History TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter / StarWars

* Anakin Skywalker briefly shows up, but only as a disembodied voice. Not having him appear as a Force ghost to offer advice nor help either Rey, Kylo [[note]]with many feeling he would have far ''better'' suited to redeem Ben over his deceased father Han as he himself has experienced the same Light and Dark side problems that Kylo experienced and would have been a major redemption for Anakin's entire character and legacy by redeeming his own grandson, which would have repaired the long fractured relationship with Luke and Leia (the former, who despite being the one to actually redeem him, hadn't fully forgiven him, and the latter who had never forgiven him for not only torturing her, but destroying her home planet Alderaan)[[/note]], or both seems a bit of a wasted opportunity, especially seeing as he's one of the central characters of the whole franchise that the entire Saga was based around [[note]]to make matters even worse, he doesn't get to appear alongside his own deceased twins, Luke and Leia, especially at the film's ending to cap off the entire franchise (not even the redeemed Ben Solo (who was the main antagonist of the Sequel Trilogy) shows up for the final shot, meaning we don't get a scene showing all 3 Generations of Skywalkers as Force Ghosts together[[/note]]. This also goes for all of the other Jedi whose voices encourage Rey before she takes down Palpatine, as their voice-only appearances contribute to what many people felt was a [[AntiClimaxBoss lackluster final battle of not only the film, but the entire saga]]. According to unverified claims and speculation, the original plan ''was'' for them to have the Jedi show up in person, and they allegedly even filmed them in costume, but it was removed for some reason, though it may have to do with the feud Disney has with Lucas over his handling of the brand.

* The Viceroy of the Trade Federation, Nute Gunray, the antagonist that is responsible for the events of the Phantom Menace and a recurring villain in this trilogy, dies along with all the other Separatists when Anakin arrives on Mustafar. Worse still, the fact that he tried to have Padme killed in the previous movie should be a much bigger deal, especially due to how Anakin was so obsessed with ensuring her survival. Instead, Anakin just kills him off without any sort of dialogue referencing this. Not even the novelization refers to Anakin's hatred of the Viceroy.

* Anakin Skywalker briefly shows up, but only as a disembodied voice. Not having him appear as a Force ghost to offer advice or help either Rey, Kylo [[note]]with many feeling he would have far ''better'' suited to redeem Ben over his deceased father Han as he himself has experienced the same Light and Dark side problems that Kylo experienced and would have been a major redemption for Anakin's entire character and legacy by redeeming his own grandson[[/note]], or both seems a bit of a wasted opportunity, especially seeing as he's one of the central characters of the whole franchise that the entire Saga was based around [[note]]to make matters worse, he doesn't get to appear alongside his own deceased twins, Luke and Leia, especially at the film's ending to cap off the franchise[[/note]]. This also goes for all of the other Jedi whose voices encourage Rey before she takes down Palpatine, as their voice-only appearances contribute to what many people felt was a [[AntiClimaxBoss lackluster final battle of not only the film, but the entire saga]]. According to unverified claims and speculation, the original plan ''was'' for them to have the Jedi show up in person, and they allegedly even filmed them in costume, but it was removed for some reason.

* In the wake of this film, there have been quite a number of articles arguing that the most wasted character in the trilogy is Finn. There's been plenty of Jedi drama since the beginning of the franchise, but Finn offered the most unique perspective in the films yet: a viewpoint stormtrooper character, and one who abandons the First Order for the Resistance. There was so much they could have done with that, from exploring what exactly made him rebel against the indoctrination he had probably been subjected to since childhood, to what it was like for him to fight his former comrades, to the possibility he might try to convince other stormtroopers to join him in rebelling, and they just didn't do ''any'' of that. ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' actually hints (and Creator/JJAbrams confirmed) that Finn is intended to be Force-sensitive, potentially setting him up to become a Jedi like many had hoped he would be from ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', but this aspect of Finn's character is never explored in any depth, never really has any significance to the plot (besides him being able to guess which ship to blow up based on "a feeling"), and isn't even made explicit in the film. Creator/JohnBoyega admitted to being disappointed by how Finn was used in the trilogy, to the point of feeling like Disney used him as an AdvertisedExtra TokenMinority (a feeling shared by may across the political spectrum), especially compared to Rey and Ben Solo/Kylo Ren, who both get more focus across all three films.

