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Unpopular Opinion Thread — Page 20

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A probably unpopular opinion of mine is I really like the idea of kyber crystals changing colour depending on what emotions you channel into them. The concept of ‘bleeding’ a crystal with negative emotions, turning it red (and the reverse, ‘healing’ it to turn it white), was introduced in E.K. Johnston’s Ahsoka novel and I’ve seen it get a lot of flak. I think it’s a really nice artistic touch though and a great in-universe explanation of the different lightsaber colours.

Not so sure about crystals being alive, but I certainly like the concept of them reflecting the emotions of their wielder - in the same way as Jedi/sith force techniques like lightning.

“Remember, the Force will be with you. Always.”

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I’m more a fan of the older concept that most red kyber crystals are synthetic. The whole idea of the crystals changing or having an emotional “aura” reminds me too much of wands in Harry Potter.

But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.

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The old explanation for saber colors also provided the groundwork (albeit probably unintentionally) for a fairly elegant headcanon explanation for why we (mostly) only see blue and green lightsabers in the prequels despite the EU having a way bigger variety – maybe those are the only colors of crystal that grew on Ilum, so Ilum being the only place the PT-era Jedi took students to build their lightsabers could have served as another sign of how stagnant the Order had become in its last days. Then Luke’s New Jedi Order develops a broader range of lightsaber colors again through exploring the full range of Jedi history and tradition.

Co-author of STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER - THE TEAM DALE REWRITE

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And it makes sense that Sith would resort to crafting synthetic crystals, especially the Sith of the Bane lineage who wouldn’t have been able to access the crystals on Ilum.

But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.

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So…

  1. Dave Filoni is overrated. I enjoy what he’s done, but he takes forever to develop his characters, plot, and to tell an actual story; I think Bad Batch was the worst about this. He also relies on the exact same premise for all of his shows: “A group of mercenaries doing mercenary things adopt a young mysterious orphan and form a family”. Rebels, The Mandalorian and The Bad Batch are just reskins of the same exact show; even TCW could be argued to fall into this trope. Also, I think that people who say that he should run Star Wars are wrong. In my opinion Dave Filoni represents everything you don’t want in someone who is managing an existing franchise. He’s the type of person who wants the benefits of working in an existing franchise without any of the restrictions or responsibilities that come with it. A ‘creative’ who enters the world of an existing franchise like Star Wars inherits a fan base, prestige, budget, characters, and a world without putting in an ounce of effort. They don’t have to try and weave important information into their stories while balancing things like pace. It’s an enormous advantage. It’s not without some drawbacks and restrictions though. A new comer should have to fit their story within the pre-built framework. When a creative comes in and alters the framework, it reduces it’s value. When the message to the fans is “everything matters until it doesn’t”, then fans start asking “then why should I care?”
  2. The Mandalorian isn’t actually that good of a show. I’d rate it a 7/10 at best. The only reason it got popular was because it was the “first Star Wars live action show” & Baby Yoda; both of which were novelties. On it’s own, it’s a boring, slowly paced, and lackluster story with boring environments/locations and characters. The best episodes are ones that feature characters from other material or tie into the larger story of the post-ROTJ New Canon.
  3. The existence of the Ahsoka’s TV series makes no sense. In my opinion after her duel with Darth Vader Ahsoka should not have appeared in any other series. The end of the second season of Rebels would have been perfect as the character’s ending, and I don’t think there was any need to put her in any other series anymore. That doesn’t mean they should have killed her. No. She could have survived the duel against Vader, but at the same time she should no longer appear anymore, because in my opinion after that duel there was nothing more to tell, the circle was complete. In fact, Ahsoka actually SURVIVED the duel against Vader. If you carefully observe the last scene of the last episode of the second season of Rebels you can notice that, after the duel against Vader, Ahsoka comes out of the Sith Temple. Later that scene was retroactively explained through the World between Worlds, but it was an unnecessary explanation. If they had just said that after the duel against Vader she survived and decided to live a quiet and happy life away from the great galactic conflicts, I honestly think it would have been much better than to resurrect her to infinity, put her in all the new series and over-exploiting the character. Deciding to continue the character’s story only damaged the character itself. I don’t know what you think, but the character I saw in The Mandalorian was not Ahsoka Tano, it was a completely different person who looks like Ahsoka and moves like Ahsoka, but who is NOT Ahsoka. They realized that Ahsoka = nostalgia = fan appreciation = money, and so they’re putting the character everywhere and consequently they’re ruining her. For me Ahsoka’s story ends with her duel against Vader. That’s all.
  4. TCW is vastly overrated by a large portion of the fanbase. It’s a good show and has some great arcs, but a lot of fans act like it’s the greatest thing ever made that you have to love. I cringe when I see them hyping it up to newer fans and pressuring them watch it. Sometimes they’re disappointed in it, or just not into it, then they get criticized for not loving it. Until Maul appears there’s hardly any forward thrust to the narrative, besides maybe Ahsoka’s development. That’s three whole seasons without a sense of direction. Every character just exists in a sort of stasis. Stories are told out of order, Ventress and Grievous never get a proper introduction to the heroes. I get that they’re random adventures, but for me personally it just doesn’t work at all. The later stuff mostly fixes this, and I still like the show as a whole - when the story takes off it goes to incredible heights! - but I’m kinda baffled by how loved it is. I get the impression that many fans act as if TCW is only season 7, forgetting all the show’s flaws. Again, I think it’s a very good show, but I think at the same time that saying it’s the best Star Wars we’ve got since The Empire Strikes Back is sheer madness. I honestly prefer the Clone Wars Multimedia Project over TCW: more impactful stories, better consistency with the films, Anakin actually having character development, Jedi are given more complex personalities that are explored. The Multimedia Project has is flaws too, but in my opinion is better than TCW.
  5. I think Meetra Surik deserved a better ending and didn’t get a fair treatment in the Revan novel and in The Old Republic MMO. However, I don’t think the Revan novel and The Old Republic ruined Revan, and although I don’t like the ending that was given to Meetra Surik I really appreciate the video game and the Revan novel, and I don’t understand why many within the KOTOR community hate SWTOR. I think it’s a very good video game with a very interesting plot. Honestly I like what SWTOR did with Revan and I find it much more interesting than a possible boring “Revan wins” ending.
  6. Creating a Sequel Trilogy doesn’t make any sense, no matter who created it. The Star Wars story is the story of the rise and fall of Anakin Skywalker, Anakin is the protagonist of the Saga. The moment the protagonist dies, then the Saga ends and there’s nothing more to say, there’s no need to continue. After the conclusion of the Prequel Trilogy and the realization of the Hexology no other films should have been created to continue the story of the Skywalker family, because the film story of the Skywalkers ended with Return of the Jedi. That’s it. The Disney Sequel Trilogy is a disaster, but even if it was George Lucas who created the Sequels it would be a mistake, because the Sequels shouldn’t exist regardless.

