#Support Rose Tico

[casp1an-sea]

Problems I have with Sequels characters

(these are just my opinions You are entitled to your own.)

this post was so long I hit the post to limit. So rather than making multiple posts, I’m just going to insert screenshots.

Han Solo:

Leia Organa:

Luke Skywalker:

Finn:

Poe Dameron and Rose Tico:

Captain Phasma:

Armitage Hux:

also, I forgot to include this, but I think it’s funny that Kylo, Hux, And Phasma are like supposed to be the scary villain trio, but they rarely show anything to support this, and two of the three are shown as jokes way too often to be taken seriously. I would love if they went this direction but they really dropped the ball. The three of them barely all interact at the same time.

Snoke and Sheev Palpatine:

Kylo Ren:

Rey (just Rey):

wow Rey had a hole four photos what a surprise

Gay Representation:

[kitkatopinions]

TW: Sucide, toxic relationship, slavery, abuser and victim

My biggest pet peeve with stans regardless of the fandom they are in is always "you would've like female character if they were a man" No. Just stop.

If you want the biggest example of everyone hating on a male character even if they swap genders is none other than GOT Jeffrey.

That spoiled brat has no irredeemable qualities he's just a spoiled stuck up brat who everyone cheered when he died.

HOWEVER im not saying that there ISNT any misogyny towards female character/villains because no matter what fandom you are in there will be misogyny most towards fandom that has a large male fanbase (example Star Wars, Star Trek, Game of Thrones, Assassin's Creed, etc.)

Having a valid reason to hate a female character/villain is NOT misogyny. I hate Neo because the shows wants us to feel sorry for her because she didn't know what to do after Roman's death but are we forgetting an episode ago she DROVE RUBY TO SUCIDE USING PEOPLE SHE KNOW and then she redeemed herself by killing Cat?

FUCK THAT!

Regardless if Neo was a male anyone who drove someone to sucide will never be liked by me or anyone else.

Here's another one Leonora from Castlevanina is hated because she made Hector a slave and saw him as a pet yet she started to develop feelings for him the more time she spent with him. And many people are disgusted because 1) she enslaved Hector and then develop have feelings and 2) because of the obvious power imbalance/relationship of the abuser and victim.

If a character has a trait that triggers the audience or they don't like them for any actions then they can have a reason why they dislike not. I have many female characters that I hate with valid criticism just how much I hate male characters for that same reason.

Yeah, here's the thing, if I actually thought that anti-rwde posters were honestly concerned about misogyny, I would be very sympathetic.

Every single time a piece of media so much as passes the Bechdol test or has a woman that never wears a bikini, there are a bunch of misogynistic idiots and dudebros who hate it or those women. And in the modern day, only hardcore Trump supporters are out here out and out saying that they hate women and are misogynists and that's why they hate whatever it is they're ranting against. People do very much so use perfectly valid (or not so valid) "real criticisms" because they don't want to say the honest truth, or because they themselves wouldn't recognize their own misogyny. Recognizing that just because someone SAYS they hate a female character because of an action that they did doesn't mean they're not a misogynist is kind of important. The guys who harassed the actress of Rose Tico off of Twitter all hid behind 'valid reasons' for their criticism too.

But here's the thing:

1. It's important to be able to figure out what is and isn't actually a sign of misogyny. There's not a precise rule, but you can do things like see if the thing they hate is an exception or the rule, or see if they're hypocritical about their reasons, or see what kind of language people use. If they come around with "brat" "bitch" "cunt" for female characters, that's a red flag at best!! But yeah, ANY criticism of that kind of thing isn't automatically misogynistic. It's like yeah, a bunch of misogynists hated Taurial in the Hobbit because she's a woman and yes they disguised that by claiming it was for other reasons, but there ARE very valid criticisms and complaints about Taurial and you have to be willing to hear out those things instead if just blanket assigning 'misogyny.' Lots of things from Arcane to something as bad as Twilight has perfectly valid haters that are fine, and then also a bunch of misogynists that are going to pretend or really think they have valid reasons. Somone being unable to tell the two apart probably means that person is too close to the situation and too defensive, but these critics don't want to admit that maybe they're wrong.

2. If this was something like Steven Universe, then the defensiveness would make more sense. If it were a well written slow burn with a cast of characters with well rounded dynamics that the writers put work into and the show was about rebels trying to fight the system for a peaceful life and the show had never sexualized the women and there was hard-fought for groundbreaking queer rep and it was created by a Jewish bisexual non-binary woman, and there were mistakes and valid criticisms of the series, but also a lot of unjustified venom of nothing but bad-faith... Then we'd be having a different conversation. Instead it's a show about badge-carrying law enforcement officers, who fight the evil civil rights group from upsetting the status quo, in a show that has tons of things just 'happen off screen,' with a history of sexualizing some of the main female characters, that only recently confirmed any main character as queer years behind the curve, and that was created by and mostly written for by a bunch of straight cis men most of them having said or done misogynistic things. Anti-rwde posters like to pretend that there's no reason why a great completely non-problematic misunderstood stand-up show like RWBY made with love by the totally not at all a part of RT "CRWBY" should be hated, and therefore it must be because of misogyny, but they aren't living in reality.

3. Most anti-rwde posters actually don't really care about misogyny and they aren't actually basing this on - for lack of a better word - good faith. They don't care about Jaune harem fics or the fanarts of RWBY girls with giant breasts in bikinis, and they don't call out the writers or even RT for their bigotry, and they have quite literally Trump supporters that post anti-rwde stuff, but none of that matters. Instead they spend their time harassing a group of mostly queer women for *checks notes* criticizing a show written by mostly men.

So yeah. I've seen misogyny in rwde posters tbh, and I don't think that "I have valid reasons for disliking them" is always proof that there isn't misogyny at play, but the anti-rwde accusations are nothing, because not only are they blind to the flaws of the show and the writers and are unable to recognize the difference between misogyny and just criticism, but also they're only using these accusations as a screen anyway, because they only ever go after rwde posters with it and are unwilling to call out the blatant misogyny in the rest of the fandom, in the show, or in the writers room. I would take this seriously if I thought this was an actual concern of theirs, but it isn't. They don't actually care about misogyny, they just want their show to be above criticism.

(By the way, I've never seen Game of Thrones or Castlevania so I can't speak to it, and also I like Neo a lot lol. XD Personally for me, villains doing bad things doesn't typically blacklist them for me so long as they're entertaining.)

[enkisstories]

Outtakes from Rose and Armitage Tico's wedding party

Hank was the first to say a toast. Or the first to grab a glass, depending on how you want to look at it.

Poe was moved to tears.

Ever since D'Qar Hux had hoped to see his nemesis cry, who'd known he'd succeed four years later, and by marrying?

BB-8 wants you all to know that he's the babysitter, not the big brother. Stop with the ginger jokes already!

Narrator: They didn't, in fact, stop.

Poe and Masir armlocked (and probably tipsy). He sure likes his First Order men!

Gavin: "But can you also do THIS, Poe?"

I love how Gavin and Danny can eat symetrically because of their different handedness!

A song for the newlyweds!

Poe was actually the first to support this pairing, back when he flirted with Rose to make Hux realize that he cared for her.

And, uh... You seem to enjoy yourself, Amilyn?

She comes across as so correct and guarded in the movie, but her sims version is way closer to the eccentric Amilyn from the extended material!

(Sims wearing different outfits like Amilyn switching from her blue dress to the brown one is due to these screenshots being from three different events: the actual wedding, a fireworks party right after and the first wedding attempt that was glitched.)

[pb-dot]

Film Friday: The Last Jedi

Oooooooooooh boy. I would say I have a complicated relationship with Star Wars as a franchise, but from what I hear from other fans I've discussed this with, that's normal and, on some level, inevitable. Star Wars is sometimes good, sometimes bad, and almost always a mix of the two. It's a part of the formula at this point, every bit as much as light sabers and obscure space religion magic. That said, there is one Star Wars movie that holds a special place in my heart, and I want to talk about it and what it did to the franchise, or at least tried to do before the Franchise Management people over at the house of mouse got scared and released a feature-length breaking maneuver of a film, but that's just something that happens some times. Let's get on with The Last Jedi.

As so often is the case in second installments, the war isn't quite going the rebellion's way, and at the start of the movie our heroes are caught in a chase to save what little of the rebellion remains. In an attempt to turn the tides, Rey seeks out the council of legendary Jedi Luke Skywalker, while Finn, Poe and newly recruited mainliner Rose Tico attempt to find a way to circumvent the First Order's tracking to beat the chase.

Of course, things don't turn out quite that way. Luke is quite reluctant to get back into the "anything to do with the force"-business, and Finn, Rose and Poe find more than trouble navigating conflicting loyalties and First Order Infrastructure. It's a very "part two in the triology" kind of thing as our heroes fail, are tempted by both craven panic and the dark side, and learn the kind of lesson that, while necessary, doesn't feel all that good.

To briefly sum up the parts I don't like as much about this movie: the pacing is a bit janky, and while I think the Canto Bight sequence is good thematically, it does feel like it prolongs a part of the plot that could be better served with less space travel. It's also a bit frustrating that a major driver of the Canto Bight/pursuit plot is two pivotal supporting characters not telling the main characters things. Sure, it can be justified, but it feels frustrating to sit through on the second watch-through. Also I can't quite decide if the movie tries to set up Finn with Rose, or if we're supposed to be as baffled about that development as Finn apparently is?

