11 Reasons You're Wrong About Solo: A Star Wars Story
9. The Fan Service Is Actually Handled Well (For The Most Part)
Much has been made of Solo's most gratuitous, fan service-y moments, but they aren't nearly as groan-inducing as some would argue.
Name reveal aside (which is admittedly rather silly), there's a sense of inevitability to the film's reveals. That isn't to say that it's predictable, but to act as though the film somehow couldn't address Han and Chewie's first meeting, the Kessel Run, or Lando losing the Falcon to Han would be very unfair. All are seminal moments in Solo's life, and though they've been depicted in the comics countless times before, it's not the same as a fully-fledged cinematic interpretation.
Further still, those moments are all handled remarkably well: Chewie's first meeting with Han is equal parts hilarious, memorable and rousing; the Kessel Run delivers plenty of thrills and spills, and the moment where Han gets back at Lando in the last game of Sabacc encapsulates the pair's testing friendship perfectly.
Everyone might've known that they were already coming, but Solo succeeds in spite of that. To not only meet expectations, but to exceed them entirely, is a brilliant feat.