Dear ALL- Star Wars is a story for children. That's it. Sorry.

Rating: 8/10 (20 December 2017)

It really is. And that's ok. There's nothing wrong with stories for children. It just gets a bit awkward when you're an adult and expect to relive the same magical experience you had when you were twelve. It's not gonna happen. And because you're an adult you then start to rationalize your disappointment- oh, the character development is lacking, oh the plot holes, oh the pacing, there was no 'spark' or 'emotion' or 'spirit' or whatever euphemism you find for the bright & fuzzy memory of your lost childhood. None of those things are the problem. The problem is that you're 35 watching a movie aimed for the emotional and intellectual expectations of a 12 year old audience. OF COURSE it will have cheesy lines and plot holes and deus ex machina and one-dimensional characters. If you had first seen a New Hope at 35 you would have said the same thing about it too.
Much bigger fans than I am will dissect and analyse the story to death, so I will limit myself to what is really my only point: this idea that every new episode since like the Phantom Menace is some sort of a betrayal of the 'real' Star Wars should be called out already for the nostalgic man-child syndrome that it is. It's a kid's movie people, we are all watching a kid's movie. Some episodes are better, others are weaker, fair enough. But it's still a kid's movie. Enjoy the battle scenes, laugh at the silly jokes, eat popcorn and be happy for your 10 year old nephew who thinks this is the most awesome thing ever. But for the sake of your dignity please stop holding these movies up to the impossible standard of turning you back into a child.