Okay... just saw The Rise of Skywalker and, tbh, am conflicted. 

On the one hand, it was an appropriate ending to the Skywalker saga as laid out by the first six films. On the other hand, I think it could have been done better. 

The first 30 minute could have been less seizure inducing and still been just as effective. The ending wasn't what I was hoping for but still pretty awesome. 

Still a tad, one sided, imo, but definitely worth the watch!

I think it was the best ending this latest trilogy could have hoped for. It wasn't great, but it also wasn't ~~the worst~~. Of course, my bar was set really low per what I had heard and saw of this trilogy so far, so take that how you will. There was some redeeming, some cool pews, some surprises and very convenient new Force mechanics and lore that seemed to spring up out of need for plot devices that were difficult to just let slide. I also cried a couple times. I have a few other nitpicky gripes and some stuff I have to hand it to them for doing well, but overall, while for me there were chances to do better things with plot and lore, I got more of a payoff than what I had expected for this portion of the Star Wars story, and I'm happy about that.

...the "Force mechanics and lore stuff" kind of made me  a few times, as well. I know they tried to set up some of that kind of thing in The Last Jedi but I didn't care for it there, either. The Knights of Ren were pointless. Lando and Leia's roles were wasted or, at least, not what they could have been, as well.

As I said, worth the watch... but it could have been a much better trilogy from the get go.

Lando and Leia felt just like part of the nostalgic ties laced throughout the movie. Like, "Hey," *wink wink nudge nudge* "rememer this thing that happened before? Rememberrrr?"

Someone yesterday made a point that while the prequels were . . . what they were, at least they were fresh in that they didn't have all of the generational trauma and references to lean on. That's what is frustrating about movies like these sometimes--I understand and sometimes even appreciate the fan service, but moderation is key.

And I agree with you: of course worth the watch if you've gotten this far, and there are some satisfactory ties and things, plus it's always a ton of fun to stare at. Pews are life.

I haven't seen it yet but my wife loved it. She literally cried when she got home because it was "so good." She's a Star Wars fan though. I think I'll be more critical if I ever see it.