Ok, now with those annoyances out of the way, WOW does this movie do some great stuff. The Rey/Luke subplot alone has so much dynamite about mentoring, learning, and growing past mistakes. Luke has spent the last... what, 10, 20 years trying to be forgotten because he doesn't consider himself worthy of being a legendary hero, having failed Ben Solo/Kylo Ren so thoroughly. Through Rey's earnest, and insistent, enthusiasm for his legend he comes to realize that whether he wants to acknowledge it or not, the consequences of his actions are out there, and if he really wants to make amends, he has to confront these consequences. It's one hell of a storyline and development to play out, and Mark Hamil does some career-best work in putting it out there.

There isn't really a good place to put this bit into the structure I wrote, but as I went through to edit this thing I remembered that I forgot to talk about the Holdo Manuever. This bit is apparently a bit controversial among the Military Logistics Of The Galaxy Far Far Away-crowd, but I fucking love it. For one, it's a twist I didn't see coming that also works just about perfectly even on re-watches, and secondly, just look at the thing. This action setpiece was nothing short of awe-inspiring. Letting physics, at least as much of physics as one can count on when dealing with FTL, do the heavy lifting in a pivotal moment feels like an inspiring choice, and again, look at it!

This movie's also I think the most sensible of the Star Wars movies when it comes to the internal politics of the villain faction, in that the interplay between familiar autocratic forms of leadership, fascism to be precise, and the obscure space magic mysticism of the Force makes for some tasty plot threads. For one, Snoke is so secure that he, alone, will be the first dark side user to not be utterly fucked over by his sole apprentice on account of his mind reading ability that he seemingly ignores the possibility of Kylo Ren learning about the concept of meta-cognition, and gets chopped all the way in half for his hubris. One of the easiest way to get couped, after all, is to believe it could never happen to you for X Y or Z reason.

And then there's Hux. Ah, the fashy wet beast of a man that is Admiral Hugs. His is a thankless job, screaming about nonspecific degeneracy and nonspecific order and getting just absolutely bodied by the dark force users of the First Order on any and all occasions. Granted, the man is the military leader of a wannabe empire whose main business is military, but that doesn't matter much. Poe dunks on him, Kylo and Snoke treat him like a puppet at best, and even when the death of Snoke might suggest a promotion, oop, no, guess what, Kylo Ren's still there and while he doesn't proclaim himself Master or anything, he certainly makes a compelling argument for him succeeding the throne of Supreme Leader. Sucks to suck, Hugs, shouldn't have subscribed to an ideology based on strength alone.

Rey's attempt at navigating the force and her identity is also fascinating to watch. The mystery of who she is exactly is an interesting driving force to the whole character arc. While I concede the point that this is in part because Lineage and Pedigree is like catnip to Star Wars fans to a worrying degree, it's also just compelling. Part of finding out who you are is, after all, a part of finding out where you came from, and in the ways you are different and similar to that origin is as good of a guide as any. With that said, it was an immense relief to me that Rey wasn't related to anyone important in the Star Wars Lore, if only because it opens up her plot so much. If she falls to the Dark Side it's because she falls to the dark side, not because she's a sapling from a line of part Force-homonculi like the Skywalkers, or like a quarter Darth Andeddu on her Mother's Side or whatever. Granted, Rey From Nowhere in particular was retconned in the following movie, and I'll GET to that. In the context of this movie at time of release though, it felt like a breath of fresh air.

It felt like an attempt to start something new. Maybe not every important character in the world is related to every other important character. Maybe the galaxy far far away is more vivid and exciting than it ever could be playing out some kind of extended Arthurian family saga. Maybe the first order is a threat not so much because they want to kill our Skywalkers, but because they're a massive conquering beast flattening culture and exploiting those they consider lesser, which is to say everyone. Maybe the stable boy is force sensitive. Maybe that'll matter, maybe that'll just be a little coda demonstrating that The Force isn't strictly a Palpatine/Skywalker family secret.

Speaking of though, let's talk about Kylo Ren some. I love Kylo Ren as a villain. He clearly styled himself on his grandpappy Anakin Skywalker, and the fact that the result is such a store brand thematic mockery is just perfect. Darth Vader didn't dress up like that because it was cool (at least in the Watsonian sense, in the Doylist sense he very much did), he's covered in all of that armor because it's his life support system. His unnerving hissing breath is his respirator chugging along. He is incredibly powerful in the force, yes, but his body is a mess, and it's a tribute to his strength in the Force that it's not a thing you notice as he takes you apart. Vader's armor is more than his armor, it's his prison, keeping him alive, bound to the Empire and the Dark Side in more ways than one. Kylo's armor looks that way because it's meant to evoke Darth Vader. Kylo doesn't need it, he just thinks it lets him be more like his grandfather. He's cosplaying, in practice, and no level of sulky angy boy antics can come close to projecting the sheer weight of Anakin's fallen splendor, which of course, only makes Kylo angrier. This is a compelling mirror to Rey in this movie IMO. Rey does not have Kylo's legacy, which makes her free in a way Kylo could never be, although Rey would probably switch in a heartbeat if she had the chance.

It's this kind of entangled conflict that makes the Rey-Kylo interplay so fascinating. Rey believes in the good in Kylo because That's What The Hero Does, but Kylo is so tied up in being Taster's Choice Darth Vader that she just doesn't get through the aura of angsty rage that surrounds him. They're not quite enemies, but far from friends, thus my choice of word "entangled." It's a pretty fun dynamic to see, and it leads to what I think is one of the better fight scenes of the sequel trilogy where Rey and Kylo are, however briefly, allies of convenience and fight through Snoke's Throne Guard. It's a rad fight because we haven't gotten too many "light sabers vs multiple semi-worthy opponents" in the main series, and because it's just so cool to see non-allies on the same side.

I suppose I have postponed talking about this movie's legacy as long as I can. It's not a task I cherish for two reasons, one, I find the current fandom focus on legacy utterly exhausting, and two, I feel this movie in particular was done dirty by its sequel, to the degree where I didn't even want to touch Star Wars for quite some time after it released.

In short, I would argue that just about every cool bit of The Last Jedi was clumsily retconned or just written out in Rise Of Skywalker. Rey from Nowhere? Gone, turns out she's Sheev "I've been dead for three movies except Sike" Palpatine's granddaughter and Kylo "I never lied to you" Ren was full of shit when he confirmed that her parents were nothing special. The power struggle between Hux and Kylo? Absolutely demolished. Sheev's back and he's brought his own Disappointing Generic Empire Guy to lead, so it's arguably not even the First Order any more. Rose Tico as a kind of Working Class conscience for the Adventure Crew? She's just kind of around and has exactly as many lines as it takes to not formally be an extra. Fuck me, if that movie managed to somehow convince me that cool Rey and Kylo fight didn't happen it'd be batting a thousand as far as ruining good shit from TLJ. Oh, and of course Finn and Poe get Plausible Deniability Girlfriends, because fuck you if you're finnpoe, right?

Anyway, this is not a review of Rise Of Skywalker, but it kind of impossible to speak of all the cool shit TLJ tried to do without acknowledging that these were very much The Road Not Taken. It's also important context to my current relationship with Star Wars. Put simply, I've lost faith. Why even bother participating in any further Star Wars media? I've clearly seen the Only Good Story Possible in Star Wars when I watched the original trilogy, considering how its the only story you're allowed to tell Post-Lucas, and any deviation from the same will lead to one of the biggest media companies in the world to ruin an entire feature-length film to meticulously undo anything that strays from the Star Wars Formula? How would any decent storyteller hitch themselves to a mess like this? How does it not become the miserable slog of content produced by work-a-day directors sleepwalking through Franchise Management-approved scripts, where nothing ever changes or grows, because the Star Wars Fans expect another of their semiregular reifications of three pretty good adventure/sci-fi films from the 70's, and heaven help you if you falter in your breathless reverence for The Legacy.

So while this isn't a review of Rise Of Skywalker, you can plainly see I didn't like it much. Do give The Last Jedi a look though, there's some neat scenes in it, and porgs.

[redrascal1]

Adam Driver celebrated his 40th birthday last month. And looks better than ever. Like Harrison Ford and Hugh Jackman, he's maturing like a fine wine!

Meanwhile...it will be exactly four years this month that Kylo Ren/Ben Solo faded into the Force and took my four decades plus love of the SW franchise with him.

As a woman in her fifties, I'm too old to 'fall in love' with another franchise. And I intend to avoid ANY Disney products in future, another franchise that I loved as a little girl, because they are no longer entertaining but promoting what I see as a highly toxic agenda.

The more I see of Adam's performance in the ST the more I simply cannot believe Disney did what they did to him. His outstanding portrayal of the broken Ben Solo dominated the entire trilogy. The others gave good performances but Adam was sensational - only matched by Mark Hamill in TLJ, both of them easily as good as some I've seen win Oscars - and better than some of the said winners.

The way they treated him in TROS was diabolical.

That whole mess of a film was from start to finish just a two hour plus promotion of how great Rey's character is, and how we must all WORSHIP her, as the rest of the cast did.

Unfortunately it had exactly the opposite effect on me.

I have completely lost all interest in Star Wars. I don't want to watch any of the spin offs. As for further Rey adventures to quote 'frumfrumfroo' ...you couldn't pay me to watch them. Especially if Boyega is in them after his treatment of Loan Tran and his behaviour on twitter.

His fans tediously drone on about hard done by he was in the ST, but he had far more screen time than Adam. Heck, all three of the Trio did - despite Poe and Finn being the supporting characters (no, 'J' of the JCF, Finn was not meant to be 'Black male lead' as you told me before getting me banned). Finn was conceived as a supporting player right from the start.

Adam was playing the last descendant of the OT heroes. He shouldn't have just had a major role, the entire saga should have been HIS story. Not that of a rogue stormtrooper. Not that of a Han clone pilot.

And certain not that of the daughter of a failed Palpatine clone.

