Finn is STILL my homeboy!
I start this off by saying I am a huge Star Wars fan. Like many of us, not more or less than others (ok there are some that take their fandom to extraordinary heights or can afford all the various Star Wars related items), I have loved Star Wars since my first toy and seeing Star Wars during its re-release. Much of my life I have spent thinking about, watching, reading, playing video games and role playing games, and talking about Star Wars & the various principles in the film. Empire Strikes is my favorite movie not just because it’s a great film, in Star Wars a young Kofi was able to come to grips with his father (or lack of father) issues. After Return of Jedi I vowed that when I have children I would take them to every “cool movie” and we’d take the day off from school and work. This is something I do with my son and Star Wars Episode Seven was announced, I was filled with joy. Finally I would take my son to see his first Star Wars film in the theaters.
And this is exactly what we did. I took off work and he didn’t go to school; we went to see The Force Awakens at 12:00 PM. It was a great movie, we had a fun time (Save for the bro-dude who talked way too much. The stereotype of Black folk talking through movies ended on the 18th of December). It gave me the same thrill and joy of the 80s and my son saw a movie that fully entertained him and kept him involved. This was the first movie I can remember that had him asking to see it again. Usually that is reserved for the Marvel Superhero films. More than anything, Noah saw and enjoyed a young man of color in a leading role.
FN2187 or as he was dubbed, Finn is played by John Boyega. This isn’t the first Black person in a Star Wars film. There was Lando Calrisssian in Empire Strikes Back (I SERIOUSLY believe my mother took me to see the film multiple times because of Billy Dee Williams and not just because she knew how much I loved the franchise…) and Mace Windu played by Samuel L. Jackson during the prequels. Those were the “biggest names,” but there have been others like Tony Cox, Femi Taylor, James Earl Jones (in voice), Gin Clarke, Lily Nyamwasa, among others who have played roles in the Star Wars films and put their mark in lore.
However this is the first time that a young adult would be in a starring role, or even Star Wars having a person of color in a leading role. I enjoyed Jon’s work on “Attack the Block” and was excited to see what direction his character would take. In the first teaser I saw how he was out in the forefront and I had a ton of questions. That is one of the best parts of this for me is having a ton of questions and coming up with my own theories. As we saw more and more of Jon’s character, I attempted to get an idea of who and what he would be. Then I saw the teaser with the lightsaber. And not just any lightsaber, Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber. Mind was blown.
After dodging “spoilers” and any sort of information about the movie like Han in the Asteroid field, I finally saw the movie. To be honest, I was very happy with the final product. It met my nostalgia fix and added a lot of “new” in the mix. I dug the characters (although I felt like the hype over Captain Plasma and how she was used didn’t do the character justice, unless the goal was to simply sell toys), Kylo Ren was great, the First Order actually gave me pause, Rey and Poe (who needed more screen time) were great additions to the franchise. It was awesome to see the older characters and how they have moved on since the Battle of Endor. And then there was Finn, FN2187…
I will go on record saying that I truly dig Finn’s character and his introduction. Jon Boyega gave me a believable and likeable character who has enough heroism to be a hero and was able to get beyond his own flaws as a human being (that we all have). It wasn’t the stereotypical “I’m Black and therefore the coolest in the room,” the “hyper masculine thug” the media usually projects us as, he wasn’t a “shuck and jive” cat either. I felt he was a character who is starting his heroic journey and showed three dimensional growth in the film; with more growth to come.
However (this is when it gets tricky and I may lose people) I do feel like there is a “issue” I have. I have been a fan of Star Wars since way back. I’ve read many novels, comics, watched movies & TV shows, played many table-top role playing games (I lived and breathed the West End Game system and those books were worth it just for reading material) & videogames. I’m not an “expert,” but I know my stuff. And yes I understand that with this fresh start and all. However, howeva in my best Steven A. Smith voice, I never heard of Stormtroopers or any variant of the group be listed as working in “janitorial services.”
A friend of mine called Finn the “Roc of Star Wars.” If you are familiar with the show, you got the joke. If not familiar with the television show, then hop on that like right now (or after you are done reading this). While Finn is a character I dig and have no issue with, him being a janitor felt wrong. It leans into a slippery slope that has many Black characters being a butt of a joke or in some lesser role than what he or she should be. We already have Finn very scared in the film, given it makes sense as someone who has seen the horrors the First Order inflicts on others. That I can get, however I’ve never thought of or heard any combat trooper be a “custodian.” Wouldn’t this be better suited to droids? Why would Finn be on a combat mission and expected to kill if he was a guy who cleaned? And again, you get a child, raise him for combat, and oh yeah, you are assigned pots to clean?
The other issue is a bit trickier and does require careful navigation (and frankly not everyone can handle this conversation without getting stuckonstupid). It’s the “magical negro” narrative: when a Black character is the catalyst for a white character’s success. Usually by some mystical nature and in a way that the white character is able to manifest their personal power for the first time. I can see where some may see Finn in this light with the final scene. I don’t necessarily agree with it. At least in a manner that is disrespectful to Finn or puts Rey in a better light. As Rey was already doing amazing before she battled Kylo, in fact she already humbled Kylo earlier in the film. (Also we don’t know her full story so it’s too early to say what Rey is and isn’t.)
While we do know that Finn is willing to help and fight, he isn’t some epic level combatant. He openly talks about running from the First Order versus fighting them. He knows what evil they do, he wants nothing to do with them. He was nearly killed by a more skilled First Order Stormtrooper beforehand. Finn was fighting on raw nerve and grit against Kylo who was more skilled in melee and lightsaber combat techniques. I have no issue with the way the fight ended or with Rey channeling her strength to battle an already injured and shaken Kylo (I believe he hasn’t faced anyone who could stand up to him and clearly needed that training he was begging his new master for).
My theory is that Finn is Force Sensitive and if not, the fight made even more sense. Asking Han Solo to fight with a lightsaber would have gotten the same result. Had Luke would have ran up on Darth Vader on the first Death Star, he would have met the same fate as Obi-Wan. Rey would have been flipped and bounced like Dominique Dawes had she fought any Darth; Vader, Dooku, Maul… It is completely sensible for everything to happen as it did. I believe that it’s the silly idea of Finn being a “janitor” that made this part hurt so many.
In no way do I see Finn as “useless” or weak or perfect. There are problematic issues at play, more so with cinema and humanity and less on Star Wars itself. Finn’s a fully fleshed out hero that we can support and put our arms around. He can also be something we can critique as well. Nothing is A or B, “black or white;” but shades of grey. Personally, I am looking forward to more adventures with Finn and will be there for him (and Poe and Rey and even whiny Kylo). I believe there will be much growth in his heroic journey. I have to, the little Black boy who was heavy into Star Wars and would color my extra Luke Skywalker brown so I could be a Jedi refuses to believe Star Wars will let me down.