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stlgeekgirl · 4 years

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My Star Wars Discourse

It’s been a week since I’ve seen TRoS and the majority of the people have seen it, I’ve read theory upon theory and criticism, upon criticism from both sides of the aisle, ironically all of them are pretty much saying the same thing, just using different words.

Now, I have words. I’m one of those “rarities” on Tumblr. I was a young child when A New Hope came out in theaters. I read TESB before I saw it and it was a huge deal when my father took me to see RoTJ. I am still under the stubborn belief that the EU is still canon, no matter what anyone says. (Mara Jade is canon, dammit!) I’ve been a fan of Star Wars since the age of 10 and my fangirl squealing is usually kept between my siblings and my IRL friends.

But, because I know some people have not seen it yet, I will not only be tagging this so those blacklisting it won’t see it on their dash, I’ll also put it behind a cut. Because it might be long, and slightly ranty and nobody wants to scroll past that.

Abandon hope, ye who enter here.

Anyone who knows me knows that I’ve harbored a dislike of JJ Abrams since 2009 when he pulled his BS with the Star Trek franchise. In fact, the only reason I liked Into Darkness was because Benedict Cumberbatch was in it and even then, I was not happy with him being cast as Khan. He was a wonderful bad guy and there was a multitude of evil villains he could have brilliantly played. My favorite movie was.Beyond because Justin Lin directed it and, in my mind, that was the most “Star Trek” Star Trek movie done this century.

On to Star Wars. After my anger with the first franchise, the first thing I said when I heard Abrams was doing Star Wars was “if he fucks this up, I will appear at his house with a pitchfork”

First, I liked Episode 7,8 and 9. Truly, I did. There were things I didn’t like about then, but all in all, I did like the overarching theme of family and making your own that was tied in with the usual Good vs. Evil that is Star Wars. I loved the First Order and it’s resemblance to what the Empire used to be. Someone wrote that in the Star Ward universe, the Empire represented Nazism and the First Order represented the Alt-Right. I think that is a perfect example and one that gives us hope. If rebels can defeat a powerful institution like the Empire/First Order, then it gives us hope. Which is what Star Wars was supposed to do; give us hope.

I thought Kylo Ren was the perfect foil to Darth Vader; wanting to be like the largest representation of evil in the galaxy but never quite getting the same amount of respect. The tantrums in The Force Awakens were priceless of a spoiled man child who can’t quite fit into grandpa’s black boots.

The hate/hate relationship between Kylo and Hux was both creepy and laughable and I found myself truly upset when he was killed with so little afterthought.

The theme of good vs evil and the lure of the dark side that happened between Kylo and Rey throughout the last three movies was well done. Well done in the theme of the seductive tricks evil uses to make a person turn.

Now the things I had issues with:

I am not a Reylo shipper. But I know people I am friends with are and the entire YSINMSATOK rule is still in effect. I thought the thing between Kylo and Rey was abusive and manipulative and it reeked of evil seducing good in order to corrupt. That said, I did like the thing between Ben and Rey. And I have to admit, whatever my thoughts on Adam Driver, the man is a phenomenal actor. by just facial expressions you could see the transformation from Kylo Ren to Ben Solo and it was powerful.

I understood that for someone to come back from years in the Dark Side, a sacrifice must be made. Anakin did it and so did Ben. It was true to the story and there was no other way.

I also want to say that Stormpilot should have absolutely been a thing. An actual canon thing. I’ll even venture so far as to say that not only should Stormpilot have been a thing but so should FinnPoeRey. (I’m not sure what that ship name is, forgive me). As much as I adore Vinette Robinson and smiled when I saw that “the gay kiss” was two women, they absolutely could have and should have made that reunion scene more between Poe and Finn.

I liked Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi and I am annoyed at Abrams’ “retconning” as much as he could. If he had a vision, he should’ve stayed with all three. Johnson’s TLJ felt like Star Wars and the scene where Kylo turned his back on Rey was powerful as hell. He had a choice and he made the wrong one, which made his redemption/sacrifice in TRoS even more important.

I absolutely hate this phrase but Rose Tico absolutely deserved better. She deserved more than to be an unwitting romantic foil for Finn in TLJ and because of that, she was sorely unused in TRoS. Her character was so much more in TRoS and yet she was hardly in it.

