'Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker' Review

Nominated For: Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing, and Best Original Score.

Synopsis: The surviving Resistance faces the First Order once more as Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron's journey continues. With the power and knowledge of generations behind them, the final battle commences.

Runtime: 141 minutes

MPAA Rating: PG-13 (for sci-fi violence and action)

Who should see it? Star Wars fans eager to see the end of the Skywalker Saga.

At last, the time has come to talk about another new Star Wars movie... And not just any new Star Wars movie. Directed by J.J. Abrams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker concludes the nine-episode space opera, which first began forty-two years ago. Entering the auditorium, I was overcome with feelings of joy, sadness, and anxiety since I knew this story I cherished so much was finally coming to an end. Now, it's worth noting that this ending provides closure to the Saga while also leaving room for future installments. So we'll have to wait and see whether Disney and Lucasfilm maintain their stance on this genuinely being the end or not... Though, for the time being, this is it for the core saga. 

Those who know me are well-aware of what this franchise means to me, so naturally, it may seem that my opinion's slightly biased in the film's favor. However, I was very nervous about a good number of things. Before I continue, I'd like to preface my thoughts with a brief disclaimer, though... I'm incredibly gracious to have the opportunity to see The Rise of Skywalker early, so I'm going to offer my readers the same courtesy I'd expect from any other reviewer. I will tread carefully in writing my review to avoid even the slightest spoiler or plot detail currently unknown by the general public. At times, my critiques may seem vague, but I'll be more than happy to elaborate in a clearly marked spoiler review after opening weekend. It's taken time for me to process what I watched, and there was a lot of information to absorb. 

I want to start by addressing the elephant in the room. The Last Jedi is my favorite movie period. I have not been shy about this, but I am also aware of its divisive reception. One of my concerns regarding The Rise of Skywalker was that J.J. Abrams and his co-writer Chris Terrio might choose to "course-correct" and reverse specific creative choice made by Rian Johnson for the sake of mass appeal. I'm glad to report I didn't feel that was the case. However, when I returned to social media yesterday, I discovered a storm of controversy due to certain "retcons." I'll address this in more detail in my spoiler review sometime next week, but the magnitude of these "retcons" is being grossly overblown.

These "retcons" being answers to questions that fans have obsessed over since before the release of The Force Awakens. The answers actually altered my perception of the sequel trilogy as a whole, so I'm interested in rewatching it with them in mind. Still, I felt they made logical sense and didn't contradict anything previously established by Rian Johnson, George Lucas, or any of the other Star Wars filmmakers. For those concerned, I went into the film with a particular mindset of what I hoped wouldn't happen and was surprised that Abrams and Terrio convinced me otherwise on specific points. The execution sold me on the ideas I wouldn't have expected to like. So keep an open mind and go along for the ride before casting judgment. I'm still in the process of reconciling certain creative choices myself. 

Otherwise, J.J. Abrams absolutely delivers on the spectacle expected for a grand finale. The central lightsaber duel showcased heavily in the promotional material is unreal, and the final confrontation offers starship combat on a scale previously unseen in the franchise. I was also delighted to see Abrams and Terrio up the ante in terms of Force abilities. Needless to say, I was very giddy throughout and can't wait to experience my favorite crowd-pleasing moments with a packed theater of Star Wars fans due to the huge surprises in store! The technicality of everything ranging from cinematography to sound design to visual effects to John Williams' musical score was impeccable.

In a mega-blockbuster such as this, large casts are typical, and it'd honestly be excessive for me to discuss every actor's performance in excruciating detail. Therefore, I'm going to stick to the leads and significant supporting players, but know all characters, new and old, are great in it. If I were to single anyone out as a standout, it would be Daisy Ridley's Rey. This is the role that skyrocketed her to stardom, and this time around, Ridley offers her best performance yet. In her third and possibly final outing, Ridley feels more confident, which translates wonderfully to Rey's screen presence. Ridley also gets an opportunity to demonstrate more of her emotional range and excels on all accounts.