Adam's behaviour has been a masterclass in dignity since aTROSity. No ranting on twitter. No moaning about hos 'hard done by' he was. Domhnall Gleeson and Loan Tran have been equally classy, with Domhnall making just one lighthearted joke about his shameful abrupt exit at the beginning of TROS(he SHOULD have been Big Bad) and Loan making no complaint over her truly racist erasure from TROS (she was a MAJOR character for crying out loud.) The three of them deserved better.

As Kylo/Ben did. As Hux did. As Rose Tico did.

As anyone who truly loved SW did.

They let every single one of us down.

And I am so very sorry for Rian Johnson, whose beautiful film was the most critically acclaimed of all three and who reacted to it's brutal retcon with good humour, joining its three stars in class.

[ruthannabelleckl]

What is Fandom?

A fandom is a community of fans who possess a mutual interest in a particular subject matter, including music, sports, video games, TV shows, and more. Fandom is unquestionably based on personal interactions that are frequently strengthened by involvement in social activities (Cooper, 2014). Currently, fandom has emerged as a very powerful and globally pervasive phenomenon. Fans can communicate on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, which further enables them to build vibrant online communities (Smutradontri & Gadavanij, 2020; Sandi & Triastuti, 2020).

Do toxic fans in some online spaces (e.g. Twitter) make it difficult to become or identify as a fan?

Toxic Fans - fans who engage in behaviours that are seen as improper and disagreeable (Taylor, 2023).

This blog will explore how toxic behaviours, like gatekeeping and cyberbullying, within online spaces may erect substantial obstacles in the way of those who want to become fans or who want to identify publicly as such.

Toxic Behaviour: Gatekeeping

One notable characteristic seen in fandoms is the manifestation of gatekeeping behaviour shown by some toxic fans. Gatekeeping involves the establishment of subjective regulations or criteria that determine one’s status as an authentic fan. This conduct may take many forms, such as testing new fans’ familiarity with a certain property or making fun of and demeaning the fans who do not fit the fanbase’s expectations (Kat, n.d.).

As celebrities like Megan Thee Stallion openly showed interest in anime after taking home three Grammys at the 63rd annual Grammy Awards, the anime community faced gatekeeping. Notwithstanding Stallion’s outspoken devotion to anime and prior partnerships, anime streaming service Crunchyroll supported her on social media. Yet a lot of gatekeepers voiced their disapproval, protesting about how anime was becoming more progressive, that the character she cosplayed was not in Black, and that Stallion was not regarded seriously as a true anime enthusiast (Trinidad, 2021).

Moreover, Kim Kardashian earlier presented her passion for anime when she dyed her hair pink, drawing inspiration from Zero Two in the anime “Darling in the Franxx”. She also encountered a good number of gatekeeper anime enthusiasts who thought she did not meet their standards and would destroy the anime scene (Trinidad, 2021).

Gatekeeping transcends individuals’ personal inclinations regarding the fandoms in which they participate. In addition to being critical, superfluous, and impolite, these remarks were discriminatory in nature because they ascribed a particular complexion to cosplayers within the anime community.

Gatekeeping is used as a means to establish authority and exclusivity inside the community. Therefore, this practice can discourage new fans from engaging or publicly declaring their position as fans (Alexander, 2022). Consequently, this phenomenon may provide difficulties for those who are new to a certain hobby, since they may encounter obstacles in gaining acceptance or recognition within the particular community.

Toxic Behaviour: Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is a common occurrence in toxic fandoms and is one of its most harmful features.

The release of  “The Last Jedi” was accompanied by a notable presence of toxic behaviour among the Star Wars fandom. Kelly Marie Tran, the actress renowned for her portrayal of the character Rose Tico, was subjected to instances of racist and sexist harassment, which ultimately led to her decision to disengage from various social media sites (Taylor, 2023).

Even those who have opposing viewpoints, question long-held beliefs, or merely belong to underrepresented groups run the risk of being the subject of unrelenting online harassment. If a prospective fan’s viewpoints diverge from those of the fandom’s leading speakers, they may fear rejection or mockery. They may be reluctant to publicly show their admiration or interest in the topic because of the concern of being unfit. This behaviour not only pushes away prospective new followers but also has the ability to scare away current fans, who may begin to feel unsafe or uncomfortable in an environment that they previously liked.

Fan identification is an influential means of self-expression, but the toxic fandom environment can make this process susceptible. Some people may feel that embracing a fandom entails taking a chance of having potential cyberbullying, which may cause them to restrict themselves and be reluctant to interact with others within communities. This can eventually impede the pursuit and expression of personal interests as a fan.

In conclusion, it is indisputable that the presence of toxic fan culture inside online platforms may create difficulties for individuals in fully embracing or identifying themselves as fans. The presence of toxic behaviours, such as gatekeeping, and cyberbullying, has the potential to create an inhospitable atmosphere for both new fans and existing fans. These behaviours, such as the deliberate exclusion of persons with divergent perspectives, might provide challenges for new fans seeking to assimilate into the group or openly demonstrate their enthusiasm for a certain fandom.

List of References

Alexander, I. A. (2022). Gatekeeping in fandoms is nuanced & complicated! Fans that do it often are wary of control freaks, while other less savory fans gatekeep with malicious intent!. https://omnigeekempire.com/2022/01/06/gatekeeping-in-fandoms-is-nuanced-complicated-fans-that-do-it-often-are-wary-of-control-freaks-while-other-less-savory-fans-gatekeep-with-malicious-intent/

Cooper, B. L. (2014). Understanding fandom: An introduction to the study of media fan culture. Popular Music and Society, 38(1), 109–111. https://doi.org/10.1080/03007766.2014.908524

Kat. (n.d.). Examining fandoms: Gatekeeping & labeling. https://xanister.wordpress.com/2018/11/24/examining-fandoms-gatekeeping-labeling/

Sandi, Z. A., & Triastuti, E. (2020). Fandom as a reward industry in Indonesia: Pleasures in pop music fan engagement and participation within online social networking. SEARCH Journal of Media and Communication Research, 12(2), 73–89. https://scholar.ui.ac.id/en/publications/fandom-as-a-reward-industry-in-indonesia-pleasures-in-pop-music-f

Smutradontri, P., & Gadavanij, S. (2020). Fandom and identity construction: An analysis of Thai fans’ engagement with Twitter. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 7(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-020-00653-1

Taylor, V. (2023, February 1). Toxic fandom: What is it?. Medium. https://medium.com/change-becomes-you/toxic-fandom-what-is-it-c8c1520beb06#:~:text=In%20recent%20years%2C%20journalists%2C%20news,seen%20as%20inappropriate%20and%20unpleasant.

Trinidad, N. (2021). Exclusivity within fandoms creates a toxic environment. https://dailytitan.com/opinion/exclusivity-within-fandoms-creates-a-toxic-environment/article_f6a7c2d4-8d09-11eb-918c-9331db53d0ff.htm

[skylarstark4826]

I loved this love fanart with the theme of Harry Potter by Finn and Rose Tico. I thought about posting it here so you can also read it, this fanart is on Twitter.

This masterpiece by Finn and Rose is not mine. But I really loved it so I decided to upload it here so that you can also enjoy it just like me. I'm a big fan of Finn and Rose's ship. Even though they didn't become a Canon in Star Wars 9. I continue to support your boat, it is also one of my favorites. And by the way, I'm also going to leave you the link here.

[ao3feed--reylo]

To Take a Wife

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/5DAq6R3

by Hormonal_Trashbag

“The Resistance would never trust you enough to agree to negotiations,” she told him after a few minutes.

“It is fortunate, then, that I have no intention of negotiating with anyone. I will graciously offer up their General, and the Resistance will return my wife in exchange. There are no other options.”

Well, he could also kill them all and take his wife from the top of a hill of corpses…but that hardly needed being said. Besides, he was fairly certain that option wouldn’t endear him to his runaway bride. For this to be clean, he needed a fair exchange to occur.

He could see her starting to panic, her eyes darting around the corners of the small, stark room as she searched for an answer. She knew as well as Kylo did that the Resistance would do a lot to get Leia Organa back. Even sacrifice one of their own.

“Who…?” she asked at last, “Who is your wife?”

Words: 4414, Chapters: 1/2, Language: English

Fandoms: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Categories: F/M

Characters: Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey (Star Wars), Leia Organa, Finn (Star Wars), Chewbacca (Star Wars), Knights of Ren, Poe Dameron, Rose Tico, Beaumont Kin, Armitage Hux, Dopheld Mitaka

Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Kylo Ren/Rey

Additional Tags: is Kylo a reliable narrator? doubtful, the dove is on life support, emotional manipulation but he doesn't see it that way, The Resistance is Not Nice (Star Wars), Kylo might be a tad delusional, shifting into HUSBAND MODE, not very understanding but still gentle and tall, Force Bond (Star Wars), The Force, Canon Universe, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, Empress Rey (Star Wars), She doesn't have much choice, Canon-Typical Violence, prisoner exchange, Dubious Consent, She gives consent to sex but not to circumstances, Smut, Other Additional Tags to Be Added

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/5DAq6R3

[demongemz]

welcome to london, FINN/FN-2187! did anyone ever tell you that you look just like JOHN BOYEGA? well, no matter, we hear that you are 25 and working as a/an MECHANIC. we also hear that you currently DON’T HAVE your memories from STAR WARS and have a tendency to be LOYAL as well as REBELLIOUS.

