As a life long Star Wars fan, I awaited the release of The Force Awakens with giddy glee, but also with trepidation. I knew the film would have all the expected bells and whistles: lightsabers, space battles, cool aliens, they’re all there. Those things are fun and exciting but ultimately they are surface details.
Going into this new Star Wars, what I wanted most, and what fans old and new needed most, was to feel connected to the characters. If I wasn’t sold on Finn, Poe, and Rey, then none of it would work. I’m glad to say that I have fallen in love with a brand new trio of characters from a galaxy far far away.
The most pleasant surprise of The Force Awakens is how it diversifies and defies the limits of traditional Hollywood action fare. A female hero, a black Stormtrooper, and a Guatemalan X-wing pilot make for fresh new protagonists and add some welcome diversity to the tapestry of Star Wars history.
In an interview with PBS, director JJ Abrams stated that he wanted a cast that reflected “how the world looks,” and what a fantastic new cast it is. Crackling with energy and full of charm, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac introduce Star Wars to a brand new generation.
Yet it’s the organic introduction of Ridley, Boyega, and Isaac that is most refreshing. I’m delighted that a new generation of Star Wars fans will grow up watching heroes that are not solely defined or limited by their gender or race, but by their heroism.
Ridley’s performance of Rey is exceptional. Strong, smart, courageous, and vulnerable all at once, Rey definitively dispels the notion that Star Wars fandom is meant to be a boy’s club.
Boyega is wonderfully funny and warm as Finn, while Isaac is just pure suave and cool as Poe. Isaac’s immediate chemistry and camaraderie with Boyega is awesome and left me wanting more of them together. Boyega and Ridley’s characters also develop a great friendship.
While there may be hints of a romance between Rey and Finn, it’s their genuine care and mutual respect for each other that sticks with you after the credits role.
Leading up to the release of The Force Awakens, there were a few belly-achers who bemoaned Ridley’s leading role as “feminist propaganda” and whined that Boyega’s casting was based in “political correctness.”
To these so-called “fans” I say this – go ahead and cling to your bigoted view of what Star Wars is.
For those of us who really want to celebrate our love for this franchise, Rey, Finn, and Poe are everything we could want.
Christopher Lai, Comics and Graphics Editor
Illustration by Sophia Goshulak.
