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The Populist idiots who shaped the New republic apparently thought that not being a tyrannical monarchy that enslaved some species, wiped out others, and blew up planets necessitated having a shitty, undersized military incapable of defending its territory, an incredibly underpowered state in general, and totally ignoring threats growing in the shadows. If the New Republic hadn’t been riddled with criminal incompetence, the First Order never could have come as far as it did.

They had some help from a faction of Centrists who were actually in league with the FO…

lord-armitage:

womanwithaknife:

fromacomrade:

me

So I actually wrote my dissertation about this and it’s not just that the Department of Defence (there’s an office in the Pentagon dedicated to liaising with Hollywood productions), but they effectively have a strangle-hold on how Hollywood portrays the US military since the DoD give permission for producers to use military hardware, without that permission the cost of filming sharply goes up and films end up extremely over-budget. So the producers can either drop any critical elements at the DoD’s discretion, or continue with a film which will barely be released at all and will never make its budget back. 

Any American film which involves the military, know that the DoD probably signed off on it, or were directly involved with. Films like American Sniper and Zero Dark Thirty had a heavy government influence, the latter to falsely justify the methods the CIA used in finding and killing Osama bin Laden, which included torture.  

It’s why the military figures are always the heros and there will never be a Hollywood film which is critical of the US military because of this. Just remember, whenever you see the US military in a Hollywood movie, it’s exactly what the Department of Defence want you to see. It’s not being hyperbolic when these types of films are called propaganda. 

Do you think the ST would have been better with The Yuuzhan Vong or a new Sith Empire being the core enemies while the remnants of the Empire/First Order were dealt with in the 30 year time skip? Sometimes it just feels like the FO were only created for the mere reason of Disney Lucasfilm not wanting to lose the aesthetic. I thought since Finn was a Stormtrooper with regrets that Lucasfilm would try to display a moral grey area with the FO, but so far they’re just the same in the movies.

It might have been a more original and broader exploration of the universe, yeah. OTOH, in addition to commercial/nostalgia considerations, I think having a wannabe Empire as the main antagonist is timely and valuable. We’re living in an age of déjà vu, after all, and SW has always reflected the anxieties of the age. That was JJ’s explicitly stated authorial intent, to tell a story about neo-Nazis who look back at Nazis and see not horror and failure but greatness to emulate.

The Republic’s problems have come from its weakness, not its strength. Palpatine was able to cement his power because enough people really wanted strength and unity that the Republic couldn’t provide before. A Republic not simply beholden to the whims of special interests and able to manage its own defensive needs, among other things, would work a lot better.

The Republic at its strongest and most centralized was arguably the Empire, though…

Remember when the worst thing about the sequel trilogy was that the first episode was a soft reboot of A New Hope? I mean geez, remembering that Star Wars used to be good and feeling excited that it was a modern phenomenon again… I remember when my love of Star Wars wasn’t tainted and I miss it.

Yeah, I remember walking out of the theater after TFA thinking, “Well, that was a bit derivative and not perfect, but who needs perfect or original for Star Wars? That was a great, heartfelt adventure bursting with fun and love of the franchise!” I miss that feeling. Even TFA has been tainted for me when I remember how these developments pan out in TLJ.

Have you seen CollegeHumor’s “Are You Asian Enough?” sketch starring Loan Tran? It’s hilarious. Basically, a white guy claims Asian heritage due to being 1/8th Korean and a council of East Asian-descended representatives outline what is and isn’t acceptable for someone who is only fractionally connected to a culture through his ancestry. Depending on how you look at it, it’s either anti-appropriation, anti-cultural gatekeeping, or both. Hilarious either way and Loan does a great job.

I loved it 😂 Loan can do deadpan judgmental like nobody’s business!