in-world. He has the cooler name, the better attitude, and is overall a more fun character. He needs a sidekick though. And Duke Thomas should have taken over as the next Robin. Damian needs to grow into a new identity. It's been almost fifteen years. It's time. 

[Aspiring Writer]

1 hour ago, Use the Falchion said:

Star Wars released its sequel trilogy, two spin-offs, and The Mandalorian. 

Yeah, and they're all crap. TFA at first glance is decent, but Mauler's series proves that it's all empty and just a bunch of nonsense and contrivances, TLJ is one man's way of flipping off a fanbase and calling it good writing because he has no idea what the point of writing is, and TROS is an insult to writing itself and anyone who bothers to put any effort into said writing and is the clearest example of why J.J Abrams sucks at writing and should not be trusted with more than the cinematography.  

Rogue one is actually decent, but Solo is an empty attempt at nostalgia and honestly reminds me of Captain Marvel with how the writing is bad, referencing the past while ruining it.

And the Mandalorian started good but went way downhill and has way WAY too many contrivances.  Also, Fobs break everything.

Edited October 30, 2020 by Aspiring Writer

[dannnex male]

7 hours ago, Orlion the Platypus said:

Promoting writers who have not released an installment in their series for 10+ years over newer writers is irresponsible and as readers, we should stop it.

I was inferring Patrick Rothfuss! Mwahaha, you can't do anything to me, because you're all unarmed! 

5 minutes ago, Aspiring Writer said:

Yeah, and they're all crap. TFA at first glance is decent, but Mauler's series proves that it's all empty and just a bunch of nonsense and contrivances, TLJ is one man's way of flipping off a fanbase and calling it good writing because he has no idea what the point of writing is, and TROS is an insult to writing itself and anyone who bothers to put any effort into said writing and is the clearest example of why J.J Abrams sucks at writing and should not be trusted with more than the cinematography.  

1/2

TFA is pretty solid, 7/10
TLJ can die, garbage fire/10
TROS is epic and also epic, 9/10
and you forgot Rouge One, which was epic beyond epic, 10/10
Solo was okay, but whenever I think about it I can only remember that one horrible scene where they felt the need to explain the name Solo, and also the weird thing with Lando and the robot. 5/10

also Mandalorian is epic, 9/10. And now that I think about it, I think the first episode of season 2 came out like literally 10 minutes ago, it’s past midnight, and I think it was coming out today. 

[Aspiring Writer]

On 10/30/2020 at 0:14 AM, Danex said:

1/2

TFA is pretty solid, 7/10
TLJ can die, garbage fire/10
TROS is epic and also epic, 9/10
and you forgot Rouge One, which was epic beyond epic, 10/10
Solo was okay, but whenever I think about it I can only remember that one horrible scene where they felt the need to explain the name Solo, and also the weird thing with Lando and the robot. 5/10

also Mandalorian is epic, 9/10. And now that I think about it, I think the first episode of season 2 came out like literally 10 minutes ago, it’s past midnight, and I think it was coming out today. 

Edited it, submitted by accident,m did not forget anything. Also, no. TROS is garbage. Watch this and tell me it's good. (There is swearing.)

Spoiler

 

 

Edited November 2, 2020 by Aspiring Writer

[Dunkum he/him]

4 hours ago, Danex said:

1/2

TFA is pretty solid, 7/10
TLJ can die, garbage fire/10
TROS is epic and also epic, 9/10
and you forgot Rouge One, which was epic beyond epic, 10/10
Solo was okay, but whenever I think about it I can only remember that one horrible scene where they felt the need to explain the name Solo, and also the weird thing with Lando and the robot. 5/10

also Mandalorian is epic, 9/10. And now that I think about it, I think the first episode of season 2 came out like literally 10 minutes ago, it’s past midnight, and I think it was coming out today. 

you are giving those way more credit than they deserve.

TFA was better the first time around when they called it Star Wars (and later added "A New Hope" to distinguish it from its sequels).

TLJ was fine, it had a couple cool moments but I get the feeling that most people who dislike it do so because it reversed course from the garbage Abrams was giving us.  it isnt substantially worse than TFA, it just, admittedly, doesn't work well as a sequel.