Opposite Ridley, Adam Driver continues to make Kylo Ren a very compelling character. Driver has quickly become my favorite actor working today, and he lends so much dimension to Kylo Ren with his multifaceted portrayal. This outing is no different, and Driver gives it his all! I was especially glad to see the unique dynamic between him and Rey further explored in greater detail because that's one of my favorite aspects of the sequel trilogy. Star Wars fans keen to see his devout followers, the Knights of Ren onscreen will be happy that they have some cool moments in the limelight. With that said, they're more-or-less an afterthought in the grand scheme of things so temper your expectations there. 

I'm sure many of you are rightfully wondering about Leia's inclusion, and I'll just say I was amazed at how J.J. Abrams was able to integrate archival footage of Carrie Fisher so naturally. Her presence lingers over the movie in a powerful way, and I'm glad to see Leia's send-off handled with such reverence. Among all the discourse which will surround this movie, I highly doubt anyone will be displeased with how she was treated. As for the other lingering inclusion, I was surprisingly pleased with the return of Ian McDiarmid's Emperor Palpatine. I can't say much else for fear of spoilers, but I was thrilled to hear his maniacal laughter once more, and his malevolent presence is stronger than ever! 

Returning to a galaxy far, far away, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, and Kelly Marie Tran comfortably reprise their roles in the fight against the First Order as Finn, Poe, and Rose. The marketing for The Rise of Skywalker prominently featured the companionship between the trio of Rey, Finn, and Poe, and they certainly had a great rapport between the three of them. Regarding the beloved legacy characters of Chewbacca, C-3PO, and R2-D2, Joonas Suotamo, Anthony Daniels, and Jimmy Vee are as endearing as ever, and each has memorable moments! Rolling back onscreen, BB-8 continues to delight while D-O is a fun new droid companion. Then, of course, it was truly wonderful to see Billy Dee Williams playing Lando Calrissian again. He may be 82, but he's still got his trademark swagger! Meanwhile, the new characters Zorii Bliss, Jannah, and Allegiant General Pryde, portrayed by Keri Russell, Naomie Ackie, and Richard E. Grant respectively, were terrific additions to the sprawling ensemble. If I didn't mention someone, it's likely because they had a smaller part or have a surprise appearance, but the remaining cast members fulfilled their roles to the fullest!

At times, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is too overwhelming for its own good. The opening thrusts the audience right into the thick of it, and there's a lot of information to digest very quickly. Perhaps, the pacing will improve for me on repeat viewings, but that remains to be seen. It's not my favorite Star Wars movie, but it never needed to be. In the end, J.J. Abrams stuck the landing and delivered a finale that's epic, entertaining, emotional, and incredibly satisfying. 

Film Assessment: A-

Let's Talk About STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI Behind The Scenes

If you follow my social media, you may or may not have seen that I made a video essay abut Star Wars: The Last Jedi. If you haven't heard and are interested in watching it, I'll embed it right here for you:

Now that you've hopefully watched it, I'd like to share some fun factoids, sources of inspiration, and any other Behind The Scenes content that may interest you! For starters, I made this video because I love The Last Jedi and felt like I had a lot to say on it which couldn't be expressed through a blog post. Secondly, I'd been considering making the foray back into YouTube and decided this might be a good start. I made it my goal to find something about the film which I hadn't seen covered extensively online while sharing my own interpretation of the film, and I think I was successful.

I figured I'd start with a script because an unscripted ramble would probably be disastrous and go on for far too long. That took about a week, I shared it with some people via social media, took their feedback into account, and then made revisions from there. That went on for about two-three weeks before I began recording. I was honestly surprised how long I wound up recording some sections due to mispronunciations and me fumbling over my own words. 

Here's a funny example:

Hey everyone! Enjoy this out-of context minute long clip of me struggling to say “Earth’s myths.” pic.twitter.com/Ym72DdnJP5

— David Weiser (@weiser_david) October 29, 2018

On that note, an interesting tidbit is that I scrapped all my narration audio earlier this week and rerecorded the entire thing because I wasn't satisfied with the audio quality. It's honestly still not quite at the level I'd like, but I was pleased enough with it and wanted to meet the deadline of December 15th so I settled. I did this multiple times to be honest...

For those wondering, The Art of The Last Jedi was probably the best resource for me when writing the script aside from the film itself and requisite bonus features. I found a lot of information in there which helped the idea of the video take shape. If you loved The Last Jedi, I highly recommend the book as it's very insightful. It has plenty of gorgeous concept art and lots fascinating commentary from the filmmakers.

