Saving What You Love
/A Story of Romance and Two Opposites Completing Each Other
Rose Tico (Left) and Finn (Right)
Leia Organa and Han Solo’s First Big Kiss In Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980), cementing romance as a major theme of star Wars
This post may contain spoilers for Star Wars: The Last Jedi
Romance has long been a theme in Star Wars. It began with the will-they-won’t-they of Han Solo and Princess Leia Organa, defined by the contrasting opposites. On one hand, you had Han’s rough, roguish charms as defined by Harrison Ford’s portrayals of similar roles of his scrappy hero protagonists in films such as the Indiana Jones series. On the other, you had the dignified, if still notably willing to get down and be her own self-saving princess, Leia Organa, played by Carrie Fisher.
Then, in the following prequels, the entire three movies had the through-line of the star-crossed lovers romance between the anti-war diplomat and princess Padmé Amidala, and the warrior, Chosen One, and forbidden to love Anakin Skywalker. It could be said that the tragedy of the Star Wars prequels was, at least in part, the inevitable result of the forces (lower-case “F”) keeping the two apart.
And now we have two new romances for the new trilogy of the Star Wars saga: Daisy Ridley’s Rey, the new hope of the galaxy and its last remaining Jedi and Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren, the brooding leader of the First Order. And… the budding romance between John Boyega’s Finn the former stormtrooper, and Kelly Marie Tran’s Rose Tico, the Rebellion’s mechanic.
Rose Tico and Finn: Saving What You Love
Rose Tico and Finn’s romance in The Last Jedi is misunderstood.
Rose provides a wisdom to Finn that he did not have; why the Rebellion, or the good guys in general, do what they do. Rose begins and ends the story as a hero enthusiastic to do good.
Finn’s story in The Force Awakens had been characterized by reluctance to be a hero; by the end, he distinguishes himself by being a hero to save his friends. In The Last Jedi, some may argue his story repeats again; he is characterized by his reluctance to be a hero, but then attempts to save the day again.
However, in The Last Jedi, there is a sharp difference. Finn undergoes a journey to learn what it means to be a hero because at the beginning of The Last Jedi he still is not one, in spite of what Rose had idealized him as. He was there to save arguably one of his only friends, the galaxy be damned. It’s only when Rose guides him towards opening up to the suffering of others does he truly understand what it means to be a hero.
That’s how we’re gonna win. Not fighting what we hate. Saving what we love.
-Rose Tico, Star Wars: The Last Jedi
And at the end, his attempt at heroism — throwing himself and a rickety speeding bike towards a mining laser even when there is no chance at success — fails. Rose throws herself in the way of his attempted self-sacrifice.
Such a thing may seem like a backwards move, but it makes sense in earnest. An archetypal hero simply throws himself at the enemy, taking down as many as he can with him. Finn never lacked that bravery, only the motivation to do so.
However, it’s Rose’s insight and empathy that completes him. Here, Rose showcases an equally brave heroic act that Finn learns from: reaching out and protecting one’s loved ones. Throwing himself at the mining laser with no hope of success was a heroic act, but ultimately what will win is the power of love, not destruction. It’s through the motivation to protect each other instead of blindly fighting the First Order that the Rebellion survives the third act of The Last Jedi, with Finn now having both his own bravery to fight evil and Rose’s wisdom to prioritize watching out and protecting his own and others from that evil at his disposal.
It’s this two-parts-that-make-up-a-whole that is a unique approach to romance in Star Wars. One that may include even Rey and Kylo Ren in the soon-to-be-released Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Han and Leia were two very different people, but as similar as they were alike. Anakin and Padmé were the classical star-crossed lovers. But Rose and Finn serve to complete Finn, tempering what is there with something new that adds to himself.
I can’t wait to see what Star Wars has next in store for romance.
Jean-Michel Vaillancourt
Jean-Michel Vaillancourt is a D&D fanatic, a video game enthusiast, a book-lover, and an eternal seeker for the art of storycraft in modern TV pop culture.
