One day I may dive into the Star Wars movies like a fool diving into places where angels fear to tread. But, for now, I only have a little comment. If you have not seen the Star Wars movies, the following may be somewhat obscure.
Episodes IV, V & VI are the best of the series. These last three movies, episodes VII, VIII & IX, seem redundant. Now, I had read that George Lucas, originally, had planned nine episodes. But then he sold the franchise to Disney. That is one problem. Disney hardly ever does “new”. Like William Shakespeare, most of Disney’s best work is in the retelling of an old tale. There’s nothing wrong with that. I do it. Many other writers do it. It’s an honest art form. However, Disney seems to have used the last three episodes to re-tell the same story Lucas told in the first six.
I should also mention that I read a synopsis of the last three ‘episodes’ long before Lucas sold the franchise to Disney. Probably in a magazine back before the Internet. (Yes, Little One, there was a time before the Internet. That’s why it’s not in Star Wars.) A quick Internet search reveals the following (I’m sure there’s a ton more…) https://www.ign.com/articles/star-wars-darth-maul-original-sequel-trilogy-villain-george-lucas-reveals and also https://www.polygon.com/2019/12/10/21005059/george-lucas-star-wars-sequel-trilogy-plot-characters My keywords were “george lucas original sequel trilogy revealed” via DuckDuckGo. See what you can find. My point here is that Disney did not implement the vision George Lucas had. They did what they always do and “Disneyfied” it.
The second problem with Disney is complicated. The origins of Disney were much like the origins of Lucasfilm. One guy going against the major movie production companies. Walt Disney and George Lucas were pioneers in re-making the movie industry. Both of them changed the ways movies are made. The two have merged into the multinational corporation that is Disney. Jack the Giant Killer has become the Giant.
When I saw the first three Star Wars movies (IV, V, VI) I was ‘blown away’. The second three (I, II & III) were okay. I’m one of the few people who actually liked the Jar Jar Binks character. We knew what was coming: Anakin would become Darth Vader. So, the first three have a problem, that is, while the prequel story is being told, the audience needs to be informed about the historical, social and political situation. And that can get boring. Lucas did a decent job of this, but he left out a few things. There are hints in the last three movies. But, then, that could be because the last three movies otherwise would not match the original tale, as noted in point one.
The good thing about this problem is that the details Lucas left out do not cause confusion as we watch the series. Okay, the reason Anakin joins Palpatine is, in my opinion, weak. There must be more to it than what we are told. All those reasons, however, come in to play at the end of VI.
So, we have a great adventure tale (Episodes IV, V & VI) sandwiched between two sets of generic science fiction. Now, don’t get me wrong. I love to watch these movies. And I don’t mind the flaws in the tale. However, Disney, because it is a monstrosity of a corporation, is unable to take chances. No one wants to be responsible for a flop. Unlike Walt Disney producing Snow White or George Lucas producing Star Wars: A New Hope, there is no one in Disney who ‘believes’ in the tale enough to fight for originality. Thus we get Episodes VII, VIII & IX.
As I said, Jack not only killed the Giant, he assumed the mantle.
My The Force be with you!