* In the wake of this film, there have been quite a number of articles arguing that the most wasted character in the trilogy is Finn. There's been plenty of Jedi drama since the beginning of the franchise, but Finn offered the most unique perspective in the films yet: a viewpoint stormtrooper character, and one who abandons the First Order for the Resistance. There was so much they could have done with that, from exploring what exactly made him rebel against the indoctrination he had probably been subjected to since childhood, to what it was like for him to fight his former comrades, to the possibility he might try to convince other stormtroopers to join him in rebelling, and they just didn't do ''any'' of that. ''Film/TheRiseOfSkywalker'' actually hints (and Creator/JJAbrams confirmed) that Finn is intended to be Force-sensitive, potentially setting him up to become a Jedi like many had hoped he would be from ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', but this aspect of Finn's character is never explored in any depth, never really has any significance to the plot (besides him being able to guess which ship to blow up based on "a feeling"), and isn't even made explicit in the film. Creator/JohnBoyega admitted to being disappointed by how Finn was used in the trilogy, to the point of feeling like Disney used him as an AdvertisedExtra TokenMinority (which was supported by a lot of people across the political spectrum, conservative and liberal alike), especially compared to Rey and Ben Solo/Kylo Ren.

* Anakin Skywalker briefly shows up, but only as a disembodied voice. Not having him appear as a Force ghost to offer advice or help either Rey, Kylo, or both seems a bit of a wasted opportunity, especially seeing as he's one of the central characters of the whole franchise. This also goes for all of the other Jedi whose voices encourage Rey before she takes down Palpatine, as their voice-only appearances contribute to what many people felt was a [[AntiClimaxBoss lackluster final battle of not only the film, but the entire saga]]. According to unverified claims and speculation, the original plan ''was'' for them to have the Jedi show up in person, and they allegedly even filmed them in costume, but it was removed for some reason.

* Luke's Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru from ''Film/ANewHope'' first appear here chronologically, but they're barely in the film. Owen is introduced as Anakin's stepbrother, but the story doesn't allow them to form any sort of bond (much less establish a reason as to ''why'' Owen and Beru would be willing to take care of Luke later on) considering their only interactions with Anakin are informing him that his mother's been kidnapped and grieving briefly with him at her funeral. This also [[ContinuityDrift contradicts]] Owen's attitude and Obi-Wan's account in ''A New Hope'' -- where it seems like the two men had a long history together -- since this appears to be the ''only'' time they ever actually meet and there's no evidence that Anakin kept in any sort of contact with his stepbrother during the Clone Wars.

* Darth Maul likewise has an overall lack of screentime and character development; more than one fan has argued that the trilogy would have been overall stronger if he'd survived and remained TheHeavy throughout all three films, essentially absorbing Dooku and Grievous' roles, as [[YouKilledMyFather Maul killing Qui-Gon]] gives him a personal connection to Obi-Wan and Anakin that the latter two lacked, and the shared desire for revenge against Maul could have tested both Obi-Wan and Anakin, with their decisions further setting them as {{Foil}}s for each other. Perhaps in compensation, [[NotQuiteDead he returns]] and receives a fleshed out AscendedExtra role in ''[[WesternAnimation/StarWarsTheCloneWars The Clone Wars]]'' since ''Lucas'' realized how much he messed up and how much potential he wasted.

* For all the hype over his [[TheBusCameBack return]], Lando Calrissian doesn't really get a whole lot to do in this film. He is tasked with the vital mission of recruiting allies for the Resistance, saving the day in the climax, but all of this happens [[OffscreenMomentOfAwesome offscreen]]; discounting Chewbacca, he only directly interacts with the other heroes ''once'' on Pasaana. And he never once interacts with or so much as speaks about Kylo Ren, even though they presumably knew one another given Lando's closeness to his family (the expanded universe established that Lando was actually an HonoraryUncle to Ben Solo).

