Rey Skywalker had the greatest potential of any character in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, and while not everything about the character worked, there is still a path ahead for her. With plans for more Rey in Star Wars, there is reason to be cautiously optimistic for the character’s future, provided these glaring issues are finally fixed.
Reception to the Disney era of Star Wars has been mixed, to say the least. While Star Wars: The Force Awakens was an enormous box office smash and was critically beloved upon release, failures to tell a cohesive story throughout the trilogy have tempered attitudes toward the film in the years since. The crux of this was one galvanizing sequel.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi is a confusing entry in the saga, as it threw away much of what was suggested in The Force Awakens in favor of a new, different story. In doing this, the sequel reframed much of the series’ direction, including major parts of Rey’s journey and characterization, which had a rippling effect across the franchise.
Arguably the biggest issue with the sequel trilogy was its lack of cohesion. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker attempted to undo the changes of The Last Jedi in a way that was messy and ineffective.
Rather than building on each film that came before, the sequel trilogy seemed to reinterpret Rey at every step, creating an inconsistent hero that still needs to be fixed in a series of ways. With more stories featuring Rey still planned for the future, the franchise must ensure that they repair these glaring issues with her character.
Rey Taking The Skywalker Name Needs To Mean More
Legacy was a huge part of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, and in some ways it was used effectively. The story of Ben Solo was a highlight of the films, even if it became muddled from one movie to the next. However, Rey’s own background was far more confusing.
From yearning to know her parents, to accepting that they were nobodies, to learning that she was Palpatine’s granddaughter, nothing about Rey’s family legacy seemed to carry any weight or meaning other than its superficial connection. This continued with the ending of The Rise of Skywalker, where she took the Skywalker name as her own.
Symbolically, and from a marketing perspective, this effectively ties the whole series together into what is now referred to as the nine-episode Skywalker Saga. However, Rey’s connections to Luke and Leia in the films, while strong, did not naturally lead to this conclusion.
It is still unclear what exactly it means for the world of Star Wars to have Rey taking on the name of Anakin, Luke, and Leia Skywalker. This still needs to be deeply examined in future projects in order to work.
Rey Skywalker’s Yellow Lightsaber Needs To Be Used Properly
Part of what makes Star Wars so appealing is its visual flair. The first film in 1977 featured a bold and beautiful battle between a red and a blue lightsaber, and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi threw another color into the mix with Luke’s green blade.
Darth Maul introduced one of the best lightsabers in the whole series with his double-bladed weapon in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace before Kylo Ren carried a crossguard sword in the sequels.
At the end of The Rise of Skywalker, Rey is revealed to have built a brand new yellow lightsaber. While yellow lightsabers have appeared in ancillary media, Rey is the first Jedi to wield one in a live-action movie, setting the franchise up for a new path forward.
Considering the primary colors of blue for Jedi and red for Sith, this suggests a third state that is neither, embodied by this unique blade. It is a curious way to end the last film, and must be given further context and examination in future sequels.
The Background Of Rey’s Family Needs To Be Better Understood
Star Wars is largely assessed as a saga, and that means that all of its chapters must work together. While The Force Awakens was well liked upon release, impressions of the film changed when The Last Jedi undid much of what made it special. It is important that Star Wars is careful with moments like this.
As a result, even though some audiences would prefer for it do be undone, Rey’s connection to Palpatine must be retained. However, it also needs to be given some focus to help justify it. By better understanding this connection, the sudden reveals of Rey’s family in Rise of Skywalker could grow to become even stronger in retrospect.
In addition to examining her connection to Sheev Palpatine in a more satisfying way, the upcoming films could also look further at Rey’s parents and their story. After all, Jodie Comer was already cast to play her mother, and she is a tremendous performer.
Rey Must Be Allowed To Fail
Some complaints about Rey in the sequel trilogy concerned her immediate aptitude for all things that she set her mind to. While this criticism was certainly overstated, and Rey is not exactly a Mary Sue, she did not actually face much adversity in the films that she had a real challenge in overcoming.
Yes, Rey is captured in The Force Awakens. However, this is the closest thing to defeat that she faces in the trilogy, when she is frozen in place by Kylo’s force powers. Following this, she fumbles through discovering her own Force-use abilities and handily makes her way free.
Rey quickly becomes a proficient Jedi, and barely struggles in her efforts against the much more experienced Kylo Ren. She even defeats the Emperor himself without too much difficulty. While the hero of the franchise needs to be elevated and strong, Disney should not feel afraid to let Rey fail sometimes, as it would help to humanize her.
Rey’s Relationships Need To Feel More Consistent
Due to the writing for the sequel trilogy, many of Rey’s relationships feel different from one film to the next. In The Force Awakens, Rey forges a compelling relationship with Finn, which seemed to have the capacity for potential romance. However, the sequels seemed to forget this, as John Boyega’s Finn was ultimately sidelined.
Rey’s relationship with Kylo was also confusing. Following their antagonism in The Force Awakens, the two suddenly shared a very special bond in The Last Jedi. The dynamic between them also arguably felt somewhat familial, and a feature becomes even more notable when Rey takes the Skywalker name of Kylo’s mother.
Instead, The Rise of Skywalker shoehorns in an unnatural romantic connection between the characters. All of this was due to inconsistent plans for the larger franchise, which saw big changes from film to film. In order to keep Rey’s relationships more consistent, any future films will need to be approached with a longer plan in mind.
Rey Must Be Set For The Future That Everybody Wanted For Luke
Luke Skywalker’s story in the original Star Wars trilogy was epic, emotional, and thrilling. Audiences adored the character and were excited to see him return in the sequel trilogy as an older, more accomplished Jedi Knight. Instead, The Last Jedi subverted those expectations, turning him into a depressive recluse, consumed by his failures.
While this worked on a story level, it was disappointing for many who had followed the Star Wars franchise for years. It seemed to undo much of the happy ending that Luke had received by the end of the original trilogy, which was a difficult thing to ask the audience to accept.
Rey’s future, then, must follow the model that audiences really wanted for Luke.
A future version of Daisy Ridley’s Rey must still have the victories of the sequel trilogy behind her, and must not be plagued by a series of off-screen failures that have since ruined her life. Rey’s story has had a happy ending of sorts, and her future must not undo that.
With all of this said, Rey is still a fantastic character and is one of the most beloved figures to join Star Wars since Disney bought the rights. If future projects use her wisely, she can become an even more essential and beloved part of the series.
- TV Show(s)
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The Mandalorian, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, The Acolyte, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, Lando, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Star Wars: Resistance, Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures, Star Wars: Visions
- Cast
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Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, David Prowse, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Ian McDiarmid, Ewan McGregor, Rosario Dawson, Lars Mikkelsen, Rupert Friend, Moses Ingram, Frank Oz, Pedro Pascal
- Movie(s)
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Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi, Star Wars: New Jedi Order
