Lord Haseo said:
The feats don’t chance but the perception of those feat do. I bet my right foot that if Rey was a male there wouldn’t be so many people bitching about it. There have been so many male characters that fit perimeters for being a Gary Stu but Rey…the first female protagonist in a Star Wars film is the one who is making the term nearly a household name/term. There’s definitely a correlation but I think most of the reason for the backlash is that she is more competent than Luke was in STAR WARS and since a lot of people’s view of the OT is so fragile it somehow diminishes the character.

If not for Rey’s annoying “I don’t need no help from a MAN” attitude Finn would be little more than a Gary Stu counterpart. His ability to fight competently with a lightsaber without any training or force sensitivity at all is insane.

There is no correlation. It is not because she’s a woman. It’s because she’s a mary sue. However, conversely it is highly likely that she was written to be a mary sue because she’s a woman. The current political climate is such that any character flaw on a female lead that is beyond superficial is likely to be seen by those who like to be outraged as a direct attack on women. And we all know hollywood does not take risks like that.

Criticism of these shallow characters is likely to be seen as an attack on women too, for some reason. In a lot of ways it’s perfect marketing ploy. You can’t criticize the film because the leads are oppressed minorities, and you especially cannot criticize those characters. If I say “Harrison Ford was sleeping through it.” you won’t bat an eyelid. If I say “Rey is a Mary Sue and Boyega can’t act” I’m a racist and misogynist. Or what?