Okay, how did that happen? How can two parts of the same story cause me such polarising opinion? I put this on this morning with a heavy sigh at having to sit through what was a dull, tiresome chore last time around, imagining I was going to get more of the same.
What Snyder delivered was so much better, this time around.
The characters that were so thinly drawn and unlikeable in part one became rounded and the focus of attention was well-handled. The action sequences were maybe overlong but had Snyder's signature all over them and for the most part, were as eye-popping as they should have been last time.
Instead of the uneven mess of part one, The Scargiver is worlds away with a well-written believable narrative that accompanied the visuals that kept my bum firmly in my seat. It's no surprise that the extra attention given to the relevant characters has helped enormously but, like me, you could have been forgiven for just not having the patience to sit through part two, given what was delivered in part one, but I am very glad I did.
It is unfortunate that you have to sit through part one to really appreciate part two but like it or not, you get the most out of this having some understanding, if not appreciation, of what has gone before.
I was one of the first to voice my disappointment with the first in the franchise and I still don't understand how the quality of part two is so many streets ahead. Nonetheless, I am thankful that it is, as this was great fun. It's not worthy of its original intent to become part of the Star Wars universe, but it is still a ride worth taking.