Well, I guess this thread is back.
ANH: The first act on Tatooine being too slow or taking too long. The slow buildup works fantastically to introduce us to the characters and the setting, laying a strong groundwork on which the story can expand. It’s my favorite part of the movie, and that’s saying something.
RotJ: That Luke’s personality became too stoic or monk-like in this movie. It’s clear in the movie that his stoic persona is more of a mask he wears when the situation calls for it. He’s still an emotional person who cares deeply about the people in his life. He’s just developed greater restraint and self-discipline.
TPM: The film having too much politics. I’ll admit that the Jedi Council scenes are needlessly dull, but I do like getting a glimpse of the Senate, and I love seeing Palpatine’s manipulation at work. I wish the scenes were directed better, and they do contribute to TPM’s identity crisis as a film (whether it wants to be a kid-friendly adventure movie or a movie about political intrigue), but there’s nothing inherently wrong with having those scenes present in a Star Wars film.
RotS: That the film tries too hard to segue directly into the OT. I actually wish it had done more to establish the status quo we see in ANH (the deleted scenes about dissident senators meeting would have helped with that), showing the seeds of rebellion and such. Showing the Death Star at the end may have been too much, though, and maybe having Palpatine coming out and blatantly declaring “We’re an empire now!” was too on-the-nose.
TLJ: That Kylo destroys his mask. At the start of TFA, we’re introduced to a Kylo who is mysterious, intimidating, and threatening in the eyes of the audience. By the end of TFA, he is none of those things. I liked the fact that Snoke lampshades this when he chides Kylo for his failure, pointing out how that Kylo’s not the menacing Dark Lord he pretends to be. Kylo couldn’t go back and resume that shadowy persona, because the audience and the heroes would see right through it. He couldn’t regain that lost intimidation factor. So, the best option was for him to ditch the mask and develop his character without it.