DEMOGRAPHICS

Name: Finn/FN-2187 Relatives: None Occupation: Worker at Feast Birthday: 11 ABY Age: 25 Sexual Orientation: Bisexual Moral Alignment: Neutral Good Memory Status: Intact

BACKGROUND

Finn, formerly designated FN-2187 ("Eight-Seven"), was a Force-sensitive human male stormtrooper who served the First Order until his desertion and subsequent defection to the Resistance during the First Order-Resistance War. Though trained since birth to be a loyal and obedient soldier, FN-2187's conscience conflicted with the methods of the First Order. For a time he was unwilling to support the Resistance, hoping to escape the galactic conflict instead of fighting for a cause he believed was doomed to fail. As the galaxy became consumed by war, the renegade trooper was ultimately forced to decide where his true loyalties lay. Born in 11 ABY during the New Republic Era, FN-2187 was part of a new generation of stormtroopers—human children conscripted into the military forces of the First Order—modeled on the Republic clone troopers and Imperial stormtroopers of the past. He originally trained with Batch Eight before joining the FN Corps, a sub-branch of the Stormtrooper Corps, and although his potential was recognized by his commanding officers, FN-2187 lacked the ruthlessness that had become common in the ranks under the influence of Captain Phasma. In the waning days of the Cold War, he hesitated to kill civilians during his first mission and consequently decided to desert after witnessing the massacre of Tuanul. Lacking experience as a pilot, FN-2187 freed a Resistance prisoner, Commander Poe Dameron, who coined the nickname "Finn" to supplant the renegade stormtrooper's alphanumeric designation. He then sought his freedom while forming friendships with the Jakku scavenger Rey and the droid BB-8, as well as the Rebel war heroes Han Solo and Chewbacca. After the destruction of the New Republic, Finn provided the Resistance with the information they needed to destroy the First Order's superweapon, Starkiller Base. During the attack, he was defeated and nearly killed by the dark warrior Kylo Ren. Rescued by Rey and Chewbacca, Finn recuperated from his injuries, and by the time he awoke, the Resistance was forced to evacuate their base on D'Qar. Despite attempting to escape from the conflict once more, a mission with Rose Tico convinced Finn to truly join the Resistance to the extent that he nearly sacrificed his life for their cause during the Battle of Crait in 34 ABY. In 35 ABY, Finn continued assisting the Resistance by joining Rey on the quest to find the Sith wayfinder and destroy the malevolent religion once and for all, eventually becoming a general along with Poe after Leia's passing, with his first mission as a general being spent leading the ground forces during the Battle of Exegol.

[thestingerblog]

Star Wars Sequel Trilogy: A Brief Study of the Fandom Politics

Read on our site!

The Star Wars sequel trilogy itself is a mess – sure, the movies were box office hits, but in terms of everything else, it’s a sad representation of Star Wars. While the mishandling came from the corporate side, fan reception had a huge impact on the movies as well. With each new sequel trilogy movie, the fan reactions revealed more and more about fandom politics when it comes to diversity, especially those for large franchises like Star Wars and Marvel.

To provide some context, the Star Wars sequel trilogy started with The Force Awakens, which featured Daisy Ridley as Rey, the first woman main protagonist in Star Wars movies, John Boyega as Finn, the first Black lead in Star Wars, and Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron, the first Latino lead in Star Wars. In the second movie, The Last Jedi, Kelly Marie Tran was introduced as Rose Tico, the first Asian lead in Star Wars. Historically, Star Wars has never been an extremely diverse franchise, so having multiple people of color as leads in the sequel trilogy was a drastic change from the past. However, fan reactions varied as there were some fans who celebrated and happily embraced the diversity, while others resented the introduction of these new characters of color. These reactions intensified after the final movie, The Rise of Skywalker, led to people pointing out how terribly the characters of color had been handled throughout the trilogy.

Speaking personally, my reaction matched the latter – as someone who grew up watching Star Wars, I had always wished to see someone who looked like me in the movies, which is why I was excited when I saw Rose. Yet, when I went online, I found that thousands of people were harassing Kelly Marie Tran for her role, so much so that she had to delete social media. Similarly, John Boyega faced harassment from racist fans and has spoken out about facing mistreatment during his Star Wars experience. What’s more concerning about this situation is that Disney didn’t attempt to protect the actors of color from harassment. These actors had only been able to speak out about the harsh fan treatment and Disney’s mishandling after the series had concluded.

The split between the fandom as a result of the diversity in the sequel trilogy is a funhouse mirror version of the modern political scale. A large majority of people fall somewhere within the scale, and there are small but vocal conglomerates at the extreme ends of the spectrum. Vocal is an extremely important keyword to consider. Most people who watched The Last Jedi and didn’t really like Rose Tico probably weren’t writing angry comments online or making YouTube videos in their basements hating on Kelly Marie Tran, but those who did influenced why Rose Tico barely had any screentime in The Rise of Skywalker despite being a pivotal character in The Last Jedi. The main reason why for this decision, as well as every other decision Disney has made, is money. Attention from fans, whether bad or good, indicates the possible performance of the film at the box office.

This might not seem like a big deal when looking at the fandom up close and examining the individual takes on either side of the spectrum, but pulling back the lens to look at this as a whole, the fact that the reaction of a group of vocal fans can worsen the mishandling of diverse characters affects the movies that reach casual fans. While supporting actors of color and improving diverse representation in the movies might result in the loss of revenue from racist devotees, the positive social impact of supporting diverse would benefit the greater general audience, especially since Star Wars is such a large franchise that has an international reach. Especially considering how Star Wars is a story about fighting fascism and oppression, the franchise’s decision to allow oppressive ideals from scared conservatives to influence the direction of their movies is glumly ironic.

Star Wars isn’t the only franchise where the fandom has fragmented to imitate a political spectrum, but it certainly is an interesting one to study. Providing a complete analysis of the reasons why the sequel trilogy had caused such a divide within the fandom when considering diversity is a nearly impossible task, especially when considering not only the fan reactions but the cruel corporate mishandling of actors of color. While analyzing this situation involves viewing fandoms as a collective with groups that hold differing ideas, it’s also important to remember that fandoms, like countries, are composed of individuals and that certain individuals and groups are not completely representative of the fandom as a whole. Still, that doesn’t mean they do not have a quantifiable and noticeable impact on the media and its influence. It’s fruitless to urge corporations to act against their nature and consider the social impact of their decisions in media over their financial gain to add to their largely accumulated wealth due to media conglomerates, but discussing fandom politics can help everyday consumers like us consider what kind of media we’re supporting and consider how we can rally together to support diverse representation to combat the negativity spread by bigoted fans.

[jamiedc-they-them]

Star Wars OC

Marle Skywalker

Fandom: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy

Pronouns: They/Them

Short Bio: A fellow scavenger on Jakku, Rey found them and took them in as her own. Constantly trying to repay her back for her friendship and loyalty, they find themselves sucked into a galaxy wide war. But find a family within the resistance, all the while trying to repay them for their help with Marle and their struggles.

Personality: Always feels they owe people things for just general kindness. Silently struggles mentally. Loyal. Quiet. Observant. They make a good lookout and soldier, more so the former than latter. Insecure about a lot of things. Can be highly reckless.

Relationships:

Rey and Marle Skywalker

“Siblings of the Sand” are their nicknames. Rey took them in when she found them on Jakku. They became family to one another. Insanely loyal to a fault with one another. Rey always understands Marle’s mental health warnings from a mile away. Marle is always up for helping Rey, even to their own detriment. She’s trying to help them unlearn these patterns. Best friends/Siblings

Finn and Marle Skywalker

At first, Marle distrusted Finn. But, once he helped them and their sister escape the first order, they warmed out to him. He’s a really good friend and brother to Marle. Respectful, and the two are the more calm and methodical out of the quartet. Always checking plans with each other. Marle and Finn support one another through therapy and attempts to heal their past wounds. Most nights, even just sitting near some water. Sometimes meditating. Always enjoying the silent company of the other. Best friends/Siblings.

Poe Dameron and Marle Skywalker

Poe’s devil may care nature rubbed off on Marle in the wrong way. They were already reckless, but with Poe within the events of “The Last Jedi” they took badly calculated risks. This was part of why Poe grew, he didn’t want his new friend to get hurt because of him. Poe is the one who gets Marle to open up in general. Though, he knows not to push them too far, and will apologise if he does go too far. Poe is the fun older brother Marle needs. And Marle is the calm friend who he needs. Best Friends/Siblings.

Rose Tico and Marle Skywalker

Marle met Rose post “The Last Jedi” and immediately took a shine to the girl. She was kind and bubbly, though Rey did have some tension with Rose at first out of fear of being lost as a sister to Rose. Though the girl was quick to assure Rey. Rose is always encouraging Marle where she can, helping teach them things about being a mechanic and to find the beauty in things others look over. They show Rose a more creative way to express herself as well. Best Friends/Siblings

[rainofaugustsith]

Nail on the head. You also have people taking very simplistic "If you aren't with us you're against us" and "if you don't support A, you MUST support B that you have not even mentioned" points of view. I'm a SWTOR fan. The Old Republic is the universe I'm working in 99% of the time. There is no good guy there, period, IMHO. At the end of the day? I don't care what pro Jedi people are thinking. I don't care what they like. I'm choosing not to engage with them and taking a ship and let ship point of view. Not everyone has to like what I like, and all. The issue, in my mind, is when one group of fans aggressively takes it upon themselves to harass and police fans who feel differently. The issue is when they start throwing around terms like 'Nazi' to people who don't agree with them about fictional characters. The issue is when they actively lobby the developers and writers to remove or diminish characters they dislike, at the expense of both story and everyone else, as they successfully did with Rose Tico and have tried to do with Lana Beniko. The issue is when they take it another step farther and harass actors and writers of Star Wars to the point where creative people actively do not want to be involved in the franchise. All of those things are problems. They are one group of fans trying to dictate what everyone else should like and discuss, and deciding that to deviate from their exacting standard must be destroyed, and who gave them that authority? Nobody. At the end of the day the only thing one can really do is block them, filter their names on TumblrSavior, and not descend to the level of engagement with them.

