10 Movie Moments That Pissed Off Fanboys (That Were Actually Great)

4. Rey’s Scavenger Turned Mary Sue

Of all the criticisms launched at J. J. Abrams’ long-awaited, super hyped Star Wars: The Force Awakens one of the oddest was that Rey, the plucky, orphaned scavenger played by Daisy Ridley, is a Mary Sue. First claimed by screenwriter Max Landis, son of director John Landis, who branded the film a “fanfic movie with a Mary Sue as the main character” and Rey “the worst f*cking Star Wars main character ever”, the theory spread like wildfire across the internet.

But what, pray tell, is a Mary Sue? Coined in the early 1970s by Star Trek fan Paula Smith in her parody fan fiction A Trekkie’s Tale, the term refers to a character – usually female but male counterparts, like Gary Stu or Marty Stu, have since been added to fan lexicon – practically perfect in every way with remarkable abilities. And though Rey quite nicely fits into such a trope – she’s multilingual and well-liked, an accomplished fighter who can perform Jedi mind tricks and manages to fly the Millennium Falcon with no experience – her traits and advanced abilities aren’t exactly alien to the Star Wars universe.

In a fanciful film populated by fantastical people with beyond extraordinary talents, Mary Sue or Gary Stu accusations could be levelled at any number of characters, so in a sense Rey’s Mary Sue fits perfectly within the weird and wonderful world of Star Wars.