I havent seen TROS, but just knowing that Palpatine is alive and shows up makes me hate it.  that is an absolutely dumb piece of writing and it taints the rest of the film

Rogue one is good, definitely the best movie of the lot, but its not a 10.  maybe an 8

didnt see Solo

Haven't seen the Mandalorian, so can't judge, btu everything I hear is good.  this one might warrant the 9 you gave it.

[Use the Falchion]

6 hours ago, Aspiring Writer said:

Yeah, and they're all crap. TFA at first glance is decent, but Mauler's series proves that it's all empty and just a bunch of nonsense and contrivances, TLJ is one man's way of flipping off a fanbase and calling it good writing because he has no idea what the point of writing is, and TROS is an insult to writing itself and anyone who bothers to put any effort into said writing and is the clearest example of why J.J Abrams sucks at writing and should not be trusted with more than the cinematography.  

Rogue one is actually decent, but Solo is an empty attempt at nostalgia and honestly reminds me of Captain Marvel with how the writing is bad, referencing the past while ruining it.

And the Mandalorian started good but went way downhill and has way WAY too many contrivances.  Also, Fobs break everything.

Hard disagree. 

TFA is a great fun movie for the most part IMO. I always say it was great for the franchise but bad for the story. 

TLJ is a movie I have a lot of fundamental problems with, but I respect Rian Johnson and what he was trying to accomplish. In many ways, I also agree with what he was trying to accomplish. TLJ was Rian breaking the mythic chains of Star Wars. It was his way of telling the next director to "tell your movie. Don't just follow what the old movies did." And there are tons of great things in the movie! That tense opening battle, the beauty of the Holdo Maneuver, the humor on Ach-To; Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher easily gave their best performances during that movie. Also, if you've seen Knives Out, you should know that RJ can indeed write. 

TROS...I actually agree with you here. It's the worst of the three by far, not very memorable, and frankly a terrible ending to the trilogy. Maybe with a little more distance we can all look at TROS a little more favorably, but as it stands...yeah, not a fan. 

Rogue One is at the bottom of the list for me, only above TROS. Not because the movie is bad, but because I cannot stand that soundtrack. It feels like a bad bootleg version of the normal Star Wars soundtrack. Heck, I've seen better bootleg movies!

Solo was great! I don't deny it was an attempt at nostalgia and the movie has a ton of problems overall, but no other movie gave me as much of the Space Western vibes that the OT Star Wars does so well than this one. And that's counting the fact that TFA is ANH but with new characters. The soundtrack was new and fun, Glover's portrayal of Lando was perfect, and the heist was a nice addition. 

The Mandalorian is doing fine. I have some issues with the presentation of the Jedi in the story, but overall it's fine. 

 

But just because I like a majority of these things doesn't mean I'm happy with the direction Star Wars is heading right now. Star Wars needs a vision. The Cosmere and the MCU thrive not only the talents of their creators, but because fans know that the story is leading them somewhere, to something. There's a vision. Star Wars clearly has none, and that's what it needs to get back in the game.*

 

1 hour ago, Dunkum said:

didnt see Solo

Haven't seen the Mandalorian, so can't judge, btu everything I hear is good.  this one might warrant the 9 you gave it.

Mando and Solo are both worth seeing. Mando has a strong outing, a weak middle, and a great ending. And with all of the rumors of cameos for Season 2, it's bound to surprise people. Solo is a really fun movie. Was it necessary and did it make things more confusing? Yes and Yes, but so did the Wax & Wayne series at first. I'd just recommend watching The Clone Wars beforehand. It might ruin some surprises (that Rebels fans may already know about), but it will help make things make a little more sense. 

 

*Simply having a vision won't always cut it, as the DCEU and other failed cinematic universes noted. But they also put too their cart before the horse. Have the vision, build the characters, and then slowly work towards that vision. 

[Aspiring Writer]

1 hour ago, Use the Falchion said:

TFA is a great fun movie for the most part IMO. I always say it was great for the franchise but bad for the story. 

... how is something with a crap story good for the franchise? And besides that, You admitted it has a crap story, which is the only thing I care about.

[Orlion Blight he/him]

Star Wars is all about crap stories. 

