#mainly cause I didn’t know if I wanted Rei and Lucas to be the same person or not

[porkbeverage]

Ayyy, finally did a part 2 of this

[badchoicesposts]

Don’t Dream It’s Over Chapter 6

Series Summary: Liam and Ali thought that their relationship was perfect, but their whole world came crashing down when Constantine called him back to Cordonia. Four years later they meet again at Liam’s bachelor party, determined to make things between them work even if it isn’t always easy.

In this AU, Liam and MC (Ali Moonessar) dated for a year in New York while Leo was still crown prince. They broke up when Constantine asked Liam to come back to Cordonia, but they meet again at Liam’s bachelor party before the social season. The story will contain flashbacks, which will be italicized, of their relationship and follow them as they try to navigate the season with Ali as a suitor. I’ve messed around with the timeline a bit so that it fits the story better. I’ve also added in a few OCs of my own.

Pairing: Liam x MC (Ali Moonessar)

Word Count: 3,665

Song Inspiration: Old Money- Lana Del Rey

DISCLAIMER: Some of Bertrand’s dialogue is taken from TRR Book 1 Chapter 4. I’ve also changed up the timeline of the social season a bit to fit my story better. I based it off of some research I did on the British Social Season. 

Taglist:@flowerpowell, @kingliam2019, @ao719, @emceesynonymroll, @hopefulmoonobject, @dcbbw, @qammh-blog, @liamxs-world, @drakesensworld, @i-only-signed-up-for-fanfiction, @timmagickfrog, @lauradowning29

A/N: This is my first time ever posting a fic. Please let me know if you enjoyed it and would like to read more. I thrive on validation, lol. Thanks for reading!

Catch Up: Masterlist

Ali and Liam were two very different people. There was no doubt about it. They were crazy about each other regardless, but at first glance anyone would believe that they had absolutely nothing in common. 

Liam rivaled Luca for the title of the most well-rounded person she had ever met. He was tall, well dressed, and well respected by everyone he met. His blond hair was always annoyingly perfect, even when it had been slept on for the full seven hours of sleep he got every night, and he was good at everything he tried to do. He worked out five days a week and had a natural charm that drew people towards him wherever he went. Liam slept on silk sheets, drank expensive liquor and, worst of all, was a morning person. He was always up early, eager to start his day and be productive. He was typically easy going, but he could take action and control a situation effortlessly when he needed to. 

Ali, on the other hand, was the exact opposite. She barely reached five feet tall in the right pair of heels and spent most of her time in sweatpants or leggings because of the insecurities she had about her body. Her workout routine consisted mainly of walking everywhere she needed to go, and she had terrible social anxiety. She had no constant sleep schedule, and at this point, she was practically nocturnal, only being able to get in small amounts of sleep during the day due to her insomnia. She had found her current bed sheets from the discount bin of a department store, and the most she ever spent on alcohol was twenty dollars for a bottle of tequila. She had perfect grades, but she was still constantly stressed about them. 

Liam was put together, and on most days she was a hot mess. When she says the words “trust me, I know what I’m doing” there’s about a seventy-five percent chance that she has no idea what she’s doing. However, when he said the same words, she never once doubted him. That is until he decided he could repair the clogged drain in his kitchen sink on his own. Her suspicions were confirmed as she watched the Prince of Cordonia, his nice dress shirt soaked in water, fiddle with a pipe, determined to be “normal”.

“Love, maybe you should just call someone,” she said, raising her voice slightly so he could hear her from where the upper half of his body was lying under the sink. 

“I can do this,” he called back, irritation evident in his voice. 

“Sure you can,” she mumbled under her breath, taking a seat on a stool in the kitchen. “Have ever even looked at a pipe like that before?”

The banging noises she heard from under the sink was her only response, and she rolled her eyes as she texted Drake to tell him to contact the building’s superintendent. A few minutes passed by in silence before there was a sudden popping sound and Liam’s angry voice filled the room. Ali looked up to see him emerging from under the sink soaking wet, while more water pooled onto the kitchen floor. She wanted to be mad that he had made the situation worse and not given up when he realized that he didn’t know what he was doing, but the sight of him before her made her burst out laughing. 

“It’s not funny,” he said, sending a glare in her direction. 

“Yes, it is,” she replied when she had finally managed to calm herself down. 

He narrowed his bright blue eyes at her, trying his best to stay mad, but he knew that it was a losing battle. He knew that he looked ridiculous. 

“I guess we can cross chef and plumber off of your list of potential jobs,” she said, starting to giggle again as she remembered their first date where he tried to cook for her. 

