***** THE ACOLYTE Show Discussion (see note inside) Thread *****

166,878 Views | 1974 Replies | Last: 1 mo ago by Sea Speed
redline248
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powerbelly said:

DrEvazanPhD said:

fig96 said:

He was too big to flip over and check, it's a fair question.
That stupid beaver caused a lot more problems than he, or they, solved.


Lot of life truth in that sentence
fig96
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There was a lot more discussion about the show being "woke" (geez I hate that term) than anything that actually showed up in the series.
captkirk
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TCTTS said:

No, it's never this clear and this concise. Because more often than not the complaints come with all kinds of extra *****ing and moaning, virtue signaling, dog whistles, etc and generally sound somewhat unhinged, if not straight up racist/homophobic. I'm not saying people haven't expressed their complaints in these terms before - of course they have - I'm saying it's hardly ever *just* in these terms.
I'd rather not have to ponder how "diverse" a cast is or how sensitively LQBTQ+ issues are handled when I'm watching a science fiction series. I'd just prefer good storytelling.
captkirk
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fig96 said:

There was a lot more discussion about the show being "woke" (geez I hate that term) than anything that actually showed up in the series.
Including good story telling
fig96
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captkirk said:

fig96 said:

There was a lot more discussion about the show being "woke" (geez I hate that term) than anything that actually showed up in the series.
Including good story telling
Totally agree. The writing was clunky, pacing was off, dialogue wasn't very good. Lightsaber choreography was generally pretty badass and that's about it.
SpreadsheetAg
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TCTTS said:

Or, before posting, simply ask yourself, "Do I sound like a racist, homophobic ******* to TCTTS?"


FIFY
PatAg
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ABATTBQ11 said:

In early drafts of the show, Kennedy straight up told her, "You've written a great Star Wars show, now go write a Leslye Headland show." It's really hard to argue that Kennedy just wants a good Star Wars story and not activism when that's exactly what we have from the horse's mouth.

I've said this before, and I'll say it again, this entire show is the equivalent of the kid who got an assignment, focused on an idea they were passionate about and thought was really awesome, and then completely failed because they focused on that instead of meeting all of the requirements in the rubric. Headland, the writers she hired, and (at least some of) the actors she cast were so focused on the woke points of the show they failed to pay the requisite attention to anything else. Her activism and not leaving it at the door to focus on production quality is why she was unsuitable for the role.

And yes, she and everyone else at Disney/LF were hyperfocused on the wokeness of the show. That's how they marketed it and their main focus before release. Others have mentioned Fallout as a show that was very diverse, had what make would consider woke themes, and yet was incredibly well received. Why? There's was no overriding intent or focus on diversity. No one went on a media tour touting it as a super queer feminist wet dream. They focused on story and successfully bringing the Fallout universe to screen. Shows and movies that are hyperfocused on their inclusivity and wokeness rarely do well. Inclusive and even woke shows do well when their creators focus on the the story and getting it right and let inclusivity and wokeness take a backseat.

So yeah, it was woke, the wokeness did it in, and that wokeness is what Kennedy wanted.

Lol
DrEvazanPhD
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fig96 said:

captkirk said:

fig96 said:

There was a lot more discussion about the show being "woke" (geez I hate that term) than anything that actually showed up in the series.
Including good story telling
Totally agree. The writing was clunky, pacing was off, dialogue wasn't very good. Lightsaber choreography was generally pretty badass and that's about it.


It's they like didn't know what kind of show it was going to be. The characters constantly changed their motivations. I'm evil, no I'm good, no I'm evil again. The acting was awful. Especially Jedi master Nepotisma, I'm not sure she ever changed the inflection in her voice. That fight scene between Mae and osha was the worst in the whole series next to the original obi-wan v Vader (and that was at least due to old tech, before major fight choreography, etc).
PatAg
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I would say only some of the acting was awful. Soland qimir were good. I actually thought she was good in any normal scene, but any scene both twins were in was not good, and some of acting in the action episodes fell flat.
The guy playing the senator was good in the 5 min he got.

The green jedi and everyone with her belong as extras in a Stargate SG-1 episode. Just have no business on a show where this much money is spent

The worst was easily the green jedi and friends
exitone
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I will leave my mandatory comment on the show:
  • Poorly written
  • Poorly directed
  • Poorly casted (with the exception of Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen)
  • Poorly acted (with the exception of Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen)

That being said, I have a question...

