Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, J.J. Abrams’ final chapter in the so-called Skywalker saga, has finally arrived at theaters. After Disney and Lucasfilm rushed out the first two chapters of the Star Wars sequel trilogy – rehashing the 1977 original with The Force Awakens and then going so far the other way with The Last Jedi that the whole thing was unrecognizable – there wasn’t much hope for the big finale.
But then, Star Wars has always been about keeping hope and, while it’s undeniably flawed, The Rise of Skywalker was surprisingly enjoyable, at least if you went in with rock-bottom expectations. It’s certainly an improvement over the wild decisions made in The Last Jedi. So, here are 10 Ways The Rise Of Skywalker Is An Improvement Over The Last Jedi.
The three lead characters actually spend time together
One of the fatal flaws in the Star Wars sequel trilogy that have prevented it from reaching the heights of the original movies is that the characters hardly spent any time together. Whereas Luke, Leia, and Han developed a strong bond across the three movies in the original trilogy, Rey, Finn, and Poe barely had a chance to build a relationship with each other in the first two parts of the sequel trilogy.
Rey and Poe didn’t even meet until the closing moments of The Last Jedi. In The Rise of Skywalker, the trio share a lot of scenes and the rapport between them is finally established after all this time. Long have we waited...
More satisfying answers to fans’ questions
J.J. Abrams pulled a bunch of questions of his “mystery box” when he made The Force Awakens, then handed the reins to Rian Johnson to somehow answer those questions. Johnson wasn’t interested in any of that, so he gave us disappointing answers to the questions. Who is Snoke? It doesn’t matter. Who are Rey’s parents? Nobodies.
In The Rise of Skywalker, we get more satisfying answers to those questions. It was probably an unwise move to start off the trilogy with a bunch of questions that didn’t have answers, but here we are. Rey being Palpatine’s granddaughter ties the whole saga together, making her the Jedi’s ultimate hero while explaining her dark side temptations.
No middle-act trip to a weird alien bar
Ever since the Mos Eisley Cantina sequence in 1977’s Star Wars became iconic, a middle-act detour to a strange alien bar filled with seedy underworld types has been a requirement for Star Wars movies. The Force Awakens took us to Maz Kanata’s place for a boatload of exposition, while The Last Jedi took us to the neon-lit casino world of Canto Bight – the Monte Carlo of the galaxy – to cram some social commentary down our throats.
Fortunately, The Rise of Skywalker stays on track with its massive amount of plot without taking any detours that drag it out. We’re introduced to plenty of new worlds, but they all serve the story.
It’s primarily a fun cinematic ride
The Last Jedi had a lot of big philosophical ideas at play. Whereas George Lucas created Star Wars as a deconstruction of mythology, Rian Johnson wrote and directed The Last Jedi as a deconstruction of Star Wars as its own modern myth.
But as a statement about itself, it got bogged down in what it was trying to say, which often distracted from what a Star Wars movie should be: an intergalactic adventure featuring zany characters getting in and out of cosmic scrapes. The Rise of Skywalker is, first and foremost, a Star Wars adventure filled with fun set pieces.
A healthy balance of light and dark scenes
Just as the Force is divided between the light side and the dark side, the Star Wars saga is divided between moments of levity and moments with grave stakes. Too much light (or too much dark) can ruin a Star Wars movie, from the cringeworthy comic relief in the prequels to the weighty existential debates in The Last Jedi.
In The Rise of Skywalker, there’s a healthy balance between the lighthearted scenes, like C-3PO losing his memory (which the trailers sneakily suggested was the character’s death scene), and the darker scenes, like Palpatine’s chanting followers watching Rey wander into a sinister Sith ritual.
It celebrates the saga’s history instead of rejecting it
The Last Jedi rejected the past in response to criticisms that The Force Awakens embraced it too much. J.J. Abrams’ seventh chapter in the Skywalker saga relied far too heavily on nostalgia and rehashed old storylines instead of trying something new. Rian Johnson’s eighth chapter then boldly declared, “Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to.”
The Rise of Skywalker found the right balance between celebrating the long history of this incredible spacefaring saga and venturing into new narrative territory with the story at hand. This could be seen merely as brand management by Disney, but if it works, it works.
The new Force rules actually serve a purpose in the plot
In The Force Awakens, Han tells Finn, “That’s not how the Force works!” But then, The Last Jedi didn’t seem to understand how the Force works, either. In one particularly ridiculous sequence, Leia flew through space like Mary Poppins. In the original trilogy, Luke and Vader are able to speak to each other across the cosmos via the Force, but it’s not a “Skype call” like Rey and Kylo Ren have.
The Rise of Skywalker introduces more new Force rules, like the ability to teleport items during these conversations, but they’re used for plot purposes: Vader’s mask tells Kylo Ren where Rey is, Rey is able to hand Ben Solo a lightsaber when he’s fighting the other Knights of Ren etc.
It has a better arc for Leia
Despite the fact that Leia’s arc in The Rise of Skywalker was pieced together from outtakes, it made more sense than her arc in The Last Jedi, which was marred by the infamous Force flight scene. The revelation that Luke was once training Leia to be a Jedi before her visions of her son’s death made her quit was both surprising and satisfying.
Leia’s place as a Force-sensitive Skywalker is often forgotten about, and this gave her Force sensitivity some history. Her death was suitably touching, and surprisingly un-clunky. Reappearing to Rey on Tatooine as a Force ghost alongside Luke in the admittedly pretty misguided final scene gave this iconic character as fitting a send-off as anyone could’ve reasonably hoped for.
Luke Skywalker actually acts like Luke Skywalker
The characterization of Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi is widely acknowledged to have misunderstood and betrayed the character. The Luke we know wouldn’t give up fighting forces of evil. He wouldn’t consider murdering his nephew in cold blood at the slightest inkling of his turn to the dark side. He wasn’t a jerk to people, either.
Mark Hamill even told Rian Johnson on the set that his role in the film didn’t really feel like Luke. In The Rise of Skywalker, as he returns in Force ghost form, he seems a lot more like Luke. He hasn’t lost hope, he believes in Rey, and he’s truly one with the Force.
It feels like Star Wars
When George Lucas criticized The Force Awakens for taking too few creative risks, J.J. Abrams clearly took it to heart, because he pushed the boat out in terms of imagination with The Rise of Skywalker (while still playing it safe, unfortunately). With The Last Jedi, Rian Johnson made decisions that were so bold that it ceased to really feel like Star Wars.
There are some moments in The Rise of Skywalker, like Luke’s Force ghost lifting his X-wing out of the water and Lando and Chewie showing up with hundreds of ships to help the Resistance win the final battle, that feel like pure, unadulterated Star Wars.