Thread by @VoyageOfDameron, Ok, so I shared my thoughts on Ben's Death. Let me share [...]

Ok, so I shared my thoughts on Ben's Death. Let me share my full thoughts on the other big point of contention in The Rise of Skywalker; Rey Palpatine and Rey Skywalker.

Enough time has passed, I think I have gathered all my thoughts together after 4 viewings, let's get into it.

First things first; This is probably J.J. Abrams' idea. Whether it's a good idea or a bad one is up to you, but it really does feel like something J.J. really wanted to do.

In multiple interviews, J.J. talked about how Rian Johnson encouraged him to take risks, so, he took one.

He talked about how old concepts from The Force Awakens were revived for TROS (one of them being the return of the Death Star ruins) and I fully believe that both Rey Palpatine and Rey Skywalker were ideas he had when he signed on to TFA.

Let's talk about execution.

The Palpatine twist does feel like it comes out of no where. There was no real build up to it and the only kind of set up are fan theories from 2015. This twist would have meant so much more if there were more breadcrumbs in TFA and The Last Jedi. So what you have feels forced.

Do I think it's bad? Not really. I think there's a nice message to it, even if that message is packaged with a twist that just comes out of the blue. I see the POVs from both sides of the aisle. This twist is relatable and kinda pointless at the same time.

The film's main theme of "You aren't where you come from or what people say you are" is best represented by Rey. Now, you can make the argument that "She never knew she was a Palpatine, the theme is rendered moot." But if you look closer, it actually does come out in the light.

In the movie, Rey constantly messes up, believes she killed Chewie, and later on even stabs Kylo. Dark Rey tells her "Don't be afraid of who you are." (I think that's the line) and Rey is lost. To me, this portion of the movie is carried from The Last Jedi.

Rey is not all bad, but she's not all good. Rey may be the last hope of the Jedi, but she stumbles A LOT. While I wish the movie did a better job at committing to it, the theme of identity is also represented in Rey. "People keep saying that they know me. But they don't."

I also see the criticism "They already had a character whose grandfather is related to an OT villain." Yes, Ben should have also played into the identity theme. But if you wanna get technical about it, he still kinda does when you factor in the first 2 movies.

It blows that Rey and Ben have almost no meaningful scenes together save for Kef Bir and Exegol (where Ben has no damn lines). But I think Han pushing Ben to redemption and Luke pushing Rey to face Palpatine were their big moments. It could have led to something better tbh.

I see the POV of people (especially women) who feel that Rey Palpatine erases the idea of Rey coming from nothing. But I also see the POV of people (also especially women) who felt that Rey Palpatine was a story that hit close to home. I know it did for me.

The Rey Palpatine twist was never going to be an easy thing to pull off. There will be people will always hate it and people who will always defend it.

Is the twist within itself bad? No. Is the execution sloppy? Yes.

But now, we come to Rey Skywalker.

Rey Skywalker is something I will defend from here until the day I die. Just like Luke's characterization in The Last Jedi and the Prequels.

I always thought from the moment Rey Force-Grabbed the lightsaber that she was gonna be Rey Skywalker in the future. And I was right.

The idea that Rey wants to honor the legacy of her two mentors (and the other half of her dyad) is very beautiful. I knew she wouldn't let them die in vain.

If it wasn't for the name reveal in Solo, I would have liked for her to take the Solo name. But the Kasdans flubbed that.

Now, a better ending for the movie would have been her AND Ben taking the name and staying on a planet somewhere to rebuild the family legacy. Whether you're a Reylo or not, I think that would have been a much more powerful ending. But Rey Skywalker is her coming full circle.

Rey isn't a Palpatine, or a child, or anything that anyone else kept saying she was. The movie ends with Rey deciding on who she is. Nobody calls her a Skywalker, it's something SHE chose. And to me, that's the most lovely solo ending they could have given her.

Again, it would have been better if Ben and her friends were there with her, but it's better than nothing. And this shot is really pretty ngl. And John Williams never ceases to make me cry.

And thus concludes my thoughts on Rey in The Rise of Skywalker.

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