Is 'Rogue One' better than 'The Force Awakens'? | The Tylt
"Rogue One," the first standalone film in the Star Wars saga, opened to rave reviews—but is it better than last year's "The Force Awakens"? "Rogue One" takes place before "Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope" and offers a darker view of war than any of its predecessors. But "The Force Awakens" brought back beloved characters like Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, and Luke Skywalker (not to mention the Millennium Falcon). Which film is better? 🌌 🚀

"Rogue One" brings gritty, dark realism to the Star Wars series' portrayal of war, and added practical complexities and moral ambiguities we haven't seen in the previous films. Unlike "The Force Awakens," which was criticized as a mere retread of "A New Hope," "Rogue One" introduces fascinating new characters and a brand-new storyline.
#RogueOne was real Star Wars. Amazing open & deservedly so. 20 times the movie The Force Awakens was.https://t.co/pXEttzIVdY
— The Known Unknowns (@Known__Unknowns) December 19, 2016
"Rogue One" has a lot going for it, but "The Force Awakens" reunited Han Solo, Chewbacca, Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, light saber battles, and even the Millennium Falcon to the big screen for the first time in 32 years—an unparalleled event in film history. "The Force Awakens" remains the highest-grossing movie of all time.
Unpop opinion time - The peeps saying Rogue One is better than Force Awakens are freaking lit. R1 was good but let's not get carried away.
— Sara 🍑y (@saradietschy) December 17, 2016
People are comparing "Rogue One" to "The Empire Strikes Back," the darkest and most critically acclaimed of the original trilogy.
#RogueOne is beyond amazing - probably better than Force Awakens. It's a incredibly serious movie, worthy of the original trilogy.
— Brianna Wu (@Spacekatgal) December 16, 2016
"The Force Awakens" has fierce loyalists too.
People who are saying Rogue One is better than The Force Awakens:
— ☀️SAMMIE (@SammieReads) December 18, 2016
ACTUALLY FIGHT ME
While many critics applauded the originality of "Rogue One," others found the plot and the numerous new characters overwhelming and tiresome. Several supposedly rousing speeches were panned for being eye-rollingly cliché.
But at least "Rogue One" went for originality. "The Force Awakens" was really more a reboot of 1977's Star Wars, with the plans for a devastating new weapon hidden by the plucky Resistance in a cute little droid.