Other factoids:  

-I included many of the Star Wars trademarks such as an opening crawl and wipe transitions. The end credits are even in the style of a Star Wars film as well. In order to do that though, I knew I'd have to somehow use John Williams' main theme... Only if I used the actual audio, the video would surely get a copyright strike. I then decided to put together an a cappella arrangement as a work around by enlisting help from some vocalists at my local church. We recorded during the week of Thanksgiving break and it was the first part of the video which was finalized.

-Early on in the process I made the thumbnail and crawl. When writing the opening crawl, I looked to The Last Jedi's crawl as inspiration for the proper wording. As for the thumbnail, I made a more simplistic version, but it was recommended for me to work in a person's face because that would help the video get more views. I decided to impose Luke on top and then changed the lighting and coloring to better blend everything together. 

-If you watch Star Wars Rebels, you may have caught onto how the World Between Worlds aesthetic influenced this particular graphic. 

-The most time-consuming part of the process was probably searching for specific footage on the Internet. You would be amazed at how difficult it was to find certain clips without a watermark, and in some cases, I had to settle for standard definition because there was no HD version available. 

Otherwise, I don't have much else to share with you. I hope you enjoyed the video as well as this post, and I'll catch up on all my film reviews soon as I've seen about ten films since my last review.

'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Review

Well, well, well... The time has finally arrived for me to share my thoughts on my most anticipated film of the year... Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle... Wait a second, that's not right... Of course, I mean Star Wars: The Last Jedi, a film I've been eagerly awaiting since December of 2015. The two year wait has been long to say the least, but it's over with, and we now have a two year wait to eagerly anticipate the arrival of Episode IX, so without further ado, I proudly present my NON-SPOILER review of Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Review

Nominated For: Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Original Score.

Star Wars: The Last Jedi begins where Star Wars: The Force Awakens ended. The Resistance are evacuating their base as they flee from the formidable First Order, while Rey seeks Luke Skywalker to teach her the ways of the Force, so that she may use her extraordinary power to aid the Resistance in their struggle against the First Order.

If your biggest issue with The Force Awakens was that it played things too safe, then you'll be pleased to hear that writer-director Rian Johnson defies convention at every turn. I absolutely adore Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but even I can admit that film stuck to the safe side of things. Johnson, however, takes bountiful bold risks in his middle entry to this Star Wars sequel trilogy. Johnson implements ideas and style completely foreign to the franchise, yet manages to present them with enough assuredness that you'll quickly become convinced it was all meant to be. 

The new characters, creatures, and planets are incredibly abstract and unlike almost anything else that has ever existed in the Star Wars canon. It's difficult to express exactly how unique everything is while avoiding spoilers, but it reminded me of George Lucas' own original universe-building, and I loved that. It's no wonder Lucasfilm had the confidence to sign him on to oversee an entirely new Star Wars trilogy before The Last Jedi was even released.

If I were asked to choose one line of dialogue from the film to encapsulate the experience of watching The Last Jedi, I would certainly choose Luke's warning that "This is not going to go the way you think!" Johnson continuously took me by surprise with every ballsy decision made. The story flows naturally, but Johnson brilliantly subverted my expectations time-and-time again over the film's two and a half hour runtime. 

It's worth noting that The Last Jedi echoes certain elements from The Empire Strikes Back, but Johnson never rehashes the quintessential sequel in any way, shape, or form. In fact, I'd go as far to saying Johnson distances his film a great deal from the structure of The Empire Strikes Back. The closest The Last Jedi gets would be that the First Order bounces back triumphant after a critical loss of a super-weapon similarly to the Empire after the first Death Star's destruction and the plot centers on the training of a Jedi who's only just discovered their extraordinary abilities. Other than that, I can't think of any other startling similarities... Even the Force training narrative drastically differs from what has come before. I won't go into too much story or character detail though since this is a spoiler-free review, but I can assure concerned fans that there will not be an outpouring of fans claiming The Last Jedi ripped off The Empire Strikes Back like what happened to The Force Awakens in relation to A New Hope. 

