Watched the Andor trailer today and it got me pretty excited for the show. Seems like it has a solid team behind it that has a story in mind from beginning to end.
It did get me thinking a little more about the ST. With the amount of stories we have gotten and are continuing to get on the struggle and sacrifice countless people in the galaxy went through to fight against the Empire, it definitely makes me wish to eventually see an edit of the ST where the New Republic isn’t destroyed unceremoniously. As a hypothetical viewer, it just doesn’t feel right to make an audience invest all of this time watching the struggle to restore the Republic only to quickly brush it away in the movie right after the Empire is beaten.
The New Republic should basically exist for most of the ST off-screen. The First Order is the last known Imperial holdout, and the Resistance is operating within their territory. The New Republic has no jurisdiction there because of a truce, so they can’t intervene. The First Order’s main goal in TFA is to destroy Luke Skywalker.
Palpatine could still be pulling the strings, manipulating Ben Solo to become his new apprentice/vessel, but Rey comes into the equation as a random variable he didn’t foresee. A nobody. And when he tries to launch his hidden Imperial fleet to take over the galaxy, the New Republic finally intervenes before it is too late.
Don’t get me wrong, I love how Restructured and Starlight make the destruction of the Republic so much better than the theatrical film. But in the context of the saga, it still doesn’t feel earned really. I know further series will probably flesh it out, but for now it doesn’t feel like there is enough there to justify taking it out the way they chose to.
I go back and forth on it, but I also lean toward wanting to see an ending where both Rey and Ben live and establish a reformed Jedi Order. TROS basically ends on the same thematic notes as ROTJ, but something has got to be different for the end of the saga. We have to end on a different conclusion or message than the end of the previous trilogy. It feels like the ST never grew beyond the lessons of the PT or OT. I also feel like Ben living would be an easier pill for the audience to swallow if he and the First Order never destroy an entire star system and then subjugate the galaxy.
I know I’ve repeated these ideas many times before. I would love to try these myself if I had the time and drive. Looking back (and ahead), what we were given just doesn’t feel earned. Maybe it is better to stick closer to canon though.