I think the crux of the disconnect between Prequels era fans is that the Jedi supporters believe the Jedi are good and right, and it is on this that we should support, and the Jedi critical fans are like no one in this era is good and right, including the Jedi, and the fact that you won't admit the Jedi are wrong is driving us insane

Because frequently when Jedi supporters are arguing with me, they are dismissing the notion that the Jedi could ever do anything wrong and then bring up how awful Anakin is as a way to say I am wrong, because I support Anakin

Which I don't support Anakin????

I like him, he is an incredibly compelling character especially as someone who knows what it is like to repress your feelings and want so badly to hold onto the ones who care for you

But I don't support him, it's actually because I relate to him that I don't, I wish I could save him, I have compassion for him, but he killed people, he committed genocide, twice??? In the Prequels??? He is exactly the type of person who terrifies me in real life, I don't support him

My love of his character writing does not mean that I am overlooking his clear moral failings or even that agree with him, because I don't, I actually love his character more because he is written to be so flawed morally, he is an exploration of emotional repression and how wanting power, even if it is to save someone else can still make you a bad person, it is this complexity that drew me to him as a character

I am drawn to morally complex characters in spite of the fact that their actions go against my morals, because I personally find morally complex characters to be more compelling

So why then, if I like morally flawed characters do I have such an issue with the Jedi and their morals in particular

Quite simply, it's the way they aren't written (especially in the Clone Wars) with that same moral complexity, they are written as if they are moral good

And it is this framing of them that a lot of Jedi supporters have clearly sided with and made their reason to support the Jedi, they believe the Jedi are good and believe that fans should support morally good characters so they can't understand why I wouldn't support them

But the Jedi aren't morally good and I find the inability to acknowledge that alarming

The Prequels movies do a much better job of showing how their inaction leads to bad things, but even in the Prequels there isn't a full of acknowledgement of how far they have fallen

Whereas the Clone Wars just doesn't acknowledge it, at all, they flatten the story down so it has no moral complexity, they have clear cut good guys and bad guys, the Jedi are the good guys, no matter what, the bad guys are the Sith, their is the occasional attempt at making the morality of the Clone Wars more grey but it is inconsistent, and overall the approach is a binary

The issue is, in painting the Jedi as morally good, the Prequels era glosses over how they aren't, they aren't objectively good, no one in the Prequels era but in pretending that they are, you make the meta around the canon morally complex

You have people defending the Jedi's use of the clones, choice to ignore slaves and chain themselves to the Repiy, handling of Anakin and the Padawans in general, involvement in the war and everything else because the Jedi are framed as good guys

I have yet to meet anyone defending Anakin's actions because he is so clearly framed as the guy falling to the Dark Side, we are meant to mourn his fall but we aren't meant to think he was in the right

Not everything the Jedi did is bad, but enough is that placing them on a pedestal and calling them the heroes, acting like they don't deserve this slander when Jedi critical fans are just pointing out how the Jedi are morally compromised, is messed up

There is no moral high ground when it comes to the Prequels, everyone compromises themselves (including Padme, she stayed with Anakin,), but some fans want to act like there is and so we have a disconnect

[enkisstories]

The trial of General Hux, chapter 10 of my Mutiny on the Steadfast is life now. I'll post it here in two parts.

Hux' attempt to take over the First Order has failed and not just that, he also got himself gravely wounded and captured by the Resistance. Most likely he won't live to see the end of this day, so with nothing to lose, he can just as well... be himself?

Chapter 10 (part 1 of 2)

General Hux arrived at the Resistance base in the second to last transport from the Steadfast. Not that he’d realized where he was or pretty much anything beyond the fact that he was lying on an antigrav barge. Ben’s donation of life energy had stabilized the dying man, but there was still a long way to go to a full recovery. In the patient’s system circulated concoctions meant to strengthen his body’s defenses against infection and activate the healing capabilities, but also a strong painkiller that had, as a welcome side effect, muddled Hux’ senses. Right now he existed within a small bubble, surrounded by a fog of war of his own mind’s making. There were his thoughts, the faint awareness of a body housing them and the mobile bed right beneath him. The bed with the sheets felt somehow more real than the body it supported. And finally, bobbing up and down right above the patient’s head like a mobile, there was Rose Tico’s ponytail, held in place by the mossy-green hairband. Rose was sitting on the barge, keeping a close eye on the prisoner. Unlike Hux, she was not just aware of more barges, the guards and medical staff who accompanied this batch of injured, she actively chatted with them all, albeit in a subdued fashion, that consisted of answering more often than taking initiative. For a person who could instantly take charge and control any given situation in a crisis, Rose’ everyday persona was surprisingly shy.

The group reached an intersection. Straight on was the infirmary, the floor to the left would eventually lead to an auditorium used for full staff briefings and the one to the right opened into a cantina after just five more meters. Out of this cantina’s door came Rey now, followed by the overwhelming smell of noodles cooked in vegetable brew.

Rose jumped off her transport to greet the fellow tinkerer, who immediately hugged the smaller woman enthusiastically.

“Welcome back, dear friend!”

“Thank you!”

Rey looked at Hux, but the man in turn didn’t become aware of her presence just yet. His eyes were following Rose’ ponytail – to Rey it seemed as if it was doubtful whether the patient had identified the hair as part of a living being. That wasn’t the state the Resistance needed their prisoner in…

“The crowd is growing impatient, Rose”, said Rey. “Now that you brought him back alive, the others cannot wait a week or longer for Hux to recover. He has to answer them now.”

With these words Rey stepped up to the barge, pulled back the bedsheet and placed both her palms on the wounded man’s chest in an attempt to heal him through the Force. First the painkiller had to get flushed out. That was easily done, and being able to feel the patient’s growing discomfort was an indicator to Rey that she had properly connect donator and receiver of the life energy. Hux barely found the time to utter a “Ngh…”, when the transfer had already started. As quickly as the pain had returned, it already subsided again. Severed sinews reconnected, thickened blood vanished from places where it had no business to be in the body, organs returned to their regular functions and formerly damaged skin closed over all of this. Strained muscles relaxed enough to allow the man to move around on his own, albeit sluggishly.

As life returned to the General, Rey slumped forward, taxed from the process. Rose grabbed her, uncertain what to do next. She could hardly let the friend take a nap sharing the barge with the killer of Hosnia! Still wondering what to do next, Rose felt a touch on her shoulder.

“Is that Rey?” the owner of the hand asked. “The healer?”

“Huh? Rey is much more than a medic!”

“Yes, of course”, the other relented. Rose now saw that he was young Resistance fighter, one of the members of the boarding crew that had secured the Steadfast. He had heard of Rey, but never met her in person.

“She can ride on my barge, while I walk”, the pilot said. “No, really, I’ll be fine. I’ve heard all kinds of tales about Rey, like how she rescued everyone on Crait, before I joined. It’s only fair that she gets to rest. The worst that can befall me is being late for the meeting.”

A medical droid rushed to the young man’s side to steady him, Rose did the same for Rey and then the fledgling Jedi got her deserved rest.

When Rose returned to Hux’ barge, the man blinked in the face of the floor lights. They were bright, but they were the old familiar First Order ceiling lamps, lighting a pretty standard First Order floor in, that wasn’t rocket science, a First Order base.

“I… was done for!” Hux exclaimed. Turning his head, he spotted Rose. “Force Heal?” he asked and when Rose nodded, sat up with confidence. There were blood stains all over the sheets. The patient pulled at them until he found a configuration that allowed a second passenger to sit without getting soiled, then waved at Rose to take this seat. And who knew, the Resistance techie might have accepted the offer, had Hux’ gesture not been that of a superior towards a favored subordinate.

Around them the bigger fraction of the group continued towards the infirmary, while Rose and a handful of guards remained standing at this intersection, waiting what would happen next.

Hux faced Rose. There was no hostility in his demeanor. From his point of view he was in a base of his own faction and the fact that he had received medical aid beyond the bare minimum deemed him proof that his group had won the mutiny, after all. It wasn’t hard to guess who had turned the tide in the last moment: Poe Dameron, apparently with the help of his rebel friends. And not just that, the trio and any surviving followers of his had also reclaimed this base from the insurgents. Ha! Soon as he had taken over, the First Order was once again the smoothly running machine Hux remembered it as, not the bumbling fools they had become under Kylo Ren’s leadership.

“I thought I was where I had always wanted to be”, Hux said. “But then everything slipped through my fingers. The last I remember is my supporters and Griss’ eradicating each other. And saying goodbye to Poe, only he wasn’t Poe anymore… or Poe again…”

“He remembered who he really is.”

“Yes.”

Hux shook his head, shooing away the depressing impressions of the ill-fated battle on the Steadfast’s bridge, and smiled.

“But since I’m here now, that means he’s come around! Poe freed you two, and Finn healed me, correct?”

“Er…”

“I’m so glad you three are with me now!”

“You are?”

Hux nodded. Maybe the rebels were actually less competent and driven than he was giving them credit for, and maybe their bond was just the natural result of having faced hardships together. But in any case, now that he had them by his side, the General knew that he didn’t want to miss this trio anymore.

“Now all that’s left is to track down BB…”

As if Hux’ words had summoned him from out of hyperspace, the white droid with the orange markings came rolling towards his barge. Hux stared at him.

“…eight?”

Hux looked up, beyond Rose, and wished he hadn’t.