In the technical area, the departments responsible for the film's visual effects, sound editing/mixing, production design, and costuming prove to once again be remarkable, as we've come to expect from Lucasfilm. However, it's Johnson's cinematographer, Steve Yedlin, and editor, Bob Ducsay, who interject a frenetic energy and style to the action sequences that truly make The Last Jedi stand out among its franchise family members. This is just as much a Rian Johnson film as it is a Star Wars sequel, and Yedlin and Ducsay ensure that his stylized sensibilities shine through this installment. And, of course, I cannot go without applauding John Williams on another spellbinding score. Williams is a legend, so what else could you possibly expect the man to compose other than another musical masterpiece?

Among the exceptional ensemble of performers, there are many notable characters worth discussing. However, seeing as this is a non-spoiler review, there will likely be many I'm either purposely vague in describing or leave out all together. Daisy Ridley delivers another show-stopping performance front-and-center as Rey, further fleshing out her character while traversing the tricky path between the Light and Dark sides of the Force. 

Mark Hamill's long-awaited return as Luke Skywalker is just as amazing as you could have possibly imagined. Luke Skywalker has always been one of my favorite Star Wars characters, so seeing him onscreen actually speaking this time around was a real treat. Johnson's interpretation of the character at this point is quite different than the Luke fans are accustomed to seeing. Hamill himself has mentioned in interviews he didn't at first agree with the take on the character. However, the Luke we know and love is still in there... He's simply been reshaped by experiences that took place in the thirty year gap between Return Of The Jedi and The Force Awakens. What Hamill's able to accomplish through this is simply astounding. It's not only his best performance as Luke, but I believe it to be the best of his entire career. If there's any justice, he'll get an Oscar nomination at the very least. 

Oscar Isaac's Poe Dameron flies straight back into the mix with the charming, cocky attitude that won audiences over in the opening minutes of The Force Awakens and his trusty droid, BB-8. Isaac has a substantially larger role this time around as Dameron in comparison to The Force Awakens, so those who wanted more from him and BB-8 will be overly exuberant. On that front, BB-8 rolls in right alongside his suave master, and is intent to bestow audiences with as much joy as a droid can possibly provide. People made a big deal out of his First Order counterpart, BB-9E, but I'll outright let you know the First Order droid is insignificant in the grand scheme of things as I suspected. 

Now for the tough part... Carrie Fisher's tragic passing last year probably affected me more than any other recent celebrity death because she was just as integral to this franchise as Hamill and Ford. While I won't quite go as far to saying Leia has a "substantially larger" role, she certainly feels more important this time around and some scenes were very emotional for me because of what had happened (if you sit through the first portion of credits, there's an especially sweet dedication to her). Fisher once again imbues Leia with the traits that had audiences fall for a Alderaanian Princess in the first place. She's strong, insightful, and most importantly of all, she inspires hope. 

Elsewhere among the Resistance, John Boyega's back as Finn, and his pleasant personality is very much the same. Alongside him, Kelly Marie Tran enters the fray as we're introduced to Rose, and I'll say she really impressed me as what I can only assume will be the break-out performance of the film. While she won't be the character everyone talks about upon leaving the theater, she won't be easily forgotten either. Laura Dern and Benicio Del Toro are two especially accomplished actors who join the franchise in the intriguing roles of Vice Admiral Holdo and DJ respectively, but I won't say anything else about them for fear of unintentionally spoiling something.

On the Dark side of things, Adam Driver continues to extrapolate plenty from the rich character of Kylo Ren. Kylo Ren goes through a lot in this film, and Driver portrays it perfectly. I doubt he'll win over those who vehemently hate him because of what he did in the last film, but he was a magnificent malevolent presence and I think they might at least agree with that sentiment. Alongside him, Domhnall Gleeson reemerges as General Hux to reignite their bitter rivalry, and he's quick to remind audiences that he's a Nazi-esque First Order leader.

As for Snoke, I think those who wildly speculated about his identity and backstory will be extremely disappointed with him, but we do finally see the Supreme Leader in the flesh quite a bit and he's certainly powerful. Andy Serkis offers as incredible of a motion-capture performance as you'd expect from the man, but I wouldn't go as far to saying Snoke holds a candle to Caesar or Gollum among Serkis' magnificent motion-capture career.