«This is where the fun begins!»
(Anakin Skywalker)

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I agree with Darth Malgus on Filoni and TCW. I don’t like Filoni’s approach because he plays it way too safe, and I also don’t understand why everywhere you look TCW is revered as one of the greatest TV series of all time. It’s just a TV show to pass the time, and finally I am also tired of Ahsoka being shoehorned into every last bit of expanded material.

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Darth Malgus said:

after the duel against Vader, Ahsoka comes out of the Sith Temple. Later that scene was retroactively explained through the World between Worlds, but it was an unnecessary explanation. If they had just said that after the duel against Vader she survived and decided to live a quiet and happy life away from the great galactic conflicts, I honestly think it would have been much better

Trouble is, without her disappearing in the middle of their duel, for Ahsoka to survive she would have either beaten Vader or Vader would have spared her life, neither of which are ideal. I’ll see what comes in her story next but if it isn’t as imaginative as I want it to be, maybe she should indeed have died in that duel.

I agree that Mando Ahsoka doesn’t feel like the same character (mostly because of the inherently problematic transition to live action), and although I love The Clone Wars, I agree these days it’s very overrated. It does a great job of showing the scale of the Clone Wars, giving the prequel era the room to breathe it needed, but when it comes to character development it’s not quite as good and there’s a lot of uninteresting stuff between occasional highlights of the series.

“Remember, the Force will be with you. Always.”

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Darth Malgus said:

So…

  1. Dave Filoni is overrated. I enjoy what he’s done, but he takes forever to develop his characters, plot, and to tell an actual story; I think Bad Batch was the worst about this. He also relies on the exact same premise for all of his shows: “A group of mercenaries doing mercenary things adopt a young mysterious orphan and form a family”. Rebels, The Mandalorian and The Bad Batch are just reskins of the same exact show; even TCW could be argued to fall into this trope.

