ST The Rathtars

I thought the Rathtars were really cool.

 

That scene had an "Alien" vibe. I liked it.

 

I hated the rathtars. The movie was good up until that scene.

 

Since nearly every episode in the Star Wars saga has some nefarious monster(s) in it, perhaps it was fitting to include the Rathtars. I say nearly since I do not recall any large aggressive creatures attacking our protagonists in ROTS (Boga doesn't count due to her being on our side). The use of monster fighting / evading episodes is an old Star Wars device and I enjoyed it from a purely entertainment perspective. However in retrospect, rather than following previous formulas here, I could have used at least part of the time allotted to a bit more backstory exposition, or screen time for a couple of the characters that ended up being more minor than I would have liked ... if they indeed needed to keep the movie to a certain length.

 

I thought it dragged a little, and of course it added little to the story. It had some Han being Han, so as an reintroduction I guess it served the purpose.

 

I wish they were animatronic, but I'm old school like that.

 

They were needed to introduce Han Solo, the smuggler, to the general audience.
Also, it added new lore (Kanjiklub and Guavian Death Gang) which I suppose will make further appearances (maybe they will go after Chewie).

 

Didn't basically all of Kanjiklub get eaten? And we only know for sure the leader of the GDG survived, at least one was eaten and two more were blown away by Chewie's blaster so what's left of them?

 

I enjoyed the scene - exciting and funny, all it needed to be. I also liked how they were kind of mini Sarlaccs (and it was cool to see that confirmed in the Visual Dictionary).

The Rathtars scene was my 6-year-old son's favourite scene by far, and while that certainly doesn't count for everything, it counts for a lot. One of the (many) things TFA does brilliantly is that every so often it brings back something for the younger kids (a BB-8 moment, some cool aliens, monsters etc.), which keeps their attention focused on the film, but those things never feel forced or out of place. Well, not to me at least - it's a shame to hear that a lot of people did feel the Rathtars scene was so jarring.

 

I liked it, It was different for a SW movie. Wanna know what I don't get? People bash on JJ and the movie for being too much like the OT, Yet when he did do something different people hate on it... So do people really want something different or are they just bashing to bash? What if JJ had done a ton more things like that and people hated it all? He stays true and close to the OT and people bash that... Its like there is no winning. Hell even GL tried new things and look where that got him (I will admit jar jar was a bit over the top) but either way, People scream be original and different, then whine and complain when it comes along....I just don't get people.

But again I liked that scene, we finally see Han in his *element* as you will.

 

Maybe this is where Benicio Del Toro will enter the story.... if he is a new type of bounty hunter.

 

Oooo good point.

 

We don't know that it was all of them. They could be huge gangs and that was just a smaller part. Those guys might not have even been the leaders of the whole gangs, they could just be leaders of that smaller group and the ones that Han tends to deal with. Who knows!

 

I am assuming it is different groups of people with the differing opinions isn't it? You make it sound like Star Wars fans have a uniform, yet constantly changing opinion. We don't operate as a hive mind lol.

 

I know that, and I don't mean just Star Wars fans or the movies, I mean that across the board for all movies and movie goers. Do I need to go through the posts of people making said comments about it, then show them complain about it? And basically call them out by name? You know exactly what I mean. But playing the *smart$$$* role is cool bro.

 

Just posted in another thread, the Rathtars are a great place to go to the bathroom. Wait until Han starts running...

 

Same here. I really enjoyed that scene. Was in the spirit of the Rancor scene in Jedi imo.

 

First two times I saw TFA, I didn't find the Rathars necessary. However, my 4th and final viewing, it was a much more interesting for some reason and now no problem with it. Good fun.

MJ

 

"What was the second time?"

Considering this was Han's last movie, I treasure all of his scenes in TFA.

 

Agreed. I also saw them as an amalgam of the OT's monsters. The appetite of a Sarlacc, the mouth of a mynock, the tentacles of a dianoga, the essence of a space slug, and the voice of a rancor (one of them even shared a certain rancor's propensity for being under the wrong door at the wrong time). And online scene, where the rathtar is rolling towards Han, it's a deliberate homage to the Indiana Jones.

While I think Finn's capture by the rathtar was sort of a step too far, this scene was a fun ending to a hilarious exchange between Han and the gangs.

 

I felt the scene could have been executed better, but it fit the plot.

Han and Chewie were in a bind with the two gangster squads, and the Rathars served as a means to get them out of the bind.

Furthermore, if not for that scene, they would not have had to escape so hastily and would never have ended up bonding with Rey and Finn and wanting to help them in their quest. So in essence, the Rathar scene is what catapulted the story to its next chapter.

We got to see Han smuggling, we got to see the ramifications of him stiffing someone (gangs showing up), we got to see him get out of the bind, and we got to see the Falcon go to light speed. None of this happens without the Rathars.

 

And oh yeah, we didn't get to see Han "shoot first," but we did get to see him "throw someone to their death into the Rathars mouth" first.

 

I love that he stops, punches that guy, and then tosses him into the rathrar's maw. A nice Han/ Indy moment.

 

Agreed. It is a part of what makes Star Wars unique. Not everything is all new and shiny looking. It isn't supposed to be; it is unrealistic. Whether we are in the past, the future, in our galaxy or a galaxy elsewhere, mechanical parts will age and get dirty and gritty.

 

How do you know they weren't?