So, are going to pretend that Finn wasn't truly meant to be force sensitive?

[dkrook]

I truly think that based the evidence in the first movie and some very obvious instances that Finn was going to be a jedi. Folks have been trying to explain away him hearing people's scream before they were blasted, the fact he not turned on, but used a lightsaber without killing himself, and finally the impulse to leave the first order instead of killing. Now with the new movie there are clear moments that display his force potential. I think that it's sad that someone really worked to alter what I think have been his true destiny just to make Rey the central character. I'm wondering what is so bad that they couldn't have made them both jedi through the whole trilogy?

[Immortal Weapon]

Rian Johnson didn't care to develop his arc further. He got benched in favor of his pet character and rolled back his character development from TFA.

[Xero Kaiser]

Yeah, Finn being completely wasted in TLJ derailed what could have been one of the more interesting story arcs in the trilogy.

[SuperiorIronman]

I can't blame TLJ for this since it's working with what it had from TFA. TROS is the problem with it going too much forward and not having enough time for Finn's arc to happen. We don't see how he got the confidence here, we don't see him make that connection to the force (he just kind of figures it out), and he's denied the confrontation with Hux to put his past as a stormtrooper to bed in favor of a new villain who easily could've been Hux.

You don't just dump a plot-line onto a character if you can't and wont finish it.

[dkrook]

I can't blame TLJ for this since it's working with what it had from TFA. TROS is the problem with it going too much forward and not having enough time for Finn's arc to happen. We don't see how he got the confidence here, we don't see him make that connection to the force (he just kind of figures it out), and he's denied the confrontation with Hux to put his past as a stormtrooper to bed in favor of a new villain who easily could've been Hux.

You don't just dump a plot-line onto a character if you can't and wont finish it.

I know, Finn could have had a narrative that reads like Spartacus in Star Wars mythology. Especially after he met up with the other former troopers. I sure they should had an idea about the super death star being blow up and the fact it was by someone just like them and that same man is now a general. I see them corralling around him and want to follow him specifically as a special force within the resistance. Similar to the empero's force user specialist guards.

[Anthony W]

I can't blame TLJ for this since it's working with what it had from TFA. TROS is the problem with it going too much forward and not having enough time for Finn's arc to happen. We don't see how he got the confidence here, we don't see him make that connection to the force (he just kind of figures it out), and he's denied the confrontation with Hux to put his past as a stormtrooper to bed in favor of a new villain who easily could've been Hux.

You don't just dump a plot-line onto a character if you can't and wont finish it.

I blame TLJ.

TFA dropped hints that their was just something special about Finn. To him hearing screams of the victims of Hosnian Prime, to hearing a “Force” sound effect that’s used in some scenes in the film, which appears early on when Finn’s dying friend in the Stormtrooper corps marks his bloodied hand on his helmet. Even Kylo recognizes him.

And it was all thrown away....for Canto Bight.

So yeah. That's on Rian Johnson.

[Cel]

I blame TLJ.

TFA dropped hints that their was just something special about Finn. To him hearing screams of the victims of Hosnian Prime, to hearing a “Force” sound effect that’s used in some scenes in the film, which appears early on when Finn’s dying friend in the Stormtrooper corps marks his bloodied hand on his helmet. Even Kylo recognizes him.

And it was all thrown away....for Canto Bight.

So yeah. That's on Rian Johnson.

This. I remember talking about Finn having Force potential not long after Episode VII premiered and that it was no coincidence that he was wielding a lightsaber (twice) in that film. If Abrams had done Episode VIII, I'm pretty sure that Finn's connection to the Force would have been explored further in a way that would have meshed with Episode IX.

[MASTER-OF-SUPRISE]

I blame TLJ.

TFA dropped hints that their was just something special about Finn. To him hearing screams of the victims of Hosnian Prime, to hearing a “Force” sound effect that’s used in some scenes in the film, which appears early on when Finn’s dying friend in the Stormtrooper corps marks his bloodied hand on his helmet. Even Kylo recognizes him.

And it was all thrown away....for Canto Bight.

So yeah. That's on Rian Johnson.

I have to agree. Rian Johnson wasn't forced into a corner. He had plenty of time to do something with Finn's backstory.

[Beaddle]

Yeah, Finn being completely wasted in TLJ derailed what could have been one of the more interesting story arcs in the trilogy.

I do think it was JJ's intention to make Fin and Rey the main two both in lead roles and romance. Rian came and threw that awaT with Last Jedi.