“Now stop the water and clean up that mess. The super will be here in the morning.” 

Liam watched as his girlfriend ran out of the room before he could get another word in. 

~~~

Ali frantically walked back and forth between her bed and her closet, Lana Del Rey’s Old Money playing softly in the background. It was 12:57 AM and Liam’s plane would be leaving in less than ten hours. She had been packing and unpacking her suitcase for the past two hours. Every time she made up her mind to go, something told her to stay, and every time she made up her mind to stay, something told her to go. She looked down at the text on her phone from Maxwell giving her the flight information and started piling things into her suitcase again. She was just about to close it and try to get a few hours of sleep before the flight when she looked over at her nightstand and saw the framed picture of her and all of the Larson siblings that she always kept there. They all had their arms wrapped around each other and were smiling happily into the camera. 

“Nope, not going,” she mumbled to herself, hastily pulling things out of the bag and dropping them on the floor. 

The sound of a throat clearing behind her caused her to stop what she was doing and turn around. 

“Oh, hey, Luc. I didn’t know that you were still up,” she said. 

“Yeah, I was just about to turn in for the night when I saw your light on. I assume by this mess that you haven’t made a decision yet.”

“I’m not going,” she tried to say firmly. 

Luca sighed and made his way further into her room. 

“You should go,” he said softly.

“I should?” Ali asked, sitting down on the bed.

“If a part of you didn’t want to then you wouldn’t be having such a hard time making the decision. If it all works out you could have everything you’ve ever wanted. You owe it to yourself to go.”

Ali groaned and dropped to her back, her legs still dangling off the side of the bed. 

“What if we’re too different? It’s been forever since we were together. What if it doesn’t work out? What about everything here?” she asked, staring up at the ceiling. 

Luca walked over to her and grabbed both of her hands in his before pulling her back up into a sitting position. 

“You worked so well together because you were different. You balanced each other out. You made each other happy. Besides, if things still don’t work out, you’ll always have a place to come home to,” he said softly. 

He kissed her forehead lovingly before leaving the room, the door closing behind him quietly.  

~~~~~~~~~~

Ali was clutching the handle of her bag tightly in her hand as she ran as fast as she could through the airport, cursing herself for being so out of shape. After speaking with Luca she still hadn’t been able to properly make up her mind until the last possible second and now there was only five minutes until the plane left. She caught sight of Charlie’s red hair and sighed in relief when he turned around and saw her. 

“I knew you would come,” he said, a bright smile breaking out across his face. He was standing next to Bastien, both dressed in grey suits. 

“Yeah,” she huffed out, trying desperately to catch her breath, “Back on duty, I see.” She motioned to his uniform with one hand, the other clutching her side as she gasped for air.

“Yes, but we can talk about that later. There’s someone waiting for you on that plane,” he said, motioning for her to board the plane.

“Right,” she said, taking a deep breath and beginning to walk slowly. 

Bastien and Charlie were following closely behind her, and the reality that she couldn’t turn back was now hitting her. Upon entering the private plane she saw Drake, Ben, Maxwell, and Leo all lounging casually on large leather seats. Liam had been anxiously pacing up and down the aisle but had immediately stopped at the sound of their footsteps. A large smile broke out over his face at the sight of her. 

“You came,” he said.

“Yeah, I did,” she said, fighting her own smile as she launched herself into his arms. 

He held her tightly and for a moment all of the doubts she had about leaving New York disappeared. Leo and Maxwell shared a pleased look as the two took their seats next to each other. The plane began to take off, and Ali felt surprisingly calm as she looked out the small window. 

“Are you excited?” Maxwell asked her happily, pulling her out of her thoughts.

“Um, yeah… that’s one word for it,” she said awkwardly. 

“You’ll be amazing,” Liam said,  bringing her hand up to his lips and gently kissing her knuckles. 

“You two are disgusting,” Ben joked, prompting a laugh from the group. 

They were well on their way to Cordonia now and Maxwell took the opportunity to begin explaining to her what would be happening when they arrived. 

“For the next few weeks you’ll stay at the Beaumont estate in Ramsford with my brother Bertrand and I,” Maxwell said.

“Is your brother anything like you?” Ali asked him.

Drake scoffed slightly, causing Ali to raise her brows in question. 

“What Drake means is that Bertrand can be kind of… strict. He’s not exactly happy that I’m bringing in a suitor that doesn’t know anything about court or nobility,” Maxwell said with a cringe, “But that just means that we’ll have to spend the next few weeks turning you into a proper lady of the court.”

