8 Things You Learn Watching Star Wars: The Force Awakens
2. It's The Perfect Blend of Old-Saga/New-Saga Mythos
In blending the old and new mythology of the Star Wars saga, director J.J. Abrams and co. get it spot on, steeping the film in enough nostalgia and requisite franchise iconography to satisfy the old fans, but also building great new characters and worlds and stories to begin the process of creating a whole new generation of Star Wars lovers, too - something the prequels largely failed to do. Its not hyperbole to suggest that The Force Awakens could do now what A New Hope did back in 1977. The best example of this amalgamation of the new and the old is represented by Han Solo, Harrison Fords beloved original-trilogy hero, here reintroduced for the first time since Return of the Jedi. Solos appearance is a masterstroke: on the one hand you have perhaps the most iconic hero of the Star Wars saga, here back in his original guise as the loveable-rogue (if youll excuse the cliché)/smuggler of A New Hope, before he went on to become a war hero. On the other hand you have a wise old sage, a man who can concede that its true, all of it when telling our new heroes about The Force and Luke. This presents Solo as both an embodiment of the old saga and a torch-passer for the new one, and by making the sensible decision to kill him off (in a great, great scene), Abrams ensures that the old-guard-hero sticks around long enough to acknowledge the past, but not too long that it takes away from our new band of heroes and the path(s) they will embark on.
