Solo Turns Han Into Star Wars' Ultimate Mary Sue

WARNING: The following article contains major spoilers for Solo: A Star Wars Story, in theaters now.

Rey's character is meaningful for many Star Wars fans, especially girls. A woman who’s the hero of multiple films gives girls the representation they so desperately need in the fandoms they love. Upon The Force Awakens’ release, there was controversy around whether or not Rey was a Mary Sue – a general term for a female character that’s poorly developed because she’s too good at everything she does. As Mary Poppins would say, she’s practically perfect in every way.

This criticism of Rey ignores the fact that all of the heroes of the Star Wars trilogies, Anakin and Luke, have been “Force-sensitive” like her, and could thus naturally pick up Jedi skills. Baby Anakin in The Phantom Menace could fly a speeder using his instincts and proclivity for fixing machines. Babyfaced Luke Skywalker in A New Hope was an excellent pilot like his father, and he picks up Jedi training easily under Obi-Wan's tutelage aboard the Millennium Falcon. While the Force-sensitive trait has led to some questionable storytelling choices (such as General Organa flying through space), it's what we point to when we discuss Anakin and Luke’s abilities.

Anakin, Luke and Rey have natural abilities, sure, but what’s also been largely ignored is that Rey had to develop these skills on Jakku to survive. If she didn’t learn how to scavenge and protect herself using fighting skills, she would have died long before she met Finn. The quick labeling of Rey as a Mary Sue, coupled with the refusal to acknowledge Rey’s Force-sensitivity and her need to acquire these skills that are apparently “too good,” leads back to one thing: Sexism. Too many fans are quick to suspend their belief when it comes to male characters, but not to female ones.

The latest Star Wars film, Solo: A Star Wars Story, features a character that is a bit too good at everything, but it’s not a female character! Han Solo, beloved scoundrel of the Star Wars universe is what we call a Marty Stu.

Han’s Talent

In the first scene of the film on Corellia, Han shows his skills that will later aid him in smuggling: he can hotwire a speeder, and he flies one pretty decently. That is, until the speeder gets stuck. His ability to hotwire actually makes sense. Growing up on a shipbuilding world with intense criminal activity means that Han would have needed to pick up the ability to hotwire and fly a speeder for the jobs he takes for Lady Proxima. He’s not a Marty Stu quite yet.

Out of options, Han enlists for the Empire’s infantry, and it’s stated that two years have passed before we see him again fighting in boots on the ground combat. He tries to sell himself as “the best pilot” to the Empire’s higher-ups, but they don’t believe him, and really, neither do we. Not yet. We haven’t seen him fly a ship. In the two years he was training with the Empire, he was obviously not chosen to be a pilot or he would have been flying in that battle scene. No one takes him seriously when he repeats that he’s a great pilot.

Rather than the Force, Han’s primary talent is pluck – he is his own hype man. Han’s confidence in himself is unshakeable. Instead of using the Force, he seems to be a practitioner of The Secret. Because he repeats to himself and others that he’s the best pilot, he essentially speaks it into being.

Now, let’s talk about that Kessel Run scene.

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In Solo, Han takes control of the Millennium Falcon for the legendary Kessel Run, which Han will later use to sell his talents to Obi-Wan in A New Hope. This is a scene Star Wars fans have been waiting to see on the big screen for decades, and it truly was an action-packed entertaining scene. But let’s not forget: this is Han’s first time in the Millennium Falcon’s pilot’s chair, and he’s able to accomplish a feat literally no one else in the galaxy has done.

On its own, the Kessel Run is difficult, but added to this was a giant tentacled space monster and an Imperial blockade. Han outmaneuvers the blockade, which had TIE fighters shooting at him the entire time. The Millennium Falcon was outnumbered, but against the odds, Han gets them out of there. The best move he did was spinning the Falcon to knock a TIE fighter out of the way, which he says is a technique he learned about in Old Corellia.

Where did these insane piloting skills come from? Han had no money to afford a ship to fly on Corellia, and it’s unlikely Lady Proxima would trust him with one for a job. He would have used that ship to escape, surely. If he were truly an excellent pilot in the Empire, the Empire would have made him one. The Empire is evil, but they are certainly practical and would have made him a pilot for tactical advantages.

The Kessel Run scene officially transforms Han into a Marty Stu. As a character, Han doesn’t have the “Force-sensitive” trait to explain his piloting talent, but it doesn’t make his achievements any less noteworthy. We just have to admit that he’s a little too good at flying, as well as gambling. The only way Lando was able to beat Han at Sabacc was because Lando was cheating. Now, there probably was a huge gambling circuit in Corellia. But if Han was so proficient at gambling, why wouldn’t he have made enough money to get out of Corellia? At the very least, it’s unclear where this professional poker level aptitude comes from.

Here's the thing, though. Just because Han has multiple Marty Stu moments, it doesn’t make Solo: A Star Wars Story any less of an enjoyable film. Han Solo is always going to be one of our favorite Star Wars characters. But for equality’s sake, if you’re going to come after Rey for having unbelievable abilities, the same should be applied to any main male character, including those we already love.

Directed by Ron Howard from a script by Lawrence and Jon Kasdan, Solo: A Star Wars Story stars Alden Ehrenreich as Han Solo, Donald Glover as Lando Calrissian, Emilia Clarke as Qi’ra and Joonas Suotamo as Chewbacca. They’re joined by Thandie Newton as Val, Phoebe Waller-Bridge as L3-37, Paul Bettany as Dryden Vos and Woody Harrelson as Tobias Beckett. The film opens Friday nationwide.