Gwendoline Christie returns to desperately redeem Captain Phasma, and while she plays a part in the story, her character's role is minute once again. To me, this doesn't really matter because she was cool when onscreen and had enough of an authoritative presence to satisfy me. However, if you're eagerly awaiting a tremendous return for the chrome-plated captain, you may be dreadfully disappointed. Her battle with Finn is awesome though. For that matter, this film has some of the greatest action sequences in the entire saga, and that's really saying something... 

Last, but certainly not least, I've left space to briefly discuss droids and creatures. C3PO and R2D2 are both in the film, and there are some especially satisfying moments for both droids that will delight fans. The mighty Chewbacca roars his way onscreen again, and is strong and lovable as you remember. Meanwhile, the Porgs are as adorable as you'd expect them to be, and never in an obnoxiously overbearing sense, so no problems there.

If you know me at all, you'll know that I don't say this lightly... Star Wars: The Last Jedi is perhaps the first Star Wars film to truly be in contention for besting The Empire Strikes Back as my favorite Star Wars film, and the implications of that statement are huge for those of you who have know My Fifty Favorite Films... I'm sure there will be those who disagree with me, and this sentiment could certainly change over time, but that's my current stance fresh out of the theater. Regardless, the Force is indeed strong with The Last Jedi as it intrepidly ventures outside the traditional Star Wars story structure while maintaining the essential identity of Star Wars. I laughed. I cried. I was genuinely surprised. I have no idea how J.J. Abrams is going to follow up this masterpiece.

Film Assessment: A+

Star Wars Speculation: The Poetry of the Star Wars Saga

Welcome readers to another installment of Star Wars Speculation!! I took a break to bring you my first "In Defense Of" entry, In Defense Of: 'Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice' (The "Martha Scene), but today I'm back to dive deep into Star Wars again in the mere weeks leading up to the release of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. This week's topic I'll be tackling is "The Poetry of the Star Wars Saga" and I'll be using that as the basis of my argument that The Force Awakens isn't a rehash of A New Hope. Also, keep in mind that I'm writing this with the base assumption that you'll have at least seen A New Hope and The Force Awakens so there could be somethings you may consider spoilers if you haven't seen either for whatever reason... Although, I suspect you would not be here if that were the case. 

The Poetry of the Star Wars Saga

So I'm sure many of you are wondering what the heck poetry has to do with Star Wars, and the answer to that comes from the Saga's creator himself, George Lucas.

Back in 2002, Lucas told Entertainment Weekly "I create themes, and I repeat those themes, in different chords and different arrangements" regarding how the Prequel Trilogy mirrors the Original Trilogy. Within the Skywalker Saga, there are many moments that reverberate and are echoed across the Saga. Lucas explained it like this, "It's like poetry. Every stanza kind of rhymes with the last one." There are quite a few story beats that carry thematic significance within the Saga, and these are absolutely integral to the DNA of Star Wars. Naturally, these aforementioned segments resurface as a means of strengthening the overall narrative.

Evidence of Lucas' comments can be found all throughout the Star Wars saga, but I've embedded a link to a brief Vimeo video from Pablo Fernández Eyre that keys in on some of the prominent examples below:

Now that you've hopefully watched the video and have some idea of what I'm talking about, let's dig in.

Lucas' approach refers back to the ancient style of poetry commonly found in The Old Testament of the Bible that is often called parallelism.

Now you may have noticed in the video that the Prequel Trilogy and Original Trilogy relate to each other in this way with The Phantom Menace correlating with A New Hope, Attack Of The Clones with The Empire Strikes Back, and Revenge Of The Sith with Return Of The Jedi.

How does this apply to Star Wars now?

I suspect the ongoing sequel trilogy will fit into this pattern as well. The Force Awakens has already broken into the cycle by mirroring A New Hope, and subsequently The Phantom Menace, but it remains to be seen how much The Last Jedi will evoke The Empire Strikes Back or Attack of the Clones. Based on the trailers though, it seems that there will at least be a few similarities so I suspect it's very possible it will jump in while also differentiating itself.

The brilliance of this technique though is how it permits wiggle-room for the storytellers to deviate the pre-established path and simultaneously incorporate the integral elements of the franchise. I think people get hung up on the idea that just because a film homages something, it automatically means that it ripped the other one off. However, Star Wars is a franchise that has always stayed true to itself in the face of exploring such an expansive galaxy.

