For me the character of Rose feels a bit manufactured and unnecessary. She doesn’t add anything to the main story, really seeming to just be a counterpart for Finn on his pointless side quest to Canto Bight and she only exists in that particular sub-plot to use her “past” to tie in the ‘shades of grey’, ‘animal cruelty’ and ‘oppressed slave labor by the filthy rich’ themes explored there (along with all the prequel level cringe-fest elements). I mean, it just so happens that this random person that stops Finn stealing an escape pod also harks from the very planet and city they need to visit to get this Code Breaker from in order to save the Rebels…
Also I have no problem with the movie having a Chinese character if that character is required for the story and the role is specifically written as having a Chinese or Star Wars equivalent background or more importantly, the best actor for the role just happens to be Chinese. But Rose’s character very much feels like she’s only there partly to put an extra tick in the box of “actor diversity” and that’s a slight to the actress herself who does a good job even if I find the character pointless and lacking in many aspects. It also makes me wonder alongside a number of other recent examples (that are not connected with SW) whether there is something to the talk about an increase in China’s influence on Hollywood due to the amount of money they are investing into it (and therefore a need to appease that demographic)…though in that case, one would have expected Matt Damon’s character in ‘The Great Wall’ to be cast with a Chinese actor, though I’m also sure the choice of Matt Damon was more in line with audience pull than authentic characters for a movie set in China.
Anyway, I think there are many issues with “Rose” and what probably put the nail in the coffin for many people was her actions near the end of the movie in stopping Finn from sacrificing himself to save the Rebels. Finn was actually about to do something that would have contributed something significant and meaningful to the TLJ story and give you a stronger reason to feel something for his character apart from just being “likeable”. But no, RJ can have something play out as you expect it to (btw, I haven’t forgetton the replies to my previous post and will get back to them 😉 ), even when he’s the one leading you to it - at the very last second when you feel Finn’s fate is all but inevitable, Rose comes from the side and smashes him out of the way, denying a noble self sacrifice in the name of the Rebellion. Furthermore, the potential for the crash killing both of them makes this action outright ridiculous as not only did she doom the Rebels but also could have made her action even more pointless by killing Finn and herself in the process and its these matters that turn Rose’s character from being not only pointless but also badly written.
I’d also like to point out that the movie completely ignores the fact that there is logically no way for her to catch and pass Finn (after having turned back earlier) in order for her to distinctly come from the side and smash him out of the way (on top of the mysteriously absent walker fire).
.Val