I’ve seen people tell me that they didn’t like her character because she wasn’t really much in TLJ and therefore they couldn’t see where she could even be placed in TRoS. To those people, I offer this: Dominic Monaghan. This person, who’d never even been in a Star Wars movie until this one was given the role that Kelly Marie Tran should’ve had, Instead of being regulated to one-liners and afterthoughts, she could’ve absolutely been placed in the staring role as arguing against Finn and Poe instead of Kin. No offense to Monaghan, who had the honor of playing in a Star Wars movie, but there was literally no reason for Kin to be in this movie other than Abrams needed another white male to shine out and, I’ll say it, racism and misogyny. Rose “got in the way” of Stormpilot (which, BTW, I have not heard any backlash against Keri Russell’s Zorii Bliss) and therefore she became a casualty of fandom and a director who pulled the equivalent of Lucas insisting “Greedo shot first” with his retconning.

Do not take this to mean that I ship it. Rose Tico was supposed to be “us”. She was used incorrectly and FinnRose would’ve been horrible. The ship was forced and therefore it didn’t work...at all. Rose was so much better as one of General Organa’s army and she should have been used as such in TRoS. In her meager parts, Rose shows knowledge and an eagerness to the Resistance that far surpasses anyone other than the main three.

If there is a disagreement, take a good hard look at your argument.

There’s probably more I can touch on but this is already much too long. Usually, I don’t discuss my Star Wars love in so much depth but as this is an end of an era, I could no longer sit idly by without finally putting my 0.02 in. I know there will be people who hate me for this and to them, I saw...*shrug*

#star wars #spoilers #the rise of skywalker #fan discourse #fan wank #Star Wars Universe #SWU #tros spoilers #if I missed a tag #let me know

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iabsolutelyresentthiswebsite · 6 years

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The Last Jedi Sin #5

I just talked about how Rey’s character was completely inconsistent a little bit ago, so let’s go with another Rey-centric Sin.

Well, here it is, guys. I know you were waiting for it...at least, just a little.

5. The Parentage Reveal-???

It’s been about 3 days since the worldwide release of The Last Jedi and about 6 days since the embargo on spoilers has been lifted, so if you don’t already know who her parents- allegedly- are, STOP READING NOW.

So, her parents are nobodies, junkers who sold their daughter for drinking money.

Gonna have to stop you right there.

What?

Like, I get what you’re going for. You’re trying to say like, “You don’t have to be a Skywalker or anyone important to be strong in the Force. The Force is for everyone. Anyone can have it.” Blah blah blah blah blah.

See, I’m one of those people who has always believed that. I’m actually someone who believes that The Force knows when the balance is really out of whack and will help to fix it by endowing more and more people with the Force in order to help balance itself. It’s a nice concept. I don’t know if that’s supported by canon, but that’s not the point of this post.

I believe anyone can have The Force and be strong in it.

But Rey is not a nobody...I’m so sorry.

Having her be a nobody is completely unsupported by TFA and Marketing.

Why the hell was there such a hype over her lineage?

Of course it was perpetuated by fans because we love the mystery, but if it really didn’t fucking matter who her parents were, y’all could have downplayed it. But y’all played into the hype like nobody’s business. It was made so important that we know who her parents were that literally almost everyone was convinced she had to have been someone’s daughter or granddaughter.

The most popular fan theory was that she was the daughter of Luke Skywalker because *chokes* IT WAS THE ONLY LOGICAL DEDUCTION FROM THE FORCE AWAKENS.

All the parallels made between her and Luke/Anakin, all the same visuals, being a great pilot inexplicably, being really strong in The Force, being thrown into a world they weren’t really ready for, the Skywalker Legacy Lightsaber calling to her, what she wore, how she carried herself, literally everything in TFA pointed her to being connected to Luke in more than just a future Master-Padawan relationship.

But it was HYPED. It was HARPED UPON that we KNOW. The actors were not contractually allowed to say JACK DIDDLY SQUAT about it.

Why would it matter if she wasn’t Luke’s daughter or connected to someone otherwise important?

