HAN SHOT FIRST. HAN SHOT FIRST. HAN SHOT FIRST!!!
The funny thing about the first three movies (the ones that don’t suck) is that by Hollywood story standards, Han Solo is the main character in all of them.
The main character in a Hollywood storyline is the one who undergoes a transformation in the second act and becomes something more than what he was at the start.
Was Luke Skywalker the main character of Star Wars? No. At the end of the first act, he decided to become a Jedi and follow Obi Wan Kenobi. His story arc, through all three films, ended at that point. He wants to be a Jedi.
Han Solo is a dangerous sleaze with criminal connections. He doesn’t like the Empire, but he’s looking out for Numero Uno. He kills Greedo without a second thought in his introductory scene. They lift off with the Empire chasing after them. End of Act One.
The second act shows looking for a cash profit to rescue the princess. He takes his money and leaves at the start of the third act. But then he comes back, personally shoots Darth Vader, and the Rebel attack on the Death Star succeeds because of him.
He’s a general at the start of the second film. Luke Skywalker wants to be a Jedi. He kissed Princess Leia in the first film, so it’s pretty obvious that Luke will get Leia somewhere in this story.
How does it end? Han Solo gets transformed into a slab of cement. Darth Vader is Luke’s father, but,
“I love you.”
“I know”
Mario just got the princess.
Aside from the silly excuses to sell toys, the third film opens with the set up that everybody missed, including me.
“Who are you?”
“Someone who loves you.”
Luke is a Jedi who will not betray his principles even at the threat of the destruction of the universe. He is, according to the master of storytelling, a Macguffin.
“I love you.”
“I know.”
We go back to Aristotle to see a spectacular cathartic reversal.
“You love him, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“All right. I understand. Fine. When he comes back, I won’t get in the way.”
“Oh, Han, it’s not like that at all.”
Catharsis, reversal, spectacle
“He’s my brother.”
Masterful.