A movement of sorts has sprung up among fans who are unhappy with the direction of the Star Wars franchise that some have begun called "the Fandom Menace" a play on the "Phantom Menace" which is the title of Star Wars episode 1. These fans have a number of critiques about the direction Star Wars has taken under the leadership of Disney and Disney's Kathleen Kennedy, J.J. Abrams and Rian Johnson (among others). These criticisms became very loud after the release of Star Wars: the Last Jedi and prompted a substantial amount of counter-criticism with directors and producers complaining that the fans merely don't like their head-canon being subverted, or that they don't like a strong female protagonist or that they just like to be critical of everything.
This is not correct. While there may be some folks who fit this description, it ignores the fact that The Last Jedi is objectively a poorly made movie. How do I know this? All around the country there are college classes where professors, writers, and directors teach students what makes a good plot or a deep and compelling character. The Last Jedi failed to follow the simplest rules of good writing and would be given a C minus by a kindly writing teacher.
Consider the following points:
1. The previous movie, the Force Awakens, set up several important plot points that an audience should be expected to rely on as the story went forward. One of these was Rey's urgent need to know who her family was. Another is how did Snoke convert Kylo to the dark side. Where did Snoke come from and what is his mission? Is General Hux a rival to Kylo Ren and what is his background/goals? Where did Finn come from and what is his fate? Is he going to become a Jedi, as hinted at by his use of the lightsaber as it was given to him by a quasi-Jedi master? Are Finn and Rey going to have a romantic relationship? Why is the blue lightsaber important and what does it symbolize? And finally, why is Luke on Ach-too and what happened to him?
All of these plot points were jarringly abandoned in the Last Jedi. Starting with Luke's throwing the lightsaber over his shoulder, we have a steady diet of plot points being obliterated.
It's not necessarily wrong to make a sudden turn in a plot, but in order to effectively pull that off, there must be a VERY compelling reason to do it that increases the audience's interest rather than turns it off. And this is the key point regarding plot: each major plot point must increase, rather than decrease, the tension. The Last Jedi's "twists" only decreased the tension at almost every turn.
2. Every single character is made weaker and less compelling. Consider:
Poe: his strength is his daring and courage. By the end of the movie, and just when he needs his courage the most, he has become a timid man, unwilling to make the brave sacrifice that he actually needed to do at that time.
Hux: Destined to be an evil and imposing figure like Tarkin, Hux became almost as silly as Rita Repulsa from the Mighty Morphing Power Rangers. A campy, silly bad guy who inspires no terror.
Luke: A man of supreme love, hope and courage, turned into a bitter, cowardly, cynical old fart, willing to let his best friend and his sister fight and die because he "feels bad."
Rey: She learns that she has no past and one wonders what she even wants. Who is she? What are her motivations? To find "who she is?" Why does that mean fighting Kylo Ren or helping the Resistance? She has no motivation.
I could go on. But it's clear that these aren't compelling characters. And this isn't a matter of opinion; there are very solid objective reasons why an audience is right to reject this mishandling of beloved characters and story.
Which brings me to my main point: It isn't wrong for an audience to expect excellence in Star Wars. Where Disney spent literally billions of dollars on the franchise to have world-class special effects, world-class actors, world-class music, world-class camera work, and world-class set, costume and make-up designers. So it is not unreasonable to expect world-class writing and directing. There are literally thousands of brilliant screen writers who would give their left-hand to write a Star Wars script. Audiences shouldn't have to put up with even mediocre or "kinda-good" films. Would audiences be okay with mediocre Star Wars music? Or visual effects from the early '90s?
Let's imagine that Kathleen Kennedy and Rian Johnson went to an upscale restaurant and were given hot dogs and potato chips. Haha! Their head-canon has now be subverted! Surprise!
Would they be okay with that? No, they'd send it back.
And, so should the Fandom Menace. If the Fandom Menace were criticizing Air Bud 3 or Sharknado 2, I would tell them to give it a break. But in the case of Star Wars, a series with some genuinely brilliant stories, genuinely compelling characters and genuinely good humor, action and romance, fans are allowed to expect the best.