“A group of trained warriors decide to protect the life of a genetically important orphan with unusual mental powers while fighting in a conflict created by Sheev Palpatine, and through this they form an unconventional family.”

You probably don’t recognize me because of the red arm.
Episode 9 Rewrite, The Starlight Project (Released!) and ANH Technicolor Project (Released!)

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Trouble is, without her disappearing in the middle of their duel, for Ahsoka to survive she would have either beaten Vader or Vader would have spared her life, neither of which are ideal. I’ll see what comes in her story next but if it isn’t as imaginative as I want it to be, maybe she should indeed have died in that duel.

I don’t like the idea of her dying, because she’s one of my favorite characters, so I’d like her to stay alive. 😂

“A group of trained warriors decide to protect the life of a genetically important orphan with unusual mental powers while fighting in a conflict created by Sheev Palpatine, and through this they form an unconventional family.”

Except Anakin in TPM isn’t an orphan and the Jedi are not mercenaries or smugglers. 😂

«This is where the fun begins!»
(Anakin Skywalker)

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NeverarGreat said:

I’m speaking of the Clone Wars TV show, where Anakin is by this point orphaned and the trained warriors are the clones.

Then I missunderstood everything! Sorry… 😂

«This is where the fun begins!»
(Anakin Skywalker)

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Darth Malgus said:

  1. Creating a Sequel Trilogy doesn’t make any sense, no matter who created it. The Star Wars story is the story of the rise and fall of Anakin Skywalker, Anakin is the protagonist of the Saga. The moment the protagonist dies, then the Saga ends and there’s nothing more to say, there’s no need to continue.

I really don’t agree because of how much of a slap-job the Story of Anakin Skywalker is. 1-3 sort of work as the first half of the story of Anakin Skywalker, in the sense that it’s not a hard sell to say it is, 4-6 do not work as the second half. I’ve got pretty mixed feelings on the ST, which seem to be souring over time, but I’ll never really be upset about them up-ending a unified Star Wars saga when the possibility for that to exist was already nuked from orbit almost two decades before them. Probably even further back.

Here’s a contribution to this thread of my own: Solo is pretty mediocre and the people are interested in Solo 2 not because there was a good story worth continuing, but because they end the movie by implying something interesting might have happened behind the scenes. I don’t hate it, and it doesn’t bug me like it used to, but it’s way overrated.

Reading R + L ≠ J theories

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I do think the sequel trilogy feels like a strange add-on to the saga because Anakin’s story ended in ROTJ and you’re just repeating a conflict which already happened. What I would have done it market it as a new saga. You have the Skywalker saga, TPM-ROTJ, and then the sequel saga, whatever it would be nicknamed. Even though I’ve never been fond of George’s idea of the correct watching order and like to view the original and prequel trilogies as separate entities.

“Remember, the Force will be with you. Always.”

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jedi_bendu said:

I do think the sequel trilogy feels like a strange add-on to the saga because Anakin’s story ended in ROTJ and you’re just repeating a conflict which already happened. What I would have done it market it as a new saga. You have the Skywalker saga, TPM-ROTJ, and then the sequel saga, whatever it would be nicknamed. Even though I’ve never been fond of George’s idea of the correct watching order and like to view the original and prequel trilogies as separate entities.

That would’ve been the best option. Play up this idea of TFA as “a new beginning” and have that be the start of a new saga.

As it is, the Sequels have changed the saga in an unintended way. When Star Wars was just the OT, it was Luke’s story. When it was the PT and OT, it was retroactively made to be Anakin’s story. Now, with the nine movies we have, the real central character of the saga is Palpatine. It’s the Palpatine Saga.

I agree about the OT and Prequels as separate entities. Watching in release order, it shows how George’s perception of his own story changed over time, which to me is really interesting. But at the same time, it’s not really fair to the OT to try to retroactively frame it as just “the second half of Anakin’s story,” when it’s a lot more than that.

But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.

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Servii said:

jedi_bendu said:

I do think the sequel trilogy feels like a strange add-on to the saga because Anakin’s story ended in ROTJ and you’re just repeating a conflict which already happened. What I would have done it market it as a new saga. You have the Skywalker saga, TPM-ROTJ, and then the sequel saga, whatever it would be nicknamed. Even though I’ve never been fond of George’s idea of the correct watching order and like to view the original and prequel trilogies as separate entities.

