10 Reasons Star Wars Sequels Are Still Superior To The Prequels

This one could be contentious, but as a character, Rey is better than she's often given credit for. In terms of the overall trilogy her arc did do a bit of a flip-flop in Rise of Skywalker but in each of the three films she was an engaging, active protagonist and most of the emotional beats and resolutions regarding her character worked really well.

In particular, her transformation from friendless scavenger to hero in Force Awakens was really well done, even if she did learn the Force a bit too quickly. Another crucial thing is that Rey is, for the most part, very likeable and Daisy Ridley's performance was largely strong too.

But then, on the other hand, you've got Anakin Skywalker. As trilogy leads go, he's a bit of a train-wreck. Where Rey is sympathetic and kind-hearted Anakin is a whiny, obnoxious brat who never stops complaining, and whatever issues Rey's story might've had that's still nothing compared to those with Anakin's.

His romance was Padme (Natalie Portman) is one of the worst screen romances of the last 20 years and his fall to the Dark Side in Revenge of the Sith didn't really make sense due to how rushed it was.

Anakin could easily have been great. He's an excellent character in The Clone Wars animated series, for example. Sadly, thanks to the terrible performances of both actors playing Anakin as well as the hit-or-miss storytelling throughout the Prequels, he didn't work that well in the films themselves.