It's visually unstable and its power source has a crack in it. That seems dangerous.
I want Kylo Ren's lightsaber to explode in his face, whether metaphorically or literally. He fights with a visually broken weapon because ... I don't know, honestly. Because he likes the edgy look it has?
Kylo Ren is trying to be edgy and cool and badass like his hero and his lightsaber is a visual reflection of that, being visually unique and distinctive but standing on shaky, unstable ground doomed to collapse at the slightest provocation. Having his lightsaber backfire at a critical moment could be the kick in the ass he needs to mature into a serious threat.
It's like holding your gun sideways. You might think it looks cool but it seriously hinders your combat efficiency, and there's only so many times you can get shot doing it before you realize that Boring, but Practical exists for a reason.
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.![]()
Yeah, no. The lightsaber has a shoddy assembly (seriously, it's got a wire poking out), ancient design and a shitty, cracked kyber crystal, so no, it's a terrible lightsaber.
All of this information is in the visual dictionary, which supersedes any non-canon Legends-based speculation.
edited 14th Jan '16 12:34:50 PM by higherbrainpattern
Sorry for not posting yesterday, because the rain going on outside became a storm that somehow managed to screw up with my internet.
Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens was the first Star Wars movie I ever watched. I caught glimpses of it on TV as a child, but I thought the movies were newer than they actually were, due to their popularity, so it always seemed to have a really shitty quality for no reason at all. I didn't even know the full name of the movie before watching it XD Also Jar Jar Binks, fuck that character.
Out of all series I got to know through popcultural diffusion, magazine articles and the internet, Star Wars is probably one of those I know the least about. I did play an Age of Empires-style Star Wars game as a kid, but beyond that... Hm, I had a general idea of how the plot and setting worked, heard about the fandom splitting debates (midichlorians, Han Shot First/Second, etc.) and watched Jon Tron's Star Cade.
The movie was really cool. I might have heard spoilers before watching the movie, but being an outsider (and specifically, not having watched the movie), I had no idea what anyone was talking about. That Rey was one of the protagonists, it was obvious from the poster, but thorought the movie Finn felt more like the "true" protagonist. I say that because Rey felt really artificial for most of the movie. It wasn't the acting or the character, I think it was more likely the script really. "I'm waiting for my family" yeah, no, I don't believe a word of that. [EDIT: I know that implying there's more to her was the whole point, BTW.] The bits with Wall-E and the bits at the end were okay.
Finn, despite his horror at the killing of innocent people by the Stormtroopers at the beginning, doesn't seem worried about killing other people, including other Stormtroopers, at all. I can understand the "it's they or me" reasoning, but that doesn't inspire me to like Finn too much. I'm glad there wasn't much drama in his relationship with Rey, or with anyone else, quite frankly (although it seems only her fell for his lie). I was really amused by Finn's antics when, after grabbing Rey's hand (I don't know why because I wasn't paying attention at that exact moment), she tells him "let me g-actually, follow me" and then he still runs in front of her rather than after her. He does that the entire movie, it seems he's scared shitless in the inside. Which I would have actually enjoyed had they pointed it out during the movie, so I guess it feels more like a flaw to me.
I found Kylo Ren pretty menacing, as long as he was masked and the camera didn't focus on him too much. The idea of a villain that's falling to the good side, specifically a villain that's trying to be Darth Vader 2.0, is great. Force stopping a laser in mid-air? That's scary. I never heard of it being done before, so me and my friends were very surprised. Two of my problems with him are that: 1) he doesn't seem to change his mask during the course of the movie, despite being damaged; and 2) when he gets angry... he starts destroying his own shit for no apparent reason? Really? What are you, a toddler? Unmasked... There's nothing too remarkable about him, except that he looks like a pretty villain?
Phasma... What did you even do in this movie? Tell Finn Kylo wanted to see him, that you wanted to see him, and t o get forced by Finn to turn off the force fields, the disappear? There was Hans, or whatever his name is, too. He gave a Nazi (or as my friend put it, Julius Caesar) speech, and told when to activate the Starkiller. Oh, and Mysterious Giant Hologram Alien.
As interesting as it was to see Indy Han Solo, Chewie and everyone else, I do think old-time fans probably enjoyed everything with previous titles' characters 400% more. It sucks that Han died, although very obvious to see coming too. General Leia, now that was awesome. I had no idea Leia was like that. C 3 PO was an hilarious Captain Obvious that still manages to miss the obvious things.
I think that was it. Keep in mind my opinions could change were I to rewatch the movie.
edited 14th Jan '16 2:32:36 PM by Victin
Vader destroyed his own shit too.
Except his shit was people.
The computers probably cost more to replace.
Forever liveblogging the AvengersSith Lords having poor impulse control is a bit of Fridge Brilliance. They're powered by raw, unrepressed emotion.
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.I don't get why people make a fuss about Phasma. I mean, when I watched the movie, she just appeared as a background character to me. I didn't expect anything particular of her, so I had no reason to regret that she had little screen time.
It's like complaining that the stormtrooper fighting Finn with a staff didn't have a bigger role.
edited 14th Jan '16 2:50:55 PM by Lyendith
That Stormtrooper with a staff probably should have been Phasma.
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.She also has a unique and distinctive appearance and is the first female villain ever to appear in one of the Star Wars films.
edited 14th Jan '16 2:58:15 PM by TobiasDrake
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.There's also the assassin person in Attack of the Clones, though that's a pretty minor role as far as the actual film goes.
But yeah, a lot of hype went around Phasma, and she's described as one of the main leaders of the First Order, and I think Boba Fett got namedropped a bit. Which Phasma didn't live up to, really, because yeah Fett was a really minor name, but Phasma's current depiction would be like if Fett fell in the sarlacc pit in his first appearance and, more crucially, actual dialogue acknowledged it as a joke.
I expect they'll probably do a bit more with her later on, though.
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Rey had tons of personality and characterization.And so did Finn. They complement each other well.
@Mad Skillz: Acting like Finn is just the comic relief and not to be taken seriously is ignoring most of his character arc throughout the entire movie, IMO.
edited 14th Jan '16 3:30:45 PM by higherbrainpattern
Not doing anything of importance in the movie would actually have been an improvement. That's my biggest problem with Phasma.
She's the first female villain in the film series and literally the only thing of substance that she does in the entire film is be taken hostage and allow the Starkiller Base to be destroyed. And despite her rank and position, she's a perfect damsel. She does everything she's told without even an attempt at backstabbing Finn and Han. She doesn't hit an alarm or anything, she is rendered completely helpless and submissive by Finn's gun.
All while Finn laughs and gloats and mocks her for her helplessness, which got so disturbing even Han told him to knock it off.
This really wasn't a fantastic way to treat the films' first female villain.
edited 14th Jan '16 3:31:15 PM by TobiasDrake
My Tumblr. Currently side-by-side liveblogging Digimon Adventure, sub vs dub.Finn gloats because Phasma was his former superior officer and he got the drop on her. That's pretty much it, IMO. You're making the confrontation between them sound more disturbing than it actually was.
And yeah, she'll be back and have more screentime than ever in Episode 8, according to Kathleen Kennedy.
edited 14th Jan '16 3:42:49 PM by higherbrainpattern

I imagine Kylo first tried to wear Vader's helmet, but was forced to admit that it was too burnt and warped to actually be wearable.