“YOU LYING, TREACHEROUS, FILTHY RATS! BURN IN THE REMAINS OF ILUM FOR ALL I CARE!”

*

The auditorium was full of people… and creatures… and the creatures were people, too, some of them wielding officers’ authority. Hux expected the aliens to smell, so he kept his breath low, but then Rose pushed him forwards, up a couple of steps leading up to the stage, he exhaled and subsequently had to take a deep breath. The air wasn’t any less clean than it would have been in a room full of humans. The only annoying stench was his own after the mutiny and the trip here.

The stage was full of broadcasting equipment both stationary and mobile. Resistance personnel was operating it, but there were also people whom Hux filed as hangers on, who wouldn’t have been allowed up here, were this still a First Order base. Everything was confusing, and then someone slammed a headset on Hux’ head. He reflexively raised his hands to correct the position, but his wrists were cuffed together now, on his back, no less. The rebel adjusted the headset. Doing so he stepped into the captive’s view - it was Poe Dameron.

“Just so you know, this device will magnify your voice and broadcast it into the farthest corner of the galaxy”, Poe said. “There’s no need to shout.”

Laughter rose up around them. Those who hadn’t been present at the intersection just now took Poe’s remark for a callback to Hux’ speech at Starkiller base that, given the occasion, had indeed been a bit more on the, well, speechy side of things.

Hux glared at Poe. Nothing had changed, he was once again getting paraded in front of everyone by Dameron. But then again, before he stepped back, the enemy’s hand briefly touched the captive’s shoulder as if to reassure him. Of what, though?

“I don’t get you”, Hux hissed.

The light on the headset flashed briefly. Damn, Hux realized, that thing was active already! Had he just told the whole Resistance that he didn’t “get” them? Well, it was the truth.

Hux closed his eyes. His head sank without him having decided to lower it.

“So that answers this”, C’ai Threnalli commented. “He’s capable of shame. Only not for the things he <em>should</em> be ashamed of.”

Capable of…? Read your own damn interrogation protocols! Certainly Cardinal will have given you his version of our shared past?

Lt. Connix stepped next to the captive in this… Yes, want exactly? A public interrogation? Or the anarchists’ idea of a trial? Some kind of show?! Maybe, the snark in Hux suggested, the rebels would break out a toothbrush set next and if he could demonstrate that he could correctly mix the pieces, they’d let him go. Those idiots!

Leaning against the opposite wall of the auditorium, one foot casually slung over the other and his arms crossed in front of his chest, Ben Solo let out a sigh of relief.

The rebel sitting in the chair right in front of him, Wright the pilot, turned her head around. “He doesn’t like us one bit, huh?” she remarked.

“And THAT in turn I like a lot!” Ben admitted.

“Well, if you of all people are appalled by the General, that says a lot.”

“Nah, that’s not it. See, the Hux already being back on his feet again is not my doing. I only stabilized him, so Rey must have completed his healing, same as she did for me. But after two life transfers, one of those received at the brink of death, Hux is still the same old jerk, utterly convinced of his path. If he could, he’d send us off to the camps in the forest this very minute. So that means if no miraculous change in behavior has occurred in the wake of the Force Healing, then my own change of heart probably has been genuine. You can, maybe, trust me.”

Wright laughed. “If you’ve always been such a walking bundle of insecurities, no wonder you and Mister I’m the center of the universe rubbed each other the wrong way!”

“It’s the side of me that was the most useful to Palpatine, so naturally he fostered it from afar”, Ben mused. “But that shit leaves the brain chemistry changed, meaning if the Emperor had taken over my body as he probably intended, HE’d have to deal with the imbalance.” Ben chuckled at the idea of an anxiety ridden emperor. “That would have been a nasty surprise!”

Meanwhile at the stage Connix confronted the General:

“Do you even have an understanding of the magnitude of your crimes? The people lost to your machinations?”

Well, do YOU? Hux thought. I think not. Because if you had, you’d stop sabotaging everything I’m trying to build. Order. Civilization. Calm. On a more personal level - the mutiny having failed is your fault, too. I wasn’t quite ready to initiate it, but you waking Poe up forced my hand. And then you stole my… my… whatever they are.

After two losses in quick succession, the battle on the bridge (that had technically ended in a draw, but in any case not a win) and that of his rebel friends, Hux certainly had no more room for politeness. The capacity, perhaps, but not the willingness His eyes still cast down, he replied matter of factly:

“They never were people. Only obstacles. Factors in calculations.”

As the citizens of the worlds conquered by the First Order had been cattle. They Resistance fighters of course had known this, but hearing it spoken out loud felt like a whiplash.

“Were?” Connix prodded. “Are you hinting at that having changed?”

Hux looked up, turning his head towards Connix. With his eyes alone he scanned the room for the space rat of a pilot with his white-and-orange tagalong, but couldn’t spot either. Where’d Poe gone to? A minute ago he had stood next to him!

But Connix was still waiting for an answer and since he’d have looked stupid staring at her, saying nothing, the General obliged the enemy officer:

“Does it matter? In the days we worked together, Dameron turned human. But you took him from me. Perhaps from himself, too.”

“From MYSELF?”

Ah, there Dameron was, sitting at the stage’s very edge, his legs dangling over the ledge.

“How dare you say that? You twisted my mind!”

Hux smirked.

“Not much in there to twist”, he claimed. “It’s your heart that makes you you. Together we could have set the galaxy right, now everything will deteriorate into chaos. There’ll only be pain. I’m almost glad I won’t live to see it.”

Blood shot into Poe’s head, his brows furrowed, the fingers balled to fists and his legs were already twitching, ready to get up and use the momentum to attack Hux in the same motion. Regardless of the talk he’d had with Finn earlier, now that the General was right on front of his eyes again, Poe wanted to beat the living daylights out of him. The other being unable to defend himself because of the restraints wasn’t a deterrence, to the contrary, it was a definite plus.

That Poe wanted.

But he didn’t do it.

He shook his head, then slid off the stage.

“Look, I know many of you are looking to me as your new leader, and I promise I won’t disappoint you in battle”, Poe told the audience. “But in this I can’t lead, or even help. I’m biased.”

Nobody said a word when the pilot, accompanied by BB-8, walked along the stage, turned left at its end and exited the auditorium through a door in the back. Only after that door had closed behind Poe did Finn emerge from the small crowd that had formed around Hux. He crossed the short distance to the stage’s edge in two steps. Standing almost exactly where Poe had sat, he spoke up:

“It’s not as if we were hard-pressed to come to a decision regarding the General in the next five minutes. Just having him and the rest of the Steadfast’s command crew secured here, out of the picture, is a huge win. The galaxy can sleep better in the time to come.”

His words were met with unanimous approval.

Finn nodded. Poe’s second-in-command wasn’t a smooth talker, but he had the same quality that made people take to him readily. Finn turned around to address Connix, when suddenly the prisoner stepped into his way.

“The fuck, Finn, are you rebel-scum or not? Go after him!” Hux barked. “Little Miss Do-You-Even-Know can finish here just fine. With whatever this is supposed to be.”

“Well, it’s certainly not “General Hux is making friends”. You are not in a position to make demands!”

The captive, however, begged to differ:

“I’m in a position where I can do or say whatever I want. I won’t live to see tomorrow, the worst already happened. In fact, I’ve stopped counting how often the worst has happened only today. Nothing I do can make things any worse for me.”

“But can you really? Do and say whatever you want? Could you ever?”

Finn’s query was answered with silence only.

And then he Finn turned and ran after Poe, after all, angry at himself for doing as he was told and at Hux for being right for once. Rescuing Poe had only been the beginning, now the pilot had to come to terms with what had happened to him, put it behind him one step at a time.

Back in the auditorium the silence on the stage was contrasted by busy noise in the audience. Those who knew what the First Order had done to Poe Dameron now informed the others about the situation. Meanwhile up on the stage Finn’s words before storming off were still hanging in the air. Hux stared at any rebel unfortunate enough to enter his line of sight. He blinked when Rose Tico happened to be one of those.

“The question still stands, you know”, she said, as if Finn’s remark had been meant as an actual question. “The few times you acted on your own desires, General Hux, do you remember what it was that you did every single time? You defied the First Order.”

“I did… what?!”

Defy? HIS First Order? What was Tico saying there? What was she THINKING?

“You killed off their officers, you sabotaged Ren and the Sith by sending us confidential information, you mocked Kandia in the trash chute chamber and you gave Captain Eleven a near-nervous breakdown in our cell.”

“You’re bending reality to your narrative.”

“You’re bending people to your will, what is indefinitely worse.”

Rose grabbed Hux by that one’s arm.

“And now come!”

“Huh?”

Now Rose started pulling.

“As you said: We need to go after Poe!”

“I think I first need to let myself getting executed by your friends before I can help you with that. Proper protocol and such.”

The corners of Rose’ mouth twitched at the snark. Not that she’d stopped pulling, though. Already Hux found himself forced to either take a step after her or pull into the opposite direction. He was very much in favor of giving in to the pressure that wanted him to get away from this trial, but even so had to vent loudly about how the Resistance handled things:

“Hey! Wait! Stop! You’re all insane!”

The microphone recorded everything its wearer uttered on the way out and afterwards. Unable to reach the headset with his hands, Hux couldn’t turn it off or get rid of the device altogether and Rose had no intention to help him with either. And so the Resistance could listen in to the duo discussing where they should start their search.

“You know him better than I do”, they heard Hux say, all collected and professional again. “Where’d Finn look for Poe?”

“At Poe’s usual sulking places? Any elevated place that BB-8, too, can climb. So for starters not a tree. The surveillance platform we passed by on our way from the landing pads, perhaps.”

“Then we should look in a different place to maximize coverage.”

