Post by Feologild Oakes on Oct 23, 2022 23:31:56 GMT
Every Rey Parentage Theory Sucked, Not Just Being A Palpatine
Rey being Palpatine's granddaughter was a terrible solution to a big Star Wars mystery, but the alternatives wouldn't have made her story any better.
The reveal that Rey (Daisy Ridley) is the granddaughter of Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) was just one of many terrible options for her Star Wars parentage. The mystery behind Rey's biological parents was the core mystery that was at the heart of the Star Wars sequel trilogy. After a few red herrings, it was finally revealed in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker that her unnamed parents left Rey on Jakku to hide the child from her grandfather's influence.
It was a reveal that felt like an abrupt course correction from Rian Johnson's unfairly lambasted Star Wars: The Last Jedi that brought the trilogy back in line with the franchise's obsession with lineage and legacy. Along with the much-parodied "Somehow, Palpatine returned" line, the reveal and Palpatine's surprise return were hated by fans. Looking at the alternative theories put forward by fans, however, reveals that each theory was deeply flawed and only furthered the issues with the final chapters of the Skywalker saga
Why Rey Being A Palpatine Didn't Work
Fundamentally, Rey being revealed as a descendant of Emperor Palpatine didn't work because it was bad storytelling. Rey's parentage was a mystery, and all good mystery stories should introduce the suspects before providing the solution. Right up until The Rise of Skywalker, the Star Wars franchise had never shown Palpatine to be married or even be in a romantic relationship. There were stories in the Star Wars extended universe that implied he may have fathered children, but there was never evidence of this on-screen.
The novelization tries to square this plot hole by explaining that Rey is the daughter of a failed Palpatine clone, however, this only makes matters worse. A good solution to a mystery should make narrative sense, and nothing in the preceding films in the sequel trilogy set up this reveal. It's part of a much larger issue with the last three chapters of the Skywalker Saga, that they feel disjointed and lack a strong overarching narrative
Why Rey Couldn't Have Been A Solo
Initially, the strongest theory for Rey's parentage was that she was the daughter of Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher). However, when it was revealed that Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) was actually the son of Han and Leia, this made things more complicated. Luke (Mark Hamill) and Leia were unaware they were brother and sister for the majority of the original Star Wars trilogy, which led to some awkward moments and misunderstandings.
While the idea of flipping Luke and Leia's story so that Rey is the good twin and Kylo Ren is the evil one is compelling enough, but it doesn't push the Star Wars franchise in a particularly new or exciting direction. What's more, there's such obvious chemistry between Rey and Ren that the sexual tension between the two characters would make such a reveal far more awkward for them than it was for Luke and Leia. The reveal of Rey as a Palpatine flips the ending of Star Wars differently, however, as a Skywalker descendant, Kylo Ren, once again sacrifices themselves to defeat the Emperor. Only this time it's to protect Rey, a Palpatine who will eventually take on the Skywalker name, rather than protect her direct descendant.
Rey Being A Skywalker Would've Created Big Problems
Rey being the daughter of Luke Skywalker would have created similar problems to the Palpatine reveal, namely that it would come from nowhere. Unlike Han and Leia, Luke doesn't end the original Star Wars trilogy paired up romantically. It would therefore have required a lot of exposition to explain how Luke fathered a daughter and ultimately hid her on Jakku. There's already a lot of continuity and exposition to get through in The Last Jedi when Luke explains his tragic reasons for turning his back on the Force, so to throw in a mystery child would have weighed his backstory down even further. Given that the Jedi aren't permitted to marry, have children, or form emotional attachments it would have made Luke's Last Jedi story far more complicated.
It would also further expose a glaring flaw in the Star Wars franchise, that only one family can save the universe from the evils of the Empire. Rey being the daughter of a Sith Lord who follows the light side is ultimately more interesting than her being the daughter of a legendary Jedi. Her lack of connection to Luke also enhances his character arc. If Rey was his daughter, it would lessen his conflict to re-establish his connection with the Force, doing it for his daughter would be an obligation, doing it for a relative stranger is what heroes do. Rey is a Force-sensitive orphan, abandoned on a desert planet, she reminds him of the idealistic youth he used to be, and she reminds him of the need for the Jedi. It's a much more emotionally satisfying arc for Luke Skywalker than revealing a daughter to whom he has a duty of care.
Rey Being A Kenobi Was Considered (But It's Good They Avoided It)
Back in 2020, Daisy Ridley revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live that there were initial plans for Rey to be a descendant of Obi-Wan Kenobi. If it had gone ahead, she would likely have been Obi-Wan's granddaughter, but this would have caused similar problems as with both Luke and Palpatine. Given how concerned Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) is about the relationship between Anakin (Hayden Christensen) and Padme (Natalie Portman), it would be incredibly hypocritical if he too had been involved romantically with someone and had fathered a child. It's possible that Kenobi could have fathered a child while in hiding from the Empire, however, the dates don't quite match up.