I may be a bit slow but when I saw TFA, no way did I ever pick on any connection or link with Ben and Rey.

[dkrook]

I do think it was JJ's intention to make Fin and Rey the main two both in lead roles and romance. Rian came and threw that awaT with Last Jedi.

I may be a bit slow but when I saw TFA, no way did I ever pick on any connection or link with Ben and Rey.

Your not crazy, I agree. I think that both of them being force sensitive is where their connection begins and ends.

[David Walton]

I do think it was JJ's intention to make Fin and Rey the main two both in lead roles and romance. Rian came and threw that awaT with Last Jedi.

I may be a bit slow but when I saw TFA, no way did I ever pick on any connection or link with Ben and Rey.

TFA ends with Rey having seen Kylo kill her adoptive father figure and critically injuring her best friend/potential love interest. So yeah, there's no indication whatsoever that Rey has any kind of romantic connection with him, and his interest appears to be that of a Sith taking on a powerful apprentice.

It's weird how TLJ, in spite of occurring almost immediately after TFA, completely passes over Rey's intense hatred of Kylo and jumps into sexual tension and 'he can be redeemed.' There's not even the traditional time jump between films to explain her change in attitude.

[basbash99]

TFA ends with Rey having seen Kylo kill her adoptive father figure and critically injuring her best friend/potential love interest. So yeah, there's no indication whatsoever that Rey has any kind of romantic connection with him, and his interest appears to be that of a Sith taking on a powerful apprentice.

It's weird how TLJ, in spite of occurring almost immediately after TFA, completely passes over Rey's intense hatred of Kylo and jumps into sexual tension and 'he can be redeemed.' There's not even the traditional time jump between films to explain her change in attitude.

But it SUBVERTED EXPECTATIONS!!!!!! lol. altho the luke-rey-kylo material was still by far the best part of TLJ imo

[ZeroBG82]

TFA ends with Rey having seen Kylo kill her adoptive father figure and critically injuring her best friend/potential love interest. So yeah, there's no indication whatsoever that Rey has any kind of romantic connection with him, and his interest appears to be that of a Sith taking on a powerful apprentice.

It's weird how TLJ, in spite of occurring almost immediately after TFA, completely passes over Rey's intense hatred of Kylo and jumps into sexual tension and 'he can be redeemed.' There's not even the traditional time jump between films to explain her change in attitude.

So I don't want to get in the way of a potentially valid criticism of TLJ (and I say that as one of those weirdos that loves it), but there needs to be an important distinction made between Kylo Ren and Ben Solo. Because Rey treats them as not quite the same. The entire subtext of TLJ is that the more Rey learns about Ben the more connected to him she becomes. Yeah, they lean into the sexual tension and the conclusion of Rise of Skywalker plays on the romantic angle, but it doesn't need to. The more of Ben she comes to understand, the more easily she sees through the Kylo Ren persona at the man underneath. Who can, in fact, be redeemed. She comes to recognize that "Kylo Ren" is a mask Ben wears to hide himself behind, his dark side persona.

In TFA, all she ever sees is the Kylo Ren facade. And she rightfully turns away from it. During TLJ, she becomes visibly uncomfortable every time that side of Ben emerges. And she actively fights Kylo throughout Rise. But she isn't willing to just walk away anymore, because she's begun to see the difference between Ben and Kylo. And she wants to save Ben. From himself. From Kylo.

We can debate the effectiveness of the arc. I thought the Rey and Ben stuff was some of the strongest material in TLJ, and was almost certainly the most well done bit of Rise. The two films have made Ben Solo into my favorite character in the sequel trilogy, despite the fact that I was bored silly with him in TFA. That obviously won't be true for everyone, and that's fair. But I don't agree that it's that far fetched that learning about the trauma that created Kylo would make Rey more sympathetic to him.

[titanfan]

I assumed the original plot had Finn also becoming a Jedi or a Jedi trainee at some point. I really don't know if his screen time was taken up by Rey. He was made supporting to Rose in the 2nd and probably Kylo in the 3rd. I think Rey was always meant to be the Central Character. Finn was the "male lead" so to speak.

[Anthony W]

I assumed the original plot had Finn also becoming a Jedi or a Jedi trainee at some point. I really don't know if his screen time was taken up by Rey. He was made supporting to Rose in the 2nd and probably Kylo in the 3rd. I think Rey was always meant to be the Central Character. Finn was the "male lead" so to speak.

Nope. Male co-lead more like it. Poe was supposed to die but JJ to keep him around and eat into Finn's screentime.