That said: I really loved the characters. I thought even Kylo Ren who came across as more of a brat than a true villain (lacked gravitas), was at least a three-dimensional character. Both Finn and Rey are good characters to pass the torch to. I liked Rey especially as the heir to the light side. The saber battles were excellent and it was a nice set up piece for the rest of the story.
I thought Kylo Ren was exactly what Anakin should have been in the prequels. Yes, he's an emotional brat (every time something went wrong there went a computer terminal) and he's clearly conflict in such a way to not make him overly whiny. His insecurities and faults make his fall to the dark side all the better. He's not just suddenly swept up because he doesn't want his wife to die. He's trying to be the pinnacle of the dark side of the force by emulating Vader when he was at his peak.
I thought the final saber battle was great. Although, Finn is going to need a hell of a lot of medical attention. Taking a saber slice right down the spine can't be good. Looking back at the movie poster it shows Ren and Rey next to each other with his saber and her staff lined up. It, of course, makes sense now seeing that Rey and not Finn is the force-sensitive.
Anakin's lightsaber calling out to her (and hearing the voices of both Obi-Wan's and I think Yoda) was interesting. It was not something I expected (or the flashbacks it caused). It seems pretty likely she was a youngling when Ren killed the trainees and someone, Luke?, hid her on Jakku. Given how powerful she was in that final battle, pulling the saber right by him, I'm guessing she's got to be a Skywalker or had some training that was maybe surpassed by the trauma of being left behind.
The new supreme bad guy is a bit confusing. I've read places that I guess he's been around forever and knows all about the Skywalkers and everything else. I'm sure they'll explore his rise in 8 and 9.
I wonder why Leila never trained to be a Jedi. She's obviously strong with the force (she knew the moment Han died) and I'm sure the training would have been useful in her campaigns.
Overall, I thought the movie was really fun and a great way to kick off the trilogy. Yes, it had a few too many nods to ANH and the other movies (can we please not have another giant death sphere with a single weak spot and a trench leading to it?) but at the same time I liked how they connected the movies.
