Avatar the Last Airbender helped change my opinion on TLJ

As someone who loves both TLJ and A:TLA this is a lovely thing to read! I am pleased for you to not hate TLJ anymore, even if you still have the reservations you do.

 

This is probably my favorite thing in the movie. But it's not a TLJ "issue".

The concept was created early for TFA by JJ and Kasdan.

 

Jeong Jeong! Great episode, and a great character. Honestly, ALTA does everything right that the ST does wrong. You want a nice redemption story? We got you! You want fleshed out characters that go on beautiful arcs and end up right where you want them to be? We got you! You want a story where everyone feels valuable We got you! You want villains that are actually scary and threatening, even when they lose? Azula's got you!

While I never had a major problem with Luke's arc and learned to love it in time, Avengers: Endgame really helped put things into perspective, as Luke and Tony's arcs are pretty much the same. Luke is just given more time in the depressive state that the timeskip in Endgame skips over.

I don't think it was an afterthought, but it certainly wasn't a main thought either. My big problem with it isn't that it was pointless (because I don't think it was - it was negative to the impact of the Resistance, but far from pointless), but that RJ misunderstood Finn's arc and Finn as a character at that point. Finn doesn't need to be told that he doesn't need to join the Resistance - he inherently knows this in TFA, and when his first chance to jump ship comes, Finn takes it. Finn ultimately stays because Rey is in danger, and that's enough of a reason for him to be brave. In TLJ, Finn's arc should have been about understanding the Resistance on a personal level. It would have been a nice moment for Finn, learning that it's not just Poe, but the whole Resistance that sees people instead of nameless drones and numbers. Meanwhile, Poe could have gotten his "head out of the cockpit" and seen the larger works at play in the war. But I'm digressing back into well-traveled territory. The point is that we both agree Finn's arc didn't work, even if we disagree on why that is. (Fun fact, Finn has more cut scenes than anyone. Some of them are supposedly RJ's favorite scenes and homages in TLJ, but he cut them for time and pacing reasons.)

 

I will say Luke's portrayal in TLJ is among my least of problems with the film.

I think the idea of this former war hero becoming a wise monk, hidden away on an ancient island is one of the more realistic possibilities for Luke.

I also think the Force Dyad is a very intriguing idea.

The cinematography in TLJ is really beautiful, particularly the shots of Achc To are awe inspiring. I remember when I first saw TFA, and the ending scene of Rey arriving to see Luke I thought the planet was Tython.

On a side note, it's interesting how Achc To reminds me more of Legends Tython than Canon Tython does (based on what we've seen of it in Mandalorian Season 2).

Anyways My main gripe with TLJ is other story elements. I think TLJ as a continuation of the setups we get from TFA is very disappointing, but it's not a film I hate at all. Just a film I dislike. It has positive attributes to it, and I see Luke's story in TLJ as one of the more intriguing elements to TLJ.

You could argue that Luke force projecting himself across the galaxy, to stop the First Order on Crait, is even more of a Jedi thing to do than actually showing up there in person. He accomplished his mission of saving the Resistance without any violence. What's more philosophically powerful or more of a Jedi thing than that? It's something that Qui Gon Jinn would do.

I will say the only problem with Luke I have in TLJ, is the way he handled Kylo as his Padawan learner. I know that's a very contentious subject amongst fans even now, so I won't go into why I dislike it as it's all been said before by others. Other than that though, I really enjoy Luke in TLJ. He even looks super cool as a reclusive sage.