“Or we could search for Poe where <em>we</em> think he would go?”

“Oh… ah. Right. That would be an option, too. Good thinking!”

The headset’s signal lamp flashed green, then Hux heard Connix’ voice. The officer didn’t even try to conceal her amusement when she said:

“D’Qar is forgiven, Hux. With your approach to navigation, I’m positive you actually tried to reach Yavin and only ended up near our base by accident.”

“If you have time to idle chat, then you also have time to check the security cameras for Poe’s whereabouts”, Hux grumbled.

“Let’s not take this game too far”, Rose said with a chuckle. “Poe cannot have gone far, so this shouldn’t take long.”

By now the duo had reached the intersection between the briefing room, the infirmary, the cantina and the floor leading to the exit by the landing pads. Rose walked straight on, followed by the prisoner and together they entered the cantina.

“Has anybody seen Poe?” she asked into the crowd, only for Hux to complain: “What kind of search tactic is that, just asking the first passerby you meet?”

The stares the duo received at this were intense and full of puzzlement There was the short technician in the company of the enemy general with his headset, who towered over her in his favorite pose, with his hands on his back – them being cuffed together escaped the onlooker’s notice. Not out of malice, simply baffled, nobody answered. Rose’ face reddened. Speaking to a large group didn’t come easy to her, so the perceived rejection stung. Biting her lips, Rose suddenly felt a touch. Hux had managed to elbow her, and was now nudging the companion to turn around, back out through the exit.

“Come, Tico”, Hux said softly. “Those are idiots.”

Part 2

[redrascal1]

I have just once again seen a JCF troll insult Kelly Tran.

This time, she has been referred to as a ‘bargain basement Rey.’

I am absolutely LIVID.

Rose Tico was not a ‘bargain basement Rey.’ She was her own character with her own abilities, and in fact, post TROS I realise she was a far better person. Rose had every reason to loathe the FO, but at the end of TLJ she realised that love was far more important than hate. She made a point of telling this to Finn, that saving lives instead of taking them was the ultimate goal that would help them defeat their enemies. She, I’m sure, would have been the first person to accept Ben Solo if he had lived.

Kelly Tran’s treatment in TROS is one of the many, many beefs I have with this film. For years, people have campaigned for equality for POC. As a result many black actors are now enjoying leading roles on tv and in the cinema - as they should.

But other POC - not so good. I remember years ago, the late Brandon Lee expressing his concern at the lack of Asian men in leading roles. Almost 30 years since his death, things haven’t changed much.

TROS is a blatant example of this. I have great respect for Naomi Ackie, but it is pretty obvious that she was brought in to replace Rose. The fact that an Asian actrees was replaced by a black woman doesn’t make it any less racist. I was disgusted with Terrio, DLF and Abrams....and also with Boyega, who many believe was instrumental in the erasure of the Rose character.

But none of them disgust me as much as the Finn fans who constantly slate ‘reylo’ as racist then act as if the talented, beautiful and sweet actress whose character was intended as Finn’s love interest, was ‘inferior’ to the white actress who they deem the only one ‘good enough’ for their favourite character. 

They are racists, and hypocrites and they disgust me. And if DLF give them what they want...then they will have finally lost the last crumb of respect I had for them. They can ‘stand by John Boyega’s support of #blm’ all they like - they will STILL be pandering to racists.

Maybe they could give Ben his own film and make Rose his love interest. She’s more deserving than Rey. And they have a lot in common.

[onceuponmystory]

I Have Finally Found Peace With The Rise of Skywalker

And it's all thanks to my crazy, wonderful, just-as-obsessed-with-Star-Wars-as-I-am best friends.

But before I tell you how we did it, I have to give you guys two rather important warnings concerning this post. 

First and foremost, please beware that there will be MAJOR SPOILERS for The Rise of Skywalker in this post. If you haven't seen the movie, proceed at your own risk, and don't say I didn't warn you.

Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, this post is quite critical of the movie. I examine in detail everything I thought was bad about The Rise of Skywalker, and give my opinion on how it could have been done better.

But that doesn't mean this is a negative post - in fact, I hope to achieve quite the opposite. With the help of my friends, I realised that the best way to make your peace with The Rise of Skywalker is to talk through it and play Teacher With A Red Pen on the parts you didn't like.

I have to warn you that I tend to get a little carried away playing Teacher With A Red Pen. There's just so much to say about this movie... But if you're up to reading an insanely long post, I really think it'll be worth your while. 

Now, since this is a free era, we are all entitled to our own opinions, and this is mine. You are perfectly welcome to disagree with me, just please do it politely. And with that out of the way, let's jump right in, shall we? 

First Things First: Ben Solo's Death

I think one of the biggest WHY??? moments in the entire movie was Ben Solo's sacrifice and death. I'll say it now - I hated that twist, absolutely hated it. And not just because I'm a huge fan of Reylo, either. 

To start, it's predictable, the exact mirror of the Darth Vader sacrifice/death scene from Return of the Jedi. And while it worked for Darth Vader, doing it again with Ben was not only cliché and repetitive, but also a slap in the face to the character.

Because Ben Solo deserved better. He really, really did.

Kylo Ren/Ben Solo was from the start a very conflicted character - the son of two of the galaxy's greatest heroes, and the nephew of the last Jedi, manipulated from birth by Emperor Palpatine. Yes, he did terrible things, but he also had terrible things done to him. At the very least, he deserved the chance to atone for some of those terrible things.

While we're talking about slaps in the face, Ben dying made the deaths of Han, Luke and Leia mean so much less. All three of those people gave their lives so that their son (nephew, in Luke's case) would turn back to the light. Especially Leia - she literally used the last of her energy to reach out to her son and turn him back. Killing Ben off makes her sacrifice almost meaningless - didn't she die so he would be able to live a better life? 

And my last point about the Massive Unfairness of Ben's Death has to do with Rey. She and Ben love each other, don't they? They are literally described as "two of us who are one" - which is about as close as we're going to get to soulmates in Star Wars. With Ben's death, Rey lost half of who she is - not to mention the man she loved.

George Lucas once said, and I quote, that "I have always hated that in movies, when you go along and one of the main characters gets killed. This is a fairytale. You want everybody to live happily ever after and nothing bad happens to anybody."

So yes, maybe it's not the most perfect of arguments, but this is Star Wars. And after all these years of love and admiration, we all deserve that happy ending. 

And While We're At It: Ben Deserved A Proper Redemption Arc

I know I've just spent a long time ranting about why Ben deserved better, but I'm not quite done yet. Because yes, Ben absolutely deserved better - and most of all, he deserved a proper redemption.

Now, I don't know how many of you have seen Avatar The Last Airbender, but that show contains a prime example of a really good redemption arc. It's not simple, and it's not at all easy, but it's worth it.

In ATLA, Fire Prince Zuko starts off as the villain of the series, but ends up seeing that the way he was raised was wrong. He decides to make amends by joining his former enemy, Avatar Aang, and helping him save the world.

But what makes it really good is that it's not easy for Zuko. He struggles, he genuinely does, and he has to really work to earn the trust of the people who used to be his enemies. And time-consuming and difficult as it was, it ultimately ended up being worth it a thousand times over.

That, my friends, is a redemption arc. It takes time, and work, and real atonement. More than anything, I wanted to see that for Ben. I wanted him to struggle, and be distrusted, and hate himself, because that is the only way he can really redeem himself - by rising above all that and saying, "I was wrong, I'm sorry, and I'll take whatever punishment you want to give me, because I really want to change."

Death is taking the easy way out - in fact, it's lazy writing. Ben didn't have to die - his whole story, which is already so defined by struggle and conflict, would have been far more meaningful if he had had a final struggle, this time to prove that he really had changed. 

Unfortunately, the writers chose to take the cliché easy way out, killing off the character instead of giving him a much deeper, more meaningful ending.

If there was one thing - just one thing - I could change about The Rise of Skywalker, it would be that. I would give Ben the chance to properly redeem himself, because he really, truly deserves it.

Moving On: Rose Tico

With the Ben arc out of the way, I can move on to the next biggest issue I had with The Rise of Skywalker - and that's the horrible sidelining of one of my favourite characters from The Last Jedi, Rose Tico.

Now, I get that not everyone liked Rose's character - and that's fine. But there was no reason - none at all - for basically removing Rose, who played quite a significant role in The Last Jedi, from the new movie. Additionally, given all the racist and sexist harassment that Kelly Marie Tran suffered at the hands of malcontent fans, cutting Rose from the film almost seems like caving to those trolls.

And that is not acceptable. If you let a bully have his way, stopping him becomes near impossible. So even if it was just to show the trolls that bullying will not get you what you want, Rose Tico deserved a bigger role.

What bigger role, you may ask? Many people have said, and I grudgingly agree, that there wasn't really space for Rose to go along on the whole wayfinder quest. All right, fine. But sidelining her completely is not the right course of action. If you can't take her along on the main quest, then give her a significant sub-plot, for example joining Lando to call for aid for the Resistance.

Remember, Rose Tico was the person who turned Finn from an ex-stormtrooper more than ready to desert the Resistance into a loyal fighter for the cause he believes in - to such an extent that he was willing to sacrifice his own life for the survival of the Resistance. If there's anyone who could give the galaxy enough hope again to send help to the Resistance, it's Rose Tico.

Oh, and some more Finnrose would have been nice. You don't have to agree with me - I know many of you don't - but you have to admit that Finn and Rose definitely had some sort of a bond forged in The Last Jedi, even if it was just a platonic one. Basically ignoring that like they did in The Rise of Skywalker is just bad writing.

