tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post7460719011614135456..comments2023-08-18T04:37:47.001-04:00Comments on Byzantium's Shores: chronicling the misadventures of an overalls-clad hippie: Thoughts on THE FORCE AWAKENS, Episode III: Poe, Rey, Me (or, the Whodats and the Waddadaywants)Kelly Sedingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10704114189919711467noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3338557.post-4604869725233758682016-03-23T09:47:27.754-04:002016-03-23T09:47:27.754-04:00Again, I blame JJ's tendency toward sloppiness...Again, I blame JJ's tendency toward sloppiness for all these problems. Yes, I know Kasdan was involved too, but you can bet your bottom credit JJ was the one calling the shots (I STRONGLY suspect Kasdan's biggest contribution was the Han/Chewie stuff; that seemed most in line with his style to me.) Rey is the hero because... she is. And isn't it kewl that we have a female lead? Finn deserts the Empire/Order because... he does. And isn't it kewl that we have an ex-stormtrooper as a hero and he happens to be black? (By the way, am I the only one who cringed a bit when the black dude was revealed to have been... a janitor? Maybe I'm overanalyzing and being defensive about the way everybody freaked the hell out about racism in the prequels, but it really struck me as too close to an old stereotype for comfort. In my more cynical moments, I've wondered why they didn't just call him "Rochester.")<br /><br />And then there's Poe... Poe is so frickin' heroic, he never ever shows doubt or fear. Poe who we learn nothing about other than he's a pilot... because he needs to fly a ship in two big sequences. But he's kewl. And that's all that matters in a JJ story.<br /><br />Just as JJ couldn't be bothered to think through things like the First Order, the map, the lightsaber, etc., he didn't create actual characters either. He created character types, human plot devices that move about under their own power. He's a terribly superficial storyteller. It makes me crazy that he's so respected... and that George Lucas is so dissed. Jasonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11001416935247782462noreply@blogger.com