ST Are older/younger fans split in how they see Luke's arc in TLJ?

I have a theory. Decidedly unscientific, but I'm curious --

I'm wondering if the split re: satisfaction with Luke's arc breaks along the lines of the age of the viewer.

Basically, my idea is that if you're a little older (35+, maybe?), you might be more sympathetic to TLJ-Luke, whereas if you're younger, you're more likely to be pissed off by TLJ-Luke.

Or, not. Curious, though.

THIS IS ONLY ABOUT LUKE'S ARC SPECIFICALLY. IT'S NOT A POLL ABOUT OVERALL SATISFACTION WITH THE MOVIE.

 

I think it’s probably the opposite. More older fans would have grown up witn Luke and May have spent more of their lives focusing on his best traits and ignoring or missing his nuanced weaknesses and flirtations with the Dark and Yoda’s prophecy of him needing to stay aware of the cave (for the rest of his life) or risk slipping in moments to the Dark Side (as other men in the saga have).

 

I just turned 40 this week, and I chose the "meh" option because the ST in general isn't supposed to be about Luke. He had about a minute and a half worth's of screentime in TFA and at most maybe 20 or so lines of dialogue altogether in TLJ.

 

I'm 39 and I was pretty mixed about Luke's arc. There were a few parts that I really, really liked, especially his explanation about The Force and how it was vain of the Jedi to think it was exclusive to them. (ie. Lesson 1) My list of things I didn't like is longer, but it's just because I'm weary of the all-too-familiar "burned out old man that's seen too much and just wants to rot" trope.

 

Im 32. I hate lukes arch.

 

It might be. Or there might be no correlation at all.

Where I'm coming from is more personal experience -- if you're a little older you've maybe experienced more substantial failure, see things turn out not so great, basically go thru the whole mid-life crisis/dark night of the soul thing which is obviously what Luke is experiencing.

Younger fans aren't going to relate to that as well and see his choices as cowardly or out of step with how they see Luke's character.

Anyway, that's what I was thinking. But I could be way, way off.

Btw, I'm 52 and I loved it.

 

I’m 35 and I hate it in context of the saga.

*I was moved during the Kylo/Luke showdown itself though, as long as I didn’t think of it in the bigger picture. I think that’s a testament to the quality of the cinematography and direction of the end of this movie, because in concept I hate it.

 

24, and I loved every single minute.

 

I'm 19 and I thought it was dreadfully handled. Not only was Rian a pretentious edgelord about this choice but he hardly developed it at all and never really took any actual risks while doing it. I enjoyed Mark Hamill's performance but that's about it.

 

I'm 40 and thought it was an outstanding scene for such an iconic character to pass on into the force with. Would have loved to see a bit of footage of Luke in his prime, but I have no hang-ups or regrets in how Lucasfilm have portrayed his character, nor how they handled his death.

 

I’m older than 35 and loved it. It’s probably how I would have handled balancing Rey with him if I was writing it (it can’t be easy for her. It’s drama) and I appreciate the nuance and psychological layers there in Luke’s performance and Yoda’s time with him. I’ve known enough people in life who’ve had dark periods — many of them veterans — and I felt like Johnson explored heroism, pacifism, guilt, the stages of grief and the different perceptions of incidents in a way that I found compelling and thought-provoking. I value those experiences and life lessons and how Luke overcame his inner problems to act as a new hope when the Resistence and Leia were beginning to lose theirs. It’s hard for me to imagine a better send off and I’m glad I didn’t have to see him go full Dark Side (which is something Hamill wanted for all those pointing to edited video clips on his early thoughts on the script) or that I had to see him actually be killed by another or shed blood or suffer pain. I’m thankful to Rian for not going those places.

 

yeah, of course. better to see him pleasing a space walrus with his hand, in order to drink green milk

 

27. Hated it.

 

This is a really depressing poll - I'm older than the age cut off!

 

20. Wasn’t a fan of how they handled Luke.

 

I'm 46 (soon 47) and I hated it, especially the explanation and execution.

 

Do you think farmers please cows? He’s milking an animal the same way goats and cows are milked by humans on earth. Is it meant to make us and Rey feel uncomfortable? Sure. It’s his daily routine. He’s showing her that this is life out here.





That’s the kind of quirkiness around everyday life that has always made Star Wars seem strange and offbeat.

Did they really need to show us this in Empire?










It’s part of these character’s lives so yes.

 

This is where I'm at after three viewings so far. I'm 44.

 

I didn't even like that because Luke didn't show any love or regret with Kylo. Obi-Wan did with Anakin as he told him he loved him, he failed him and could not save him. He was in tears before Anakin began to burn up. It destroyed him to go duel Anakin even after all he had done. Meanwhile Luke vs Kylo felt like big brother playing with little brother. Then again the whole fight was an illusion so perhaps so was their discussion.

 

I'm 52 and I have some reservations after only one viewing, but overall I'm positive on the arc. It seems to me that the story continued with Luke being his own worst enemy, as he always has been. He made some mistakes, almost succumbed to his darker impulses at the worst possible moment, and got so discouraged he wanted to quit, all of which we've seen before. I think many of us wanted to believe he had grown past those weaknesses since RotJ, and maybe he did somewhat, but not completely. It's not the arc I expected. Maybe it's the arc we deserved.

 

I`m 41 and not a fan of it.

Stories about failures and flaws and such in and of itself don`t resonate that well with me. Of course I accept those as necessary stages in any story because otherwise you wouldn`t have a pay-off. But overall I do like stories as escapism and enjoy a bit "larger than life" feeling to it.

My problem here with Luke`s arc was two-fold: lacking in context for the pivotal moment of "the night". And the pay-off not being all that great IMO.

 

I personally don't really get this vested interest people seemed to have developed in Luke's power as a Jedi, and why they were so disappointed he wasn't a kryptonian under a yellow sun. I watched the classic trilogy, and Luke was scrappy, but he only came across as powerful when he was picking on normies. When you factor in all the movies that've been released, he comes across as middle-of-the-road. It's not his fault no bothered to read about the Legends version that was "Force walking Grandmaster Luke who's barely aged in thirty years and is a virtual God."

I'm thirty-six, and I liked that Luke was focused on the bigger picture and didn't want to repeat the mistakes of the past.

 

In his defense, the only non-normals he could pick on during OT times were Obi Wan, Yoda, Palpatine and Vader. And all of them would be way out of the league of a beginner. By ROTJ he could defeat Vader in lightsaber combat, that was actually a pretty good progression. Not defeating the Emperor? Well, Yoda himself noped out of that fight as well. Before Snoke became stupid, he pushed Rey around like a toy and she is pretty OP already.

Thing is, if Lucas had continued the Saga back in the 80s with the actors/characters still all in their prime, we would have gotten a lot of things people envisioned to be happening in those 30 years.

 

Fair enough.