The Skywalker Saga Recap

Episode 9: The Rise of Skywalker Recap

    In date order, this is the eleventh and third and final film of the Sequel Trilogy. Cronalogically, this is the ninth and final episode of the Skywalker Saga and takes place 31 years after the events of A New Hope.

    A year has passed since the events of The Last Jedi. A mysterious message has been heard throughout the galaxy. It's a message of revenge, and while Kylo Ren, now the Supreme Leader, is searching for the source of it in order to crush any threat to his power, the last hope for the galaxy (Rey) is training to be ready for this threat.

    Following the revenge threat sent out through the galaxy, Kylo finds a Sith wayfinder on Mustafar (the first time we've seen it since the Prequal Trilogy) and follow it to a planet in the Unknown Regions called Exogol, the ancient homeworld of the Sith. As he wanders through the temple light flashes everywhere (before the film starts there's a warning for people who suffer seizures about that). Finally, he sees the one who sent the galaxy-wide message...Emperor Palpatine😨! He survived Anakin's attempt to kill him on the second Death Star; his spirit instead traveled here and inhabited an imperfect clone. Now he has to be hooked up to a huge life support system to stay alive (because he looks like a rotting corpse. Yuck).

    Kylo threatens him with his lightsaber, but Palpatine says that he could give Kylo a new Empire and make him ruler. He raises his hands and a whole fleet of planet-killing Star Destroyers come up out of the ice; it's the largest fleet anytime has ever seen. Palpatine says that all this could be Kylo's if he kills Rey and thus end the Jedi. But he warns that Rey isn't who he seems...

    Meanwhile, Poe Dameron, Finn, and Chewbacca travel in the Millennium Falcon to Resistance informat Boolio, who says he has something from a spy in the First Order. He gives them the information in the form of a data recorder, which gets installed into R2-D2 moments before TIE fighters arrive on the scene. The heroes manage to eventually escape their pursuers through Poe doing lightspeed skipping, which damages the ship badly in the end of it because it wasn't made to do that.

    On the jungle world of Ajan Kloss, where the Resistance have now established a base, Rey trains with General Leia Organa, but has trouble in trying to communicate with the Jedi from the past. While training with a training droid, she receives a Force vision from Kylo thanks to their bond. This causes her to destroy the droid...and accidentally causes a tree to fall on BB-8. When Finn, Chewie, and Poe get back in a damaged Falcon, Poe is understandably frustrated.

    It doesn't take long for the Resistance to also hear about the resurrected Palpatine and his fleet, which he calls the Final Order. In less than 16 hours, the Final Order will start an attack on all free worlds. Rey has learned from Luke Skywalker's Jedi texts that only two Sith wayfinders were the only ones made on existence and that they could lead them to Exogol. Leia gives her Padawan permission to travel to the planet of Pasaana to meet a contact of hers, who knows where a clue to a wayfinder can be found. Accompanied by Finn, Poe, Chewie, C-3PO, and BB-8, Rey sets off in the Falcon. Kylo initiates a Force bond with Rey to figure out her location and travels to Pasaana with his warrior subordinates, the Knights of Ren.

    Upon arrival, they soon meet up with Leia's contact, who's none other than Rebel veteran Lando Calrissian. With his help, the gang find the clue-a dagger inscribed with Sith text. Unfortunately, 3PO's programming forbids him from saying anything Sith-like, mich to Poe's annoyance. They also find the remains of a Jedi hunter named Ochi, and after healing an agitated, injured worm-snake creature (kinda looks like a large worm to me), they also find his ship. But Rey senses that Kylo nearby and heads off to face him. With Kylo flying his TIE meters above the ground, Rey draws her lightsaber, turns around, slowly looks behind her, and then breaks off into a run. Timing it just right, she runs into a leap above the TIE (just like in the trailer) and slices a wing off, sending the TIE into an out of control spin before crashing some distance away. However, the First Order have already captured Chewie and the dagger. Attempting to save Chewie, Rey suddenly causes Force lightning to shoot out of her hand, exploding the ship. Believing Chewie to be dead, the group escapes on Ochi's ship since the Falcon was also taken.