I’m kinda confused, because the art makes it looks like the film would have indeed been “epic” and possibly “oversized” and “bloated.” TROS seems much more restrained in comparison, for better or worse.
I understand what you mean. I guess the reason I prefer Trevorrow’s version to JJ’s version isn’t because it’s smaller, but because it’s more character focused. Every main character gets a coherent arc. Rey becomes a master of the Force, able to wield both light and dark, and begins training the next generation of Force users. Kylo becomes stronger and stronger in his quest for power, but as a result he becomes a machine, alienated from the living world. Finn uses his experience as a defecting stormtrooper to rally support on Coruscant, turning the tide of the war and destroying the First Order from within. All the character arcs in Trevorrow’s version are so much stronger than in JJ’s version, which sidelines the characters to focus on the big dumb action.
I just get a sense that some of it would have been lost in the time frame of a film. The stormtrooper rebellion is a nice idea, but it seems like it should be a series rather than a film. That is where having a single creative mind directing the entire trilogy arc would have been beneficial. And I don’t like Kylo becoming stronger and unredeemable. That is the worst aspect of the story in my opinion. I do like the story actually commenting on Rey using both sides, but that really isn’t necessary. To me the scale feels smaller and much less epic without Snoke or Palpatine or some big bad. I don’t like Kylo filling that role because frankly he isn’t that level of villain. In the story he can’t live up to Vader and the way the character was created Kylo can never live up to Vader. His inner conflict is a key aspect that this version is missing. That conflict led to his redemption. I really don’t think I would have been as happy if they had kept his script. And I really hate Palpatine having a “Yoda” when Darth Plagueis had previously been established as his master. Just too much off for me to like the story. The art is cool, but the story isn’t. Oh, and Colin has stated that while R2 would have been damaged, he was not dead. Much like ANH. And contrary to how you feel, I think that TROS did concentrate on the characters and gave us a huge payoff for all the character growth from TLJ.