I recently purchased two new memory foam bean bag chairs for my movie room, and it’s always been a rule of mine since I was a kid that any new addition to my entertainment area must be broken in while watching a Star Wars movie before anything else.
I decided to go with the one I’ve seen the least (since it’s the newest) The Rise of Skywalker.
I do have some issues with it, but I still love it. I don’t think it’s odd that Palpatine returned, but announcing it in the crawl seems strange. I’d rather have seen exactly how he came back on screen, or have his return be a rumor that the characters don’t believe until they see him themselves, and figuring out how he did it becomes the answer to defeating him.
I preferred Rey being a nobody, but as I said before TRoS was released, her being related to someone does not negate the lessons she learned in The Last Jedi. (No one else can tell you who you are. Friends, family and mentors enrich our lives, but who we are comes from within, not from others.) I suppose this lesson does fit well with Leia telling Rey, "Never be afraid of who you are.” But I still liked the idea of her not being related to anyone.
Aside from that, there is overwhelmingly so much to enjoy. In my opinion the sequel trilogy not only fits well together, but fits well with the rest of the saga. I think people forget how much the passing of Carrie Fisher most likely changed what this movie would have been. All things considered, they handled it well.
It was so great to “take one last look, at my friends.” I enjoyed every single bit of fan service to the fullest extent. When Han says " I know," to Ben, it still gets me every time.
There isn’t any real sense of finality, but how could there be? That galaxy far, far away is still out there, and I’m sure we’ll eventually want to check in on what became of everyone and meet new people as well. (“If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story.” - Orson Welles) I take comfort in the idea of Star Wars continuing on. I feel fortunate to have be among the generation to have lived though its beginning. I can’t wait to see what the next generation of Star Wars brings.
On side note, those bean bag chairs were great. They would be very easy to fall asleep in. Bean bag “technology” has come a long way since I last owned one. I highly recommend them.
The Force will be with you, always.