If she truly is a nobody, the storytelling in TFA, the reused visual representations, the marketing, making the actors keep the information on lock like they did, is completely all for naught, utter shit, misdirection, and proves that TFA was a rehashing of A New Hope.

But assssssiiiiide from all that truth, let’s talk about how it was revealed to her.

It was shoe-horned the fuck in there like nobody’s business.

Kylo just saying, “You know the truth. Say it.” (What is this, Twilight?)

“Your parents were nobody. They were junkers who sold their daughter for drinking money. Dead somewhere in the sands of Jakku. You might be nothing, nobody, but you’re not nothing to me.” - Something to that effect.

Like...there was almost no build-up to it, except that Kylo said he “saw her parents” and her in the water mirror cave thingy, where The Dark Side...rEfUsED to show her her parents. Like...that’s suspect.

Watching the movie, that reveal that fans have been literally waiting 2 years for felt like it was an after-thought. Like Rian was like, “we gotta answer this question”. “But where?” and he’s like, “Shit IDK, let Kylo tell her something.”

Also, it felt as if Kylo was being dishonest with her. A lot of people are unsatisfied with this answer because it felt completely wrong and was completely unsupported by everything leading up to this movie. A Lot of people, in fact, think that he was lying to her to make her angry and more willing to join him on the Dark Side. Being a nobody relieves her of many of her perceived obligations, doesn’t it?

I, for one, hope JJ retcons that bullshit choice because it is wrong for this narrative and completely delegitimizes The Force Awakens for what it did establish.

Why the hell was there a scene where 4-year-old Rey was being left behind and her parents, or caretakers, were flying off in a ship...off the planet?! What the hell does this flashback mean now?!

We all know it.

Also, y’all really expect me to buy her not being a Skywalker when on two separate occasions, when Kylo Ren, a confirmed Skywalker kin, and Rey of Jakku, an alleged nobody, fought over the Skywalker Legacy Lightsaber, it- first- chose Rey over Kylo and second, couldn’t fucking choose and snapped in half! You expect me to believe she is just a nobody?!

Moreover, making her a nobody is actually a little insulting to her character because a lot of her pain stems from her family abandoning her. That she will never be able to face the people who caused her this kind of pain, not be able to reconcile with them, never meet them or see their face, having Kylo off-handedly reveal this incredibly unsatisfying information...seriously?!

Y’all built her up to be a somebody, related to somebody, and literally cut her down with no explanation and no justification, when there was no evidence of her ever being a nobody.

Part of a director’s job is to put hints in there so that audience can discover the answers to questions they have before it’s actually revealed and many did, so this “Rey Nobody” shit is completely out of left field.

I just...don’t fucking buy Kylo’s story.

And I don’t buy it because y’all made me not buy it with everything you showed us in the movie, everything you said, everything she said and did. It doesn’t make sense.

This is a sin because it’s bad storytelling, bad writing, a bad choice, makes no sense, is completely unsupported by everything leading up to the movie, and is a lazy, cop-out that...little do they know...actually requires more exposition for fans to understand.

I don’t understand why they did this and I never will.

#the last jedi sins #tlj hate #rey skywalker #tlj spoilers #rey nobody

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sheikah · 7 years

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7.01 Thoughts

Watching the premiere last night was so much fun, you guys! I loved it and don’t have any complaints to make. So far it seems like 1. the leaks are probably real and 2. they did not do the season justice. I think this is going to be an epic story, maybe our best season yet! I have a lot to say so I’m putting it under the cut.

So from the outset I absolutely loved the opener with Arya and the Freys. It was really clever how there were small hints of it really being Arya in his overall demeanor and the way David Bradley approached the scene. And the “proper wine for proper lords” line reminded me of when Arya insisted to Tywin Lannister that her parents taught her to “talk proper.”

The big reveal and her declaration that “The North remembers, and Winter came for House Frey” gave me instant chills and I LOVED it. It does worry me a tiny bit though, if I’m honest. At Con of Thrones I sat on a panel about the women in Westeros and when one of the speakers asked the audience if Arya is “too far gone,” almost everyone raised their hand in agreement. I was LIVID and scandalized and couldn’t have disagreed more. But we are starting to see a more ruthless side to her.