Not a single Star Wars film is not a crap story. It's fundamentally designed to be flashy genre garbage.

Now, many Ashoka Tano episodes of Clone Wars and Rebels on the other hand...

The key to a "good Star Wars" story is whether or not it's fun. Like Marvel movies. It's not high art. 

Edited October 30, 2020 by Orlion the Platypus

[Use the Falchion]

42 minutes ago, Aspiring Writer said:

... how is something with a crap story good for the franchise? And besides that, You admitted it has a crap story, which is the only thing I care about.

I said that it's bad for the story, not it was a bad story. So let me rephrase: TFA was good for the franchise and bad for the overarching story, including the trilogy as a whole. But it is not a bad story. It's the Hero's Journey. You know, the same thing that the Misborn trilogy, Avatar: The Last Airbender , Horizon: Zero Dawn, pretty much every Superhero Origin movie, and so many other stories are. 

TFA's story is literally the same story told in ANH.  Which was a great idea. It allowed for fans who knew the story to focus on the new characters who were awesome and fresh and exciting and held so much potential. For fans who didn't know the story, it was a nice way to explore the main Star Wars formula with updated graphics. (And yes it was the main Star Wars formula, since ANH, ROTJ, and TPM all follow that exact same pattern.) Not everyone's first Star Wars movie will be ANH. For some, TFA was the first because they just reached that age and the parents wanted to share that experience with them. For others it may have been TPM - which, you know, also tells the same story as ANH but with more Jedi and politics. TFA's job wasn't to reinvent the wheel, it was to revitalize interest in the wheel. And I can say it did that swimmingly.

The problem with retelling the ANH after the OT was that it reset everything. The Empire is back and the New Republic is destroyed, undoing the sacrifices the Rebellion made; Han and Leia broke up, undoing their entire romantic arc; and Luke is missing, undoing his call-to-action at the end of ROTJ. Some of these couple have been expounded on and addressed in TROS, others...yeah, bad ideas in the long-run. Again, good for the franchise, bad for the overarching story.

 

49 minutes ago, Orlion the Platypus said:

The key to a "good Star Wars" story is whether or not it's fun.

I'm not 100% sure I agree, but I'm 100% behind you on this! 

[Toaster Retribution he/him]

4 hours ago, Aspiring Writer said:

Yeah, and they're all crap. TFA at first glance is decent, but Mauler's series proves that it's all empty and just a bunch of nonsense and contrivances, TLJ is one man's way of flipping off a fanbase and calling it good writing because he has no idea what the point of writing is, and TROS is an insult to writing itself and anyone who bothers to put any effort into said writing and is the clearest example of why J.J Abrams sucks at writing and should not be trusted with more than the cinematography.  

Rogue one is actually decent, but Solo is an empty attempt at nostalgia and honestly reminds me of Captain Marvel with how the writing is bad, referencing the past while ruining it.

And the Mandalorian started good but went way downhill and has way WAY too many contrivances.  Also, Fobs break everything.

TFA is fun, but unoriginal (apart from Kylo) and doesn't really hold up for multiple viewings super-well. TLJ is, while not flawless, still great. Rian does know the point of writing, and did what he could to move Star Wars in a direction that isn't: hey, lets just rehash the OT! He wrote it with the intention of opening new doors for the franchise, attempted to send Rey, Kylo and Poe in genuinely interesting directions, and tried to make Star Wars a bit more grey through DJ (he should have stopped Benicio from stuttering though).

RoS is a mess writing-wise, but a fun spectacle. I agree that JJ Abrams is much better at making a movie (RoS is incredible from a visual standpoint) than he is at writing it. They wasted Finn, Hux, Zorii, Jannah, and a lot of others.

Rogue One is amazing though, and Solo is fun. And Mandalorian is amazing.

[Aspiring Writer]

1 hour ago, Use the Falchion said:

I said that it's bad for the story, not it was a bad story. So let me rephrase: TFA was good for the franchise and bad for the overarching story, including the trilogy as a whole. But it is not a bad story. It's the Hero's Journey. You know, the same thing that the Misborn trilogy, Avatar: The Last Airbender , Horizon: Zero Dawn, pretty much every Superhero Origin movie, and so many other stories are. 

