ST John Boyega (Finn) in Episode VII [v 2.0 Read Opening Post BEFORE Posting]

How does he know the same troopers who executed the villagers on Jakku were the same troopers who were on Takodana? He doesn't have X-Ray vision.

He had no reaction whatsoever throughout the movie, which basically tells the audience "even though they were kidnapped from their families as babies and forced to serve the FO, they're still cannon fodder".

 

He knows better than us, that's for sure. And he is gradually realising there's a just cause to fight for. Namely, his friends.

I don't believe the dialectics that you describe are what we are supposed to perceive in relation to the characters of the troopers themselves. But they are the dialectics that govern all wars, I'm afraid. And it is war.

 

Maybe for you, because most people are so used to picturing the stormtroopers as nothing more than cannon fodder who are just present so the good guys have something to shoot. You're not used to seeing stormtroopers as humanized with an actual backstory with family and children.

If Lucasfilm are going to introduce the idea that they were kidnapped from their families as babies and forced to be slaves to the FO, they need to dive deeper and explore that story further, hopefully in VIII.

 

Well no, they don't "need" to; you just want them too. Which is valid, of course. But don't confuse want for need.

 

Well, there has to be a reason why they chose to go that story direction, or else what's the point? Why not just make the stormtroopers recruits who joined the FO willingly?

 

What I meant was being drafted into the empire, instead of joining willingly.

The main point is that there has to be a specific story reason that they were kidnapped from their families. I'm hoping that it's because they're setting up a stormtrooper revolt. Mainly because it gives us something new and fresh when IX comes around.

 

There doesn't have to be a story reason, just a believable motivation for the first order to do so

 

The story reason is to do with Finn's character specifically. He didn't just sign up and then walk out later, he was indoctrinated as a child but retains the humanity and willpower to break free - which we don't see any of the others do. The whole point of Stormtroopers is that they ARE all just generically identical faceless mooks (in the movies at least, less so in the EU), so for one of them to break out of that is significant.

 

I think it's more than that. He had his crisis of conscience on Jakku, as the Force was "Awakening." I do not think what happens to Finn is random chance.

 

Maybe so, but whatever happened is more significant for happening to someone whose been brainwashed, indoctrinated and propagandised for his whole life instead of simply signing up of his own free will. If he was a volunteer who changed his mind that would have different implications entirely.

 

after Bhodi's arc in Rogue One, i really wish JJ had stuck with the defector route he started in TFA. Bhodi IMO was Finn done the right way. and the pay off in RO was there. i just didnt really feel like Finn was a defected Stormtrooper in TFA. i really hope Rian Johnson worked hardest on Finn as he deserves better. Boyega is a damn good actor and i think he coulda played out that arc really well. hope Rian really delves deeper into the characterization.

 

I think the worst part about Finn in TFA is how they made it so that he doesn't have any blood on his hands during his time with the First Order. In my opinion, he shouldn't have just defected but also possessed a guilty conscience for the killings he would have been ordered to commit. This whole "too good to kill the innocent" characterization they have for him is a complete waste of potential.

 

totally agree

 

https://goo.gl/images/5EMasV

Can't embed Grrrr!!!

 

Me too. I still don't know what his motivation is coming out of Episode 7. Why does he go from trying to help Slip on Jakku to actively fighting against the First Order in the span of one or two days? Because outside of executing innocent villagers what would makes the Resistance any better than the First Order, what makes their fight any more noble?
Anyway I hope they did some heavy lifting on not only Finn's characterization, but on the Resistance arc as a whole. Right now it looks like pretty much no one on this board or even on the internet for that matter gives a crap about Finn or the Resistance story-line. This is one of the main reasons why I still want a force-sensitive Finn.

 

My advice. Go into Episode VIII with no expectations Finn is force sensitive. That way you're not disappointed if he isnt, but happily suprised if he is.

 

The problem is I can't ignore the hints in Episode 7 or the fact that if they're not hints would then make his story is so far look like one big ruse in service of another character's development. It's one of those "Once you see it you can't unsee it" things.

 

i also want a Force Sensitive Finn. but i do believe he can become a great character without being Force sensitive. but i think Kylo stopped dead in his tracks and stared at him for a reason. Something awakened in Finn and he will be important going forward. hope Rian goes hard on Finn. Rey doesnt interest me much as ive seen that story arc through Luke in the OT. been there done that. Im here for Finn, then Poe (who wasnt a real character in 7 but sounds like he will be in 8) and then the OT. Rey is fun but i dont really care about her yet. maybe Rian can give her some compelling characteristics and ill feel differently.

 

Hint: Hosnian.

 

Point taken. But to clarify that last part specifically, I was making the point that both sides are pushing agendas that they feel are right and are both responsible for innocent people dying, maybe in different ways and of different magnitudes but its the same result. That's just the nature of war, even in the real world.
But no need to be so condescending and accusatory. If that last sentence is serious, I would appreciate it if you wouldn't say stuff like that about me because it's very disrespectful.

 

I think it’s sad that Finn doesn’t seem to be a very well-liked character. Out of all the characters in the Force Awakens, Finn is my favorite.

His journey starts where his is scared, vulnerable, and flighty. Even being raised by the First Order, it is obvious that Finn feels like he never belonged there. He can’t seem to reconcile himself with their vicious tactics. When he starts out, he really has no drive except for to get away from the First Order, a brutal group that terrifies him.

There’s also the fact that even though Finn was raised by an organization that likely didn’t teach him to be compassionate or friendly, Finn is pretty compassionate. When the TIE fighter crashes on Jakku, he could have immediately run away from the crash site and tried to get away, but he ran towards the danger in attempt to find someone he only just met. Again we see this when he sees Rey in danger, he doesn’t hesitate to help, even though he is exhausted after a grueling trek through the desert.

At the end of the movie, Finn moves from someone who has mostly been forwarding his own safety and running away from his fears to someone who cares enough about Rey to put his own safety at a large risk and face his biggest fear – the First Order. He even stands up to Kylo himself when Rey was in danger. I especially love that part when Kylo says that Luke’s/Anakin’s lightsaber belongs to him, and then Finn’s defiant and bold response, “Come and get it.” I really like Finn’s confidence there, which he’s never had before in the movie until that point. Finn was a very unconfident person to begin with, preferring to run away from his problems rather than face them. Defending Rey seems to inspire courage and nobility in Finn, which I think is pretty cool. It really brings into mind that line, “I had nothing left to fight for.” Well, he does find something to fight for: Rey.

I think that’s a pretty powerful character arc.

Anyway, I just wish Finn wasn’t so underrated, and it’s disappointing that he’s not more popular. He’s just such an awesome character.