Don’t get me wrong--revenge narratives are my absolute favorite thing in the world and I was CHEERING when those Freys died. And from what Arya said to them, they all played an actual role in the RW and aren’t innocent. But at the same time, when she came upon those Lannister soldiers she was looking at their weapons and seemingly planning a way to kill them at first. And that makes me sad. I want her to be in a place where she can trust again. She deserves it, and seeing her laugh with them was one of my favorite moments in the episode.

Speaking of those Lannister soldiers, what an unexpected treat! Starting with BotB last year, I really feel like the show is doing a better job of reflecting the harsh realities of war, and one of those realities is that not everyone on the opposing side is evil. War is full of all kinds of people and the way it destroys so many lives, even those of good people, is part of what makes it so awful.

Sure, Ed Sheeran’s derpy face out of nowhere was funny for a second, but this scene was moving (at least to me) and clearly it moved Arya, too, who we can assume was finding common ground with these men, especially the one who mentioned love between a father and daughter. As sweet and wholesome (who would have thought I’d be using those adjectives in a GoT recap?!) as this scene was, I do think it hints at a darker future for these men. We might see them dead on the battlefield against Dany’s army in the very near future, and I dread that.

We didn’t get much from Bran and Meera but I was glad to at least see them. I got a chuckle out of Edd asking for proof that Bran is truly a Stark, and instead of providing real proof he just says some cryptic and broody stuff about Winter and Edd is like, “Yep. Kin of Jon Snow for sure.”

Speaking of Jon, I loved the scenes in Winterfell. They were surprisingly tense but also offered moments of humor and warmth. The Jon and Sansa face-off was interesting because I can see both sides of the argument.

But I found it odd that she brought up Robb, who took the opposite approach to Jon’s when it comes to handling Karstark treachery by beheading their lord. So by contrast I think Jon’s level-headedness is smart and fitting in this scenario.

If there weren’t ice zombies marching South then perhaps the Starks could afford to hold their allies at arm’s length or hurt some feelings by punishing the Karstarks and Umbers. But as things stand they need a united North to face the WW and Jon made the right call. I feel like this was confirmed when Ned Umber was revealed to be a small child younger than Rickon. Rendering him homeless in the middle of Winter isn’t justice.

I also really like that Jon is making it a point to have the women train for the war as well. Women need to be able to defend themselves just as much as men, and of course I loved how this moment gave Lyanna a chance to shine. It was my understanding that Mormont women already trained in fighting to some extent but I’m excited to see what Jon’s new policies mean for the future. And when Lyanna was setting Lord Glover straight, Brienne looked SO PROUD of that fiery little future warrior woman and I was LIVING.

Anyway, overall I enjoyed getting a glimpse of Jon’s ruling strategy which so far seems really solid. And KING Jon is the sexiest thing that I have ever seen in my life. The maester calling Jon “Your Grace” almost killed me. Things are only going to get better from here :)

Also in Winterfell I loved seeing Sansa sass Littlefinger into silence, which I didn’t even know was possible. It was hilarious and savage and I love her spirit and snark so much. It’s good to see that even though D&D are trying to trick us into thinking that dark!Sansa or Stark Bowl is happening, the reality is that Sansa is not even remotely fooled by LF and is only arguing with Jon to voice her opinion--as she should.

The Brienne and Tormund shippy moment was hilarious and a good way to break the tension of the previous scene. It was cute how Brienne was just training with Pod calmly and normally until Tormund arrived and then since she can’t handle feelings she just turned it up to eleven and basically beat the hell out of poor Pod hahaha. It seems some scenes with them were cut but I am excited to see where it goes from here, even though in my heart I ship Jaime x Brienne.

Speaking of Jaime his conversation with Cersei was deliciously awkward. I loved when she asked him if he was afraid of her and he responded, “Should I be?” That’s the question on all our minds, Jaime. Well actually I want to know if SHE should be afraid of YOU, Mr. Valonqar ;)

This scene was very interesting to me as someone who is looking forward to the Jon/Dany pairing because Cersei emphasizing that she and Jaime are the last Lannisters who are poised to start a dynasty parallels how Jon and Dany, the last Targaryens, will soon be in a similar position. But while one pairing represents fear and oppression the other represents hope for a better and more progressive future for the realm.