There are 19 years between the end of the prequel trilogy and the original trilogy, 19 years in which Kenobi keeps a watchful eye on Luke, rescues Leia, and embarks on his walk through the desert with Qui-Gon Jinn's Force ghost. Add to this his hermit lifestyle, and it doesn't leave much time or opportunity for him to father a child who would later become one of Rey's parents. While the Obi-Wan timeline has been more fully realized in the years after The Rise of Skywalker, it's likely that the possibility of a Ewan McGregor-led spinoff was what led Kathleen Kennedy to declare that Obi-Wan was off the table as far as Rey's lineage was concerned.
Why Rey Being A Nobody Was The Best Choice
The best explanation of Rey's parentage was the one provided by Kylo Ren in The Last Jedi, that she was the daughter of nobody special. It fit perfectly with Rian Johnson's noble effort to return Star Wars back to its roots. The element of Johnson's film that was so controversial for fans was how it broke with Star Wars' Jedi obsession, a move that was seen as disrespectful to the lore. However, having Rey as a force-sensitive orphan would have neatly brought the franchise right back to its roots in A New Hope. Right up until the reveal of Darth Vader's true identity in The Empire Strikes Back, Luke Skywalker's actions are motivated by how he's been inspired by both the legends of the Jedi, and the important work of the Rebel Alliance. His bloodline was never the aspect of his character that truly defined him, and it should have been the same for Rey.
Luke Skywalker embarked on his Jedi training, not because his father was a legendary Jedi, but because he was sensitive to the Force. When the prequel trilogy introduced the idea of Midi-chlorians, it turned the Jedi's Force powers into a privilege bestowed to a select few due to their bloodlines. Rey being a nobody with Force powers would have been the perfect way to relaunch the franchise, breaking with the cumbersome Skywalker mythology. As an orphan on a desert world who becomes a great Jedi and helps to bring down a fascist regime, Rey was already the perfect update of Luke Skywalker without having to also have a familial connection to a legacy character. With her Palpatine heritage, she will always be connected to the Skywalker Saga which could have stultifying consequences for the Star Wars franchise going forward.
screenrant.com/star-wars-rey-parents-theories-bad/
I agree that the best choice would have been that Rey was a nobody. Also that they had given her a better name than Rey,
Rey being Palpatine's granddaughter was a terrible solution to a big Star Wars mystery, but the alternatives wouldn't have made her story any better.
The reveal that Rey (Daisy Ridley) is the granddaughter of Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) was just one of many terrible options for her Star Wars parentage. The mystery behind Rey's biological parents was the core mystery that was at the heart of the Star Wars sequel trilogy. After a few red herrings, it was finally revealed in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker that her unnamed parents left Rey on Jakku to hide the child from her grandfather's influence.
It was a reveal that felt like an abrupt course correction from Rian Johnson's unfairly lambasted Star Wars: The Last Jedi that brought the trilogy back in line with the franchise's obsession with lineage and legacy. Along with the much-parodied "Somehow, Palpatine returned" line, the reveal and Palpatine's surprise return were hated by fans. Looking at the alternative theories put forward by fans, however, reveals that each theory was deeply flawed and only furthered the issues with the final chapters of the Skywalker saga
Why Rey Being A Palpatine Didn't Work
Fundamentally, Rey being revealed as a descendant of Emperor Palpatine didn't work because it was bad storytelling. Rey's parentage was a mystery, and all good mystery stories should introduce the suspects before providing the solution. Right up until The Rise of Skywalker, the Star Wars franchise had never shown Palpatine to be married or even be in a romantic relationship. There were stories in the Star Wars extended universe that implied he may have fathered children, but there was never evidence of this on-screen.
The novelization tries to square this plot hole by explaining that Rey is the daughter of a failed Palpatine clone, however, this only makes matters worse. A good solution to a mystery should make narrative sense, and nothing in the preceding films in the sequel trilogy set up this reveal. It's part of a much larger issue with the last three chapters of the Skywalker Saga, that they feel disjointed and lack a strong overarching narrative
Why Rey Couldn't Have Been A Solo
Initially, the strongest theory for Rey's parentage was that she was the daughter of Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher). However, when it was revealed that Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) was actually the son of Han and Leia, this made things more complicated. Luke (Mark Hamill) and Leia were unaware they were brother and sister for the majority of the original Star Wars trilogy, which led to some awkward moments and misunderstandings.
