#its buried and I could dig it up and reblog but eh decided to just retype

[heirtotheempire]

OK I want to talk about the Sequels because dangit it makes me so mad how much potential some of these characters had. Pushing any of them to more extreme ends of their respective roles would have fixed so many issues with their characters.

Finn doesn't defect as quickly- perhaps he gets trapped in Poe's ship when Poe is trying to make an escape, or he gets captured by the Resistance to get information out of. Either way, the years of propaganda have him firmly set in his ways and it takes the course of the whole trilogy to unlearn everything and see the horrors of the First Order. He experiences guilt over what he's done, but learns to focus on what he can do to change the future rather than getting stuck in the past.

Poe could have been much more like Saw Gerrera. Perhaps his home planet was raided by the First Order and the Resistance couldn't help them, but he joins them anyway due to sharing the same goals. But he undermines the authority figures by doing his own thing, using their resources to make more extremist plans. He's the one who tries to use Finn for information, hating him for being a stormtrooper and treating him less-then-ideal. But as the story progresses, he learns to trust Finn and starts viewing things in a more nuanced manner (seeing troopers as people. Bad people, but still people, many of which joined the military to feed their family).

Rose, after witnessing the death of her sister, becomes almost suicidal in her actions. She wants to do more and more drastic things to screw with the First Order, but often at the expense of her own safety. She doesn't have much to live for in her eyes anyway, so she doesn't care. But she finds purpose in directly helping others instead, wanting to prevent more unnecessary deaths like her sister's and using her hatred and grief for good.

Hux.... Well, he already is at an extreme. He's loud and angry and self centered. I think it works, but definitely more build up to him being a spy, and far more emphasis on the selfishness of his motives.

Kylo Ren honestly needs a whole separate post to work out how I'd fix him. I'm too tired to write all that out😅

And finally, Rey, who I saved for last because I have the most thoughts about her.

Rey was her best as a nobody. Someone disconnected from Palpatine. A scavenger on a distant planet no one cared about. So we lean more into that! What if she was far more self centered when we first meet her. She grew up on the idea that everyone is out to get her, that if she trusts others then they will just use her, and that above all else, she has to focus on herself and herself ONLY. She hardly speaks Basic, knows a few words but can't hold a conversation, which causes issues when she first meets Finn and Poe. She doesn't give up on trying to sell BB-8, because she wants to be able to eat. She knows next to nothing about the politics of the First Order, just that they are too nosy and she just wants them to leave her alone. And she knows NOTHING about the Jedi.

So Rey sneaks on board of a Resistance ship, likely when trying to kidnap BB-8. She meets the Resistance as formally as she can. She gets taught Basic, and we see her skills improve as time progresses. As she gains access to a consistent source of food, she begins to trust people and learns about why the First Order is bad. It takes time for her to outgrow the self-centered attitude she's had for so long, but she opens herself up- and in turn allows herself to feel the Force. In order for her to actually be connected with the Force (which is also representative of a connection to other life), she has to be open to trusting and caring for others. Her arc is becoming selfless and brave, which helps her become stronger in the Force despite her background.