10 Reasons Why Star Wars: The Last Jedi Is Better Than The Force Awakens

2. The Narrative Does Away With "Mystery Box" Storytelling

J.J. Abrams set up way more plot threads than he was ever going to answer in The Force Awakens. Sticking to his "mystery box" approach to storytelling, where questions are thrown into the mix to get people talking without having a clear answer in mind, the plot of the 2015 film was exciting to ponder, but it resulted in a confusing story that felt neither satisfying nor finished.

The Last Jedi is the complete antithesis to this approach, directly tying up the majority of questions posed in the previous film in a way that subverts the audience's expectations. Snoke's mysterious backstory? It doesn't matter, he's dead. Rey's parents? They're literal nobodies. Luke's reaction to receiving his long-lost saber? He just throws it away.

Unlike Abrams who likes to set things up and let fans debate their meaning for years, Johnson imbues the actual answers themselves with meaning, creating a plot that feels complete, rather than a story which constantly defers resolution.

The juxtaposition between the two styles is admittedly abrasive, and it's easy to see why fans are annoyed at the flippant answers to questions they were heavily invested in, but there's no denying that Johnson's approach makes for a more cohesive and satisfying story in the long run.