Reviews

I read some of the other review here, and I have to say a lot of the comments seem based on very silly or weak things. This was genuinely a great slice of star wars, doesnt contradict the canon, and, what's this, a royal child who is central to a faction of rebels acts like a royal child who rebels sometimes? Crazy idea

Now this is NOT to say the show is perfect. There are hiccups and blunders and blotches of poor writing here and there as there have always been with this franchise whether it's in books, shows, games or film, but the story and the child acting seem to be scapegoats for people to moan about. As the old addage goes, no one hates star wars like a star wars fan.

My main reason for writing this is actually to point out that people making criticisms based on their own failure to grasp a timeline, failure hold off criticisms on continuity until at least more than half the series is out, and failure to understand nuance ultimately hurt these shows. This is because you're more or less telling the studios that you need it even simpler, and genuine criticisms are being buried in the noise

A lot of comments saying the meeting in this episode should never happen, because it contradicts ANH because of one or two lines about how they havent seen each other, or how when they last met, Obi wan was the master. This clearly isnt the last time they meet in this show, so there is still ample time for Obi wan to again prove he is a "master" of the force, whilst Vader is still in his pupil phase (albeit for the emperor).

The second point on this is the implication they havent met for a long time. Some people think that this show is set too close to ANH, and to that I am genuinely baffled. Are people unaware this is still set 10 years before they meet on the Death Star? Of course Vader would maintain that reaction when they meet again, especially as it all hinges on a fight we have not yet seen in the kenobi show. I an literally pinching my nose at how this glaring fact has slipped past so many people.

All in all, people really have a poor grasp on the fact that this is only the third episode, and the fact that Leia is a child raised to be a rebel among aristocrats and royals. Expecting a 10 year old in that position to not be cocky is absurd.

My genuine criticism with this episode is that, at points, Ben acts a little out of character, even for a hermit and PTSD version of Obi Wan. I also had a few general issues with the stormtroopers remaining completely useless despite, I assume, Obis face being plastered all over galactic wanted posters. At the very least, a mention of force abilities used to shield oneself could have been mentioned, but alas we simply remain with some of the most useless grunts in scifi

This episode alone has though, after nearly 30 years, given me a feeling that Ben's death in ANH will finally have a heavy, emotional impact for both Vaders revenge, and Obis final demise for Luke's benefit. I've seen the film dozens of times throughout my life, before the prequels, after the prequels, but never truly given a crap that Ben was killed. This, finally, feels like the missing piece to link Ben to Vader, to link Ben to the children, and to give Vader his sweet, final (although ultimately marred) victory against his old master. And yes, Vader is brutal, he is NOT out of character in this show if you have dived into comics, games, or books. Between this and Rogue 1, we are finally seeing the reason he has been considered the most terrifying and ruthless figure in the galaxy, especially when it comes to hunting down his old master

The final meeting between them will be glorious.

As far as Marvel films go, this is a good breath of fresh air. Though, that doesn't mean it's a flawless film.

I have a soft spot for this film, and want to give it a better review, but really I can't give it higher just because the ending and overall implications of the film going forward are so good.

The first half is slow, it has a big job of laying the groundwork for who these characters are, where they cam from, can they make us care about them all, and can they give us a good enemy all at the same time. In honesty, I would have been happy with a longer film that smashed these jobs perfectly, but we got what we got.

The variants are absolutely boring generic anti-hero stuff. As soon as one of them begins to get interesting (although still Pale-Orc style CGI'd.... gross), he gets killed off.

But i would go as far as to say that the 2nd half of the film, the emergence plotline, the setting up for the future and some of the characters I am very much looking forward to seeing later on.

Just a shame that the focal point of the eternals are two pretty boring and non-enthusiastic and non-charismatic or convincing characters.

The humour though, spot on. Mercari and Druig, amazing. Gilgamesh, 100% should not have been the one to get written off. Thena only really served to make Gilgamesh appear more interesting, and IMO the killing off should have been reversed between the two. Ikaris was written well and the dynamics of their beliefs and motivations were done well before heading to the final confrontation.

Overall, worth watching mostly for the cosmic storyline and about half the cast. The rest is forgettable. Fun, and still Marvel, but not int heir higher end of quality.