This article will be a little different from normal. It is part-movie review and part-discussion of Star Wars figures and what makes you want to collect them. Before I jump in to my review, there will be spoilers for the movie so hold off on reading this until you’ve seen the movie!
First off, I want to share a little bit about how I felt about The Last Jedi. I was excited to see it after getting a lot of critical praise and knowing the director had been chosen to do another trilogy of Star Wars movies in the future. I hoped it would be better than Force Awakens which I liked but thought was a little derivative. The strength of the characters carried me through Force Awakens and made me hope that they be just as great or better in future movies.
Perhaps those expectations colored my feelings of disappointment with The Last Jedi. It is a good movie, it just isn’t the Star Wars movie I was looking for. I actually liked most of the existing characters less than in the previous movie. Finn wasn’t as funny or likable this time. Poe was more serious. Rey is still a bland and cliche movie hero and nothing in the movie made me like her more as I hoped. Luke Skywalker’s character was a disappointment and him being a crazed hermit who wanted to die as the last jedi makes sense in some ways but it isn’t what I wanted at all. I don’t like how all of the original trilogy characters are being killed so fast either. It doesn’t feel earned or right to me now that two have died. Those are some of my main criticisms of the movie though I could definitely list a lot more. Hungry Goriya just did a great post that listed a lot of the plot holes and things that didn’t make enough sense in the movie which I encourage you all to check out because a lot of the points she raises are things I thought too.
That isn’t to say there weren’t a lot of things I liked about it. The way Luke chose to end his life was heroic and very cool (which helped redeem that plot point a little bit). From Porgs, to the crystal foxes, to the animals used for racing, I really appreciated how The Last Jedi didn’t shy away from using cute animals to make you feel something. That is something Return of the Jedi did well too. Almost all of the major battles were awesome in the movie and visually impressive. Best of all that surprise cameo of a character talking to Luke was just amazing and well done. That might have been the highlight of the whole movie for me.
Overall, I’d say I liked the movie alright and don’t think it was bad, nor did I leave the theater thinking it was great. The biggest problem I have with the Last Jedi is that I don’t like almost any of the characters in the movie and that really challenges the way I’ve been collecting Star Wars figures.
When I first started collecting S.H. Figuarts, I wanted everything. My love of Star Wars is as deep as Nintendo and I generally do like having a complete collection of something whenever possible. However, much like with Amiibo, I found myself unable to buy everything. There are some characters I can live without owning (like many of the prequel characters such as Mace Windu or even Anakin) and I became overwhelmed by the sheer number of stuff I could buy and stopped.
More recently, I’ve been wanting to get more Star Wars stuff again and so I started picking up the Movie Realization line. I love it and will keep buying as many of the figures that come out which look cool as they make. Once I get caught up with that, I’d like to get some other Star Wars figures from S.H. Figuarts. The Last Jedi has made me realize that I don’t necessarily even need many figures from the new movies that are coming out which is funny because I already have quite a few figures from the Force Awakens. At the current rate of one new movie per year, I need to pick and choose from the ones I really enjoy and The Last Jedi did not reach that level. I may pick up a Luke Skywalker because I love Mark Hamill and the character so much but I don’t need Rey or a second Captain Phasma (who wasn’t redeemed in this movie either sadly), another version of Kylo Ren, or all three versions of Snoke’s Red Guards, and so on.
On one hand, collecting can feel like a burden on your wallet and on your energy because you spend time thinking about getting what you want and I always feel a small sense of relief when I come to a decision to focus on something small or that feels achievable for me. When it comes to collecting Star Wars or Nintendo figures or anything really, I encourage you all to take stock of what you’re collecting and why. If collecting ever feels not fun or you feel like you might be going through the motions, try to figure out why. I believe I would feel that way if I started buying Last Jedi figures and instead, I’m looking forward to getting some more Movie Realization stuff in the near future because I know I’ll enjoy having them and expanding that part of my collection. One subpar movie or game can have a big impact on your collecting focus and it is always good to adapt to however you’re feeling.
What did you think of Star Wars: The Last Jedi? Are there any characters or figures you want to get now that you’ve seen the movie? Let us know in the comments below!
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Thanks for linking my post here! I’m glad someone else was asking the same questions as me and had mixed feelings as well (I’m not happy you didn’t like the film, just happy I’m not alone in feeling glum about it).
I am also a huge Star Wars fan and spent a lot of my childhood watching and re-watching The Empire Strikes Back, so I totally know what you’re saying here about feeling uninspired by these new films. I also dislike many of the new characters, though Kylo Ren is growing on me after this movie. The rest though, I could easily wash my hands of without a blink. I hope that the series turns on its head a little and can get the character chemistry right going forward. That, along with weird humour is really turning me off from wanting to watch anymore of these movies! I miss the cheesy banter between characters that actually built up and expanded their personality traits rather than being situational and doing nothing to drive the story or emotion. I’ll be curious to see which figures you do end up finding along the way, even if you do feel a little soured right now!
Also, that character’s cameo visit with Luke was also one of my high points in the film. Great minds think alike!