* The Knights of Ren ''finally'' make their appearance, and overall are only utilized as just grunts. Although they are introduced with awe and dread, their actual on-screen duty is to march in step with Kylo Ren or stand around menacingly without actually interacting with any other character until the very end. The one scene that hinted at a major role, where they covertly pursue the main trio to Kijimi ([[Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack a la Boba Fett chasing the Falcon]]), is seemingly forgotten, since the heroes fulfill their mission unmolested and although Kylo Ren's flagship arrives, the Knights themselves appear to still be looking for them. They get no focus or characterization beyond being Kylo's mooks before getting easily killed by him when he returns as Ben Solo, making their inclusion after two films of build up incredibly anti-climatic, especially after the battle between Rey, Ren, and the Praetorian Guards in ''The Last Jedi'' showed that there was potential to make an interesting team fight. The possibility that they are Force users, and believed to be some of the Jedi Luke was training years ago, stands out as disappointing.

* Admiral Holdo. She is apparently an admiral in the Resistance military and could have even been the audience's gateway into understanding the New Republic (She even seems dressed like a senator, further giving credence to this idea.) She could have become the new leader for the Resistance in contrast to Poe Dameron with the first being a ReasonableAuthorityFigure while Poe is the hot shot rebel. Their conflicting personalities and ideas could have added some depth to their struggle in the movie, especially if it was revealed that Holdo wasn't very experienced and overwhelmed in her responsibilities. Some have also pointed out that General Leia being alive doesn't change the movie all that much, meaning that all of her scenes (except maybe the one with Luke) could have been replaced with Holdo surviving and going on to become a new leader for the Resistance. Instead, she spends the whole film fighting with Poe and then she dies, killing off any chances she has to be a leader for the Resistance.

* General Pryde is built up as an imposing and capable military leader. Intriguingly, he does not seem even slightly worried about the cultist Final Order or the resurrected Palpatine, and implies he served the Emperor personally in the past. That never gets explored in any depth, and none of the heroes even indicate that they're aware of his existence.

* An assassin who's also a shapeshifter? Awesome! (And also hyped in the pre-release publicity.) Sadly, Zam Wessel's ability to change her appearance is never actually used in any way whatsoever, even in a crowded bar where it would seem that looking like someone new (and taking your [[NiceHat distinctive headgear]] off) might help you approach your targets.

There's ''[[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters a lot]]'' of characters living in a galaxy far, far away, and not all of them get to [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter share the spotlight]] for long.

* Poe Dameron got much less screen time than the other two leads. This was because originally his character died in the beginning, but after filming many films that involved killing his characters off, Creator/OscarIsaac requested him to survive. This then applies to the next two films as they both had different interpretations of Poe's character, which understandably results in little payoff to his role. Oscar Isaac actually said knowing how the part would end up at the end of the trilogy, he'd have preferred Poe dying in the first film instead.

* Rose Tico gets no further development and is in fact DemotedToExtra, barely ever sharing any screentime with the other protagonists. This was supposedly due to the intent for her to serve as an anchor between the other protagonists and Leia at the Resistance base, but technical limitations regarding the footage of Carrie Fisher forced those scenes to be cut. However, several scenes involving just her and Rey were ''also'' cut, so make of that what you will. Viewers have found that Rose has approximately ''seventy-six seconds'' of screentime in the entire film (compared to ''Film/TheLastJedi'', where she had about eleven minutes of screentime).

* In the wake of this film, there have been quite a number of articles arguing that the most wasted character in the trilogy is Finn. There's been plenty of Jedi drama since the beginning of the franchise, but Finn offered the most unique perspective in the films yet: a viewpoint stormtrooper character, and one who abandons the First Order for the Resistance. There was so much they could have done with that, from exploring what exactly made him rebel against the indoctrination he had probably been subjected to since childhood, to what it was like for him to fight his former comrades, to the possibility he might try to convince other stormtroopers to join him in rebelling, and they just didn't do ''any'' of that. ''The Rise of Skywalker'' actually hints (and J.J Abrams confirmed) that Finn is intended to be Force-sensitive, potentially setting him up to become a Jedi like many had hoped he would be from the ''Force Awakens'', but this aspect of Finn's character is never explored in any depth, never really has any significance to the plot (besides him being able to guess which ship to blow up based on "a feeling"), and isn't even made explicit in the film. Creator/JohnBoyega admitted to being disappointed by how Finn was used in the trilogy, to the point of feeling like Disney used him as an AdvertisedExtra TokenMinority (which was supported by a lot of people across the political spectrum, conservative and liberal alike), especially compared to Rey and Ben Solo/Kylo Ren.

