Kalinara
@kalinara.bsky.social
Evil robot from the future. Probably. (Pronouns: Any)
She's a character that would have really benefited from a new storyline in Rise of Skywalker though, and I was really sad that they didn't use her.
December 11, 2025 at 7:36 PM
She's a character that would have really benefited from a new storyline in Rise of Skywalker though, and I was really sad that they didn't use her.
Rose was a great character but served very poorly by the script, IMO. The movie didn't seem to realize that Finn wasn't a recruit or a criminal and would have every right to leave. Or that the ex-stormtrooper slave probably isn't the character who needs a "the Empire is bad" lesson.
December 11, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Rose was a great character but served very poorly by the script, IMO. The movie didn't seem to realize that Finn wasn't a recruit or a criminal and would have every right to leave. Or that the ex-stormtrooper slave probably isn't the character who needs a "the Empire is bad" lesson.
Hah, that is a missed opportunity!
December 11, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Hah, that is a missed opportunity!
(See also: the Last Jedi. To bring this rant back full circle. It's very hard to engage in genuine criticism when the people "on your side" are fucking awful.)
December 11, 2025 at 4:36 PM
(See also: the Last Jedi. To bring this rant back full circle. It's very hard to engage in genuine criticism when the people "on your side" are fucking awful.)
(I am not saying there is not valid criticism out there of either show, mind you. But there is a particular subset of show where it's nearly impossible to find a good faith discussion that doesn't amount to "they put GIRLS and non-white people in my favorite franchises!")
December 11, 2025 at 4:35 PM
(I am not saying there is not valid criticism out there of either show, mind you. But there is a particular subset of show where it's nearly impossible to find a good faith discussion that doesn't amount to "they put GIRLS and non-white people in my favorite franchises!")
(To be fair, I think Obi Wan Kenobi deserved to be more popular, but that fell into the cesspool of "female characters are being explored beyond the original material so it's automatically bad. See: Rings of Power and many other shows.)
December 11, 2025 at 4:34 PM
(To be fair, I think Obi Wan Kenobi deserved to be more popular, but that fell into the cesspool of "female characters are being explored beyond the original material so it's automatically bad. See: Rings of Power and many other shows.)
All of which are stories that take place within the universe, but, at least initially, didn't have that much direct connection to the specific characters in the original trilogy. It wasn't necessary.
December 11, 2025 at 4:33 PM
All of which are stories that take place within the universe, but, at least initially, didn't have that much direct connection to the specific characters in the original trilogy. It wasn't necessary.
And admittedly this is anecdotal and not based on stats, but it seems to me that the most popular and best received Star Wars material in the modern age are the Mandalorian, Andor, and maybe the Cal Kestis video games.
December 11, 2025 at 4:28 PM
And admittedly this is anecdotal and not based on stats, but it seems to me that the most popular and best received Star Wars material in the modern age are the Mandalorian, Andor, and maybe the Cal Kestis video games.
And the funny thing is, I don't think anyone was really clamoring for a next generation Star Wars thing. There were twenty-some odd years of books of varying quality that already tackled this concept. "What if Han and Leia had a son that went bad?" We saw that in 2006.
December 11, 2025 at 4:25 PM
And the funny thing is, I don't think anyone was really clamoring for a next generation Star Wars thing. There were twenty-some odd years of books of varying quality that already tackled this concept. "What if Han and Leia had a son that went bad?" We saw that in 2006.
Finn had the most compelling character concept in the Sequel Trilogy: the ex-Stormtrooper turned hero is a really great hook. And it was utterly wasted. Phasma was a visually striking villain with a strong connection to one of the heroes, but she's not a Skywalker so she's killed off as a side bit.
December 11, 2025 at 4:17 PM
Finn had the most compelling character concept in the Sequel Trilogy: the ex-Stormtrooper turned hero is a really great hook. And it was utterly wasted. Phasma was a visually striking villain with a strong connection to one of the heroes, but she's not a Skywalker so she's killed off as a side bit.
(Honestly, I always thought Hux had the more genuine arc...it wasn't a redemption moment of course, but the idea of him aiding the good guys just because he wanted Kylo to lose was great. fit the character, and didn't require special ancestry to justify.)
December 11, 2025 at 4:05 PM
(Honestly, I always thought Hux had the more genuine arc...it wasn't a redemption moment of course, but the idea of him aiding the good guys just because he wanted Kylo to lose was great. fit the character, and didn't require special ancestry to justify.)
The latter actually could have been interesting if they'd kept Kylo a villain, but the last minute redemption in Rise pretty much read like "yeah, well, your famous mom wants you to be good, so there you go." There's never a moment spent on the idea of redeeming characters WITHOUT heroic parents...
December 11, 2025 at 4:03 PM
The latter actually could have been interesting if they'd kept Kylo a villain, but the last minute redemption in Rise pretty much read like "yeah, well, your famous mom wants you to be good, so there you go." There's never a moment spent on the idea of redeeming characters WITHOUT heroic parents...
It's bleak. And it bogs down the newer characters too. Was Rey's origin mystery (whether you like the fake out conclusion or the Palpatine one) really necessary? And how much of Kylo Ren's redemption was wrapped up in the idea of his parentage?