Why 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' isn't a remake of 'A New Hope'

I remember when The Force Awakens first came out, just about everyone loved it. It wasn't until a few weeks afterwards that someone on the Internet pointed out some similarities harkening back to A New Hope.

Of course, this spread like wildfire and people turned on the film saying things like "OMG, J.J. AbRaM5 rU1N3d St4R W4r5!" or "tH3 f0Rc3 4W4k3n5 5ux 4ND T0R3 Ap4Rt MY CH1LdH00D!!" Yes, the fandom whined. Like they always do. Now, I'm not here to refute that there are some similar story beats to A New Hope. That much is crystal clear, and I can see the reasons why the parallelism was implemented.

First of all, people need to take into account the state of the franchise at this point. Star Wars was not as commercially viable as it once was. The Prequels had soured the general moviegoer's appetite for anymore Star Wars. Sure, there were The Clone Wars and Rebels animated series, comics, novels, and video games, but there hadn't been a live action Star Wars film since Revenge of the Sith... There was a lot riding on the success of The Force Awakens, and fortunately it decimated the box office, but Disney was taking a gamble buying Lucasfilm. What if they were unable to create something that would appeal to both old and new fans? That's where the parallelism comes in.

J.J. Abrams was brought on to direct and also had a huge hand in the script alongside Star Wars scribe Lawrence Kasdan and Pixar writer Michael Arndt. The thing is... Abrams is a fan of Star Wars himself, in addition to being a fantastic filmmaker. As a part of the Star Wars fandom, he knew what they would respond well to and so naturally he knew what would click with audiences and what wouldn't. He shot on film, used practical effects/locations, the cast of the Original Trilogy was brought back, and incorporated as many references as possible.

Abrams and Lucasfilm understood that the structure of this new Star Wars had to resemble something audiences were already familiar with if it were to be accepted and jettison a new era of Star Wars, so naturally they pulled from Lucas' pattern itself and echoed some beats from the Original Trilogy. This mirroring technique has already been implemented in Star Wars, yet fans feel the need to complain for whatever reason. They act as though most other film franchises don't do this in order to keep the franchise DNA intact.

Just look at Jurassic World and Creed. The plot of both films are essentially the same base premise of the original film in the subsequent franchise (Jurassic Park and Rocky). Both films also feature pivotal moments homaging back to the original with the same sense of nostalgia utilized by The Force Awakens.

Both films were released in 2015, the same year as The Force Awakens, yet I hardly have ever seen anyone call out either for "copying the original." I've never seen anyone complain about the Prequel's use of parallelism and mirroring either... Although, that could be due to the multitude of problems present in the Prequels...

If someone still wants to complain that The Force Awakens is a remake of A New Hope after reading all of my informed arguments, I ask them to please elaborate on how The Force Awakens blatantly rips off A New Hope. 

Sure, you can tell me that something pivotal to the plot is put inside a droid, there's a desert planet, on that planet is our protagonist who longs for more, there's a super space weapon capable of destroying planets, the antagonist is masked and wears dark clothing, there's a cantina, and the heroes' mentor is killed by the antagonist on the Death Star/Starkiller Base, BUT those are the familiar elements of The Force Awakens I mentioned earlier. I've constantly found that in the internet's insistence to force these two films to fit the same framework, they have to describe the plots with incredibly vague terminology. The further you narrow in on the films, the more different they become. The Force Awakens tells the same story in broad strokes, but the specificity is drastically different.

Also, the whole complaint about The First Order building another Death Star seems sorta stupid to me. Realistically, if you were an evil organization and knew there was a weapon that had previously been built with the capability to destroy entire planets, wouldn't you have a desire to reconstruct it with major modifications to cause even more destruction? Just a thought... Sure, the last two were taken out, but that just shows there's room for improvement. With that being said, I'd still rather not see a fourth iteration of a planet-sized weapon in either The Last Jedi or Episode IX.