TFA's story is literally the same story told in ANH.  Which was a great idea. It allowed for fans who knew the story to focus on the new characters who were awesome and fresh and exciting and held so much potential. For fans who didn't know the story, it was a nice way to explore the main Star Wars formula with updated graphics. (And yes it was the main Star Wars formula, since ANH, ROTJ, and TPM all follow that exact same pattern.) Not everyone's first Star Wars movie will be ANH. For some, TFA was the first because they just reached that age and the parents wanted to share that experience with them. For others it may have been TPM - which, you know, also tells the same story as ANH but with more Jedi and politics. TFA's job wasn't to reinvent the wheel, it was to revitalize interest in the wheel. And I can say it did that swimmingly.

The problem with retelling the ANH after the OT was that it reset everything. The Empire is back and the New Republic is destroyed, undoing the sacrifices the Rebellion made; Han and Leia broke up, undoing their entire romantic arc; and Luke is missing, undoing his call-to-action at the end of ROTJ. Some of these couple have been expounded on and addressed in TROS, others...yeah, bad ideas in the long-run. Again, good for the franchise, bad for the overarching story.

 

I'm not 100% sure I agree, but I'm 100% behind you on this! 

That... That's why it sucks! It repeats things despite the fact that the context doesn't work! And Rey isn't even a good protagnist! We know nothing about her, we have in investment, and the events are so- screw it, just watch this.

Spoiler

 

 

[Aspiring Writer]

On 10/30/2020 at 9:15 AM, Toaster Retribution said:

TFA is fun, but unoriginal (apart from Kylo) and doesn't really hold up for multiple viewings super-well. TLJ is, while not flawless, still great. Rian does know the point of writing, and did what he could to move Star Wars in a direction that isn't: hey, lets just rehash the OT! He wrote it with the intention of opening new doors for the franchise, attempted to send Rey, Kylo and Poe in genuinely interesting directions, and tried to make Star Wars a bit more grey through DJ (he should have stopped Benicio from stuttering though).

RoS is a mess writing-wise, but a fun spectacle. I agree that JJ Abrams is much better at making a movie (RoS is incredible from a visual standpoint) than he is at writing it. They wasted Finn, Hux, Zorii, Jannah, and a lot of others.

Rogue One is amazing though, and Solo is fun. And Mandalorian is amazing.

 Open doors? Not rehash? 1, he closed doors! He killed the main antagonist, he made the resistance down to one ship, they have no allies, what doors did he open? And just because it's not a rehash doesn't make it good! He could have made a movie that wasn't a rehash that didn't treat Poe like an idiot, kill Ackbar without so much as a word, Mary Poppins in star wars, LIGHT SPEED RAMMING, hyperspace tracking, no training for Rey, betraying Luke's character (Which he did! Luke tried to save his father, one of the most evil men in the galaxy, but couldn't even try to save his nephew? I like the concept of a luke that lost his way, but the approach and execution did not fit his character at ALL) Kylo switching from good guy-bad guy because he's just a plot device at this point, force Deus-ex-Machina (I hate how they use the force in the sequel trilogy), Holdo was crap and clearly shows that Rian doesn't know how leadership works as she lets the entire crew think they're about to die with no real plan and disrespects on of her high ranking officers that just DESTROYED STAR KILLER BASE IF YOU EVEN TRY TO GIVE ME THE MOLE EXCUSE (I have dealt with this too many times.) and he made stupid decisions like CUTTING A SCENE OF LUKE GRIEVING FOR HAN SOLO. What exactly did he do right? And let me be clear, I hate TROS far more than TLJ, but hat doesn't make it any less of a garbage fire. And just because I been doing this, watch this.

(First video contains cursing)

Spoiler

 

Spoiler

 

 

Edited November 2, 2020 by Aspiring Writer

[Use the Falchion]

31 minutes ago, Aspiring Writer said:

That... That's why it sucks! It repeats things despite the fact that the context doesn't work! And Rey isn't even a good protagnist! We know nothing about her, we have in investment, and the events are so- screw it, just watch this.

