Pre Sequel Trilogy Luke. During the course of the OT trilogy, Luke is given a flat character arc. Which isn’t a bad thing. A flat character arc is when a character has their own belief, and the challenges the character must overcome is maintaining that belief even through trials and tribulations. The reason Anakin fell and Vader rose was because Palpatine made him believe the lie that Vader killed Anakin. And everyone believed that lie. Palpatine. Vader. Even Obi-Wan and Yoda believed Vader was beyond saving, but not Luke. He was the only one not to believe the lie. He upheld his beliefs that light can be found even in darkness, and that one belief saved the galaxy. It’s something the Sequel writers failed to understand about him. That belief that challenges Sidious and the overwhelming darkness is what defined Luke. It’s what made him such a memorable character. His compassion. His empathy. His love. His unwavering belief that Anakin could be brought back. All examples of what the Jedi should be. All traits and qualities that we in our own lives should try to understand and learn. That’s why Luke resonated with so many people. Which was why it was so heartbreaking to see what happened to him in the Last Jedi when they took that quality away from him. That empathy and emotion that made characters in the saga like Anakin and even made people in real life believe that they could strive to be better and care more and love more… that was all just… gone.