* Captain Phasma. Creator/GwendolineChristie in a suit of awesome chrome armour, and what do they do with her? Throw her in a trash compacter off-screen. According to WordOfGod, she'll have a bigger role in the next films. Made all the more frustrating by the fact that she could easily have taken the place of the random riot control trooper who demolishes Finn in hand-to-hand combat and demonstrated her badass credentials, but doesn't even participate in the raid on Maz's castle.

* Many people were excited by Creator/MaxVonSydow's casting and were disappointed that his character, Lor San Tekka, is killed by Kylo Ren within the first few minutes of the film. It doesn't help that within the film we find out very little about him and why he has part of Luke's map; you have to read Expanded Universe comics to gain any sense of his significance.

* In the end, Rey herself is overall considered to be a rather large waste of a potentially intriguing female Jedi character (to which the fans were always, actually, pretty open, considering the franchise already had many-a-ActionGirl before). A rehashed start of story (specifically being an orphan growing up on a desert planet much like Luke), an extremely fast rise in terms of gaining power (she gains what is implied to be Chosen-One level powers in a ''week'' compared to the years-long training period of both Anakin and Luke), the fact she takes up the name "Skywalker" at the end, the fact she also is an AcePilot without any training, the discardment of her unique origin in favour of her being a Palpatine (a rather weird retcon that even Last Jedi detractors considered to be absolutely unnecessary), and you see why exactly people stand behind the regularly-heard claim that "Rey is a MarySue".

* Captain Phasma. She gets to actually ''do'' something, unlike last film, but when all is said and done she really doesn't have that much more screentime compared to ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' and likewise seemingly dies. It didn't help matters that in a deleted scene, Finn calls out Phasma for her ChronicBackStabbingDisorder, causing her to kill the nearby Stormtroopers and attempt to finish off Finn to cover her tracks; while she still dies, that scene would've brought in aspects of her personality that have been previously relegated to the books and comics. On the other hand, Phasma's death in the final film leaves her fate far more open-ended than the deleted one (with the official Youtube clip of the deleted scene even titled "Phasma's End"), raising hopes that she [[HesJustHiding may have survived]]. These hopes were dashed when Rise of Skywalker confirmed she did in fact die.

* In the wake of this film, there have been quite a number of articles arguing that the most wasted character in the trilogy is Finn. There's been plenty of Jedi drama since the beginning of the franchise, but Finn offered the most unique perspective in the films yet: a viewpoint stormtrooper character, and one who abandons the First Order for the Resistance. There was so much they could have done with that, from exploring what exactly made him rebel against the indoctrination he had probably been subjected to since childhood, to what it was like for him to fight his former comrades, to the possibility he might try to convince other stormtroopers to join him in rebelling, and they just didn't do ''any'' of that. ''The Rise of Skywalker'' actually hints (and J.J Abrams confirmed) that Finn is intended to be Force-sensitive, potentially setting him up to become a Jedi like many had hoped he would be from the ''Force Awakens'', but this aspect of Finn's character is never explored in any depth, never really has any significance to the plot (besides him being able to guess which ship to blow up based on "a feeling"), and isn't even made explicit in the film. Creator/JohnBoyega admitted to being disappointed by how Finn was used in the trilogy, to the point of feeling like Disney used him as an AdvertisedExtra TokenMinority, especially compared to Rey and Ben Solo/Kylo Ren.