“Sounds like fun.” Ali tried to force a smile on her face, but it came out as more of a grimace. 

“That’s the spirit!’ Leo laughed, ending his sentence with a good-natured clap to her shoulder. 

“Once the social season starts, we’ll be spending most of our time at the palace. Most of the nobility live there during the season, including the ladies vying for Liam’s hand,” Maxwell continued. 

“Yeah, living under one roof makes it easier to attend the rose ceremony later,” Drake mumbled under his breath.

Ali snorted before stopping to pull herself together. 

“Sorry, that probably wasn’t very ladylike,” she said sarcastically.

“You’re no lady of the court,” Drake said.

“I’m going to take that as a compliment,” she said. 

“Trust me, it is.”

The two locked eyes for a moment, having a silent conversation. Drake had played a part in convincing her to come, but she also knew how he felt about court and the people there. He always said that Liam was the only one of them that was worth a damn. She knew that Drake wanted to protect her, but there was also a certain edge to his voice as he said those words that she couldn’t quite place. 

“Drake,” Liam said, a warning tone in his voice. Ali looked between the two for a moment before Maxwell broke through the tense silence.

 “As I was saying, the social season typically lasts for about five months. There are usually a few large events like balls that the entire court attends and there are some smaller events like dinner parties that are invitation only.”

“Not gonna lie, that sounds like… a lot,” Ali said. 

“Trust me it is,” Drake said, running his fingers through his hair. 

Everyone began to break off into their own conversations and Ali turned to Liam to find him already looking down at her. 

“Liam, I’m kind of scared,” she said, chuckling half-heartedly.

She looked down at her hands and began anxiously picking at the skin on the side of her nail.

Liam tilted her head so that she was looking up into his eyes before moving his hand to cup the side of her face, his thumb gently stroking her cheek. 

“I know, but I meant it when I said that you’ll be amazing. This is a big adjustment, and I’m afraid I may not be able to be with you as much as I would like to, but you will always have my support. You are the strongest and most capable woman I know, Ali. I don’t doubt for a second that you’ll do great things,” he replied. 

Ali smiled and leaned into him as their lips met in a gentle kiss. She rested her head onto his shoulder and felt her eyes closing before falling into a dreamless sleep.

She opened them a while later to the feeling of Liam shaking her awake. Her head was still on his shoulder and their fingers were entwined together. At some point during her nap he had removed her glasses and was now trying to hand them to her. 

“We’ll be landing soon. If you look out the window you’ll see Cordonia,” he said with a smile. 

She turned her head sleepily and gazed out the window at the land below them. In her still half asleep state, she could just make out twinkling lights against the landscape. 

“Wow.”

“Home sweet home,” Drake sighed, looking out the window as well. 

Ali groaned as she watched everyone begin to exit the plane one by one. The position she had been seated in had put a strain on her back, and as she tried to stretch it out, the pain only intensified. 

“Maxwell, can you give us a minute alone please,” Liam asked politely, pulling her out of her thoughts as she continued to stretch. The other man, who had been waiting for his new friend, nodded and exited. 

Even though she knew they were alone, the thought of everyone else just a few steps away gave Ali the feeling that she was being watched. She didn’t have much time to ponder on this fact, however. Liam grabbed her hips and pulled her so that her body was pressed flush against his, all thoughts of the rest of the group automatically leaving her mind. His lips crashed roughly into hers, and she found herself grabbing onto his arms to steady herself. She moaned softly against his mouth as she felt his tongue against her bottom lip. 

“Um, guys?” Charlie said hesitantly. 

They jumped away from each other immediately, Ali’s hand going up to cover her mouth as she looked anywhere but at the red-haired man in front of her and Liam loudly clearing his throat. Charlie stood there uncomfortably for a moment before speaking again. 

“We need to head out.”

With one more gentle kiss and whispered ‘I love you’, Ali got into the large black car with Maxwell and stared at Liam’s retreating form. 

“You’ll see him again,” he said, patting her shoulder in a comforting manner. 

“Yeah,” she said, staring out the window at the passing trees, “I know you said your brother isn’t exactly excited that I’m going to be representing House Beaumont, but what exactly am I walking into with him?”

Maxwell seemed to ponder her words for a moment.

“Well, Bertrand’s been a little more stressed than normal lately, so it may take some time, but I’m sure he’ll warm up to you eventually.”

“Yeah, that doesn’t exactly make me feel any better.”

