While it has been nearly four months since the release of The Last Jedi, the Star Wars fandom remains deeply divided in regards to the reception of the film. Many have been critical of the film’s lack of direction, inconsistency with past films, and unnecessary subplots. While The Last Jedi has flaws, as do most films. However, many Star Wars fans have missed some of the critical points the film attempted to present. While the film may have missed the mark through some of the subplots, it has no shortage of depth and significance in the overarching theme of the movie.
1. Snoke’s Death
Many people were outraged when Supreme Leader Snoke was murdered by his apprentice, Kylo Ren. The outrage surrounded the very little knowledge or backstory of Snoke, and a lack of character development or relevance to the story.
The fact of the matter is that Snoke was a pawn in a larger plot, his sole purpose was to die so that Kylo could rediscover himself. He was static, and irrelevant to the ongoing story of Star Wars. Little backstory is given on Snoke; however, it is naïve to believe that the creators of this trilogy have no explanation or future plan for that. It is either that Snoke was such an irrelevant character that he needed little explanation, or possibly that additional explanation will come in the future. The fandom seems to consistently overlook the fact that many Star Wars characters reemerge as time goes on (even postmortem), or instead are simply so obsolete that they needn’t have more screen time. It is unlikely that Snoke’s unexplained backstory is unintentional.
2. Luke’s Struggle with Kylo and Ultimate Death
Luke Skywalker has been an idolized character since the release of A New Hope in 1977. He is the epitome of heroism and hopefulness throughout the Star Wars series. However, fans were disappointed when The Last Jedi portrayed him as being a bitter, fallen, and retired Jedi knight. Fans were also frustrated that he had been so immoral as to turn against Ben Solo, his nephew, and even contemplated taking his life. This seemed out of character and dishonoring to the valiant and just Luke Skywalker fans have come to love. In addition to this, fans saw Luke’s death as problematic and unnecessary.
Again, there seem to be several key points that fans ignored while watching Luke Skywalker evolve as a character. At the time of The Last Jedi, Luke is well into his golden years, and has had much time to grow bitter and hard-hearted toward what he believes are the faults of the Jedi way. He cannot understand how a Jedi knight would fall into the temptation to unlawfully kill an apprentice. His moment of weakness is unexplainable by the Jedi way, thus, Luke’s foundational beliefs are shaken when he considers killing Ben Solo. Luke believes that since the Jedi belief could not overcome the evil manifesting in Ben Solo, and could not prevent Luke from falling into Sith-like temptation, that the belief system must be unreliable and faulty.
It is only at the end of the film, when he confronts Kylo Ren, that he can finally face the truth. He can accept and admit that a Jedi is merely human, and is prone to failure. Likewise, Obi-Wan Kenobi admits to failure in Episode III when Anakin turns to the Dark Side of the Force.
Finally, in The Last Jedi, Luke Skywalker makes it a point to tell Rey that he came to die on the island. His goal was to live in isolation until his demise. However, he did not die, and was discovered by Rey. Luke’s death was quite possibly delayed by his inner unrest and unknown need to confront his former apprentice, Kylo Ren. His unfinished business kept him from becoming one with The Force. After his grand confrontation with Kylo at the salt flat, Luke was able to perish on the island and join The Force in peace. Though fans were disappointed by his death, it does not necessarily mean that there will not be a posthumous Luke Skywalker appearance later on in the series.
3. Rey’s Lineage and the use of the Force by non-Jedi
After The Force Awakens, fans speculated countless different theories in regards to Rey’s lineage to the Jedi. For many, it was a disappointment to find out through Kylo Ren that Rey’s lineage was less than stellar. While this was disappointing and made people question the direction of future films, this move provokes the question of how someone with no Jedi lineage can use the force? Perhaps Luke Skywalker was the last Jedi in the sense that he was the last standing Jedi of heritage. Episode nine will usher in the new age of the Jedi which, based on Rey’s lack of lineage, will allow anyone to rebuild and unite the Resistance by learning the ways of the Jedi. At the end of the film, a young child on Canto Bight uses the force to pick up a broom, thus symbolizing the new age of Star Wars that will allow for the rebirth of the Jedi order.
The Last Jedi did have a few minor faults. For example, the film’s subplot on Canto Bight was a long and insignificant story that could definitely have been portrayed in a shorter and more effective manner. Also, Rose’s character was underdeveloped and slightly annoying to all of those Finn and Rey fans. But overall, the film very accurately ties up loose ends from past films and ushers in new hope and unity among the Resistance for the adventures ahead.
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