The Fangirly Diary of a Geek Girl: How I learned to stop worrying and love Star Wars~

WEDNESDAY

I almost missed Kevin Feige’s comment about Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War… and I’m glad I didn’t because it both ominous and badass:

Within the first five minutes of Infinity Warpeople will understand why Thanos is the biggest and baddest villain in the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

There are some casting news about the Artemis Fowl movie, but the only one I care about at the moment is Dame Judi Dench playing Commander Root! In the novels, he’s the grizzled, cigar-smoking elf who serves as the leader of LEPRecon, the elite reconnaissance division of the fairy police force. Yep, I wrote “he”, because Julius Root is indeed a dude in the books.

We have seen Leia Organa use the Force to communicate with her twin Luke Skywalker, somehow know they were actually twins (which makes their kiss kinda creepy), and feel her asshole son Kylo Ren off her husband Han Solo; but we’ve never seen her using the Force in a showy manner in the movies until Star Wars: The Last Jedi. And while the execution might not be up to everyone’s tastes, it’s amazing we actually saw it. Here are Rian Johnson’s words on that particular moment:

It’s instinctual, her use of it. It’s the opposite of when Luke Force-pulls the saber in Hoth. It isn’t like, ‘I’m going to try and do this.’ For her it’s just an instinctual thing of, ‘I’m not done yet. I’m not giving up. I’m pulling myself back in.’

My new love for Kelly Marie Tran remains untouched and in fact keeps growing. Here’s another interview where it shows she’s very much a fangirl. Yep, I will have done exactly the same:

Pretty much every scene they would let me go to, I would go. I just wanted to watch people work! I had no scenes with Andy Serkis, but you bet your ass I was there watching Andy Serkis, and same with Laura Dern. It was like someone gave me this golden ticket and I got to the chocolate factory and was never leaving. […] I don’t know how to explain this experience other than to say it was like someone had told me Hogwarts was real. It says so much that every department was so welcoming to me, and they really took time out of their day to talk to me for half an hour and explain things to me.

THURSDAY

Did you remember how some of us freaked out because Kevin Feige said Loki would team up with Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War. Well, apparently he didn’t say that at all, and it was a case of misinterpretation… or being a clickbait asshat. In any case, I’m glad we have the actual quote, which implies Loki will be there with Thanos… for a while. OK, that also worries me. Will he be the first casualty?

He’s got some company. There’s some old faces that you’ll recognize. A certain brother of Thor might show up for a while.

Rian Johnson talked about THAT Supreme Leader Snoke scene (and fan expectations) in Star Wars: The Last Jedi:

Ultimately Snoke was not built up in the last movie. He was built up with fan theories since the last movie. The truth is Snoke has a couple of very brief scenes in the last film. And I love fan theories by the way. I don’t want to just poo-poo them. I think that’s an important part of Star Wars fandom and I think it’s really fun to think about where these people came from, but the truth is in terms of Snoke’s actual place in this movie, it’s much more similar to the Emperor’s place in the original trilogy. […] It’s not about where he comes from. It’s not about his backstory. He is the guy behind the guy, and I think he plays out his part in this movie as is appropriate.

Since before Star Wars: The Last Jedi premiered, we knew Mark Hamill had some doubts about his role in the film, and most recently he has come clean about his feelings about his role and how the Luke Skywalker shown in Star Wars: The Last Jedi is #NotMyLukeSkywalker. But he also added that he “came to really believe that Rian was the exact man that they need for this job”.

Luke would never say that. I’m sorry. Well, in this version, see I’m talking about the George Lucas Star Wars. This is the next generation of Star Wars, so I almost had to think of Luke as another character. Maybe he’s Jake Skywalker. He’s not my Luke Skywalker, but I had to do what Rian wanted me to do because it serves the story well.

FRIDAY

Nothing much this day except for Empire’s awesome Black Panther subscriber cover! And it was designed by the film’s actual production designer: Hannah Beachler.