Conversation with Maxwell flowed easily. Even though she had only known his for a few days, Ali found herself completely comfortable with him, and she felt as if she could tell him anything. The car ride passed by in a series of laughs and before she knew it, they were pulling up to the large Beaumont Estate. 

“Wow,” Ali found herself saying for the second time in an hour, “Maxwell, this place is gorgeous.”

The grounds of the large house definitely looked like it was fit for nobility, and Ali stepped out of the car trying to imagine what the inside looked like. Maxwell had already made it to the trunk of the SUV and was trying to somehow carry all of his bags and her own at the same time. 

“Yup, that’s home,” he replied, his voice strained as he tried to support the weight of their things. 

“Max, you know I can carry my own bags, right?” she said with a laugh, making her way over to help him. 

“What kind of gentleman would I be if I let a lady carry her own bag?” 

Ali playfully rolled her eyes and took her luggage from him. 

“I promise I won’t tell anyone,” she said sarcastically. 

The large front doors of the house were made of intricately carved wood and pushed open to reveal a large foyer. The ceiling rose high above her head, and an antique chandelier kept the area brightly lit. 

“Follow me. I’ll show you to your room, and then we can find Bertrand,” Maxwell said and began leading her up the large staircase. 

As he led her through various hallways, Ali had to mentally keep track of every turn that they took so that she wouldn’t get lost later. However, as large and spectacular as the home was, she couldn’t help but notice that there were no people in sight. 

“This is my room,” Maxwell said, gesturing to an unopened door as they passed it, “And that’s yours.” 

He pointed to a door that was right down the hall from his and allowed her to walk ahead so that she could open it. 

“Oh my god,” Ali said, taking the large four poster bed and the bedding that probably cost more than she made in a year at the bar. 

“Yes, I’m sure the room is probably quite spectacular for someone of your tastes,” came a voice from behind them. 

Ali turned around, not sure whether or not to be offended. The man who had spoken looked like every boring history professor stereotype that she had ever heard combined into one. He was covered in tweed from head to toe and had large, leather elbow patches on his jacket. There was a scowl on his face as he looked her up and down. 

“He doesn’t mean anything by that,” Maxwell said quickly, trying to cover for him. “Bertrand, this is the one I was telling you about… Ali!”

“This is the girl you’ve chosen to represent our house?” Bertrand asked. 

A skeptical look crossed his features, and Ali suddenly became very aware of the fact that her curls were ruffled from sleeping on the plane and that she was wearing an old hoodie that she had taken from Cole and was probably three sizes too big. She tugged at the hem of it self-consciously and smiled awkwardly at the man in front of her. 

“Yep! Nailed it right?” Maxwell said, smiling widely. “Ali, this is my older brother, Bertrand.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Bertrand,” Ali said politely. 

“The proper way to address a duke is ‘Your Grace’,” Bertrand responded stiffly. 

“Oh, right! I’m so sorry, Your Grace,” Ali said, her cheeks heating up. She hadn’t even been in Cordonia for an hour and she was already making mistakes. 

“At least it looks like you can be trained.”

Ali clenched her jaw at his words. 

“Trained? I’m not your pet!” she said, anger rising in her voice. 

Bertrand met her gaze and the two stared at each other for a moment. 

“Maxwell, a word in private,” he said, turning and walking out the door.

Maxwell shot her a strained smile and followed his brother, shutting the door behind them. She could just barely hear their voices through the door, and although their words were muffled, she knew that the conversation was about her. Ali sighed and looked up at the ceiling, wondering what she was getting herself into. The door reopened, and a flustered Maxwell and a red-faced Bertrand reentered. 

“It seems that we’re stuck with you,” Bertrand says, once again looking her over. 

“If me being here really is that much of an issue I can just go, and your family can choose some other girl to sponsor,” Ali said, crossing her arms. 

She didn’t expect things to be easy. She knew that there would be people who didn’t support her in Cordonia, but Bertrand was supposed to be her sponsor, and she was getting tired of his attitude. They had only known each other for five seconds, and he was already saying that she wasn’t good enough. 

“No! You can’t go. We’ve already chosen you, so if you leave we’ll have no one. Besides, you could be Liam’s only chance of finding actual happiness. I’ve seen the way you look at each other. You’re the only person that he’s ever loved,” Maxwell said, pleading with her. 

Ali uncrossed her arms and sighed, her features softening at his words. These actions didn’t go unnoticed by the duke who was now looking at her curiously. 

