For all of its financial success, Star Wars: The Last Jedi has become quite a controversial offering from Lucasfilm. As everyone knows, it saw the long-awaited return of Luke Skywalker, which came two years after his famously silent cameo in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. In the story, this occurs roughly three decades after his victory in Return of the Jedi.
Yet, there’s been a strong backlash against The Last Jedi. Certainly, many enthusiasts have even asked for the film to be struck from the canon. And this isn’t just because they dislike its use of humor, or its new characters.
Moreover, a large portion of the anger stems from Luke’s characterization as a disillusioned and downtrodden Jedi, which fans have decried as too different from his younger self. A #NotmyLuke movement even commenced on Twitter, which proclaimed that The Last Jedi has “senselessly” ruined a wholesome character for (particularly) young men to be inspired by.
But why is there so much contention over Luke Skywalker? And are these concerns even necessarily valid? Let’s investigate..