Pic: starwars.com
I managed to catch Star Wars: The Force Awakens (TFA) with friends & family. It was thoroughly enjoyable. Unfortunately, I came across a few major spoilers before I watched this generation-defining cinematic adventure. Good thing that they didn't ruin the entire inter-galactic experience.
Before you continue: SPOILER ALERT!
My first comment on TFA is that the movie contained a lot of references from the original trilogy. Many were obvious such as the infamous utterance of "I've got a bad feeling about this" and Rey's X-Wing pilot helmet, and the more subtle like Finn tossing away (possibly) Luke's Training Remote from A New Hope.
Pic: screenrant.com
I think these callbacks are great as they remind the seasoned SW devotees of episodes four, five, and six while sharing these awesome goodies with the new generation of fans. What's a detailed galaxy without having new things to study about? In my case, this touch of familiarity allowed me to accept & absorb TFA as compared to digesting a galaxy that needed trade negotiations (ahem, prequels). It is like making friends with somebody you have just met. You will always want to mirror and share familiarities before you would start to argue & debate on matters where both of you may have contrasting thoughts. Always build a strong rapport.
I think the only familiarities we encountered were the Jedi, Sith, and Tatooine in the prequels. That reminds me. The introduction of the planet Jakku got people excited since we thought it was Tatooine, right? We did assume that it will be the only desert planet in the galaxy yet it made us wonder why there were scraps of space ships all over it.
My second thought comes after this comment. My favourite character in TFA is BB8. Moving on...
BB8 clearly has replaced C-3PO and R2-D2 as the hero droid in TFA. I think that as a character, BB8 was excellent. It was humorous, emotional, and overall, a great supporting character. However, BB8 fails to completely replace the hero droids from the Original Trilogy due to its inability to speak. Why is this important?
Pic: komixonline.com
You may disagree & state the fact that R2-D2 also did not speak & expressed through varying intonation of beeps; BB8 did the same. However, R2-D2 & C-3PO were always together & the protocol droid almost always had a say in each situation the duo were in. Why is this important (again)?
These supporting characters were the comic relief in the original trilogy that helped expressed what the audience may have been thinking at that particular moment in the movie. If we assume that the SW main characters' paths were linear, these two droids provided expression & updates from another track in the movies.
Pic: jeditemplearchives.com
This example above (from A New Hope) is my favourite. Both droids were oozing with urgency & the need to flee. As their escape pod gains more & more distance from the Star Destroyer that was holding Pricess Leia captive, C-3PO expressed how small that giant space cruiser was.
Several questions may arise. Are these droids and ourselves so insignificant in the galaxy compared to a giant ship that captured an important member of the Rebel Alliance? Did these events not even matter at all?
Here comes the part where I ask you, the reader, to share your thoughts. I hope I'll be able to write about stuff like this and more in the future. It'll be even better with your feedback :)
Catch you guys in the next article.