“Perhaps Maxwell didn’t fully explain this to you, but if our house puts forth the Prince’s choice, we’ll win fame and recognition,” he began.

“Something we could really use right now actually, ‘cause we’re kind of broke,” Maxwell finished.

“Maxwell! You overstep,” Bertrand said angrily. 

Ali looked between the two brothers. 

“There’s no shame in being broke,” she said softly, “Do you guys get money if I marry Liam?”

“Not… directly, but we can leverage the prestige to great effect. It would be a scandal if word got out of our financial ruin,” Bertrand said. 

Ali could tell that they were in a difficult situation, and although Bertrand only seemed to be concerned with her marrying Liam so she could help with their finances, she could tell that Maxwell had pure intentions.   

“I love Liam and want to be with him, and I want to help you guys as much as I can. So, if that means not talking back to Bertrand and learning how to be a lady of the court then fine. I’ll do it,” she said. 

[lysteriaposts]

now with the re-hype of star wars and all with the teaser for IX coming out, i think it’s important to let people theorise and have fun no matter what your own ideas or wishes are. with that said though, i’ve seen some pretty stupid reasonings for having rey be completely unrelated to anyone that i’d like to just give my take on, and also to share why i see so much more set-up and pay off in having her be related to a specific someone, if you look at it as a saga.

i think the first thing we should get clear about is what is the intention and role of this film that is coming out in december? well, after watching celebration and literally every interview with the producer and director they’ve always highlighted how they know this is the last installment of a nine movie saga (or three trilogies). i could paraphrase and link vids, but i’m sure you can just look up any interview for “rise of skywalker” and find that kathleen and jj abrams bring this up literally every time. this shows that they’re aware it needs to be a good send off and a fitting end of not only one movie, but more importantly a whole story stretching over 40 years. keep that in mind.

now i’ll answer to the critiques of rey as a relative of someone we know. 

something that is always mentioned is that TLJ “confirmed” something about her origin... but it didn’t, it merely waved the question aside (not that surprising seeing as though rian johnson had his interest on mainly the kylo/rey dynamic). even the director himself said it wasn’t anything final, and that he made that choice to challenge the character of rey. furthermore, it was in the context of a very manipulative scene with kylo ren, someone who’s not seen as very trustworhty nor loyal and even has a motive to get rey on his side at that moment. that he’s the one to disclose the information that “rey’s a nobody” makes it even harder to believe and lying to the MC about family is an occurring theme in star wars (obi-wan to luke). another thing is just that wording... that is a way of speech used to tell that someone’s below, not worthy or irrelevant. her parents were losers who didn’t want to care for their child--- nobody or nobodies. something to realise is that the “info” (if it’s even true) that is given about her parents is minimal and might not exclude that her heritage is connected to someone we know. all in all, the first argument i’d like to rebuke is that they’d have to retcon rey’s identity -- there is nothing to retcon since nothing was c o n f i r m e d.

will making rey connected to someone by blood ruin her character, her strength? definitely not! and not for the reasons you think. people claim that fans want her related to someone cause she’s not enough by herself. as a matter of fact fans want her related to someone because that actually creates a red thread in the nine-piece story that is the skywalker saga, and makes her a more relevant and a better character because she has importance and a place in it. on the other hand if rey is a complete stranger with force powers who just happens to stumble into this family soap opera and solve their issues, that makes her bland and really just a deus ex-machina, a plot device and not a character. it isn’t about “inheriting powers and strength” which people assume, but it is about relevance and continuity. p o e t r y.

riding on my previous point this also proves that what people think is an important character to have - someone who came from nothing and got good on their own merit and not by last name - is not needed to be filled by rey. to be honest, i’m shocked people need this at all. people should know they’re watching the skywalker saga, ONE story within the huge universe of star wars. that doesn’t mean there aren’t other stories that involve other characters completely urrelated to each other, hell even this saga has obi-wan kenobi and mace windu who worked their way up to where they are. we have freaking finn and poe in the new trilogy!!! why this hysteria over rey being a complete stranger when we have so many good examples already, and when it gives nothing to the story if she is? there is only one film left of this unique saga, but many other star wars stories can be created later to fill this need of “no blood ties”. (even if i still don’t see this need when it’s woven into everything already!)