December 11, 2025 at 4:02 PM
It's bleak. And it bogs down the newer characters too. Was Rey's origin mystery (whether you like the fake out conclusion or the Palpatine one) really necessary? And how much of Kylo Ren's redemption was wrapped up in the idea of his parentage?
We're stuck with this idea that all of the promise and hope after Return of the Jedi was futile. Luke's Jedi Order is dead in the water. Leia's New Republic was blown to bits. The Empire was never really gone, just rebranded. Even Han and Leia's marriage crumbled.
December 11, 2025 at 3:58 PM
We're stuck with this idea that all of the promise and hope after Return of the Jedi was futile. Luke's Jedi Order is dead in the water. Leia's New Republic was blown to bits. The Empire was never really gone, just rebranded. Even Han and Leia's marriage crumbled.
Still, overall, if you marathon watch the Skywalker Saga in a row, Rise of Skywalker provides a mostly satisfying conclusion IMO. Admittedly, some of that might just be the sheer exhaustion of getting through 9 (or 11, if you add Rogue One and Solo) movies. But there you go.
December 11, 2025 at 3:44 PM
Still, overall, if you marathon watch the Skywalker Saga in a row, Rise of Skywalker provides a mostly satisfying conclusion IMO. Admittedly, some of that might just be the sheer exhaustion of getting through 9 (or 11, if you add Rogue One and Solo) movies. But there you go.
I didn't like the mess they made of Poe's backstory or that poor Finn's reveal kept getting sidelined (he was clearly force sensitive in TFA, and I dislike how fans kept trying to sideline the obvious example of "anyone can be a Jedi" that is an ex-stormtrooper in favor of fucking Broom Boy.)
December 11, 2025 at 3:42 PM
I didn't like the mess they made of Poe's backstory or that poor Finn's reveal kept getting sidelined (he was clearly force sensitive in TFA, and I dislike how fans kept trying to sideline the obvious example of "anyone can be a Jedi" that is an ex-stormtrooper in favor of fucking Broom Boy.)
I don't know if I think Rey was always supposed to be a Palpatine. I know a lot of folk loved the "Rey Nobody" twist/revelation, but I always thought there might be a further twist. Palpatine does fit the theme and gives a context to the power level that the fanboys kept bitching about.
December 11, 2025 at 3:38 PM
I don't know if I think Rey was always supposed to be a Palpatine. I know a lot of folk loved the "Rey Nobody" twist/revelation, but I always thought there might be a further twist. Palpatine does fit the theme and gives a context to the power level that the fanboys kept bitching about.
(But, as noted, that means they need a new villain, because a last minute redemption needs demonstratable action. And a movie does not have a lot of time to set that up. So "save the hero from a villain" it is. And thus we get "Somehow Palpatine Returned."
December 11, 2025 at 3:34 PM
(But, as noted, that means they need a new villain, because a last minute redemption needs demonstratable action. And a movie does not have a lot of time to set that up. So "save the hero from a villain" it is. And thus we get "Somehow Palpatine Returned."
(I think the redemption happened because of Carrie Fisher's death. Without the ability to film new footage, they had to repurpose what they had. They had to give her some kind of win, since the sequel trilogy isn't supposed to be bleak. And so Kylo's redemption was the only real option left.)
December 11, 2025 at 3:28 PM
(I think the redemption happened because of Carrie Fisher's death. Without the ability to film new footage, they had to repurpose what they had. They had to give her some kind of win, since the sequel trilogy isn't supposed to be bleak. And so Kylo's redemption was the only real option left.)
And you can't have the requisite redeemed villain + hero team up to fight a bigger bad guy without a bigger bad guy. So someone had to think of a bigger bad guy really quickly. Since there was no space to develop a new one, Palpatine was it.
December 11, 2025 at 3:21 PM
And you can't have the requisite redeemed villain + hero team up to fight a bigger bad guy without a bigger bad guy. So someone had to think of a bigger bad guy really quickly. Since there was no space to develop a new one, Palpatine was it.
Palpatine is the big one. I do not, for one moment, believe that anyone who actually wrote the movie WANTED to bring Palpatine back. My own personal theory, based on the ending of Last Jedi, was that Kylo Ren was supposed to be the big bad, but someone decided on last minute redemption instead.
December 11, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Palpatine is the big one. I do not, for one moment, believe that anyone who actually wrote the movie WANTED to bring Palpatine back. My own personal theory, based on the ending of Last Jedi, was that Kylo Ren was supposed to be the big bad, but someone decided on last minute redemption instead.
...it's kind of like criticizing the Last Jedi, really. I have my own reasons for disliking 50% of that movie (fwiw, I think the other 50% is great), but it's hard because the loudest critics of the movie are fucking assholes with the worst opinions.
December 11, 2025 at 3:14 PM
...it's kind of like criticizing the Last Jedi, really. I have my own reasons for disliking 50% of that movie (fwiw, I think the other 50% is great), but it's hard because the loudest critics of the movie are fucking assholes with the worst opinions.