On tonight's episode of KSM Live! CC Ekeke joins Josh, Scott, and Chuck, to share their thoughts on the most recent entry into the Star Wars saga. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
Come join in the fun and share your own thoughts!
***
Breaking Down Story - The Rise of Skywalker
On tonight's episode of KSM Live! CC Ekeke joins Josh, Scott, and Chuck, to share their thoughts on the most recent entry into the Star Wars saga. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
Hosts: Josh Hayes, Scott Moon, C. Steven Manley, CC Ekeke
SPOILERS AHEAD!
[00:00] Opening remarks—Dragon Award Nominations are open!
[04:42] Weekly update, Quarantine Edition
Chuck: Dark Devices (Jack Dark #1) is done and to the editor. Book 2 is underway. Brace Cordova #3 is underway. Dinosaur saxophone.
Scott: Reaper #10 is released. Arpen Wars is being worked on. Thirteen Mercenaries is in development as well. Blanket forts, walking outside? Rollerblading in the basement.
CC: Book 5 in Pantheon Saga series in development for a late spring release. DDP Yoga workouts! TP sparing.
Josh: Continued work on Enemy of Valor (Valor #3). Got a contract for the short story he’s been hinting at over and over. Contract of Valor?
[15:54] Sponsor: TS Hottle’s No Marigold’s in the Promised Land: A Compact Universe Novel
[17:48] Main Event: Breaking Down Story - The Rise of Skywalker!
Things We Liked:
Josh: Beautifully shot, cinematography, CGI, backdrops was immersive in 4K.
CC: Well produced visual medium; in line with the rest of the sequel trilogy.
Chuck: A lot of ‘fan’ moments to enjoy. Ex. When Chewbacca learns of Leia’s death.
Scott: Felt much more connected to the characters because of the time with the series.
Things We Did Not Like:
Josh:
-The story was set up to fail before the movie was even shot (see controversy around The Last Jedi).
-TLJ threw away so many promises given in The Force Awakens
-TRoS had to fix things that TLJ had done and the elements placed in TRoS could’ve been set up earlier.
-Lack of Payoff from previous movies/trilogies (Ex. Palpatine’s return) and even in the same movie (Ex. Chewbacca’s ship blows up).
Chuck:
-Trying to pack two movies into one movies to course correct from TLJ.
-Full of plotholes!
Scott:
-Magically creating thousands of space ships for an instant space fleet!
-Palpatine as Bond Villain.
CC:
-Emotionless story for the reader.
-Faults began with TFA, but were exacerbated by TLJ’s change of direction. It was too much for TRoS to fix.
-Zero stakes in the film. (Ex. C3PO wipe).
-Stupid ideas against established lore.
-Force Skyping was cool, but Force FedEx power?
-Committed the sin: Undoing the work of the previous trilogy (all heroes became failures)
-It’s the Rise of Palpatine, not Skywalker!
-If you need supplementary material to explain a movie premise, the movie failed to convey that to the viewer.
-Space horses riding on a ship?
-Mirroring RotJ with TRoS, ramping up stakes.
-Rise of the MacGuffin!
-If you think about the movie, it falls apart.
-Segue into Prequel Trilogy Rant (Love Story! Midichlorians!).
- JJ Abrams had to do everything he could to bring the fans back that TLJ alienated.
-Terrible motivations (Bad Day With Kylo?)
-Rey is a Mary Sue who never needs anyone’s help.
-Rey learns Force Healing from books! Jedi Nerd. No wait, she downloaded Jedi Knowledge from the Kyle Skype server.
What do you want to see in the next Star Wars Trilogy.
Chuck:
-Go back to the Old Republic and establish the rules of the universe. A Fallen Jedi story.
Josh:
-No more Rebel vs. Empire story. More small scale story like Rogue One and don’t undo the rules. Character driven story.
-Thrawn Trilogy!
CC:
-Too much returning to the well. Move forward. Show the New Jedi Order. Show more personal stories and characters.
-Dave Feloni/Jon Favreau need to be in charge of the Star Wars franchise. They make you care about the characters. Token diversity is not enough to make you care.
-Diversity was in SW in the EU before the sequel trilogy
Scott:
-Micro-level stories.
-A Jedi Academy in the flavor of Clone Wars.
Hot Take:
-Solo was the movie we didn’t need.
-The Empire was Mace Windu’s fault!
[1:09:30] Closing remarks
Coffee and Concepts
Writer’s Journey
Storytelling
Become a Medium today! https://keystrokemedium.com/mediums/
Don't forget to Like and Subscribe and get involved with the mayhem and shenanigans in the live chat! http://www.youtube.com/c/keystrokemedium
If you have any thoughts or ideas for show topics or if you have authors you'd like to see on the show, let us know. Visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KeystrokeMedium
For all the latest and greatest KSM Gear, check out our store at: https://keystrokemedium.com/ksm-store/
Also, subscribe to Sci Fi Explorations for the best discounted and free books we come across through our contacts: http://www.scifiexplorations.com
Keystroke Medium Anthologies
Kingdoms of Iron and Stone - https://amzn.to/2GjbE6I
Horizons Beyond - https://amzn.to/2SrJ6uX
Farthest Reach – https://amzn.to/2UZINeo
The Writing Dream – and How to Make it to Happily Ever After – Keystroke Medium’s first non-fiction book. https://amzn.to/2UZINeo
If you enjoy this podcast, please leave us a review and rate the show on iTunes, Podbean, Stitcher, or wherever else you found us!