my last point will obviously refer to george lucas and his love for reoccurring beats and poetry that rhymes. if i may say so it’s the essence of the skywalker saga. i’m not going to say star wars, but this saga. the greatest set-up and pay off for this 40 year old story is to make rey a kenobi, because it captures everything perfectly -- reconciliation, redemption, surprise, love, dark, light so on. we start off this saga with obi-wan and his master, seeing him become a better jedi with his own hard work. he then witnesses the demise of his mentor, a story beat that’s been repeated with luke and rey. obi-wan goes on to join the jedi order and become very set in his ways, and a master to anakin, thus beginning the long skywalker-kenobi history. when anakin turns to the dark side kenobi sees it that he’s failed him and also himself - making him go into exile. that most probably would shake anyone’s previously held values. he feels guilty and reconnects with another skywalker - luke. he starts mentoring luke to prepare to fight the evil that obi-wan probably sees himself partially responsible for creating. luke saves vader/anakin and gets his reconciliation that way, but obi-wan doesn’t truly reconcile with anakin. many decades later we have the new protagonist called rey who seeks to find her identity, belonging and... reconciliation. at the same time as characters progress, there are still story beats being (reverse) repeated, this time the focus of the story switched from a skywalker to a kenobi. finding out her identity will give her the idea of what she has to do to reconcile with herself and lead her to the belonging she seeks, it’s all connected. now if rey discovers she is a kenobi it’ll lead her to ben solo-skywalker, and if she manages to turn him around to the light it will give way for poetic justice in the skywalker (/kenobi) saga. in her discovery that her forefather led a very lonely life and that the strict jedi codes could have lead to the fall of skywalker in the first place and failure for obi-wan would be enlightening to her character seeing as though she has the tendency to be overly independent and by herself. this could make her more open and realise that it’s important to have people around you and be open to love, attachments and that family / legacy don’t have to be the same. 

[robynqueenofstuff]

Reviews Of Stuff. Special Second Review: Star Wars: The Force Awakens

                      Tagline:The Force Is Calling To You.Just Let It In

Date Of Release: 18th December 2015                Directed by J.J. Abrams

Distributed by Walt Disney Pictures       Based on Characters by George Lucas

Yes. Oh Yes. I am going to review 2015's highest-grossing film and your slightly early Christmas present from said year, Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Back in 2012 when Disney announced that not only had they bought Lucasfilm from George Lucas but also that they were planning at least 3 new Star Wars films: Shit hit social media. As time went on it was announced that JJ Abrams would be the director of the first in what would be three new Star Wars movies and that Mark Hamill [Luke Skywalker]  Harrison Ford [Han Solo] and Carrie Fisher [Leia Organa] had signed on to reprise their roles in the next film. As time went by with news of casting calls that i was not old enough to audition for at the time, JJ Abrams working with a machete very close to his neck and goosebumps from the very first teaser trailer, The film finally premiered on December 14th, 2015, before being released worldwide four days later. The film now currently rates a 92% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is currently the third highest-grossing film of all time, The highest grossing film of 2015, The highest grossing film in the Star Wars Franchise, The highest-grossing film released by Walt Disney Studios, The highest-grossing film in North America, finally dethroning Avatar and the third highest-grossing film of all time with . The film was also nominated for 99 awards including 5 Academy awards and won 33 of said nominations.

I am a complete Star Wars geek and so i was really excited for this movie. I got tickets for a showing on the 19th, I headed to the cinema in Carlisle, I got a Star Wars popcorn bucket, [The only time to buy the overpriced cinema popcorn is when there are themed popcorn buckets] I had my usual toilet break before the trailers. I watched the movie. I...really enjoyed it. Really. Top 3 Star Wars movies easily. But a lot of angry Youtube commenters who can't spell correctly disagree with me so i decided i'd postpone my Harry Potter reviews and impulsively do a Star Wars review. Starting with The Force Awakens. Odd one to start with i know but i'm going to do all of them eventually. Including the next ones when they eventually come out.

Ok so the film opens with the iconic crawl every Star Wars film has [You hear that Rogue One? EVERY STAR WARS FILM HAS A CRAWL] and we learn immediately that Luke has vanished rather inconveniently as an Imperial Remnant named The First Order has risen from the Empire's ashes and seeks to destroy the New Republic formed after the Rebellion's victory. His twin sister Leia Organa now leads the Resistance against the First Order and has sent her best pilot Poe Dameron, played by Oscar Isaac to retrieve what appears to be a map leading to her missing brother. He retrieves the map to Luke from a retired adventurer by the name of Lor San Tekka, played by Max Von Sydow 

but then The First Order arrives, Kills Tekka and a whole bunch of innocent settlers [Maybe Alderaan survivors?...] and captures Poe but not before he gives the map to BB-8 who then escapes and meets Rey, played by Daisy Ridley Finn played by John Boyega is a stormtrooper who finds that he doesn't want to kill innocents for the First Order and ultimately helps Poe Dameron escape but they crash on Jakku and Dameron is seemingly killed [OH NO! i-i really believe he's dead!] and Finn ends up bumping into Rey and BB-8 and they ultimately escape Jakku on the Milennium Falcon [Don't fucking call it garbage] and begin the journey to deliver the map to the Resistance, running into a certain scoundrel and his hairy companion along the way....