Why did Vernestra not want to tell the full truth to the senate council? She made Sol the fall guy when she knew there was one or several other parties at fault (not necessarily Sith, but someone fallen to the dark side and the witches). I know she is trying to protect the Jedi, but isn't it better to say it was a Sith or a Witch Force user who is at fault, rather than a Jedi who messed up. I would think that could actually be a benefit of the Jedi... good people who can keep the bad force users in check.

PatAg
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exitone said:

I will leave my mandatory comment on the show:
  • Poorly written
  • Poorly directed
  • Poorly casted (with the exception of Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen)
  • Poorly acted (with the exception of Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen)

That being said, I have a question...

Why did Vernestra not want to tell the full truth to the senate council? She made Sol the fall guy when she knew there was one or several other parties at fault (not necessarily Sith, but someone fallen to the dark side and the witches). I know she is trying to protect the Jedi, but isn't it better to say it was a Sith or a Witch Force user who is at fault, rather than a Jedi who messed up. I would think that could actually be a benefit of the Jedi... good people who can keep the bad force users in check.


I think its all about control.
kyledr04
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Finally finished it. That was rough. Parts of the story were interesting and had potential but it was lost on bad acting, terrible story telling, dumb plot lines, and cheap appearance. More Sith and "Bad" Jedi are a cool idea but the whole vergance witches and freaky Friday twins ruined it.
jabberwalkie09
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Well that was a show that had a season and exists. The concept of a Jedi's decision leading towards disastrous consequences was an interesting one but this just did not execute well imo. I'm not sure how I feel about the involvement of Ahmundi (can't remember the spelling or if that was him) and Yoda. I'm fine with including new force stuff for the most part but that gives the impression to me that someone, somewhere decided we needed to have some more nostalgia/member berries in the show.

At this point, I'm really struggling to find a reason to get invested into the franchise again.
Maximus_Meridius
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Because we are going firmly, HARDCORE into the mindset where ACAB is now AJAB.

Seriously, I have tried, and tried to be fair and patient and reasonable with this show. I didn't expect anything earth shattering or Oscar award winning, I just wanted a good, entertaining story in the universe I have loved since I was a child. BUT HOLY HELL…this is the worst Star Wars show I've ever watched. The motives never made sense. The dialogue usually didn't make sense. The Vernestra actress was awful. The doofus "assistant " Jedi was just painful to watch.

I get that making the Jedi flawed is an interesting premise. There's definitely something to be said there, and I think in the hands of competent story writers it would be very good. But we just went straight to "Jedi are power hungry, abusive, lying murderers" at light speed. Just a ham-fisted mess.

I'm with TCTTS - I am actively pulling for this show to not get renewed.
AgfromHOU
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https://www.instagram.com/reel/C9m0tVQOgPN/?igsh=NW54aDU3NzNoYmow
Cliff.Booth
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jabberwalkie09 said:



At this point, I'm really struggling to find a reason to get invested into the franchise again.


It takes the same mental gymnastics I do each time A&M hires a new head fb coach and I'm pretty sure we're headed to a Natty. Hope is a dangerous thing.
Charlie Conway
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exitone said:

I will leave my mandatory comment on the show:
  • Poorly written
  • Poorly directed
  • Poorly casted (with the exception of Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen)
  • Poorly acted (with the exception of Manny Jacinto and Dafne Keen)

That being said, I have a question...

Why did Vernestra not want to tell the full truth to the senate council? She made Sol the fall guy when she knew there was one or several other parties at fault (not necessarily Sith, but someone fallen to the dark side and the witches). I know she is trying to protect the Jedi, but isn't it better to say it was a Sith or a Witch Force user who is at fault, rather than a Jedi who messed up. I would think that could actually be a benefit of the Jedi... good people who can keep the bad force users in check.


If this was real life the Jedi would have gone to congress and requested more money to stop the bad guys and then most of it would be "lost" and "unaccounted for"
Brian Earl Spilner
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TPE get perma'd?
Cliff.Booth
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Cliff.Booth
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Guy sums up why this was all so poorly received. Doesn't focus much on wokeism, for those of yall who get triggered by that topic.

TCTTS
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Brian Earl Spilner said:

TPE get perma'd?


I've received bans of one day, one week, and one month, and I've never heard of anything in between (though I'm sure there have been). It looks like his last post was a week ago tonight. In other words, if he's not back in the next couple of days we can potentially assume a month ban, perma'd, or maybe he just finally had enough of this place.
jabberwalkie09
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Cliff.Booth said:

jabberwalkie09 said:



At this point, I'm really struggling to find a reason to get invested into the franchise again.