So I'm not saying that Rose needed to be the main star of the show - that would have been unrealistic, after all. But I do think, and I will stand by this opinion no matter what, that Rose deserved a lot better than what she got.

And On That Track: Jannah Was An Unnecessary Character

Don't get me wrong, I love Naomi Ackie, and I appreciate that Star Wars is trying to incorporate a more diverse cast. But despite it all, I just couldn't bring myself to like Jannah's character, or see why she was actually necessary.

See, if you take out Jannah, nothing much changes. Yes, it was nice for Finn to have someone to talk and relate to, but it wasn't necessary. We already know that Finn was a stormtrooper, just like we already know he left it behind him.

Also, Finn already had a female character he had a significant bond to - none other than Rose Tico from my previous rant. Why force in an all-new potential love interest at the last minute when you already have one with far more development? Not only could Rose have conceivably replaced Jannah in pretty much every scene, she also has a lot more development and history with Finn than Jannah does, which would have made their interactions that much more meaningful. 

And as for the attack on Pryde's Destroyer with the Orbaks (and no, I didn't know that's what those cow things were called, either, until I Googled it a few seconds ago) - that was a nice touch, but there's a simple way it could have been much better. Instead of introducing an all-new character and cow things with a name no-one knew unless they looked it up on Wookieepedia, bring back the fathiers from Canto Bight and that little Force-sensitive kid with the broom from The Last Jedi.

At this point, some of you may be wondering why I'm not attacking Zorii Bliss as well - isn't she also a brand-new character with very little real development? The answer to that is yes, she is, but she gives Poe Dameron some much-needed backstory. If you cut Zorii, Poe has no significant backstory, which means that she was actually important to the plot. (Also, Keri Russell is awesome, and has stunning eyes. Enough said.) 

So I'm sorry, Naomi Ackie, but I really wish that Jannah <i>wasn't</i> in The Rise of Skywalker. She's just there for too short to have any real development, and I'd rather use the time I gain from cutting her to focus on Rose and the actual plot.

While I'm Talking About The Plot: What On Earth Happened? Is Star Wars A Video Game, Now?

Ah, yes. Another big issue with The Rise of Skywalker is its rather disappointing lack of actual plot.

I'm sure some of you are frowning quite heavily at me right now, so let me backtrack a little and explain.

Upon first watching, The Rise of Skywalker seems like quite a good movie, really. (Except the ending, of course - but We Do Not Talk About The Ending.) It's only when you re-watch the movie that you realise that there is, in fact, very little really significant plot there.

To put it simply, a large part of the movie is a group of characters going to a Place to find a Thing that will help them find another Thing that will take them to another Place where they will save the world. Does this sound like a video game to anyone?

The thing with this kind of plot is that it works well the first time, when you don't know what's going to happen, and when the lack of plot can be hidden by dramatic explosions and cool fight scenes. Oh, and flying stormtroopers.

This is Star Wars, so there just has to be some explosions, as well as a quest of some kind. I don't deny that. But when said quest and explosions fill the story to such a degree that they become the plot, you're in cinematic trouble.

This is pretty much proven when you re-watch The Rise of Skywalker. Where the heroic quest and explosions and jetpack-sporting stormtroopers had you at the edge of your seat last time, now that you know what's coming, you start to see that very little actually happens in these scenes. Sure, they look cool, but they don't really affect the overall movement of the story in a significant way.

And that's a problem, given that most of the movie consists of scenes like these, or exposition. There are precious few scenes in which two or more characters have meaningful development in a way that will continue to affect them and the plot. This, unfortunately, means that the movie falls flat a bit when you watch it for the second time.

How would I change this?

Well, for starters, I would focus less on the actual hunt for the dagger and the wayfinder and whatever and more on the characters. How do they feel? Why do they feel it? And most importantly, how does this affect what happens to the rest of the characters and the plot?

Also, like I said before, more attention has to be given to a) Ben's redemption and b) an interesting sub-plot for Rose. And you know what? The lightsaber fight scenes could have been a lot cooler, as well.

Some More Complaining About The Plot: This Time, It's Plot Holes

Where to start, where to start. All movies have a plot hole of some kind, it's only natural, but The Rise of Skywalker is simply riddled with them.

Of course, this can be attributed to the lack of plot as explained in the previous rant. Since there is so little time spent actually developing the plot, it just stands to reason that said plot isn't the most watertight.

It's sort of spectacular, though, how quickly the first plot hole pops up. It must be just five minutes into the script - you guessed it, on Exegol.

Not only was the Emperor's resurrection never properly explained, but we also have about a thousand creepy Sith guys who are just suddenly there when needed for plot purposes. Who are they? Where did they come from? How did we not know about them before?

The Rise of Skywalker doesn't even try to answer any of these questions. It just gets glossed over in a classic example of How To Write A Glaring Plot Hole.

And while we're talking about Palpatine, let's take a look at his lackey-in-chief, Allegiant General Pryde, who oh-so-dramatically declares that he serves Palpatine "as I served you in the old wars."

Wait a minute. The old wars? As in the Return of the Jedi wars? Well then why on earth haven't we heard of Pryde before?

Sure, maybe he wasn't a major enough character to show in the original trilogy. But if he was such a faithful servant of Palpatine's, shouldn't he at least have made some kind of cameo in The Last Jedi or The Force Awakens? That would also have been some nice foreshadowing for the Emperor's return. 

Also, when and how did Rey fix Anakin's lightsaber? As I recall, at the end of The Last Jedi, it snapped in half. But when we skip to Rey in The Rise of Skywalker, it's perfectly whole again, with not a hint of explanation on the horizon.

Yes, maybe this isn't the biggest plot hole, but it's annoying. At least just have someone mention in passing "Oh well done Rey, you finished fixing the lightsaber" so it's not quite so out of the blue. 

And there's more. When Rey and Kylo have their big fight on Kef Bir, Rey quite clearly takes Kylo's TIE fighter. Since the Falcon most definitely did not stop by for him, how did Ben get off Kef Bir? 

This is never explained. He just pitches up on Exegol, and immediately starts fighting the Knights of Ren so you forget about wondering how he got there in the first place.

Can I just say the Knights of Ren were a disappointment? I was hoping for a lot more... anything, actually. They did pretty much nothing except look menacing for the entirety of the movie, unless you count getting thoroughly beaten by Ben on Exegol. 

I've probably missed another plot hole or seven, but I think I've had enough for the moment. You can only pull faces for so long, after all. I'm moving on.

  Last Thing: Too Much Fan Service

Picking up from where I left off - bad plot - I'll start by breaking a few hearts and saying that I thought Chewie should have died.

Wait, wait, don't run away screaming "Traitor!" like that! Dead Chewie would have been absolutely heart-breaking, I know, but it would have made for a really good plot point.

Rey thought she killed Chewie, and that quite understandably broke her heart. But then she finds out, oh no, wait, he's actually alive, there was another transport in the desert, ha ha, don't worry, fans. 

While that satisfies fans, looking at it critically, it would have been better to really kill Chewie. Very sad, yes, but better.

Let me explain. If Rey killed Chewie, really killed him, she would have been devastated. Being Rey, she probably would have isolated herself so she wouldn't accidentally hurt anyone else. She would have grieved, and her friends would have had to really work to comfort her and get her to trust herself again. This experience would have left Rey that much sadder and wiser, but stronger because of it.

This can be summed up quite simply: sad moments make the happy moments mean that much more.

But unfortunately for Rey's character development, Chewie is not really dead. The fans might be happy that they didn't lose a beloved character, but what they don't realise is that they lost a significant character progression instead.

And, sadly, this is not the only spot where the movie indulges its fans rather than a deeper plot.

For example, Rey buries Luke and Leia's lightsabers on Tattooine, and we fans get a warm tingly feeling in our stomachs because yay, we've come full circle.

But have we?

Tattooine holds nothing but bad memories for the Skywalker twins - Luke spent his entire life trying to get off the planet, and that homestead holds only bad memories for him. Easy as it is to forget, the last time Luke saw that homestead was when his aunt and uncle had been brutally murdered there. I somehow can't imagine that's where he would want his lightsaber buried - that's the equivalent of burying Harry Potter's wand at Number Four Privet Drive, for crying out loud. 

The same can be said for Leia. Her one experience of Tattooine was the infamous gold bikini scene with Jabba the Hutt - totally the place where she'd want to have her lightsaber, her legacy, buried, hmm?

My conclusion is that the "hopeful and uplifting" Tattooine ending scene is really only that way if you don't think too hard about it. Pure fan service, in other words.

Which is sad, if you consider the ending we could have had. We could have had Rey burying the lightsabers on Naboo, because that's where her grandfather came from, to symbolise that she really was leaving the past behind.

And if you have to be fan service-y, at least do it in the right way. Give Rey and Ben their happy ending, because as George Lucas puts it, having the boy and the girl walk into the sunset hand-in-hand adds ten million to the box office. (And a sunset across Naboo's seas would look very pretty, wouldn't it?)

In Conclusion: TROS Being So Bad Is Actually A Good Thing, Because Now We Get To Fix It The Way We Want

Take a moment to consider that. If The Rise of Skywalker was so bad that we no longer consider it canon, well, that means we can invent our own canon, doesn't it?

This is how I made my peace with The Rise of Skywalker - by accepting that the movie Disney gave us needed some severe changes, and applying them in my head. You won't believe how much better I feel now that I have "my" version of The Rise of Skywalker accepted as canon in my head.

That's my message to you all: if TROS has upset you as much as it did me, don't try to deny it to yourself. Gather a group of good friends around you and have a The Rise of Skywalker fix-it session, and talk it out until you've made the movie into what you want to see.

We are the fans, my friends, and we deserve the movie that we want to see. So get out there and make it for yourselves!