Haven’t seen it, but I heard it’s a really bad quality rip-off of the story in the first Star Wars, incredibly lacking in originality. To the point where any criticisms against how references to the original trilogy were handled in the prequels make Lucas seem like a master of subtlety…
Is that the feeling a lot of other Star Wars fans have that have already seen it?
For me? No, not really. Yes, there are TONS of reviewers/fans mentioning how TFA is a New Hope rehash, but in all honesty, it’s setting the new trilogy in a great direction in my humble opinion. Most will say how Starkiller Base is very weak to reuse as Death Star III, but after thinking hard about it, I realize this is far different from A New Hope. Both Death Stars achieve VERY little if you think about it. Starkiller base? It does a SUBSTANTIAL amount and propels the trilogy in a possibly very interesting direction.
Yes, it’s so easy to notice the parallels, but again, these are new characters with different motivations and old characters have matured with different goals in mind.