It takes the same mental gymnastics I do each time A&M hires a new head fb coach and I'm pretty sure we're headed to a Natty. Hope is a dangerous thing.
I still haven't watched TROS/episode 9. I'm not even sure I will. At the moment, I'm basically invested in Ahsoka and Mandalorian but those are at a kind of "I'll watch them when I get to them."
Urban Ag
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TCTTS said:

I've noticed more and more that a certain group of people have been increasingly referring to anything that prominently features or is made by minorities as "DEI," and in the process correlating minorities with a lack of quality. Which is starting to get reeeaaalllly close to being code for "this thing sucks because it doesn't prominently feature/isn't prominently made by white men."

To be clear, that's NOT what I'm saying you're doing here, but also... what, exactly, do you mean? You say it's "easily" explained, but I've read your post three times now and it's not clear at all what you're saying. I of course have an idea, but why not just explain it in a way that leaves no "minorities = bad" gray area?

I just see a lot of complaints on this board about "agendas" and the like, and while I understand the complaints (and even agree with them at times), what I don't see are practical solutions being suggested by those complaining. Should these types of things not feature black female leads? Should Furiosa not have been made? Should Headlund not have been given the opportunity, even though plenty of other blockbuster novices have succeeded where she failed?

If it's not that difficult, what's the solution to whatever it is you're arguing? I'm genuinely asking.
Thank you for a well worded and thoughtful response. I do appreciate it honestly. Sorry, had something the next morning with my business blow up and F off time got limited then I forgot I even made this post. not that anyone cares.

It seems we have all lost track of a very basic element here. Sci-fi, fantasy, action, adventure, and super heroes, is the realm of boys and younger men. Always has been, always will be. These films and series are simply not attracting boys and young men. At least not at levels that guarantee they will perform at levels expected historically.

I say this as a boy dad. I say this a husband to a wife that is very connected to what kids/teens are interested in because of her career. There is nothing wrong with girls liking these genres (did I spell that right?). But the vast majority of the audience is boys and young men, and they are rejecting it and we all know why. That is the issue with viewership and financial performance.

My only point is the reason why these series and movies are bombing or underperforming, whether MCU, SW, or as I noted, Furiosa. And I have no doubt Furiosa was a good film. But the boys don't care. It simply is what it is.

TCTTS
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On one hand, I completely get what you're saying. But on the other, in the Disney era, the franchise has still aimed far more at males than females. Just calling it how I see it, in terms of intended audiences...

Episode 7 = BOYS and GIRLS
Episode 8 = BOYS and GIRLS
Episode 9 = BOYS and GIRLS
Rogue One = BOYS
Solo = BOYS

The Mandalorian = BOYS
The Book of Boba Fett = BOYS
Obi-Wan Kenobi = BOYS
Andor = DUDES
Ahsoka = GIRLS
The Acolyte = GIRLS

Granted, I'll give it to you that the last two efforts - Ahsoka and The Acolyte - are the first two entires that have seemingly been aimed more at girls than boys. So it certainly feels a bit overbearing as of late. I'll also conceded that, including both of those, six out of eleven entires (five movies and six series) have featured female leads. So over half. That said, even though something like Rogue One featured a female lead, it still felt aimed squarely at boys/dudes, IMO, and that the female lead was there more to appeal to wives/girlfriends being drug to the theater, as opposed to trying to make new fans out of young girls.

Either way, yes, Disney/Lucasfilm can certainly stand to cut back on the number of female leads, but I also understand exactly why they've tried going down that path. Seeing as, between the prequel era and the Disney era, despite your thesis, female-centric, young adult, sci-fi/fantasy movies absolutely took off, and made **** tons of $$$. Twilight, The Hunger Games, Divergent, Snow White and the Huntsman, etc, etc resulted in the blockbuster game completely changing, so I totally get why Disney/Lucasfilm wanted to try for a piece of that action as well, right at the height of it all. They would have been stupid not to, and I'm sure their thinking was that they could feature female leads here and there, while simultaneously trying to appeal to everyone everywhere all at once, thinking they had boys guaranteed regardless.

Turns out, it's a much trickier balance to pull off than they thought.

And then, of course, literally at the exact same time, Trump became President, MeToo happened, the whole landscape became super charged, everyone dug their heals in on their respective sides, doubled down, and now here we suddenly are, years later, because of delays caused by Covid and two strikes, still being fed "The Force is Female" content that started development all the way back in that era.

