Not 100% sold on it. What if the first reinserted shot started a little sooner, with Finn already messing with the controls. I suggest that because for some reason I feel what’s throwing me off slightly is Finn and Rose just staring straight forward for a beat. Though I think you could keep the Finn/Poe scene without keeping this one even though it sets up this moment. Poe saying that doesn’t necessarily require a payoff. I think you could make this moment work though.

Unrelated to your efforts, but what exactly is the moment Finn decides to be “a rebel”? When he is fighting Phasma? Is it DJ’s betrayal that makes him decide to fight for the Resistance?

Is there way to have to transition effects overlap, so you could have a clockwise wipe and counterclockwise wipe occur simultaneously? If not that, I wonder if you could create a custom wipe by making a mask and using keyframes to create the transition. Maybe create a circle mask and add three points to create the “opening/closing pie” effect?