ST John Boyega (Finn) in the ST

A recurring worry I have is by the end of the trilogy Finn will end up being a Sokka like character, while Kylo will have this film spanning well written redemption arc and will be lauded as one of the best redemption stories with a lot of Zuko comparisons.

Like Sokka had great leadership skills but looking back at the show he pales in comparison to the work that was done with the others.

 

I don't think Rian Johnson is uninterested in Finn's story. For one he sat down with John Boyega and the two seemed to agree about how the character should be handled and both are very excited about the story we are about to see. Next we have the Phasma Comic and Book, which seemed designed to show us, not only how dangerous The Chrome warrior is, but give us insight into the kind of person she really is...insight that will likely bare fruit during Finn's arc in TLJ. Rian also crafted a Storyline for Finn that was inspired (his words) by 'To Catch a Thief' which has links to the Bond style of story (I mean it's set in an exotic local by the sea.). Then there's his infiltration mission, and OJT flight training. When you look at all this...IMHO...Finn is looking closer to characters Like James Bond, Batman etc.

I would also point out that Finn's story is going to resonate with people because he began by questioning what he was being told was true. For everyone who has ever questioned the truths they were told, or wondered if the person in charge actually knew what they were doing, Finn stands as an example....because he refused to just be a Cog.

 

arrgh, i just want that non traditional jedi. Everything from the path to that state. Rey could've been that, but nooooooo, another chosen one. I'm holding on to the dream.

 

To be fair, we are jumping the gun....the first description o the plot was 'Weird' so we may all just be pleasantly surprised by some plot swerves.

 

Hmmm Poe kicked upstairs, Rey future uncertain and Finn becoming the symbol of the New Alliance....

 

So there's a possibility Finn becomes a pilot. I mean, it's a cool concept, certainly not what I expected though. Hoping it doesn't trap him into only one role. Then again Finn's pretty well-rounded so I'm not too worried about him being stuck in one place so to speak. Luke's main job in the Rebellion early on was an x-wing pilot, and that didn't stop him from doing his own thing still. Most people in Star Wars know how to pilot so I guess this is a good thing that Finn picks up on this as well.

I am curious how he transitions into that position from what he does in TLJ though. He's truly all over the place in that episode. By the way, didn't anyone think it would be a tad spoilery to just show Finn in a pilot outfit? I mean...maybe I'm overthinking it but still, seems odd to me for some reason.

For some reason it didn't process in my mind the first time I watched the BTS reel. I saw it and thought, 'oh cool, John's trying on different star wars outfits for fun.' it wasn't till later that I actually thought, 'wait, did they just spoil something?' It just seems odd that they're so straightforward about it. Who knows?

Anyways, I feel like I rambled on for longer than I needed to about that. What do you guys think about it though?

 

I remember in the November 2015 lead up to TFA, Disney channel had a few clips of the film with kids hyping up the movie. (Most of clips were already shown in the trailers and tv spots)
One of those clips was Leia in her formal outfit and Rey in her resistance outfit looking at each other. (We know now that's when Leia tells her May the Force be with you.)

I thought to myself while looking at it: "Wow Disney channel has spoilers"

 

I'm with you it wouldn't have been my choice if I had a say in the matter, but a showdown between Kylo and Luke has been brewing; and they've set up Rey to be there as well (Anakin's saber calling to her in all). I'd like to see Finn and Kylo finish their business, but that would be top heavy given the split plots. It would also mean Finn and Rey are tied together not giving Finn enough time to develop on his own. It appears Rian has set Phasma up for Finn. Those were my reasons for seeing Rian given a ~2hr film not matching Finn up with Kylo again in this one.

 

My guess is that by the end of the film Finn will be some kind of Resistance Agent, something like you'd find in Kingsman, Jason Bourne, James Bond etc. These people tend to have a lot of talent in a variety of skills...but don't really do a lot of 'Undercover work. This might also play into his family backstory since John mentions it's 'Troubled' he might be throwing himself into missions to make up for his families past misdeeds. I mean...for all we know Finn is another illegitimate child of Brendol Hux (Man seems to have gotten around) making him and Armitage...brothers....oh that is a disturbing thought.

 

Isn't he already a Resistance agent in this film? Going on missions and infiltrating the enemy? I just hope his story doesn't become stagnant in IX where he's doing pretty much the same thing he did in TLJ.

 

There is a way we're it doesn't......

 

Not really, since he hasn't actually chosen to join the Resistance, he may just be doing them a favor or he might be going a little mercenary (I help you with this, and you give me enough credits to start a new life). That might even be WHY Maz sends him to DJ, she wants him to see what happens if he chooses the mercenary path, and she figures he won't like it.

Further more, since we don't know the kind of 'Mess" Rian Johnson is leaving behind in TLJ it's not really feasible to work out what the arcs are for anyone in Episode 9. I mean right now for all I know Kylo Ren ends up dead by the end of TLJ (Or crippled or in a coma) and Rey is captured by Snoke, whose First Order has been shattered due to the betrayal of Hux and Phasma, splintering into multiple factions. Which would Leave Luke, and Finn to try and save Rey before Snoke breaks her, while Poe is forced to pull the galaxy together into a functioning alliance.

