The Biggest Blunder In Cinema History

It's hard for me to look at how we can tweak 7-9 when it's just bad to the core. I didn't love 7, but (other than Han dying) it could've been a decent launching off point for the trilogy. Why they gave control to two directors without having a good architect/showrunner is beyond me. I know the original trilogy had multiple directors, but those directors had an adult in the room to control the overarching narrative.

Great video! Han appearing as a "memory" in that final shot of Ghosts Luke and Leia is definitely an interesting idea. One thing that's struck me about that scene, though, is... shouldn't Rey be burying the sabers on Naboo? She spent more canonical time with Leia than Luke, and seemed to be closer to her, and Leia doubtless had fonder memories of Naboo than Luke ever did of Tatooine. Also, given that Naboo is far greener than Tatooine, ending the movie in a lush garden or pleasant woods could have been a nice visual callback to the Original Trilogy starting with a battle on a sterile spaceship, but ending in a redwood forest. But, nooo, gotta go back to that Tunisia location for that Binary... uh, Sunrise. Finally, and ending scene on Naboo could have also served to introduce Rey to her new Jedi Apprentice... Lak-Lak Binks, granddaughter of a certain one-time substitute galactic senator, who would of course make one final appearance himself in the process. It'd have been like poetry; it would have rhymed!

Please forgive my commenting without watching yet; I plan on savoring it (projected!) on the big screen tonight. I've been wondering recently if the Sequel Trilogy should have led to a big ol' continuity reset. Start with could have retained the basic premise of the galaxy having going to poodoo since RotJ, albeit not with such a blatant rehash of the OT. The Classic Trio would still be struggling against the villains, but they're old, injured, and all but defeated. In the third/ninth episode, they learn the villain has a plan to go back in time and conquer all of history, and the trilogy ends with Rey and Finn winding up on Endor just as the victory celebration is winding down, and meeting a freshly recast Classic Trio. "Who are you?" Young Luke says; credits. Okay, I now realize I basically just rehashed X-Men: Days of Future Past here, with a dash of Star Trek '09, but hey, go with what works! This could have led into a new timeline in which the Classic Trio are still in their prime, while also giving the classic cast one last triumphant hurrah. Hacky and formulaic? Maybe, but these are fairy tales inspired by silly movie serials, so I don't see that as an inherently bad thing.

You make a lot of great points. Also, I'm so tired of being forced to see our 'heroes' beaten down and in the dumps all the time. I don't want to see them struggle with themselves as much as I want to see them step up and inspire the next generation of heroes. I would have loved to see them separated by circumstances, but still on the same page, fighting the bad guys, and finally being reunited near the end.

I was also thinking of Pacino and De Niro having scenes together in Heat. The buildup with them apart really makes their two scenes electrifying when they finally happen. More recently Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer in Top Gun Maverick. I think that was my favorite scene in the movie. With the sequel trilogy it just feels like a mystery box disaster. I don’t personally count that as canon and look forward to the AI version that gets it right.

Great point about the baton-passers not having a character arc!