That's all i'm going to say on the plot even though most people probably already know it at this point, i'm not going to mention certain spoilers just in case there is anyone who doesn't. The plot of the story overall is decent though there is a couple of huge similarities to another Star Wars film but we'll get to that in a moment because other than that and a couple of plot-holes this story is good. It has likable leads, a good sense of humor, a genuine feel of mystery concerning the origins of a certain character and it does genuinely feel like a Star Wars film. It also has that awesome reason to re-watch movies....To catch all the small details in the background. Yeah it's a great reason to watch all the Star Wars movies and the Harry Potter movies actually. Things like a character's expression, a cameo in the background or a stormtrooper hitting his head on the doorway.

The characters are for the most part great and the ones that aren't are...mainly underused.

The Orig Trig Gang [Minus Lando] are back and it is great to see them again. Han Solo, Leia Organa, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2. Oh and Luke Skywalker! How could i forget Luke! The role he played! Such a useful character! And so cool! and that scene at the end was amazing! You know the one i mean! Luke was a badass in this film! His sister Leia played by the now late Carrie Fisher returns but not as a Princess but as a General. Well i guess there's not much point calling yourself Princess when there's nothing to be Princess of so this makes sense. Her character is a bit more broken in this, you get the feeling of someone who has seen and experienced far too much for one lifetime, Both this movie's later reveals and Star Wars Bloodline kind of explain why but, she also shows she's the same snarky old Leia we all know and love. Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2 are still as lovely as ever and Han Solo.....Jesus it is good to have the old scoundrel back. He's old, grouchy and probably harboring back problems, but he's still got that crook side to him plus that line where he says The stories about the Force along with the Dark Side and the Jedi are all true?  That shows how far he's come from believing it to be just be a 'hokey religion' I'm sure his character will be pivotal in the rest of this new trilogy....right?

Rey looks to be the big mystery of the series at least concerning parentage plot points. Theories on who her parents are will be the first things you see if you type her name in on the Internet, From theories she is the daughter of Luke, [Which would be too obvious in my opinion] the daughter of Obi-Wan [Which despite being really popular i personally disagree with] and the reincarnation of Anakin Skywalker. [Yes this is a theory...the things people think of nowadays] My personal theory is that maybe her parents were Dark-Side users or Jedi assisting Luke or maybe not actually important, one of those three. Her character is interesting as she initially comes across as the average 'tough girl who don't need no man' type but as the story progresses and establishes her as having no choice but to adopt this persona in order to be able to survive in the environment she resides in but we also see signs of vulnerability in her when we learn she's hanging on to hope of something that is most likely never going to happen not to mention her reaction to possibly being part of something much greater indicates she is not as strong as she might appear and there's a part towards the end that makes her appear a little Dark-Side-ish to me....Which would be an interesting twist actually.

Finn as we worked out from the trailers is a former stormtrooper who runs away from the First Order, only he doesn't want to stop running. He just wants to get as far away from this conflict as humanly possible only to find himself back in the conflict almost immediately afterwards. Granted it's his choice every time, Seriously, the guy escapes the First Order and says he just wants to run away but one of the first things he does is try to run to someone's aid when they are being attacked. Now, granted Rey was able to get out of the situation easily but it does show a lot about his character and he definitely comes across as someone who's desire to help ultimately outweighs his desire to run and be afraid of it all. Now his connection to the Stormtroopers is interesting as we've never had a main character that is a Stormtrooper before, This could lead to some interesting plot points in the next two films maybe he'll face off against Captain Phasma or an old stormtrooper comrade i don't know but it's going to be helluva lot of fun finding out.

The main villain, Kylo Ren is a Vader wannabe. I'm not just saying that because he's the replacement for Vader because the guy literally wants to be Vader the movie even says so! There's a reason in particular as to why he's so obsessed with Vader as well as a connection to the original heroes but for those who don't know it yet i won't give it away. I think he's being sort of set up to be a tragic villain, As you watch the film you get the feeling that he knows he's never going to be like Vader, He tried to look cool with his special lightsaber and his mask made to mimic Vader but it never really sinks in that way he just seems more angry and desperate than Vader and while i won't give anything away this longing ultimately drives him to do...something.

