Saga of Balance and How it Ended

Rating: 8/10 (21 December 2019)

If Episode I II III consist a nostalgic European story of love and lust, and Episode IV V VI presents a classic American tale of courage and redemption, then Episode VII VIII and IX is a saga of balance, the saga of this generation, a saga that this century deserves.
Many Criticize that Rian Johnson brought a lot of new elements in the Last Jedi and J.J. ignored them and tried desperately to "correct" them, ending up in a hot mess. I disagree. In my opinion, the message of this saga is loud and clear: it is a saga about balance. You can't have balance without diversity- J.J. opened up the story with much tranquility, Rian brought many elements in and thus intensified and broadened the diversity, then J.J. wrapped up the story with a clear and powerful note of balance. Perfect.
Did the Rise of Skywalker have the perfect storytelling? No- I agree that some things could be done more smoothly in this 2.5-hour ride. Was the Rise of Skywalker a satisfying ending of the saga? Yes. If you simply look at the protagonist Rey, who I vehemently adore, she is the very embodiment of balance. At the first scene that the character appeared in the galaxy, with that flowy figure of her with her staff and that translucent character music, I couldn't help but be reminded of another hero in the East, Son Goku. There you have it- the balance of western and eastern cultures and spirits in a single character, Rey. To put it in a shallow way, she is the combination of Western love and Eastern warriorhood.
This balance becomes so much more over time, especially in the Rise of Skywalker. Rey has a powerful bloodline but also a humble family. She has hatred but also an equal amount of love. She is a Sith but also a Jedi. She harms but heals. She is Rey but also Ben (who gave his life).She is a Papaltine but also a Skywalker. Anakin and Luke are fantastic and beloved characters but neither of them was balanced- Anakin had too much to hate and Luke was just a tad too courageous (hot-headed?). However, Rey is perfectly balanced and that's so powerful and impactful at the same time.
There are other elements beside Rey that shows the balance- the balance of society, the balance of race (a bit more), the balance of sexuality etc. these values, after all, are in some way, representative of what our generation and our century are about.
So they finally showed us what the force is- Rey Skywalker is the force. She is the balance. She is the imperfect satisfaction that we love.