That said, while I don't think Star Wars ever will or should be made only for boys/dudes, it does at least feel like they're finally starting to tone it down again in that regard, with what they have coming down the pike. Of all the new stuff coming (not counting second seasons of Ahsoka and potentially The Acolyte), only one features a female lead, and that's the Rey movie planned for 2026/2027. Everything else... Skeleton Key, Andor season two, The Mandalorian & Grogu, Lando, James Mangold's movie, Shawn Levy's movie, etc... is either aimed primary at kids or boys/dudes.
Dekker_Lentz
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Just disagree on one show.

I think Obi-wan should be boys/girls show as a big part of the show was a young Princess Leia and her droid. One of the biggest criticisms of the show was manufacturing a Leia and Obi-Wan adventure that the canon really doesn't support. Plus, Third Sister/Reva storyline being on equal footing as Obi-wan.

So saying it is strictly a Boys show, I think is a tough sell.

That being said, what hurts all of these shows/movies is poor writing/lack of creativity/lack of production value. That I think we all agree on.
jabberwalkie09
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I don't know if I fully agree with R1. Jyn and Galen's relationship as father-daughter was an actual plot point and something I think younger females might have felt some empathy with. Andor is definitely aimed at the male demographic for sure but R1 I think had more appeal beyond just the male demographic. Mandalorian with the inclusion of Cara Dune and Bo Katan seemed to be a bit more balanced as well, not to mention Grogu from the beginning pulling on the "he's so cute" card.

Ahsoka being a legacy character from the franchise coming to the live action scene aside, the show felt better executed though slower paced in contrast to Acolyte IMO. Even if Ahsoka did waste some characters in the show's season (Baylan and Elsbeth) or not meet people's expectations with others (Thrawn), the show felt better executed.

All that being said, sci-fi will pretty much always be more appealing to the male demographic.
Dekker_Lentz
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I almost challenged R1 as well for the exact same reasons you described. But when Gilroy came on board he ensured it was a war movie.

While Jyn's story is pretty central, I think the ultimate theme of the movie is about sacrifice. Additionally, the love story between Jyn/Cassian is really blunted. So, I was kinda okay leaving that as Boys as while it has a female lead, the themes and tone of the movie are heavily skewed towards a masculine audience. I don't think girls look at Jyn as a role model as much as say Rey.

Also, Andor dialing the R1 themes to 11 left me thinking it was intended to be a boys show.

That being said, I think categorizing things as boys/girls is kinda hard because ultimately most movies try to appeal to a broad audience in some aspects.

Edit: I think the points about Mando S3 are really interesting. I struggle what to make of Grogu thematically. Clearly he was put in to "sell toys". But it seems Disney realized they can't kill Grogu and now that he exists, figuring out how Rey and him work the story seems like it is going to be difficult.
Urban Ag
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TCTTS said:

On one hand, I completely get what you're saying. But on the other, in the Disney era, the franchise has still aimed far more at males than females. Just calling it how I see it, in terms of intended audiences...

Episode 7 = BOYS and GIRLS
Episode 8 = BOYS and GIRLS
Episode 9 = BOYS and GIRLS
Rogue One = BOYS
Solo = BOYS

The Mandalorian = BOYS
The Book of Boba Fett = BOYS
Obi-Wan Kenobi = BOYS
Andor = DUDES
Ahsoka = GIRLS
The Acolyte = GIRLS

Granted, I'll give it to you that the last two efforts - Ahsoka and The Acolyte - are the first two entires that have seemingly been aimed more at girls than boys. So it certainly feels a bit overbearing as of late. I'll also conceded that, including both of those, six out of eleven entires (five movies and six series) have featured female leads. So over half. That said, even though something like Rogue One featured a female lead, it still felt aimed squarely at boys/dudes, IMO, and that the female lead was there more to appeal to wives/girlfriends being drug to the theater, as opposed to trying to make new fans out of young girls.

Either way, yes, Disney/Lucasfilm can certainly stand to cut back on the number of female leads, but I also understand exactly why they've tried going down that path. Seeing as, between the prequel era and the Disney era, despite your thesis, female-centric, young adult, sci-fi/fantasy movies absolutely took off, and made **** tons of $$$. Twilight, The Hunger Games, Divergent, Snow White and the Huntsman, etc, etc resulted in the blockbuster game completely changing, so I totally get why Disney/Lucasfilm wanted to try for a piece of that action as well, right at the height of it all. They would have been stupid not to, and I'm sure their thinking was that they could feature female leads here and there, while simultaneously trying to appeal to everyone everywhere all at once, thinking they had boys guaranteed regardless.

Turns out, it's a much trickier balance to pull off than they thought.