 

I highly doubt he's just doing the resistance a favor. He's going out risking his life for them and this time his motivation isn't to save Rey. So obviously after his initial hesitation, he buys into their cause and goals. So yes, he's absolutely a Resistance agent in TLJ. If he's doing the same thing in IX as he did in TLJ, he'll be falling into the same narrative trap as Leia and Han Solo did in ROTJ. Lucas had no clue what else to do with their characters because all his focus was on Vader and Luke.

Though I WILL say that it would be pretty cool if Finn became an ace X-wing pilot filling in for Poe who has to step in for Leia and become leader of the Resistance. That would be pretty cool actually.

 

Correct but we don't know what his actual motivation is, perhaps Rose talks him into it, or perhaps Maz tells him that DJ's abilities as a Slicer would allow him to hack the FO and find out who Finn's family is and where they are right now. Then again perhaps he goes back when he learns Phasma's alive, knowing he's going to have to deal with her now...or have her dogging his heels for the rest of his days.

My point is we don't know what anyone's story arc in Episode 9 will be due to not knowing their status at the end of TLJ. For all we know Finn and Rey will spend Episode 9 working together for the majority of the film, hunting down Snoke...or perhaps eliminating 'World Devastators'. If you want it personal have it come out that these Devastators 'harvested' Finn's homeworld to build the First Order war machines. Right now the possibilities are endless, so to me there's no point in worrying about Ep 9 until I see how TLJ handles things...and in truth TLJ seems to be doing EXACTLY what I said it'd do with Finn from the get go. Allow him to grow, instead of being stagnant like Han was all throughout the original trilogy.

 

Yeah, one thing I appreciated so far about the news we've heard about Finn lately is, again, how Rian and John discussed things together. It's nice to hear that Rian seems open to John's opinion on how things should play out for his character this time around, and I'm glad that Rian was able to make John happy with it. If Rian sticks around for IX I really hope they're able to talk some more and give Finn a satisfying story again

 

The most surprising thing about Rian's quote is the sly way he threw shots at JJ and Kasdan's writing for the character in TFA. That was music to my ears.

 

Does anyone have a link to the interview

 

http://comicbook.com/starwars/2017/08/08/star-wars-the-last-jedi-finn-john-boyega-rian-johnson/

 

Saw a couple of toy commercials for Star Wars. One made a point of showing Poe at the controls of a Lego Bomber that was attacking a Resurgent class Star Destroyer. Another showed Snoke aboard a Resurgent class star destroyer, Rey and Chewie were shown attacking a First Order installation (which could mean that Finn and Rey do in fact end up in an elevator together at some point), and finally in a panning shot of Toys, Finn, Rose and one other character I couldn't ID were standing in front of an A-Wing.

The Poe one is interesting due to the line "It's now or never" being uttered as they did a bombing run on the Star Destroyer. The Finn standing in front of an A-Wing could just be for looks...or an indication that he ends up in one later in the film.

I am having a REAL hard time figuring out how all this fits together. I mean clearly Rey and Luke don't spend the entire movie on Ach-to, and it's possible Poe loses his modified X-Wing early on forcing him to fly a bomber. We know Finn ends up infiltrating a Star Destroyer and fighting on Crait...but I'm no longer sure when that happens. I mean does the battle of Crait happen before or after the infiltration mission...and what in the world is Rey doing onboard that ship? Does Finn sneak her in...why is she there...

Yeesh Rian...throw me a bone man.

 

Honestly I would love a scene where Finn and Rey fight in a full on skirmish together. It could happen if they end up fighting on Crait at the end of the movie, though right now it's hard to say whether Crait or the SSD scene comes first

 

Well, this calmed me down.

I just really like this character and want more background on him beyond the movies. I've already seen stories like Rey's and (what seems to be) predictably Kylo Ren's.
Finn is now on two sides and he can have a chance to choose.

 

I wonder if he'll hold on to the riot baton or the executioner axe after his supposed duel or if it'll be a one-fight use only.

 

Okay, let's say the SSD scene comes first and Crait is the final battle.

Rey's adventures on Ach-to up to and including her leaving after battling Kylo Ren occur at the same time the Resistance is in a fighting retreat from the FO, and Finn's adventures on Canto Bright. It's possible Finn spends a lot of time on Canto Bright (since I think he's tossed in prision at some point...or breaks someone out of one. So while Rey is fighting the KOR on Achto Finn is in a running street battle on Canto bright.

Next Finn and Rose return to Poe and the Resistance with DJ (or information provided by DJ). They meet up (That BTS shot of the three together) and begin planning a mission when Rey shows up. Now at this point Luke may have given himself up to the FO in an attempt to save Kylo Ren...but he knows Rey is free and is counting on her to come for him if this goes sideways. If nothing else his distraction allows the new heroes to board the FO ship and wreck havoc. This is where we get Tom hardy smacking Finn's butt, and the Princes smacking Rey's butt (Both hero's being treat to the same embarrassment) along with the "Snowflakes" vs "Grizzles" action scene. Finn fighting the executioners and Phasma along with Rey, Rose, Chewie and Poe. With Rey primarily looking for Luke. This also might be where DJ betrays the resistance if that happens.

All right I don't know if Luke survives this or not, but after this battle our heroes head to crait and dig in for the Resistances Last Stand...at that point I can't guess what will happen.

 

I don't think Finn will be choosing between Resistance and First Order. He left the latter for good. I think it's more likely his choice will be between going off on his own and sticking with the Resistance. In any event, I like what Rian has been saying about his character and John's presence.