Star Wars: 4 moments from The Rise of Skywalker we wish were April Fool’s jokes

In honor of April Fool’s Day this year, we’re looking at the moments from Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker we sincerely wish were just April Fool’s jokes.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is one of the most divisive fims in the Skywalker Saga, leaving many fans mixed on how the franchise rounded out its newest trilogy and all the films that came before it. While some were satisfied with the movie’s return to the status quo, plenty argued that it could have benefited from taking more risks — something The Last Jedi was often criticized for doing.

Whatever your thoughts on the newest Star Wars installment, it’s hard to deny the movie missed the mark when it came to a few of its major moments. Not only did it leave certain plot twists unexplained — despite how important they were to the overall story — but it completely dropped several of the concepts and characters that had been built up during the previous installment.

With that in mind, there are quite a few moments from The Rise of Skywalker we really wish were April Fool’s jokes. Here are four of them.

Palpatine Coming Back From the Dead

From the moment the trailer for The Rise of Skywalker premiered, fans were left shaking their heads as to how Emperor Palpatine could still be alive. Even the characters seem exasperated when his return is announced in the film, and we can’t blame them. I mean, really, haven’t we seen enough of the evil Emperor for one saga?

What doesn’t help is that no real explanation is ever given for Palpatine’s reemergence, apart from some clunky stuff about the Dark Side of the Force. If the movie was going to bring him back without an “April Fool’s!” being thrown in, it should have at least included a proper explanation for this major twist. Better luck next film, I suppose.

Rey’s Parentage

The Last Jedi seemed to emphasize the idea that anyone could be a hero, but The Rise of Skywalker went back on that notion, attributing Rey’s connection to the Force to her heritage. It’s revealed that she’s actually the descendant of Palpatine, and honestly, one has to ask why this particular development was needed.

While it’s nice to know that bloodlines don’t mean everything in the Star Wars universe — as is evidenced by Rey refusing to go to the Dark Side, even after the big reveal — it just doesn’t feel like Rey needed to be related to anyone from the original films, much less Palpatine. She could have remained powerful while being “a nobody,” and the films wouldn’t have changed much at all.

Rose’s Complete Lack of Moments

Fans of Rose Tico were disappointed to learn that her role in the final Star Wars film had been severely reduced, something that was ultimately chalked up to trouble editing her scenes, most of which were shot with Carrie Fisher. Still, one can’t help but wonder why they couldn’t have reshot some scenes to give Rose a little more relevance. Many have expressed that they would have preferred this to giving random lines to Dominic Monaghan. (Although, really, there was room for both of them to speak!)

Unfortunately, it also seems all too coincidental that Rose’s role was so insignificant after all the criticism her character received following The Last Jedi. While it doesn’t seem like that was the primary reason she was taken out, it does leave fans who wanted to see her character prevail rather disappointed.

That LGBTQ+ Kiss That Was Supposed to Be Representation

When it was confirmed we’d see LGBTQ+ representation in The Rise of Skywalker, many hoped this Star Wars first would be impactful. Unfortunately, the franchise’s first try at showing a same-sex couple onscreen wasn’t what many had hoped for. It’s bad enough that Finn and Poe didn’t wind up together, but did we really need to see two random women kiss at the end of the film, just so The Rise of Skywalker could say it had done right by the LGBTQ+ community?

Let’s say “April Fool’s” to this and get some LGBTQ+ characters in Star Wars who actually have relevant storylines — and lines in general! We’d very much appreciate it.

What moments from Star Wars do you wish had been April Fool’s jokes? Sound off in the comments below!