If there was a single criticism of the original trilogy which is likely to get universal agreement on it's the inclusion of cute, furry characters designed to appeal to the little ones in the audience - few would argue that the Ewoks weren't a terribly misjudged inclusion to the series. Return Of The Jedi is widely considered to be the most flawed of the original trilogy and most people put this down to the presence of the Ewoks. Having dwarfish furry animals with silly voices taking on - and defeating - soldiers of the mighty Empire cheapened the whole deal, not to mention that it felt tonally at odds with everything that had come before. Widespread criticism of the Ewoks certainly didn't stop George Lucas from repeating the same mistake with Jar Jar Binks in the prequels (a character he stubbornly included in all three despite virtually everyone hating him in The Phantom Menace) but all indications suggest that J J Abrams and his collaborators have far better judgement. Only time will tell. Do you agree with the points on this list? Is there anything else you think that Episode VII can do better than the original trilogy? Why not let us know in the comments below?