  Reveal hidden contents

 

 

I'll watch it later. But the context does work. We know enough about Rey to know what she wants, where her history lies, and what her desires are. TFA explicitly tells us that. What we don't know is whose legacy child she is, but that's a question of where she comes from, not who she is.* 

We've never seen a rogue stormtrooper like Finn before. (And yes you might say Kyle Katarn, but he was a Legends/EU character than not everyone knew.) Heck, we've never seen a POC protagonist in Star Wars before - Lando was a main character, but not a protagonist. Watching him grow a conscious, come to care about people, and eventually do the right thing was incredible. And Rey! While she wasn't the most interesting protagonist (a title she shared with Finn in TFA that RJ later gave to Kylo), she wasn't Luke or Anakin. Luke wanted nothing more than to get off his world. Anakin was torn, but he didn't resist. Rey actively fights against leaving and what other people kept telling her. And Kylo Ren! Kylo was the anti-Vader. Where Vader was cool and collected, Kylo was petulant and threw tantrums. Where Vader killed officers who failed him, Kylo took out his rage on equipment, actively sparing the lives of those he worked with. Where Vader and Tarkin were allies that respected each other, Kylo and Hux seem to hate each other. 

There was also the parallels between the relationships that went with everyone. Poe's relationship with Leia reflected what Kylo's should have been; his past is repeating itself - yet reversed - in Finn's arc in this movie.** Rey and Kylo share a bond in their connection to Han, and Kylo recognizes Rey as the asset she could be; he even offers to teach her. 

Rey doesn't want to go back to the Resistance because "it's the right thing to do" or "to join the fight" like Luke did. She wanted to help someone she saw as a kindred spirit and then go back home. Finn didn't originally want to fight the First Order, he wanted to run but chose to fight. 

 

I'm not saying that it should have repeated everything it did - it very much shouldn't have. But TFA did what it di so in order to make fans focus on the characters, and it worked out well. People were excited to see where Finn would ultimately end up after TFA. There were hundreds of theories about who Rey could be related to and why. And Snoke! The theories...the theories. The time immediately preceeding and following TFA was a renaissance period for Star Wars. Ultimately, that's what TFA set out to make sure happened. And it succeeded. 

 

*One of the big problems of the ST was JJ refusing to stick with what RJ said about her past. Making her history stretch out through all three movies was a terrible choice and Rey's character suffered from it. But that's a problem in TROS, not TFA. 

**When Kylo Ren yells "TRAITOR," is he yelling it to irk Finn, who seemingly is okay with this? Or is he projecting his own guilt, shame, and anger onto Finn, the one person who actually gets it?

[Dunkum he/him]

2 hours ago, Aspiring Writer said:

 Open doors? Not rehash? 1, he closed doors! He killed the main antagonist, he made the resistance down to one ship, they have no allies, what doors did he open? And just because it's not a rehash doesn't make it good! He could have made a movie that wasn't a rehash that didn't treat Poe like an idiot, kill Ackbar without so much as a word, Mary Poppins in star wars, LIGHT SPEED RAMMING, hyperspace tracking, no training for Rey, betraying Luke's character (Which he did! Luke tried to save his father, one of the most evil men in the galaxy, but couldn't even try to save his nephew? I like the concept of a luke that lost his way, but the approach and execution did not fit his character at ALL) Kylo switching from good guy-bad guy because he's just a plot device at this point, force Deus-ex-Machina (I hate how they use the force in the sequel trilogy), Holdo was crap and clearly shows that Rian doesn't know how leadership works as she lets the entire crew think they're about to die with no real plan and disrespects on of her high ranking officers that just DESTROYED STAR KILLER BASE IF YOU EVEN TRY TO GIVE ME THE MOLE EXCUSE (I have dealt with this too many times.) and he made stupid decisions like CUTTING A SCENE OF LUKE GRIEVING FOR HAN SOLO. What exactly did he do right? And let me be clear, I hate TROS far more than TLJ, but hat doesn't make it any less of a garbage fire.

well he definitely didn't kill the main antagonist.  Snoke was nowhere near interesting enough to be the main antagonist, he was a shallow failed attmept to make a copy of palpatine.  more to the point, Kylo took his place, which meant that even if you cared enough about Snoke to consider him the primary antagonist somehow, its not like there was no antagonist after his demise, just a different and infinitely better/more interesting one