Source: complex.com

Part 7: F**k The Mystery Box

The Mystery Box is foremost JJ Abrams' term for his method of movie marketing, but it has become something he incorporates into the films themselves.

The idea is that an audience loves a mystery and wants to solve it. Unfortunately, inserting these mysteries into films with no planned answers turns movies into puzzles rather than stories for a certain segment of the fandom. The two big ones here are Who is Snoke? and Who are Rey's parents? Last Jedi sees these mysteries and rolls its eyes at them, preferring to throw them out in order to make the movie better.

Who is Snoke? Who cares? Kylo Ren is the most complexly written villain in Star Wars history, and you really want him to be sidelined in favor of The Emperor Part 2? Killing Snoke to further Kylo's descent into true evil serves the more important character. It's the correct writing decision.

The same applies to Rey's parents. If you reveal that she's a Skywalker or a Kenobi or whatever, it immediately detracts from her individuality. She's just another step in a lineage that the rest of the movie expressly tells us is a failure. Making her into her own person is again the correct decision from a screenwriting standpoint.

Honestly, if you're annoyed that TLJ tossed out your favorite Reddit fan theory, be annoyed that Force Awakens stuck in a useless mystery without bothering to come up with an answer instead.

Also, stop with the fan theories. They can be fun, as theories. But if you're more interested in trying to figure out who Broom Boy is than in why the scene is in the film and what it means, then you're doing movies wrong.