Rey in The Force Awakens (Possible Spoilers)

[Reverend]

...yeah I'm sure cocaine had nothing to do with it....

Mind you, in Jedi she's nowhere near as actively involved in the plot as she was in ANH & Empire. For the most part she's just sort of *there*. Jedi is very much Luke's movie, while the other two were very much ensemble pieces. That might account for at least some of the "but these are my friends...no really, I totally care out this. Eating them would be a real bummer..." type line deliveries. Can't blame her for feeling a bit disengaged if she's just window dressing.
Not that I'm blaming the metal bikini in and of itself, but it does sort of exemplify what Leia became in that movie.

 

[fireproof78]

For me:
I recall having a crush on Leia from ANH and ESB. (As many boys did at the time). Yes, she did seem different in ROTJ...although, she did look good in the Endor Rebel outfit and the Jabba Palace outfit....*sigh*

Leia was cool but since she was the only lead woman at the time, the character had to be many things: damsel in distress, leader, voice of reason (which kind of ties into voice of reason).

Padme was just good-looking. She wasn't a badass. She actually becomes a more weakened character in the final prequel film (e.g. "You're breaking me apart, Anakin!" Yes, I'm paraphrasing The Room, but you get the idea). It's interesting that Lucas didn't want bouncing bosoms in space, yet he has Portman in sexy dresses that either show off her bare back, or her figure (courtesy of a special leather dress, which only needed a whip to complete the outfit - it's interesting now the comic Tag and Dink actually do this on the cover of a comic collection).

Oh, yeah....it's interesting how a large monster conveniently slashes at Padme during a certain scene in Episode II to expose a nice (and toned) midriff....lol...and make her battle outfit a bit more sexier, as if it already wasn't.

Yeah, Padme is very pretty....but that's about it.

Rey is cute and she has some cute moments (e.g. trying on the fighter pilot helmet while she's having a lonely dinner) and she's very resourceful (e.g. she can fly, she is good at hand-to-hand combat, or at least melee weapons - particularly a staff). When Finn wants to be protective, she goes out of her way to tell him she can take care of herself....and she can! However, she doesn't shy away from being protective of Finn or noticing his chivalry.

I didn't really have a crush on Leia other than she was really the only girl in the OT. I mean, I liked her role, but there was never any attraction for me.
Padme definitely was pretty, I agree there but that was it. Your points are well made.

Rey is definitely got more of my attention, possibly because she is a bit mysterious (Rey Mysterio? I'll show myself out). I like how independent she is but there is also a level of compassion and care that is beneath the surface.

Of the three, I think Rey is the more attractive from a romance standpoint. That may change.

 

[Ithekro]

All three actresses have their nice points. While Princess Leia has a certain appeal, Carrie Fisher back in 1979 had a very good smile that I don't think she used in the film.

Natalie Portman still looks good today as she did at 18.

Daisy Ridley in infectious presently. In a good way.

 

[Iamnotspock]

Apologies if this has been brought up already, but has anyone seen the theory that Rey is a reincarnation of Anakin? The Chosen One reborn, in order to fulfil her destiny of bringing balance to the Force.

 

[comsol]

^ So... was that supposed to mean "dash it," or "Da" for a slangy "the," and ...?

Kor

Actually, the full name was Cos Dashit - pronounced as "caused the shit".

 

[fireproof78]

Apologies if this has been brought up already, but has anyone seen the theory that Rey is a reincarnation of Anakin? The Chosen One reborn, in order to fulfil her destiny of bringing balance to the Force.

That's an interesting theory. One of the aspects of the PT that i have come to appreciate is the potential influence of "Dune" upon some of Lucas' concepts. I have looked at the PT from a more political atmosphere, and while the politics of the Old Republic don't make a great amount of sense but I can see what Lucas might have been trying for. The idea of multiple parties (Houses in Dune-Jedi, Sith and the like in Star Wars) vying for power in the political realm.

I can see Anakin as the Kwisatz Haderach from Dune. But, like Paul, he arrived sooner than expected, and the circumstances were not quite right.

So, Luke tried to the Bridge the gap, but he (apparently) shied away from his responsibility, which may now fall to Rey. Or, Rey might be the one used by the Force to get Luke back on the right path.

Interesting thought.

 

[Ithekro]

As long as she isn't The Abomination, we are fine.

 

[Kor]

Reincarnation has never been part of the mythos of "The Force" in the movies. I'm not sure about the EU...
There was the reborn Emperor trying to put his consciousness in Han and Leia's baby, but that's different.

Kor

 

[TremblingBluStar]

Padme was just good-looking. She wasn't a badass. She actually becomes a more weakened character in the final prequel film (e.g. "You're breaking me apart, Anakin!" Yes, I'm paraphrasing The Room, but you get the idea).

No, you are paraphrasing Revenge of the Sith. That is the actual line. The one from The Room was "you're tearing me apart, Lisa!!!".

I can't decide which line was worse, or which was delivered in the most awkward fashion.

 

[Iamnotspock]

Reincarnation has never been part of the mythos of "The Force" in the movies.

No, but it doesn't seem like too much of a stretch. Force-ghosts weren't part of the mythos until ROTS. An all-powerful mystical energy field surrounding all things, controlling destiny and allowing people to retain their individuality after death; I can imagine that lending itself to the idea of a Force-ghost discovering how to return to the mortal realm.

It's a new development, and not something many would expect, which is why I hope it turns out to be the case, rather than the obvious, "Oh, she's [Luke's/Obi-Wan's/Palpatine's] [grand-]daughter."