While the idea of flipping Luke and Leia's story so that Rey is the good twin and Kylo Ren is the evil one is compelling enough, but it doesn't push the Star Wars franchise in a particularly new or exciting direction. What's more, there's such obvious chemistry between Rey and Ren that the sexual tension between the two characters would make such a reveal far more awkward for them than it was for Luke and Leia. The reveal of Rey as a Palpatine flips the ending of Star Wars differently, however, as a Skywalker descendant, Kylo Ren, once again sacrifices themselves to defeat the Emperor. Only this time it's to protect Rey, a Palpatine who will eventually take on the Skywalker name, rather than protect her direct descendant.
Rey Being A Skywalker Would've Created Big Problems
Rey being the daughter of Luke Skywalker would have created similar problems to the Palpatine reveal, namely that it would come from nowhere. Unlike Han and Leia, Luke doesn't end the original Star Wars trilogy paired up romantically. It would therefore have required a lot of exposition to explain how Luke fathered a daughter and ultimately hid her on Jakku. There's already a lot of continuity and exposition to get through in The Last Jedi when Luke explains his tragic reasons for turning his back on the Force, so to throw in a mystery child would have weighed his backstory down even further. Given that the Jedi aren't permitted to marry, have children, or form emotional attachments it would have made Luke's Last Jedi story far more complicated.
It would also further expose a glaring flaw in the Star Wars franchise, that only one family can save the universe from the evils of the Empire. Rey being the daughter of a Sith Lord who follows the light side is ultimately more interesting than her being the daughter of a legendary Jedi. Her lack of connection to Luke also enhances his character arc. If Rey was his daughter, it would lessen his conflict to re-establish his connection with the Force, doing it for his daughter would be an obligation, doing it for a relative stranger is what heroes do. Rey is a Force-sensitive orphan, abandoned on a desert planet, she reminds him of the idealistic youth he used to be, and she reminds him of the need for the Jedi. It's a much more emotionally satisfying arc for Luke Skywalker than revealing a daughter to whom he has a duty of care.
Rey Being A Kenobi Was Considered (But It's Good They Avoided It)
Back in 2020, Daisy Ridley revealed on Jimmy Kimmel Live that there were initial plans for Rey to be a descendant of Obi-Wan Kenobi. If it had gone ahead, she would likely have been Obi-Wan's granddaughter, but this would have caused similar problems as with both Luke and Palpatine. Given how concerned Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) is about the relationship between Anakin (Hayden Christensen) and Padme (Natalie Portman), it would be incredibly hypocritical if he too had been involved romantically with someone and had fathered a child. It's possible that Kenobi could have fathered a child while in hiding from the Empire, however, the dates don't quite match up.
There are 19 years between the end of the prequel trilogy and the original trilogy, 19 years in which Kenobi keeps a watchful eye on Luke, rescues Leia, and embarks on his walk through the desert with Qui-Gon Jinn's Force ghost. Add to this his hermit lifestyle, and it doesn't leave much time or opportunity for him to father a child who would later become one of Rey's parents. While the Obi-Wan timeline has been more fully realized in the years after The Rise of Skywalker, it's likely that the possibility of a Ewan McGregor-led spinoff was what led Kathleen Kennedy to declare that Obi-Wan was off the table as far as Rey's lineage was concerned.
Why Rey Being A Nobody Was The Best Choice
The best explanation of Rey's parentage was the one provided by Kylo Ren in The Last Jedi, that she was the daughter of nobody special. It fit perfectly with Rian Johnson's noble effort to return Star Wars back to its roots. The element of Johnson's film that was so controversial for fans was how it broke with Star Wars' Jedi obsession, a move that was seen as disrespectful to the lore. However, having Rey as a force-sensitive orphan would have neatly brought the franchise right back to its roots in A New Hope. Right up until the reveal of Darth Vader's true identity in The Empire Strikes Back, Luke Skywalker's actions are motivated by how he's been inspired by both the legends of the Jedi, and the important work of the Rebel Alliance. His bloodline was never the aspect of his character that truly defined him, and it should have been the same for Rey.
Luke Skywalker embarked on his Jedi training, not because his father was a legendary Jedi, but because he was sensitive to the Force. When the prequel trilogy introduced the idea of Midi-chlorians, it turned the Jedi's Force powers into a privilege bestowed to a select few due to their bloodlines. Rey being a nobody with Force powers would have been the perfect way to relaunch the franchise, breaking with the cumbersome Skywalker mythology. As an orphan on a desert world who becomes a great Jedi and helps to bring down a fascist regime, Rey was already the perfect update of Luke Skywalker without having to also have a familial connection to a legacy character. With her Palpatine heritage, she will always be connected to the Skywalker Saga which could have stultifying consequences for the Star Wars franchise going forward.
screenrant.com/star-wars-rey-parents-theories-bad/
I agree that the best choice would have been that Rey was a nobody. Also that they had given her a better name than Rey,