And then, of course, literally at the exact same time, Trump became President, MeToo happened, the whole landscape became super charged, everyone dug their heals in on their respective sides, doubled down, and now here we suddenly are, years later, because of delays caused by Covid and two strikes, still being fed "The Force is Female" content that started development all the way back in that era.

That said, while I don't think Star Wars ever will or should be made only for boys/dudes, it does at least feel like they're finally starting to tone it down again in that regard, with what they have coming down the pike. Of all the new stuff coming (not counting second seasons of Ahsoka and potentially The Acolyte), only one features a female lead, and that's the Rey movie planned for 2026/2027. Everything else... Skeleton Key, Andor season two, The Mandalorian & Grogu, Lando, James Mangold's movie, Shawn Levy's movie, etc... is either aimed primary at kids or boys/dudes.
nitpicky disagreement

Ep 7-9 are not boy/girl. The lead is a female and backed by females in at least 7 and 8. Sans Han in 7, this is a girl dominated series. Unless your are counting the bad guys which doesn't really factor.

R1 is a girl lead. And it rocked it. My second favorite SW film. But those supporting actors,,,,,,,,,,,,,,


Anyway, my point is about to be proven as Deadpool/Wolvie is about to go nuclear. My boys are planning this weekend around it. My wife is all in. My nephew flying in from the west coast is going with us. We are planning this all around Fish Camp for him and my son. That's how big, testosterone fueled, all boy, Wolverine/Deadpool is going to be. Yuge. Epic. Gonna make you so proud. LOL.

I will rest my case soon.

Will be biggest movie of the summer, maybe the year, because Disney is giving the right target audience exactly what they want. And as I have stated may times before, when it's that on point, the wives, moms, and GF's will show up to just to be part of the fanfare.

Can't wait. Ryan and Hugh are going to kill it.



TCTTS
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There is absolutely no way the sequel trilogy is a "girl dominated" series.

I'm sorry, but that's a preposterous statement.

Yes, Daisy Ridley is the main protagonists, but THREE of the four "new class" leads are dudes… Adam Driver, Jon Boyega, and Oscar Isaacs, each having major roles in all three movies. Not to mention Domhnall Gleeson and Andy Serkis to round out the villains (why on earth would bad guys "not factor"?), along with Benicio del Toro in TLJ, and then of course Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, and Billy Dee Williams (whom you're also not counting for… reasons?).

Compared to Leia… Phasma… Rose… Holdo… Zorii... and Jannah? (two of whom we never even see their full faces)

Huh?

You're absolutely grasping at straws here.

It's also convenient how you completely ignored my point about Twilight, The Hunger Games, Divergent, Snow White and the Huntsman, etc all being "sci-fi, fantasy, action, adventure," all being various levels of successful (some massively so), and all leading directly to the stage being set for a character like Rey to lead The Force Awakens. Even though, according to you, those genres belong only "to the realm of boys and younger men."

As for "your point about to be proven," re: Deadpool & Wolverine… what, exactly, is your point again? That a superhero movie starring two popular male leads is going to appeal to a wide audience/be super successful at the box office?

That's the case you're going to rest?

Way to go out on a limb there!
Madmarttigan
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Well to be fair, Finn is one of the worst characters I've had to sit through in a movie so you forget that he exists.
Formerly tv1113
LPHA
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This is such a stupid, stupid argument
Maximus_Meridius
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LPHA said:

This is such a stupid, stupid argument


Agreed. The Acolyte was more entertaining than this…
gougler08
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Maximus_Meridius said:

LPHA said:

This is such a stupid, stupid argument


Agreed. The Acolyte was more entertaining than this…
Flashdiaz
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Two timeless themes Star Wars hasn't gotten right in a while in live action .
1. Father-Son relationship - given that most people that got into Star Wars in the first place were males who are now Fathers. Disney could have had success with a story that actually had a solid Father-Son relationship.
Anakin-?
Anakin-Luke\Leia : estranged until the very end
Kylo - Han: lol
Rey- dead palps son that dumped her in the desert
Jyn-Galen: good father\daughter story
Solo\everyone else- no father figure

2. A love story between a boy and a girl. TCTS mentioned other successful sci-fi franchises with female viewership (Hunger Games, Twilight) and they all had a love story at its core.
Han\Leia - the only one they got right
Anakin\Padme - tried but wasn't good
Rey\Kylo - hints of it but failed at the end
Finn\Rose - bad bad bad
Osha\Stranger - hints of it

redline248
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Quote:

Jon Boyega, and Oscar Isaacs, each having major roles in all three movies
Debatable
 
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