But at the same time, it’s not really fair to the OT to try to retroactively frame it as just “the second half of Anakin’s story,” when it’s a lot more than that.

Not sure if you’re arguing against me, but that’s kind of my point. The OT isn’t the second half of Anakin’s story, it doesn’t work as that in the first place and treating its other aspects as side plots kind of undermines the OT.

Reading R + L ≠ J theories

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SparkySywer said:

Servii said:

jedi_bendu said:

I do think the sequel trilogy feels like a strange add-on to the saga because Anakin’s story ended in ROTJ and you’re just repeating a conflict which already happened. What I would have done it market it as a new saga. You have the Skywalker saga, TPM-ROTJ, and then the sequel saga, whatever it would be nicknamed. Even though I’ve never been fond of George’s idea of the correct watching order and like to view the original and prequel trilogies as separate entities.

But at the same time, it’s not really fair to the OT to try to retroactively frame it as just “the second half of Anakin’s story,” when it’s a lot more than that.

Not sure if you’re arguing against me, but that’s kind of my point. The OT isn’t the second half of Anakin’s story, it doesn’t work as that in the first place and treating its other aspects as side plots kind of undermines the OT.

No, I’m agreeing with you. It’s reductive to try to reframe the OT as just “This is the story of how Anakin got redeemed.” That’s just one part of it.

But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.

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I like all the movies, including the Ewok movies and the Holiday Special. The only one I can’t sit through for some reason is Attack of the Clones.

b

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If George never made the deal to control merchandising, he never would have had enough money to make Empire his way and studio executives likely would have ruined the franchise, so next time you see a vintage figure, thank it!

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Rodney-2187 said:

If George never made the deal to control merchandising, he never would have had enough money to make Empire his way and studio executives likely would have ruined the franchise, so next time you see a vintage figure, thank it!

I don’t think that’s an unpopular opinion. What George did was a stroke of genius which paid handsome dividends.

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Darth Maul was conceived to be a generic villain with no personality, and was purposely characterized that way. Before TCW, Maul was a representation of how the Sith cared nothing for their apprentices and how for Sidious all those around him, other than himself, were expendable. Darth Maul was just another tool of Sidious, he was absolutely expendable and could be replaced at any time. Maul was nobody, and that’s basically what the Sith see in others: they don’t see other people, they just see tools to achieve their goals that can be replaced at any time. Darth Maul was supposed to be a representation of the cruelty of the Sith, and it was the fact that he had no personality that made him an interesting and deep character. Not every villain need to have a great personality to get a message across. But, in my opinion, thanks to Maul’s resurrection TCW has somehow ruined the purpose of this character in the films and in the pre-2008 Expanded Universe. I don’t care if the fact that he survived the fall makes sense or not. He had a purpose within the story, and once this purpose has been achieved it makes no sense to continue his story. The same applies to Palpatine, both in the Sequels and Dark Empire: I don’t care if the fact that he survived makes sense or not. He had a purpose within the story, and once this purpose has been achieved there is no need to continue and resurrect him.

«This is where the fun begins!»
(Anakin Skywalker)

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Turning Vader into Luke’s father might have been a poor storytelling choice for how it limited the story’s world.

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I think limiting the world of Star Wars applies to lots of decisions, such as including R2 and 3P0 in the prequels, but definitely not that. Vader and Luke were connected by association through Obi-wan anyway.

“Remember, the Force will be with you. Always.”

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I’d argue though having R2-D2 and C-3PO within the Prequels adds a further connection between the films as they serve as the Greek chorus through all six of George’s films. They know galactic history but also have a direct connection between Luke and Leia’s history through Anakin and Padme. I’d also say there’s a deeper connection between Anakin and C-3PO. C-3PO is an extension of Anakin’s personality and experiences both symbolic and not. R2-D2 on the other hand ulimately is whose telling the story to the Keeper of the Whills. We can see little instances of where this is being foreshadowed when events are told through R2’s prospective. It’s really unfortunate how we’ll probably never see that plotline picked up on now.