So yes, I can agree with the sentiment that Lucasfilm played it safe, but Lucasfilm needed something that could be conceived as commercially safe in order to take some secluded risks. Just take a look at the film's cast... The sequel trilogy's leads are diverse both ethnically and in terms of gender. Rey was the saga's first female protagonist who turned out to be the TRUE protagonist as the force user many had already dismissed the possibility of thanks to marketing showing Finn holding the saber. Finn was the first African American protagonist in Star Wars (sure you could make a case for Lando I guess... but he's more of a side supporting character in my eyes), who was positioned as a turncoat stormtrooper. Lastly, Poe Dameron was the first Latin protagonist.

**Spoiler Warning for Star Wars: The Force Awakens**

Kylo Ren's STILL rather controversial (but I'll dig more into that in my next post), and I don't think the fact he killed Han Solo did him any favors in that regard... Much less, make him a safe choice as an antagonist.

**End of Spoilers for Star Wars: The Force Awakens**

In conclusion, The Force Awakens had a difficult task ahead of it in introducing new characters, bringing back revered, classic characters, continuing the story left off in Return of the Jedi, and making Star Wars commercially viable again, but I think it did all of that beautifully and I still appreciate the film as one of my favorites in the franchise! I'd still even consider the first time I saw The Force Awakens to be one of the greatest experiences I've ever had in a movie theater because it's simply something I longed for most of my life and it delivered everything I possibly could have imagined. For all of those reasons and even more that I won't get into for the sake of length, I absolutely adore Star Wars The Force Awakens and it's use of parallelism to accomplish the daunting task of revitalizing Star Wars.

-As always, may the force be with you!!

Star Wars Speculation: 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Trailer Analysis

Hello loyal readers! As I seek to find new content to replace the lacking reviews of new releases this fall, I thought to myself "Why do I not already have a series of posts dedicated to Star Wars?" Then it hit me! I decided right then and there I would start a weekly series dedicated to discussing various topics regarding Star Wars. This series will change radically week-to-week and just encompass all things Star Wars. It felt like a perfect time to get it rolling and what better way to kick this off than by sharing my takeaways from this latest Star Wars: The Last Jedi trailer! So let's break it down!

**Keep in mind that these are just my theories and interpretation of the scenery. I could be way off mark in regards to speculation, but provided I'm correct, potential spoilers lie ahead.**

'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' Trailer Analysis

This trailer was very Kylo Ren-centric. It seems clear that Supreme Leader Snoke will be setting him out to snuff out the light within himself. The above shot seems to show him in some First Order facility where they're manufacturing weapons, vehicles, etc. This could possibly be him in recovery after he took a nasty saber swipe across the face in The Force Awakens, as I noticed there was some sort of tape obscuring his scar throughout the trailer. Snoke narrates saying "When I found you... I saw raw, untamed power... and beyond that... something truly special." Could be talking to Kylo Ren or Rey. Your guess is as good as mine.  

Next, we're treated to a look at the new AT-M6's marching on Craft. The AT-M6 designation stands for All Terrain MegaCallibur 6 and they appear to be an evolution of the standard Imperial AT-AT's most are familiar with from The Empire Strikes Back. It's also worth noting that this takes place on Crait, a new location to the Star Wars universe. Crait will house a Resistance base and the First Order appears to be coming full force! Also notice that Kylo Ren's First Order shuttle from The Force Awakens is flying above in the background.

Then we have Kylo Ren marching on through some cave/chasm with several First Order troops following suit. Very reminiscent of Anakin's march on the Jedi Temple during Order 66 from Revenge Of The Sith.

Here we have Kylo in what seems to be some First Order facility, likely in the presence of Snoke considering the red robes behind him. 

These are most likely the robes of Snoke's personal guards, the Elite Praetorian Guards. These guards are inspired by samurai and an elite group of Roman guards who protected the Roman Emperor. 

Going back to the trailer, we have Rey igniting her lightsaber.

More shots of Ach-To, the planet Rey found Luke on.

A continuation of The Force Awakens' cliffhanger where Rey hands Luke his former lightsaber. I'm pretty sure he will return it to her and it will become her lightsaber based on all the training footage. Rey says "Something inside me has always been there..."

I have no idea where this is located or what the significance of this is, but my best guess is that it's some hidden area of Ach-To and it ties into Rey's training.