* In the end, Rey herself is overall considered to be a rather large waste of a potentially intriguing female Jedi character (to which the fans were always, actually, pretty open, considering the franchise already had many-a-ActionGirl before). A rehashed start of story (specifically being an orphan growing up on a desert planet much like Luke), an extremely fast rise in terms of gaining power (she gains what is implied to be Chosen-One level powers in a ''week'' compared to the years-long training period of both Anakin and Luke), the fact she takes up the name "Skywalker" at the end, the fact she also is an AcePilot without any training, the discardment of her unique origin in favour of her being a Palpatine (a rather weird retcon that even Last Jedi detractors considered to be absolutely unnecessary), and you see why exactly people stand behind the regularly-heard claim that "Rey is a MarySue". Most fans agree, that if only were the seventh and eighth movies spread apart chronology wise, Rey wouldn't appear so disingenuously powerful.

* In the end, Rey herself is overall considered to be a rather large waste of a potentially intriguing female Jedi character (to which the fans were always, actually, pretty open, considering the franchise already had many-a-ActionGirl before). A rehashed start of story (specifically being an orphan growing up on a desert planet much like Luke), an extremely fast rise in terms of gaining power (she gains what is implied to be Chosen-One level powers in a ''week'' compared to the years-long training period of both Anakin and Luke), the fact she takes up the name "Skywalker" at the end, the fact she also is an AcePilot without any training, the discardment of her unique origin in favour of her being a Palpatine (a rather weird retcon that even Last Jedi detractors considered to be absolutely unnecessary), and you have some serious back up to the regularly-heard claim that "Rey is a MarySue". Most fans agree, that if only were the seventh and eighth movies spread apart chronology wise, Rey wouldn't appear so disingenuously powerful.

* Many people were excited by Creator/MaxVonSydow's casting and were disappointed that his character, Lor San Tekka, is killed by Kylo Ren within the first few minutes of the film.

* In the end, Rey herself is overall considered to be a rather large waste of a potentially intriguing female Jedi character (to which the fans were always, actually, pretty open, considering the franchise already had many-a-ActionGirl before). A rehashed start of story (specifically being an orphan growing up on a desert planet much like Luke), an extremely fast rise in terms of gaining power (she gains what is implied to be Chosen-One level powers in a ''week'' compared to the years-long training period of both Anakin and Luke), the fact she takes up the name "Skywalker" at the end, the fact she also is an AcePilot without any training, the discardment of her unique origin in favour of her being a Palpatine (a rather weird retcon that even Last Jedi detractors considered to be absolutely unnecessary), and you have some serious back up to the claim that "Rey is a MarySue". Most fans agree, that if only were the seventh and eighth movies spread apart chronology wise, Rey wouldn't appear so disingenuously powerful.

* In the end, Rey herself is overall considered to be a rather large waste of a potentially intriguing female Jedi character (to which the fans were always, actually, pretty open, considering the franchise already had many-a-ActionGirl before). A rehashed start of story (specifically being an orphan growing up on a desert planet much like Luke), an extremely fast rise in terms of gaining power (she gains what is implied to be Chosen-One level powers in a ''week'' compares to the years-long training period of both Anakin and Luke), the fact she takes up the name "Skywalker" at the end, the discardment of her unique origin in favour of her being a Palpatine (a rather weird retcon that even Last Jedi detractors considered to be absolutely unnecessary), and you have some serious back up to the claim that "Rey is a MarySue". Most fans agree, that if only were the seventh and eighth movies spread apart chronology wise, Rey wouldn't appear so disingenuously powerful.

* In the end, Rey herself is overall considered to be a rather large waste of a potentially intriguing female Jedi character (to which the fans were always, actually, pretty open, considering the franchise already had many-a-ActionGirl before). A rehashed start of story (specifically being an orphan growing up on a desert planet much like Luke), an extremely fast rise in terms of gaining power (she gains what is implied to be Chosen-One level powers in a ''week'' compares to the years-long training period of both Anakin and Luke), the fact she takes up the name "Skywalker" at the end, the discardment of her unique origin in favour of her being a Palpatine (a rather weird retcon that even Last Jedi detractors considered to be absolutely unnecessary), and you have some serious back up to the claim that "Rey is a MarySue".