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‘The Force Awakens’: Five Things I’m Tired Of Star Wars Fans Whining About

By Toni Matthews
Published on: 15:37 PST, Nov 14, 2015

We are just five weeks away from the premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Fans have been anticipating the movie for months — in some cases, years. Personally, the idea that a Star Wars sequel would ever happen never crossed my mind as a fan.

The Force Awakens seems to promise a genuine return of lost Star Wars magic and fans couldn’t be more excited…Except when they’re whining and nitpicking about every little thing. This movie has not even hit theaters yet, and already people have made mountains out of every molehill they can find. No plot has been established, yet some fans imagine themselves experts as to what’s wrong with the movie, what the movie will really be about, etc.

These are the five things I for one wish fans would shut up about until we at least have all seen The Force Awakens in theaters December 18.

Kylo Ren’s lightsaber has been the subject of fandom whining going back to the very first teaser trailer. No one knew anything about him, and there is still frenzied speculation as to his actual role in the First Order. People can’t seem to get over the fact that he doesn’t have a shiny, well-put-together lightsaber. Also, how DARE it have a cross guard!

I’d like to remind Star Wars fans that at this point in Star Wars, decades after the original film, the Jedi and Sith are all but legends. There aren’t shady individuals standing on the corner handing out pamphlets with instructions on how to build a perfect lightsaber. This person obviously lacks proper Sith or Jedi training. Fans will no doubt find out why in December.

Star Wars fans should be too busy having their minds explode at the very real possibility that we’re going to see a wonky version of Darth Vader’s lightsaber against the lost (but then found) version of Luke’s lightsaber, which formerly belonged to his father Anakin Skywaker. It’s almost as if even after his death, there’s a battle to determine his legacy. I care far more about that then why Kylo Ren has a cross guard on his lightsaber.

Something else that Star Wars fans have not stopped griping about since the teaser? Say hello to Finn, the third black guy introduced into the series canon over a period of about 40 years. First, people were angry at the idea of a black Stormtrooper, which struck me as overtly racist and downright stupid.

Aside from Han and Luke, who were only pretending to be Stormtroopers when they rescued Princess Leia, no one has any idea what Stormtroopers really look like. If they’re recruited from all over the galaxy, they are very likely a plethora of races and ethnicities. The Clone troopers weren’t white as the character they were cloned from was not. By extension, we know Boba Fett isn’t white either. So going back to the earliest version of troopers, we know that whiteness was never an exclusive or relevant factor.

Later, we find out that Finn has a larger role to play in the movie than simply “ex-Stormtrooper.” We repeatedly see him handling Luke’s lightsaber, and he’s even holding it on the poster. This is NOT a coincidence no matter how much some disgruntled racist nerds wish it to be.

Personally, I’m rooting for Finn and the actor who plays him. John Boyega’s reaction to the final trailer was absolutely adorable. How can you not love someone who gets so excited for The Force Awakens he dives over a couch?

Speaking of which, I’ve observed more than a few so-called Star Wars fans being livid that the main trio in this movie is multi-ethnic and that the woman character isn’t merely there to be rescued. So? Kudos to J.J. Abrams for dragging “a galaxy far far away” into the 21st century. The original trilogy, while I do love it, was made in the sexist (and still arguably racist) ’70s. It was a time when people thought nothing of a universe where everyone is white — when they’re not an alien puppet — and the only woman featured is there as the “damsel in distress”.

Even Princess Leia is now a General. The badass Chrometrooper we keeping seeing? Also a woman. Lupita Nyong’o is a mysterious female alien that seems to be key in guiding the new generation of leads to the Force. This is awesome!

This and future Star Wars movies promise gender and racial diversity that’s been severely lacking. If you don’t like a Star Wars where everyone isn’t a white male, I frankly don’t care how you feel. Go on and boycott the upcoming sequels/prequels. I won’t miss you and neither will true, forward-thinking Star Wars fans.

I’m also kind of sick of fanboys crying, “Where’s Luke?” as if by now it’s not pretty obvious his character is being held back on purpose. The original trilogy had him as THE main character. Suddenly he’s almost entirely absent from The Force Awakens promotion. Who the heck is out there thinking its a coincidence? I suspect that when we finally see Luke and find out why he’s been so scarce in the trailer, the reveal will be one of the most talked about aspects of the movie.

There are those who (despite Adam Driver blatantly being cast in the role) insist he’s Kylo Ren. I think that’s a cool theory, even though I don’t buy it. I blame the persistence of this rumor on the ambiguity J.J. Abrams showed towards the ultimately problematic casting of Benedict Cumberbatch in the role of Khan in Star Trek: Into Darkness. I think that situation was unique and not a pattern of directoral behavior carried over to this franchise.

We’ll see Luke Skywalker, and perhaps he will be a villain. If only fans would stop griping and let the surprise happen.

Last, and certainly not least, let’s stop with the complaints about the Starkiller base. So many people are freaking out that the First Order introduced an upgrade on that twice-destroyed Deathstar, and I just don’t get it.

I suspect these fans have no concept of advancing military technology and how empire stay empires. It’s perfectly logical for a galactic power that wishes to remain in control to not only continue to build weapons but to improve where previous technologies have failed. If the Empire/First Order had given up on a planet-destroying weapon because the rebels eliminated it in the first movie, that would have interfered with my ability to suspend disbelief.

A real galactic empire would have vast resources and a ceaseless desire to make itself not only formidable but unstoppable. Graduating from technology that destroys planets to one that destroys stars and solar systems would make sense. Just as it would make sense for the Rebels or Resistance to work continually to destroy these powerful weapons any way they can. That’s how an arms race works, folks. Bad guys don’t just pick up their ball and go home.

If this particular concept seems redundant in Star Wars to fans, then that’s actually realism at work.

What aspects of Star Wars: The Force Awakens are you tired of hearing Star Wars fans moan about? Share your thoughts below!

[Featured Image Via Lucas Films/Star Wars Official YouTube Channel]

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