The two things I always expected from a sequel were that Luke would be the mentor not the hero, and Han would die. Lucas and Hamill have repeatedly said the exact same thing for Luke’s role in the sequels and JJ and Rian and delivered on both those. I think JJ did a great job of giving us a new cast of characters. I think Rian gave us a fantastic middle chapter. He put all the characters through the ringer and put them in placed where they are poised for so much more that is barely hinted at. What we really have in a Star Wars trilogy is a 9 act play. Each movie is in 3 acts and the trilogy is 3 movies. So each movie acts as an act in the trilogy. Each first movie sets up the scenario, the second movie makes things worse for the characters, and the last movie resolves the story. Ep III did not resolve it in a good way, making the prequels a tragedy. Ep VI ended on a very high note and the only way JJ can pull this off is if Ep IX ends on an even higher note. I think it might even need an epilogue.
But outside of all that, Lucas never shared what his sequel vision was. Just that Luke would be mentor and hand off to a new generation. Lucas gave us a female Jedi and Luke in self-imposed exile. And that is just from art he commissioned before selling his studio to Disney. That JJ used that I think is a hint that more of what they have done might be from the treatment of the sequel than they are letting on. That is the only hope I have that the ending could be good. JJ rewrote the first part to put Luke at the end and I think that probably damaged the story. I can imagine Lucas writing the very sendoff we got in TLJ for Luke in VII. Instead Kylo kills Han. That in itself breaks the parallels with the OT and PT (the big death in both first episodes was the Jedi mentor and while Han is kind of a mentor, he is not a Jedi). But I really think that if they are following a blueprint that IX will pull things together. I think it will reveal things about TFA and TLJ that we haven’t noticed. That is certainly true of the OT (though some of that is Lucas changing the story, but I’m still in awe of Ben’s expression when he starts to tell Luke of his father - it’s like Lucas told Guinness that he wasn’t telling Luke the whole truth). I think some things are going to be very obvious when we know how the story ends. At least that is my hope. JJ hasn’t been known for being so proactive, but you never know. He does love Star Wars.
I think expectations is the biggest reason people have for not liking either of these movies or the sequels in general. This story is continuing with the characters we left in ROTJ. What they do with them has great meaning. I would even bet the Lucas decided it was time but also decided that he didn’t want to to be one to get the blame this time. The reaction to the prequels was bad enough. But Hamill, Ford, and Fisher were the right age. I’m not sure how many were surprised that Han died. I wasn’t. I was expecting it. That it seems to be a pivotal part of Kylo’s story is just a bonus. How that plays out we have to wait for over a year. Luke’s death didn’t really surprise me either. He is the mentor passing the torch. Dying and becoming a ghost is a bonus that myths offer. The sequels have managed to tap into those mythic archtypes very well, but they just haven’t been the ones people wanted to see.
I have constantly had the feeling that most wanted to see the hero Luke at it again rather than a mentor Luke. But the mentor has to move out of the way for the new hero, in this case Rey. In each trilogy, the hero has unique abilities. In the OT Luke had a blinding faith that his father could be redeemed. His attitude in ANH is renewed in ROTJ after he knows who is father really is. In the PT, Anakin is gifted and appears to be the chosen one. What the means is a little foggy and we don’t know if Palpatine derailed the prophesy or just delayed it. Lucas has said Anakin’s return to the light and eliminating Palpatine brought balance to the force, but that isn’t as clear in the story (a story that wasn’t written to reflect the later prequels). So I’m hoping the force side of the sequels is finding a balance in the force going forward. I watched Clone Wars and Rebels and the force stories in there all align with the direction of TFA in terms of Balance. Tom Baker’s character of Bendu has been very enlightening. The OT had the last Jedi defeat the last Sith, the PT gave us a prophesy for Balance, Clone Wars and Rebels have given us insight into what that could mean, and I hope the ST will tackle it head on in the final chapter.
I guess I’m kind of doing what I am blasting others for. I am setting up expectations for IX. But I do temper my expectations based the need for film makers to exert creativity in each project. Lucas changed his vision (as much as he denies it) from movie to movie as can be clearly seen in the progression from IV, to V, to VI, to III. What matters to me on the day that I see IX is if it had a compelling story and a solid ending. With JJ directing, I have serious worried about the ending and only have hope with the underlying story that seems to come from Lucasfilm (as echoed in TCW and Rebels).