“Heroes come in all sizes, and you don’t have to be a giant hero. You can be a very small hero. It’s just as important to understand that accepting self-responsibility for the things you do, having good manners, caring about other people - these are heroic acts. Everybody has the choice of being a hero or not being a hero every day of their lives.” - George Lucas

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The OT seems like generic random nonsense without the prequels. Still good movies, but disconnected. Vader goes from a mildly concerned calculating mad dog, to a ruthless level headed cold blooded killer who is randomly the hero’s dad, and then he is suddenly a conflicted tragic villain. The inconsistency doesn’t make the most sense on it’s own, but if you watch Revenge of the Sith you see him embody all those traits, and understand why he wouldn’t care about the Empire until he meets his son, and why he would still feel conflicted about something he isn’t invested in… Because he’s been hooked on career performance his entire life, hence his Episode IV characteristics.
He’s been placating his guilt for betraying his friends by committing to a persona of evil and burying his pain beneath a monster, making up for a feeling of lacking control by manipulating the fear in others, hence his Episode V demeanor in response to discovering Luke is Anakin’s son. He wants to convert Luke to evil to validate his own choices and mistakes, and when he can’t he finally sees his choices were always a form of denial of his true feelings, which Luke sensed in him. And together those qualities clarify his Episode VI conflict. There’s a vague arc that seems like wishy washy convenient post plot twist course correction that becomes crystal clear when you see where he came from. It takes something that seems spontaneous and shows how well it was actually planned out.
George would always have to explain the trajectory of Vader’s development, and always said there was a missing element of the originals he wanted have clarified when he was making the prequels. Everything he did with Anakin in the PT was to reenforce the way Vader was depicted in the OT. People thought he was a great villain because he was anything and everything to anyone with a scary design and voice, but George wanted Vader to have a very specific tragedy behind him, and that truly made him the best written villain in a beautifully crafted concrete manner. It’s the exact opposite of how the ST builds off the OT, retroactively making it seem pointless in Episode VII, even trying to make it seem politically incorrect in Episode VIII, and then finally mocking it in Episode IX. Every episode of the PT added to and enriched the OT. I’d consider myself an OT purist, and that’s why I love the PT and hate the ST.

«This is where the fun begins!»
(Anakin Skywalker)

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Darth Malgus said:

The OT seems like generic random nonsense without the prequels. Still good movies, but disconnected. Vader goes from a mildly concerned calculating mad dog, to a ruthless level headed cold blooded killer who is randomly the hero’s dad, and then he is suddenly a conflicted tragic villain. The inconsistency doesn’t make the most sense on it’s own, but if you watch Revenge of the Sith you see him embody all those traits, and understand why he wouldn’t care about the Empire until he meets his son, and why he would still feel conflicted about something he isn’t invested in… Because he’s been hooked on career performance his entire life, hence his Episode IV characteristics.
He’s been placating his guilt for betraying his friends by committing to a persona of evil and burying his pain beneath a monster, making up for a feeling of lacking control by manipulating the fear in others, hence his Episode V demeanor in response to discovering Luke is Anakin’s son. He wants to convert Luke to evil to validate his own choices and mistakes, and when he can’t he finally sees his choices were always a form of denial of his true feelings, which Luke sensed in him. And together those qualities clarify his Episode VI conflict. There’s a vague arc that seems like wishy washy convenient post plot twist course correction that becomes crystal clear when you see where he came from. It takes something that seems spontaneous and shows how well it was actually planned out.
George would always have to explain the trajectory of Vader’s development, and always said there was a missing element of the originals he wanted have clarified when he was making the prequels. Everything he did with Anakin in the PT was to reenforce the way Vader was depicted in the OT. People thought he was a great villain because he was anything and everything to anyone with a scary design and voice, but George wanted Vader to have a very specific tragedy behind him, and that truly made him the best written villain in a beautifully crafted concrete manner. It’s the exact opposite of how the ST builds off the OT, retroactively making it seem pointless in Episode VII, even trying to make it seem politically incorrect in Episode VIII, and then finally mocking it in Episode IX. Every episode of the PT added to and enriched the OT. I’d consider myself an OT purist, and that’s why I love the PT and hate the ST.

I enjoyed reading that, but are those unpopular opinions for a Prequel fan? They appear to be the kind of opinions you find often among PT fans on TFN or other pro-PT sites. Interesting opinions, don’t get me wrong.

“The other Sequels were the result of an over-anxious press. The original intention was to make three [films], and that was really the end of it. It was not until 10 years after the first [film] that I thought of doing a back story.” - George Lucas, speaking at the Premiere of ROTS in 2005