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You’re very welcome! I had thought many of those same thoughts but I didn’t want this article to come across as really negative or to be crazy long so I was really happy to be able to link to your article.
The humor definitely didn’t work well in this movie. People didn’t laugh at all in my theater and I actually thought there was a decent joke or two in the movie so it was kind of shocking. I do hope that the next movie somehow recaptures our interest too. It is bad not loving one of your favorite things which is how I have felt the last couple of days but I know it will pass with time. With that said, I’m planning on reviewing new Star Wars figures in 2018 and I’m happy to know some people are looking forward to those articles 🙂 Star Wars content doesn’t get a lot of attention from visitors to the site and at times I’ve debated if they’re worth writing but ultimately, I decided they are fun for me and that is good enough to keep doing them! Thanks for sharing your thoughts and responding to the article. It has been fun talking about Star Wars!
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I always feel crazy when I feel negatively about such a powerhouse of a phenomenon like this. Thanks for being on the same side! I’m genuinely shocked that the movie got no laughs. Mine got a few, but not too many. I personally didn’t laugh too much and found myself saying, “What?” out loud more often than anything else.
And I am looking forward to your Star Wars posts for sure! You should definitely do what you love, so I’m glad you’ll continue to write Star Wars content. I will always love reading about it 😀
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I’m in much the same boat as you in regards to The Last Jedi. I liked the core new characters in The Force Awakens…except for Kylo Ren…but liked them less in The Last Jedi. I have a strong suspension of disbelief so plot holes and inconsistencies didn’t bother me…but the general tone and treatment of Original Trilogy characters bothered me. As I wrote on my blog, “…that’s why I had such a negative reaction to – SPOILERS – Kylo Ren going to the dark side because Luke Skywalker tried to kill him in his sleep. From my perspective it was completely antithetical to Luke’s journey in the original trilogy.”
To me, it feels that the writers decided to use Luke as a plot device to emphasize the new characters. But they didn’t need to diminish Luke to make Rey look better, Daisy Ridley could have held her own. They didn’t need to flip Luke’s character on his head to make Kylo Ren sympathic, not happening – I won’t feel sorry for a mass murdering Nazi. I know it’s just a movie but I can’t help being disappointed by it. For those who did enjoy it, good for them.
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts and I’m glad to hear my reaction is shared by others! I wasn’t crazy about the whole Luke trying to kill Kylo in his sleep either. What would make Luke that scared and jaded to do that? It is possible for him to change that much but they have to explain that and why it happened for us to believe it. The movie never even attempts to explain and so it comes off as if they’re not staying true to the original movies or they’re looking for a reason to get rid of another character. It might not be so bad if Han Solo was already treated the same way in the last movie but unfortunately, that has happened too.
I definitely walked away disappointed and feeling disillusioned with Star Wars for the near term. I don’t look forward to a Han Solo prequel and I don’t especially care about seeing the next movie in this trilogy now so I don’t have a lot to look forward to Star Wars-wise for a couple of years which is a shame.
I checked out your site by the way and I think it is awesome that you paint minis as well! I paint Mansions of Madness and am just starting to paint Warhammer stuff. I couldn’t find a follow link on your site but I will definitely try to follow your work 🙂
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Indeed. I’m disappointed that they decided to take the route that they did but…it’s their franchise now so that’s their prerogative. To me, it feels like they’ve invalidated the Original Triology point by point…this started in The Force Awakens with the New Republic being erased in a single scene and Han/Leia’s character development getting reset but continued in The Last Jedi. To me it feels like they’re exploiting Original Trilogy nostalgia for plot devices focused on the new characters – who I think could have held their own without said plot devices – but have no interest in the Original Trilogy otherwise. Oh well, I’ve been accused of being too invested in the franchise and that’s probably true.
Thanks for taking a look! I find posting each miniature I paint keeps me motivated and helps me improve. It’s a fun hobby – I find it almost meditative. Do you have your Mansions of Madness and Warhammer stuff up here? I’m going to do a search after finishing this comment.
Huh. Thanks for letting me know about the missing Follow link. I must have accidentally disabled it – the WordPress JetPack plugin was causing some Google indexing issues so I fiddled with a bunch of settings trying to fix it. I’ll figure out how to get the Follow link back.
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I’d have to agree. It doesn’t feel like the new movies are respectful of the original trilogy anymore and Disney is risking the loss of lifetime Star Wars fans and all of the money they spend too which will really hurt them.
You’re very welcome! I have a Work In Progress thread on Cool Mini or Not if you’d like to see some of my work. Here is the link: http://www.coolminiornot.com/forums/showthread.php?63565-Kuribo-s-Mansions-of-Madness-WIP/page9
I don’t post it on the site because I don’t think enough people would be interested to see what I do. I totally agree about it being meditative. It helps me de-stress after work like nothing else can!
You’re welcome and let me know when you get it up and running. I’ll definitely follow your site. It will be cool to see what you get up to 🙂
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[…] discussed in my recent article on The Last Jedi and my disappointment with it, I am still all in on the Movie Realization aka Samurai Star Wars […]
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