Phonetic Hero

Man does no one remember that Kylo Ren was dealing with a fucking blaster wound during the last battle scene...?

"HOW COME HE SUCK SO BAD"

I'd probably fight like garbage too if I'd been fucking SHOT and was trying to like.. not bleed out, on top of dealing with what I assume is a lot of pain

This is the only dueling scene in the entire movie, and he has a handicap.  Of course he's going to fight like shit.  On top of that, we have no idea how extensive his training has been, and it makes it seem like he's had hardly any formal force training and is instead just very force adept.  I don't find this super hard to believe, since he's fully aware of his lineage and knows that the jedi/sith/force aren't just myths.  There are plenty of people who are good at something with minimal (formal) training because they're aware of their affinity for it and have fostered their talents.  There are plenty of musicians who fit the bill right here  

Why would you want a "heroic character"? Heroism is a one-dimensional concept. People are complicated.  It's refreshing to see a story that isn't about someone wanting to save the universe just because it's the right thing to do. We've gotten quite enough of those over the last... forever in storytelling.
The exact questions you ended this thought with are why the characters are good. Because they're not the same old "save the world" heroes. "Save the world" heroes are uninteresting, aren't thought-provoking, and are incredibly predictable. Rey's character is interesting because while she seems to be a good person we don't really know the extent to which she's willing to put out for the cause. That's her defining flaw. Flaws in character define good characters. We don't understand her, because she has more complex motivations than "i must save the galaxy from darth kysnorenkolo", and this is the first act of her character progression.
A lack of one-dimensional heroism in the movie isn't a problem. In fact, Luke Skywalker had similar flaws. He was always willing to help, but he wasn't doing it because he really cared, he was doing it because he thought he had to. The Empire Strikes Back addresses his doubt and lack of genuineness on Dagobah. Yoda shows Luke through his training his lack of resolve and made him think hard about what he was doing and why he was doing it. And you know what? He fucks up and leaves his training incomplete because he gets worried about Leia and Han. Then he fights Vader, and because of his fear and his incomplete training, he gets his hand cut off and is overwhelmed by the emotion of learning Vader is his father. The Empire Strikes Back is such a good movie because everyone loses, and it's all Luke's fault because he put himself and his friends before the greater good. That's not "heroic".

i loved it. i thought kylo's performance was stellar - he's not some implacable foe (which we didn't need more of), he's this deeply conflicted dude who is not necessarily the strongest of jedi, or even the strongest dude. i mean, look at him, he looks like he should be cashiering at a discount shoe store, and he's trying to live up to this galactic badass. his acting was fantastic, if you recognize that being awkward and difficult to get along with and riding the struggle bus emotionally is good acting  (in this case, it totally was).
i love the concept of finn's character, as well as rey. i like that there wasn't one major character who realizes that they're going to save the galaxy and becomes awesome just in time to suck in the sequel. finn's groundwork is set for him to eventually be a hero, but they didn't need to make him blossom in this film, and that'll make it better when he eventually does. and rey's just phenomenal. great acting, great character, great job fitting the role and the actress, etc. i don't think it's strange at all that she was able to pick up concepts of the force quickly (it's not like they had her creating a lightsaber from scratch, the concept of imprinting your will on someone else is something everyone wishes for and 'practices' from young childhood), or that she was good at dueling since she had the stick and was obviously trained at it. once she remembered to draw from the force - which, according to ep 5, comes as naturally as breathing to someone who has the potential - her actions were fluid, defined, and not desperate at all. conceptually difficult to render on a screen but i'm sure that a well-written book would be able to make that be clearer without assistance.
someone else mentioned how lived-in the world felt. i think that's a great way of putting where the initial series succeeded and the prequels failed. they were so sterile, and here it was much more realistic that the areas had existed for a long time.
i loved it. i want to watch several more of it. i wish my thread (which started on thursday night!) was the main star wars thread though

Man does no one remember that Kylo Ren was dealing with a fucking blaster wound during the last battle scene...?

"HOW COME HE SUCK SO BAD"

I'd probably fight like garbage too if I'd been fucking SHOT and was trying to like.. not bleed out, on top of dealing with what I assume is a lot of pain

This is the only dueling scene in the entire movie, and he has a handicap.  Of course he's going to fight like shit.  On top of that, we have no idea how extensive his training has been, and it makes it seem like he's had hardly any formal force training and is instead just very force adept.  I don't find this super hard to believe, since he's fully aware of his lineage and knows that the jedi/sith/force aren't just myths.  There are plenty of people who are good at something with minimal (formal) training because they're aware of their affinity for it and have fostered their talents.  There are plenty of musicians who fit the bill right here  

I replied on the YT vid, but YT isn't really the place for in-depth feedback.  Had no idea you posted here too, but I love it!  I'm also the guy who wrote the source, so I'm a little biased
 
It sounds pretty heavy in the lows/low-mids, especially with the combination of the low piano and low strings.  I think you're getting a little mud from the two together, and it may be to the track's benefit to either make some concessions with part writing when both get a little busier, or to reexamine your EQ on the two instruments (possibly both).  I love how the two work together, especially the lead cello stabs, they're just fighting each other really hard right now in the lower range.

You may also be getting some unwanted compression from the drums, particularly the kick.  You can hear it on the higher piano notes especially, they're pumping just a bit.  A common thing with kicks is to have the subs boosted REAL high without really being able to hear it, since that's a range that typically gets fairly bad response in most headphones or speakers (if you don't have a sub).  I LOVE the drum groove itself, it's exactly what it needs to be.  I'm grooving all the way through, so no complaints on the part-writing there either.
 
Hope that helps a bit!  Again, love all the extra nods to the Melee theme you snuck in, and thanks for making the 'mix

With Round 1 Underway it's time to introduce the:
 

 
Over the course of the WCRG 2015, QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED!
 
Will The Nightmare Tank Police be able to make every deadline?  Or will stress, and terrible photoshopping of MAGfest photos threaten to tear the team apart?!
 

 
...and just what is REALLY going on behind the scenes of the NTP?
 

 
Stay up on the WCRG each week to find out!

How will I ever top this masterpiece though?
https://soundcloud.com/ethanrexmusic/killer-beets-ground-man-and

Inspired by Joe Satriani's "The Forgotten part 1" and "midnight" I decided to cover Kraid's Lair using the famous tapping technique. I hope you like it. If you like my work please, comment, share and subscribe =D