One of the biggest criticisms of the Star Wars sequel trilogy was secretly subverted in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Since the sequels concluded in 2019, it has been a commonly-held opinion that the Star Wars sequel trilogy is lower-ranked in comparison to its predecessors. Star Wars: The Force Awakens was liked well enough by the majority, though Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker were quickly regarded as two of the worst Star Wars movies by some, yet refreshing, enjoyable installments by others.
The polar opposites of these arguments have led to the sequel trilogy still holding a divisive reception to this day. This divisiveness has caused several criticisms to be raised against the sequels, especially regarding the balance of characters in the three films. While upcoming Star Wars movies are promising to rectify this by further fleshing out some sequel characters, like Rey Skywalker, it is interesting to note that The Rise of Skywalker already fixed one of the biggest criticisms aimed at the sequel trilogy’s characters.
How To Watch Star Wars Movies In Order
Here is how to watch all Star Wars movies and TV shows chronologically and in order of release, and how each fits into the Star Wars timeline.
Star Wars Is An Intergenerational Saga… But The Next Generation Is Overshadowed
One of the criticisms that is often raised concerning the characters of the Star Wars sequels is that there is too big a focus on the older generation. Each Star Wars sequel focused on one individual from the trio of the original trilogy. The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker focused on Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Leia Organa respectively. While the characters of Rey, Finn, Poe, and other new inclusions for the sequels were naturally involved too, many have argued that the newer generation did not receive as much focus as they should have.
The reason for this is that Star Wars is a generational saga and always has been. George Lucas’ prequel trilogy focuses on the first generation of the franchise, that being Anakin, Padmé, Obi-Wan, and the other Jedi of the Republic. The original trilogy then focuses on the children of Anakin and Padmé through Luke and Leia as well as the other second-generation characters like Han, Chewbacca, and Lando. The sequels then introduce Rey, Finn, and Poe among others to carry on the generational story, though some argue that their story was too centered around the original trilogy heroes.
Rise Of Skywalker Revealed Palpatine Stole The Next Generation
However, despite the overshadowing of the new generation of Star Wars characters being a commonly-raised criticism of the sequels, one of the films answered why this was the case. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was the film in question, with the extended, adult novelization of the film providing context as to why the next generation of Star Wars was not as big a focus. In the novelization, more about Lando Calrissian’s post-Return of the Jedi life is explored. It was confirmed in the book that Lando once had a daughter named Kadara who was kidnapped when she was only two years old.
The book then goes on to explore that Kadara was kidnapped by the early members of the First Order as the organization wished to target the next generation of the Rebel Alliance’s heroes. This explains Palpatine’s targeting of Ben Solo too, with Han and Leia’s son being the catalyst for some of the First Order’s most powerful years in the galaxy. While this provides a lot of context as to how the First Order rose up underneath the New Republic’s gaze, it also addresses the aforementioned criticism that the sequels overshadow the new generation with the old one.
The reason for this is that Palpatine directly stole the next generation of Star Wars characters. Be it Ben, Kadara, or the thousands of other children taken from their parents to supply the First Order’s army, Palpatine and the First Order were responsible for the older generation needing to rise again to face them. Whether it is Leia as a general of the Resistance, Han aiding Rey and Finn in The Force Awakens, or Luke reaffirming his place as the Jedi legend of the Star Wars galaxy, the older generation was needed as Palpatine had directly targeted the one below them.
After The Rise Of Skywalker, The Star Wars Galaxy Needs To Get Its Future Back
This proves that, after The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars needs to reaffirm its focus on the future of the galaxy. As confirmed at Star Wars Celebration 2023, it seems as though this will be the case. One of the announced upcoming movies at the event was a story centering on Rey Skywalker set 15 years after The Rise of Skywalker. With all three of the original trio now passed on, it is all but confirmed that Rey’s Jedi Order movie will explicitly focus on the next generation of Star Wars heroes.
If not through Rey, and other potential returning sequel characters, the premise of the film promises this. The film will center entirely on Rey rebuilding the Jedi Order, pushing the warriors into the light of the galaxy once more. In doing this, Rey will likely have a whole host of Padawans and younger characters who will live on beyond even here. Through this story, the Star Wars galaxy will retain its future generation now that the threat to its safety, Emperor Palpatine, has been defeated in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
