I just don’t agree that the she has to have some kind of lineage. I mean hell, Palpatine is a great example. Palpatine came from average parents, at least in Legends, not sure in canon, but he became the most powerful Sith Lord in history.
Yeah, maybe bloodline can predispose people to have an already innate connection with the Force, but it doesn’t mean incredible talent can come from nowhere. And people bring up the fact that most great Jedi in Star Wars history did not have Jedi parents, but the whole point of Rey being a nobody is to show how anyone can be a hero even among legends. So to me it isn’t the same as just having a new hero in a new story with all new characters.
The Sequel Trilogy is basically if you combined the Legend of King Arthur with the story of Joan of Arc.
Joan (Rey) is chosen by God (the Force), given a special sword, and goes on a journey to save the land. Joan was just a farm girl, but she goes on to win battles even though she has no military training. Do we call Joan a Mary Sue? If God did not have a presence in the story, sure, but Joan has been chosen by God because of her piety and faith. It is her faith that gives her her power. Rey is a great comparison, in my opinion.
And instead of Joan trying to save France, it is like Joan trying to bring back King Arthur to save the land from his evil nephew, Mordred (interestingly, Joan of Arc’s greatest gift to the French army was really hope, a theme I believe is central to the purpose of Luke and the Jedi in the ST).
I also don’t believe the rules have the Force have changed either. Now, with the OT alone the Force is described pretty simply, but within the context of the PT I believe it fits.
Not sure in canon, but in Legends Plagueis and Palpatine did NOT create Anakin. Anakin/the Chosen One was created by the Force reacting to the growing power and machinations of the Sith. In the films themselves, Mace and Yoda discuss how their abilities in the Force are diminishing. I think the Sith choose to see the Force as just a system or a tool, but I think the Jedi see the Force as alive. To me, the Force, even in the OT, is meant to be a spiritual thing where faith and belief were fundamental to its identity. The Force is much more like God, or the Tao, rather than a system of magic from an RPG. That’s what George always meant for it to be.
Regarding Snoke
For awhile I thought Snoke was some kind of servant of Palpatine, but now I believe Snoke was merely a new Force-user who filled in the power vacuum, just a dark side rival similar to Mother Talzin. And if Sidious has been influencing Ben through Vader’s helmet or something, then it is possible Sidious just helped to position Ben to become Snoke’s apprentice in order to kill his both of his rivals (Snoke and Luke). A lot of the Wizard of Oz imagery, with the larger-than-life hologram and the red curtains of Snoke’s throne room (Man Behind the Curtain) seems to suggest this idea of Snoke being a red herring of sorts.