 

[Kor]

Dead Ben's voice was heard in ANH, and he appeared visibly in ESB...

Kor

 

[Iamnotspock]

Dead Ben's voice was heard in ANH, and he appeared visibly in ESB...

Kor

Chronologically/narratively. As in, the Jedi weren't aware of the existence of Force-ghosts until ROTS (Revenge of the Sith, not ROTJ - Return of the Jedi) - actually Yoda learned of it from Qui-Gon in The Clone Wars but the point is that there are things about the Force that the Jedi didn't know until the very end of the Order's existence. What else had Qui-Gon discovered about the Force? Or Yoda or Obi-Wan, in the years since ...Jedi?

 

[Reverend]

Reincarnation has never been part of the mythos of "The Force" in the movies. I'm not sure about the EU...
There was the reborn Emperor trying to put his consciousness in Han and Leia's baby, but that's different.

Kor

I think at one point in development, an early draft of RotJ featured both Obi-Wan & Yoda re-corporealising to finish off the Emperor. So such ideas were at least a possibility at some point.

Don't get me wrong, it was a terrible idea from a dramatic storytelling (almost literal deus ex machina) and I'm glad they dropped it. Nor do I buy the theory that Rey is a re-incarnation of Anakin. She's already way more interesting than that and frankly I'd rather go with the still very unlikely "granddaughter of Kenobi & Satine" or "daughter of Ezra Bridger" theories.

Chronologically/narratively. As in, the Jedi weren't aware of the existence of Force-ghosts until ROTS (Revenge of the Sith, not ROTJ - Return of the Jedi) - actually Yoda learned of it from Qui-Gon in The Clone Wars but the point is that there are things about the Force that the Jedi didn't know until the very end of the Order's existence. What else had Qui-Gon discovered about the Force? Or Yoda or Obi-Wan, in the years since ...Jedi?

I think it might be more of a case of the "modern" Jedi Order having forgetting much of it's deep knowledge of the force. Maybe the hundred years of darkness and last war with the Sith Empire in the the time of the old Old Republic took it's toll. Maybe too many of the temples were destroyed or their locations lost (like the one on Lothal.)

A thousand generations is a long time and things do tend to get lost, especially if it's carefully guarded knowledge that is too dangerous to be accessible to all but the wisest of the masters. All it takes is for that one master to die before passing on that the knowledge even exists and before you know it, it's buried in an archive of millennia old watchman field reports and apocryphal prophecies from the Journal of the Whills.

It does tie into the concept that the Jedi as they were in their twilight years were just a shadow of their former selves (not unlike the real world Samurai they're partly based on) and that the ancient Jedi were something truly mythic.

 

[Kor]

Yes, I tend to think that the Jedi of the PT trilogy had kind of lost their way, focusing a great deal on combat technique and leading troops in warfare but losing the spiritual aspect of connecting with "The Force."

At one point, the Jedi Council even mentioned among themselves how their ability to sense "The Force" was diminishing.

Kor

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Yes, I tend to think that the Jedi of the PT trilogy had kind of lost their way, focusing a great deal on combat technique and leading troops in warfare but losing the spiritual aspect of connecting with "The Force."

At one point, the Jedi Council even mentioned among themselves how their ability to sense "The Force" was diminishing.

Kor

I concur. There were several episodes of The Clone Wars that dealt with the Jedi Order's changing for the worse and being more insulated during their respective era. You had Jedi who were excommunicated and or left the Order like Ashoka and Barriss Offee who felt betrayed by the Jedi, for them not practicing what they preach and having no confidence in those who serve. We see this in ROTS with Anakin's constant frustration with the Council. If you think of the Jedi as a job that people do and not as a group of mythic knights and wisemen, you could see why Anakin would be dissatisfied with his position. Dooku left after TPM and Qui-Gon was known to not play by the rules set by the Council.

I like it because it makes the Jedi a good ideology that becomes flawed in it's execution. Rather than the deified knights the OT painted them as. Sort of like the Klingon ideology that praises honor and glory, but only Worf and a handful of others actually work to live up to the ideals.

 

[Set Harth]

Chronologically/narratively. As in, the Jedi weren't aware of the existence of Force-ghosts until ROTS (Revenge of the Sith, not ROTJ - Return of the Jedi) - actually Yoda learned of it from Qui-Gon in The Clone Wars

Yoda heard Qui-Gon's voice at one point during AOTC.

 

[Iamnotspock]

Yoda heard Qui-Gon's voice at one point during AOTC.

Ah, yes. Well, the audience did; TCW suggests heavily that Yoda didn't, or at least dismissed it on that occasion.

 

[Ithekro]

Thinking it over, what would fit as Rey's last name? Would she have her father's name, or her mother's name?

A thought though. If her last name is Skywalker, wouldn't she have suspected something was up when they talk about Luke Skywalker? Also Solo would be too obvious a name. Organa would probably also stand out. Kenobi would be something else, though I don't think anyone would notice at first (aside from the audience).

But what about Jade? Or Bridger? Something a little off but not too off.

Just a thing to ponder. A last name.

 

[Kor]

Abrams deliberately left that vague by not giving her a last name. She probably doesn't even know.

Kor

 

[Tom Hendricks]

Rey may not even be her name, more a nickname. Like Rey of hope or something like that. For the longest time, the rumor was that her name was Kira. So it's possible that she doesn't know her true name.