Hi all,
My thoughts or should it be questions, on the greatly awaited blockbuster, Star Wars VII - The Force Awakens. I am not meaning any disrespect here, but I, unlike many of you, have
not been delving through the many science fiction magazines on the market trying to get the latest scoop or speculation on where the film would take us. I have not read the mountain of fictional material out there, mainly because of a lack of time, not of interest.
I do have friends who, probably like many of you out there, have watched the films many times, who know the cannon backwards, can quote deleted scenes word for word and have met quite a few of the actors on the various conventions and tours. ( I have met Kenny Baker and Dave Prowse, along with assorted real astronauts, including Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon). My point being that I am not a total novice to the Star Wars Universe.
My first question is, where were all of the new spaceships I was expecting ? Why were the rebels still using X-wings and Y-wings ? They were obsolete back in the day of SW IV, as was the Millennium Falcon. They should at least be in A and B-Wings. Where was the scientific innovation in the 30 years since then ? Even if it was done in some secret labs somewhere ? The Empire seemed to have managed to build "The Death Star on steroids", why not the rebels ? On a similar tangent, why not make 4 death stars for the same effort it took to build "Fatty" ?
My second question relates to the character of Finn, the reformed storm trooper. Part way through a battle, he gets a light saber and uses it !! I thought you had to be
force sensitive to be able to use them ? Ok, assume he is, but he has had no training in the ways of a Jedi and
feeling the force etc. yet he is deflecting blaster rays etc like a pro, pure rubbish if ever there was some.
Question number three, Kylo Ren - The latest caped Skywalker baddie, Whats with the mask old chap ? You don't need it. The only reason Mr. Vader had it was for medical reasons.
Question four, Whats up with our Luke ? There he is, just sitting alone on a planet in the middle of nowhere, just 'cause he made a slight boo-boo with Kylo's training and he went bad apple ? Be a man. Don't just sit there sucking your thumb, go and fix it now, not wait till someone comes along to hold your hand how many years later. Yes, yes, I know, he will be doing it in the next two films, but that's not the point. He is supposed to be helping the resistance, between you me and the gatepost, he's failing miserably on that front.
Question five, Since when do robots in general sulk ? ("Marvin" from Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy is an honorable exception). Yes, I do mean small blue and white dustbin features. Shame on you, R2. Scrapping's too good for you. I hope BB-8 does better.
Question six, Why was there no Jedi training for Leia ? A waste of talents, although some might say that least she has been doing something useful with her time.
I did hear that Disney Studios wanted to "re-do" Star Wars. I do think that they achieved that, but did they do too good a job of it ? Rather too samey for me, I'm afraid. On the plus side, the monster / special effects generally were very good, especially in 3D. The characters were interesting, as you would hope.
Thanks for letting me share my ponderings. If you have any answers to my questions (even if you think I have got something wrong, I won't be offended) or for that matters other questions that you have too, just pop them in the comments box below.
Ivor
