Star Wars

'The Last Jedi' takes a side in the class war

Before touching down聽on the planet of Canto Bight, Rose looks down forebodingly to tell us that it鈥檚 full of the 鈥渨orst people in the galaxy鈥. Cut to champagne glasses clinking and a casino full of galactic 1-percenters.

鈥淥nly one business in the galaxy can get you this rich,鈥 Rose聽鈥 a new character in Star Wars:聽The Last Jedi, a mechanic on the Rebel flagship 鈥斅爀xplains to returning hero Finn as they look around the beachfront resort planet, 鈥渟elling weapons to the First Order.鈥 She goes on to tell her family鈥檚 history: forced to work on a First Order mining colony before it was bled out and blitzed for weapons testing.

The force of nostalgia awakens

I BELIEVE that reviewers generally should disclose when they have a vested interest in the thing they're reviewing, so full disclosure: Barring another Jar Jar Binks fiasco, there was about as much chance of me--a geek hurtling toward middle age at light speed--hating J.J. Abrams' Star Wars: Episode VII--The Force Awakens as there is of the Millennium Falcon successfully navigating an asteroid field.