One of my first actual posts on this new site, so let’s go ahead and aim for the fences with a surprisingly controversial topic: The Sequel Trilogy doesn’t suck.
I’m going to preface this with complete transparency: I absolutely love everything Disney has done with Star Wars since acquiring it, and it was the best thing to happen to the franchise. If you think I’m insane on that point alone, you should probably quit reading now and save yourself the elevated blood pressure. I’m not looking for a debate.
My favorite thing about the Sequel Trilogy (ST) is actually how close to home it hits with the cliche of art imitating life. The events of the ST are completely believable not just from an in-universe perspective, but from a real-world-equivalence one as well.
What do I mean by that?
The Aftermath book series by Chuck Wendig sets a pretty clear stage for us in the lead up to the release of The Force Awakens. The Galaxy is in turmoil after the war, with Imperial Warlords holding out across the systems, all trying to regroup, vie for dominance, or carry out the dying orders of the Emperor. The New Republic is trying to seem like a competent authority figure, while making as easy of a transition as possible for the more seedy elements of society that enjoyed a pretty luxurious life under the iron grip of the Empire.
Incidentally, this is the era the new series The Mandalorian is set in, so if you loved that I highly consider checking out those books.
We can then follow that bleak post-war series into the Bloodline novel by Claudia Gray. Also part of the Journey to the Force Awakens series. Seriously, why didn’t anyone read those? I’m going to talk about that in a minute. This particular novel deals with the rise of the First Order from an unlikely (or, totally likely?) source — The New Republic. Turns out, years of Imperial Rule made some true believers. A few people cling to “relics” in the name of “history” but we all pretty pick up on the fact they’re actually just secretly Naz- uh, Imperials at heart.
Thankfully those people end up the least of our problems, but their complacency and secret authoritarianism-boners seriously weaken the ability of the New Republic to get stuff done. To top it off, Mon Mothma (remember how she has always been very anti-war, and held great gravity towards the first decision to openly strike the Empire?) is still being a pacifist and keeping the New Republic military completely hamstrung.
So, we have Secret Imperials + Galactic Stress/Anxiety + Weak Military. What does that equal?
The First Order!
Yeah. So they pop up on the down-low and we know the rest from the movies. Leia was the only to see it really coming, and after she got outed publicly as Darth Freakin’ Vader’s daughter, that kind of ruined her political career so she did the one thing she knew best: Killin’ Naz- uh, Imps.
That’s all you really need to know to about the background of the ST, and while I agree they could have spelled that out more in the movies, we need to understand Disney was rebuilding the entire way we engage with Star Wars to ensure it didn’t become the tangled mess the old Expanded Universe was. Hey, no. There were some good stories for sure but even you have to admit it was a lawless wasteland of glorified fan fiction.
Anyway. I like that origin of the First Order because it’s kind of exactly the same situation that was going on in the Weimar Republic that lead to the creation of Nazi Germany. It’s well grounded in historical fact that we can expect these types of extremist regimes in the wake of a large-scale conflict, and that a cautious authority will fail to curtail them adequately. Love it. Well done Disney. I’m totally here for historical lessons dressed up with lasers. Isn’t that why we’re all watching Star Wars? It’s always been a retelling of human history and tradition. Should we talk about that later?
After addressing the First Order/New Republic dynamic, that really just leaves the story we are given with our new characters.
Kylo Ren in particular carries the ST. I absolutely love his character arc, and he is a perfect mesh of the Solo and Skywalker bloodlines. They did a fantastic job in writing Kylo to show that.
I don’t think that’s a contentious point though — everyone seems to love Kylo or loves to hate him. So mission accomplished there.
I’m entirely of the opinion Rey was chosen by the Force to redeem Ben Solo and bring balance to the Force again. This does not in anyway lessen the redemption of Anakin Skywalker, but instead adds extra weight to his sacrifice: He defeated Palpatine in his prime, and brought an end to one of the darkest chapters of the galaxy. He paved a way for a new generation to struggle through the post-war era and find their own light, and once it was threatened by the lingering tendrils of evil in the galaxy, his legacy would continue and see the final end to the war between Jedi and Sith. For now, anyway.
I’m sure Sith will pop-up more later if Disney goes down that route, but everyone will be on a more even playing field. The Force is a terrible power in the Galaxy, and now it no longer holds such a central position. I feel things like showing that little kid summon a broom to his hands or Rey struggling to regulate her own power highlight that point — the Force is something that will always exist, and there will always be a need to address it, but that it’s affect on people means it should be treated with proper respect, and not in training future orders of Jedi/Sith/Whatever. It should be a personal connection with the Living Force around you, and devoid of dogma. A lesson even ghost Yoda was able to learn and pass on the Luke.
Anyway, that’s probably enough on that topic for now. I just want it out on the record that I think the ST is a pretty solid entry to the Star Wars Universe, and certainly hasn’t “ruined” Star Wars like so many people think. If you took the time to just enjoy things and not overthink, it’s a fun ride — and if you want to deep dive, Disney has been putting in tremendous effort to ensure all their media weaves nicely together. If you felt like the ST lacked something, please go pick up a book or one of the comic series. I promise you it will answer those nagging questions and doubts you may have. Explore again.
Rampant Swan 