And that’s it for the week. Before I go, I want to wish you Merry Xmas and Happy Birthday to Krysten Ritter, Shane Black, James Mangold, Rian Johnson, Milla Jovovich, Steven Spielberg, Samuel L. Jackson and Ralph Fiennes.

mirella

YAM Magazine geek resident. Cloud Cuckoolander. Seldom web developer. Graphic designer.

2 Responses

  1. While there are plenty of things to criticize about TLJ,

    – – – spoilers ahead! – – –

    I enjoyed the film overall, and I think a lot of legit complaints are being overshadowed by louder disappointment of theories and interpretations. Also, Hamill’s original comments were that 1) he disagreed with Luke’s exile direction in this film and the sequel trilogy as a whole AND 2) this version of Luke fit the film and this is his favorite film to watch (if not act in) after Empire.

    I think the trauma of watching your entrusted nephew make his final turn to the dark side due to YOUR moment of weakness, of watching that nephew turn your students against each other, is enough fuel to propel Luke into exile and doubt the Jedi…in the very place where he could learn more about the Jedi. Furthermore, while Luke couldn’t blame himself for Darth Vader, he could definitely blame himself for Kylo Ren, and could feel that any more moves on his part (until Luke showed up at the end) could cause more damage.

    Just as I think the film needed at least a few more months to think through how to depict the material they had (how to better execute the conflict between Poe and Holdo, some extra imagination in the design/subplot of Space Monte Carlo, not cutting Finn talking about being in the First Order – which would have led nicely to the later fight w Phasma, etc), I think certain critics need to think through how they present their arguments…such as not stripping quotes/screencaps out of context, etc. Also, even if Rian Johnson likes Reylo (ick!) art on Twitter, the TEXT ITSELF thankfully has Reylo pretty much shut down…there’s no coming back from rejection of sharing some idea of superior power (AFTER Rey gave him a chance) and then Kylo ordering troops to shoot the Falcon from the sky, knowing she’s in it…

    honestly I had been worried about the film due to people screaming about confirmed spoilers but those spoilers didn’t tell the whole story so I was relieved when I actually watched it. I think those pre-watching reactions did shape other viewers’ opinions of the film. There are others I somewhat I agree with in their disappointment with in how characters of color weren’t written with the same balance as the other characters, but while I was not here for slapping Finn or Poe, I don’t think that, for example, Finn came off as just comic relief.

    Johnson did say the movie was going to be weird and take a lot of risks. I might not agree with Johnson on everything, and mileage would understandably vary on some of the choices/execution. However, I appreciate that he took a chance with showing failure through Poe, Luke, and the Canto Bight jaunt (though Rose got to get a little revenge and help people/creatures). People criticized TFA for playing too safe and now TLJ for going in a different direction. They criticize Luke and Leia for giving up on Ben Solo but also criticize Rey for trying to understand Kylo and why someone with equivalent powers and a lot more privilege (parents, schooling, etc) would turn out the way he did –and kill Han, who was maybe the first parental figure she ever had.
    Furthermore, to me, Rose saved Finn in a way that she couldn’t save her sister (tho the kiss was much), and Rey tried to preserve and save the good in the ideas she held and people she met, just as she tried to downplay her worst fears about her parents and imagine they’re not horrible and just somewhere out there.

    and I really hope they don’t retcon Rey’s parentage. It fits in with the theme of heroism from seemingly ordinary folks.

  2. lol I know I just left half an essay but ONE MORE THING:
    we all have our expectations squashed now and then, but expecting things like Snoke to meet your expectations of what was ~hinted~ (and not even explicitly named as him) in some Expanded Universe books and being angry because of that is too much. You expected him to be a force that could scare the Chiss and even the Yuuzhan Vong? if the Vong come back into canon, then bring back Vergere.

    and not as a Sith.

    /rant

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