I also think that that conversation revealed how far Cersei has slipped in terms of her sanity. She called her son a traitor for killing himself. Not good. Not good at all. But at the same time this conversation also foreshadows Cersei’s potential pregnancy with another heir. If that plays out, it will be interesting to see how it effects her schemes and Jaime’s perception of her.

Their meeting with Euron was much funnier and more interesting than I expected. First and foremost I just want to establish that I really enjoyed Euron’s sexy trash pirate outfit haha. He looked great. And the humor he brought to his villainy was reminiscent of Ramsay, who I will honestly miss on the show. So I’m glad to see that he will be as scene-stealing and maniacal as I’d hoped. Also, “two good hands” is the new pickup line for the ages lol.

The scenes of the Brotherhood were surprisingly emotional and it absolutely wrecked me to see Sandor so visibly affected by the deaths of that farmer and his daughter. I also pitied him a lot when he was looking into the fire and seemed absolutely SHOOK at what he saw there. I think of The Hound as a simple man who DID NOT sign up for a zombie war.

While there was a lot of humor in his relentless roasting of Thoros (lmao @ the “top knot” comment) the grave-digging scene showed us Sandor’s depth and continued redemption, and also hinted at a possible friendship between him and Thoros later on :)

Sam’s plot was the least interesting to me but I understand that we need to establish what his life is like at the Citadel and get some more low key scenes of him and Gilly researching to set up the big! reveals! they will give us later in the season.

The poop montage was absolutely revolting but really well done and I liked how they contrasted the shit with the soup and showed how they sort of became one and the same to poor Sam. But as gross as that was, the most disturbing part for me was Jorah reaching through the bars. For them to only show his arm, he must be looking very bad right now so I hope they hurry up and show his cure soon. The fact that even in his current plight, he is still eager for news of Dany is honestly really touching as much as I don’t ship Jorah and Dany.

Oh! and Jim Broadbent was perfect as the arch maester! I love him so much and got lots of Harry Potter feels from his voice + Sam sneaking into the restricted section of the library haha.

And of course, the last and most important plot line from this episode--Dany! I love her so very much and have waited so many years for Dany to be in Westeros. I had company over to watch the episode but still couldn’t hold back the tears when she arrived. Emilia’s face in this scene was just so intense and filled with longing and relief. I LOVE IT SO MUCH YOU GUYS OH MY GOOOODDD.

Dany in Westeros really is a game-changing event and I can’t believe we’re this blessed.

So Dragonstone itself looks beautiful and I’m glad we’re getting to see more of it than we did with Stannis. I also enjoyed the way they decided to play this scene with no dialogue. No witty quips from Tyrion or surly observations from Grey Worm, just letting the scenery and the actors’ body language carry the weight.

My favorite moment was Dany walking up to the throne, the throne of Aegon I himself, something she’s been dreaming about for years, and WALKING RIGHT BY IT, instead focusing her attention on the sort of council chamber where she and her companions will work together as a TEAM. Because as much as people try to tear her down, at heart Dany is a team player who is growing and changing and I am so excited to see where her story goes from here.

Lastly, as a Jonerys shipper, I think this bolder, more assertive Jon is someone who Dany will be instantly intrigued by. I also think that the peek at the next episode and the line delivered to Jon about not trusting Targaryens is going to set up an interesting dynamic for their relationship. Because Jon isn’t going to listen to that person and automatically distrust Dany based on her Targaryen heritage. His actions this episode should be final proof that he isn’t going to judge someone for the sins of their father.

But I do think that both of them having such strong ideals and ideas of how to approach repairing the realm at this moment in the narrative, when Dany probably hasn’t even heard of WW, is going to cause some friction. They will challenge one another at first. But as the season progresses I think they’re going to find like-minded allies in each other and it’s going to be a beautiful partnership to watch :’) Overall I loved this episode so, so much and can’t wait for next week, and of course episode three. A Jonerys meeting!

If you’ve read this far, thanks for caring about my thoughts haha. What did you think about this episode and what do you hope to see moving forward?

#game of thrones #got #jonerys #got spoilers #ep1 spoilers

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