Expectations

The final trailer for the final episode of the Star Wars Skywalker Saga was released last night. To use James Joyce's terminology in Ulysses..."meh."

Ever since the disastrous Episode Eight: The Last Jedi, I've tried to keep my expectations low. This is a self-defense mechanism meant to protect me from further disappointment. As each Episode Nine (The Rise of Skywalker) trailer dropped I've tried to be Epictetus and just shrug it off. I mean, The Last Jedi was so awful it even brought down my estimation of Episode Seven: The Force Awakens.

My feelings about The Force Awakens were tenuous at best. The plot was derivative, a slick knock off of the original. How many giant space stations are out there in this Galaxy? A hero from a desert planet! Not to mention terrible acting from the guys who play Finn and Poe. And and and...dropping a potentially great story line about a Storm Trooper who in an act of conscience, joins the rebellion. They wasted a great opportunity for a very interesting story line even if the actor they chose can't deliver a line.

I satisfied myself that at least it was better than Episode One and Two and maybe, just maybe if I squinted hard enough, better than Revenge of the Sith. But Force Awakens got sucked into a black hole with the arrival of The Last Jedi. Everything associated with The Last Jedi has been tainted.

So, back to my original thought: keeping my expectations low for The Rise of Skywalker which comes out December 20th...

I can't do it. I can't keep my expectations low and here's why...unless this movie is a freaking cinematic masterpiece then continuing the Skywalker Saga was a complete waste of time. If it's an average movie, that still won't be enough to undo the damage of a mediocre Ep 7 and a terrible Ep 8. Only a movie of great brilliance can hope to possibly redeem the travesty of the Disney Star Wars movies.

I know those are unreal and unfair expectations. But I don't feel sorry for any of these guys. Disney's making billions. JJ Abrams is making millions. I will feel sorry for all the fans, past and future alike, who will have to come to the realization that this stuff is considered canon in the Star Wars universe even though it's mediocre at best and garbage at worst.

See, I can forgive George Lucas for the prequels. He's the creator. He has the right to screw it up. Maybe I shouldn't forgive him for selling out to Disney but that's a different story. These guys took something that wasn't theirs and screwed it up. They fumbled the ball. At least with the prequels it was George's ball to fumble.

You can still make good original Star Wars movies! Rogue One was excellent. Solo was great. It is possible to be original, creative and yet honor the spirit of the Saga. I've had several friends say that my views of the new movies are colored by nostalgia. I disagree. I know good stuff when I see it. That may sound delusional and narcissistic since art is subjective. But more and more of my fellow Star Wars fans are admitting how terrible The Last Jedi is and that The Force Awakens has not held up well in the intervening years. When it came out we were just excited to see the Millenium Falcon in action again and were relieved that the movie was better than The Phantom Menace. Now it seems kind of hokey and lazy.

So yeah, this Episode Nine better be good. It better be great. Otherwise this whole thing was an artistic and cultural mistake of unimaginable proportions. Yeah, I'm being unfair and hyperbolic. But I got a lot of emotional energy invested in this thing over a very long time, not to mention lots of cash spent on Star Wars paraphernalia. So I'm going to be a crank. And if this thing is great...then I will be the loudest voice in the choir singing its praises.