10 Simple Fixes That Would Have Made Star Wars: The Force Awakens Perfect

10. Make Lor San Tekka Someone We Know Or Less Mysterious

The Force Awakens opens very strongly with a sequence that introduces four of our key characters and establishes the basic story motivations. But then you have all the confusion over who the fluff Lor San Tekka is.

Yes, I know there’s a detailed backstory in the extra material that explains it, but that’s not in the movie and makes the whole thing more confusing.

There’s two options here. The first is to make him someone we already know, which he’s almost treated like. That’d also make his abrupt death sting a bit more. Who is a bit hard to decide on - you can’t use a prequel character because fans would have lynched JJ, but perhaps he’s a Rebel, hence the royalty line: Dodonna, Madine, that guy whose official title is Star Wars Commander?

Those are all a bit tricky though, so why not just have him be less mysterious. Make his dialogue less allusion-heavy and explain succinctly how he fits into the bigger picture. All the winking talking about Leia and balance in the Force adds little to the story and is really only there to get you to pick up the books.