Poe Dameron....Am i allowed to marry a fictional character? This character has charm, humor, manners, dashing good looks, morality and he's the owner of BB-8! How much more attractive is this guy! And i love just how he and Finn have an instant connection, Just love how quickly they become friends. I just want more Poe in the next flick Rian Johnson! OK?! GIVE US MORE POE DAMERON !! Also i want my own BB-8. Now. I'm practically the only one who didn't get one for Christmas ....

Then there's the leader of the Stormtroopers, Captain Phasma played by Gwendoline Christie....Why was she even there? I mean her armor is cool and she and Finn could have interesting conflict but...why do we have to wait?

General Hux played by Domhall Gleeson [Cause he's in everything nowadays] does come across as the new trilogy's Tarkin but he's decent on his own, apparently he's the son of a General of the original Empire so actually grew up believing the Empire is the good side. And the rivalry between him and Kylo is kind of cute in the way you know it's pathetic.

Maz Kanata was an ok character despite that her role was basically exposition and it's nice to meet other friends of Han and Chewie [Or in Chewie's case maybe more :)] But why does she have to reveal important plot points if she's only in a small portion of the film.

Snoke i won't say much about except he appears to be the true villain of this new trilogy and is the master of Kylo Ren. Who he is?, Why is he doing this? and how did he convince Kylo to be his apprentice? We'll find out. In a year. Hopefully. [For the love of The Force don't make us wait until IX...]

Highlights of the film include the special effects which granted we knew would be fantastic,[Especially compared to certain OTHER films that came out that year-FANT4STIC!] but they really do work and make it feel new while still retaining the old feel of Star Wars. The score is lovely, composed by John Williams yet again but not as good as other Star Wars scores, but still really impressive though especially Rey's Theme. [Btw am i the only one who noticed that March Of The Resistance is basically just The Imperial March for the Resistance?] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65As1V0vQDM

As i’ve stated before the characters are great and there are some really great actors cast plus a couple of cool cameos too such as Daniel Craig and Ewan McGregor. [the latter is an uncredited voice cameo but he’s in there] The fight sequences are well-done and choreographed well, Not overdone like the prequels or under-done? like the originals, They don’t just tap their lightsabers at each other or pause during battle to twirl their lightsabers around for a moment. It’s raw, It’s fierce, It feels like the characters are actually in a fight for their life rather than a flashy duel that we know the ending to. There’s also a really great atmosphere to the movie, You get that feeling right from the teasers with that giant shot in the desert with the crashed Star Destroyer and that feeling holds within the movie, There’s a really great scene where we just get a good look at Rey’s life on Jakku, Just a day of her working and trading what she does for a small portion of food, There’s dialogue in the scene but Rey herself doesn’t say anything, she just quietly gets on with it but it sort of works in a way. And that flashback scene is mind-boggling, I won’t say what happens because that would be a spoiler but it just makes me want to shake Rey and the Knights of Ren and scream ‘WHAT ARE YOU????!!!!!.

The movie of course does have its flaws and those mainly concern the story. A lot of people say it is too derivative of A New Hope and i would be lying if i didn't say i couldn’t see that however, i feel there not as numerous as other people make it out to be. There are a few obvious ones such as the hero on a desert planet, the droid with a map, the cantina and most obviously Starkiler Base. [Nice nod to The Force Unleashed though] Personally while noticeable similarities, they are not really as consistent throughout the movie as some people say it is. Plus the hero from the desert planet storyline....it’s not just from A New Hope, I know people don’t like to remember The Phantom Menace but it still counts!. Also there’s a couple of plotholes in the movie that they really just kind of skim over when brought up [TELL US HOW YOU FOUND THE LIGHTSABER YOU-!] and there were characters that needed to be fleshed out more [cough PHASMA! cough] but other than that.i don’t think there are any other major problems...

So i really enjoy this film. In the Top 3 of the Star Wars films easily. It has Good Direction, Fantastic Visual Effects, Lovely Music, Great new characters, Good Humor, Well-written dialogue, [Take notes Lucas!] a Decent Story and a Wonderful atmosphere. And a new era in the Star Wars universe has just begun,

Final Verdict: 9 out of 10. Buy on Blu-Ray.

Critic’s Note: Should i do a spoiler review of The Force Awakens? Should i put the other Star Wars Films and Clone Wars episodes on my list? let me know.