10 Star Wars Controversies That Divide Fans
5. Luke's Regressive Story Arc
Reducing Luke Skywalker to a bitter old hermit - who drinks alien-seacow-milk, and has no interest in battling the Sith - was one hell of a thing to do to the former savour of the galaxy.
On the one hand, this subversion of expectation reminded audiences that even legendary heroes were susceptible to falling into despair. It also offered Rey a serious character development moment: through Rey's steadfast tenacity, and her willingness to resist the Dark Side and save Ben, Luke was encouraged to renew the fight against the Sith.
Well, that's sort of what the filmmakers were going for, and that's how many interpreted this plot point. But it didn't really play out like that. Luke essentially just sulked on his island refuge until the ever predictable force ghost of Yoda showed up to give him a pep talk.
Huge numbers of fans, including Mark Hamill, thought Luke's character was at best pitifully underused, and at worst had his legacy dragged through bantha sh*t.