LUKE'S LIBRARY!! As I've been reading various the Star Wars canon material, it seems evident that Luke was seeking as much knowledge and as many Jedi relics as he could possibly obtain. I think these are some books he's gathered or these books are ones found in the abandoned Ach-To Jedi Temple. "But now it's awake..."

"And I need help." Some more saber swinging. Very cool.

Okay, I believe a lot can be gleaned from this short moment. First off, Rey's training and she seems to have startled Luke with her strength in the force. He seems taken aback by this and I believe it's for good reason... Luke says "I've seen this raw strength only once before..."

"It didn't scare me enough then..." I think this is referencing Kylo Ren's betrayal and subsequent destruction of Luke's new Jedi Order. He saw this same strength in Kylo Ren, and wasn't worried at the time and many payed for his trust in Kylo. Above we seemingly see Luke emerge from the wreckage of Kylo's destruction and watching it all in grief alongside R2-D2. This second shot was also featured in the last trailer and I believe it's the same shot of Luke with R2 from Rey's vision in The Force Awakens, just from a different angle.

"It does now." Luke's reluctant to train Rey, because he's still reeling from what happened with Kylo Ren. Rey seems disappointed in Luke's reluctance. 

Kylo Ren says "Let the past die." as he's shown smashing his helmet. Potentially bringing his Vader fanboy days to an end? 

The trailer proceeds to Kylo Ren piloting his own Vader-inspired starfighter, the Tie Silencer. He's in the middle of some space battle opposite the Resistance and the voice over says "Kill it... if you have to...that's the only way to become who you're meant to be" as he devastates some Resistance cruisers and sets his targeting computer on the bridge of a Resistance cruiser seemingly with Leia onboard. This is when the feels creep in as you must watch a conflicted Kylo Ren decide whether or not he even wants to complete his journey to the Dark Side by killing his own mother, Leia. I can't imagine he will go through with it here, because I highly doubt the Lucasfilm marketing department would let that pivotal moment slip into a trailer. However, I don't think that means Leia's completely off the hook. It's been stated that Lucasfilm will not be shoe-horning Leia into Episode 9 via CGI or recasting out of respect to Carrie Fisher.

 The Millennium Falcon is being pursued by Tie Fighters in a cavern full of red crystals. I'm curious to see if this takes place on Crait... and if those crystals are red kyber crystals. For those that don't know, kyber crystals are the force-attuned crystals that power a Jedi's lightsaber.

Chewbacca and the porg have a screech-off! Porgs will be the Star Wars equivalent of Puffins and are native to Act-To. Adorable, aren't they?!?

Poe Dameron in distress.

 A look at Poe's upgraded X-Wing. The engine's gotten a major boost.

And lookie-there! Carrie Fisher's daughter, Billie Lourd, in the background reprising her role from The Force Awakens.

 Fin vs. Captain Phasma!!!

Captain Phasma still looks really cool here. I love the light reflecting off her chrome armor. Incredible.

Oh no!!! BB-8's been electrocuted. I'm sure he'll shake it off, but it's never good to see that droid in peril.

"This is not going to go... the way you think!" Luke's likely talking to Rey or Kylo Ren. I have no idea what the context could be, but I'm excited to find out!

Ice wolves? Don't really know what these are called as of now... but they sure do look cool!

More Leia!! 

Underwater force training. Visually reminds me of the force tree scene from Empire Strikes Back.

 Finn undercover with the First Order.

First Order lining up inside some base. Looks to be the same facility from the opening shot.

Battle of Crait. The First Order seems to be overwhelming the Resistance. 

"Fulfill...Your... Destiny" SNOKE IN THE FLESH!!! Ok, place your final bets on his identity now. 

Snoke's exhibiting some Dark Side force ability on Rey here. I have no idea what it is, but she's definitely in excruciating pain. 

And last, but not least, THAT ENDING!! Rey says "I need someone... to show me my place in all this." and the trailer cuts to Kylo reaching his hand out. After many rewatches, I'm convinced that this  an intentional misdirect. Could be really clever editing and Kylo may not even be in frame with Rey here. BUT if Rey turns to the Dark Side, that would be absolutely insane. 

Well... that's all I have to say about the new trailer as of now. I hope you've all enjoyed this and are looking forward to the next Star Wars Speculation post!!! 

-May the force be with you!