8 things that nobody wants to admit about Star Wars

3. Undermining the previous movies

The biggest culprit here is Rise of Skywalker, where J.J. Abrams came back to take over from Rian Johnson and floored the gas pedal in an entirely different direction. It was honestly two movies mashed into one as he frantically tried to ret-con or undo any and all damage Johnson caused to his story.

We saw plot points adjusted or outright canceled, characters did U-turns in their arcs, and suddenly, it felt like we were watching a cinematic game of ping-pong as each movie worked hard to contradict its predecessor instead of complementing it. It was confusing, it was ridiculously fast-paced, and it had too much information on it with not a lot of time for fans to digest what was going on while attempting to follow along.

Poe’s line, “Somehow, Palpatine has returned.” will forever sum up the entirety of the recent trilogy. Somehow, characters have plot armor. Somehow, we have another Big Bad since Snoke was killed off in Johnson’s The Last Jedi. Somehow, Disney thinks it’s okay to try and pull this off with a beloved franchise such as Star Wars.

Rise of Skywalker feels a little like putting together a puzzle, carefully aligning each piece. Then someone swoops in, dumps a bucket of new pieces on the table, and tells you to fit them into what you’re working on. A narrative patchwork job, with a hasty set of revisions designed to please fans or erase certain plot points.

The sequel trilogy also managed to undermine some of the achievements and narratives of the original films. Take, for example, the rise and redemption of Anakin Skywalker. It loses some of its significance when Palpatine somehow returns in Rise of Skywalker. Wasn’t the whole point of Anakin’s sacrifice to destroy the Emperor and the Sith once and for all? Was it in vain?

And let’s not forget Luke Skywalker, the beacon of hope and moral integrity. His portrayal in The Last Jedi as a disillusioned hermit does not make sense when compared to the optimistic, resilient fighter we cheered for in the original trilogy. It’s as if his achievements and character growth in Episodes IV through VI were reduced to a prelude for another hero to finish the job.

While sequels serve to expand on original stories, the way in which the sequel trilogy unfolds retroactively undoes the victories and sacrifices of the original beloved characters, leaving audiences to wonder – what exactly was the point of it all?