It is interesting that Solo was panned. I watched it and thought it was pretty solid. The prequels had fantastic material to work with, how Anakin becomes Darth Vader is the story of the series. And they cast Annkin so badly and the writing was awful. So much depth could have been added without Jar Jar or the stupid pod race. The clone war should have been better developed as well.
The original trilogy was obviously the best. I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I prefer the prequel trilogy over the new Force Awakens trilogy. Regardless of the acting, It was compelling to actually see the why and how Anakin became Darth Vader. Ive said this in other Star Wars threads, but the Force Awakens trilogy seemed kind of hodge podge. They could have went many different ways with it, and there were some strong plot points within those movies, but it just didn't seem to have that classic Star Wars feel in my opinion.
If they knew about the Mandalorian project, It would have been an interesting plot point if they included the kid in the new trilogy in some way. Obviously to stay true to Star Wars Canon, without even finishing the Mandalorian series, we know the kid does not go on to become a Jedi or play a major role saving the galaxy from the First Order.
I will respond to both at once.
I am not a Star Wars fanboy by any means. I like the SWU, I don't love it.
I like New Hope and Empire Strikes Back. Return of the Jedi has issues. Those movies were made in a different time. I watched the Graduate a week ago. I get why that is considered a good movie, but it is also hopelessly dated and does not age well at all. New Hope is approaching 50 years. It still holds up, but I am not sure how much of the love for that movie is just nostalgia.
The Prequels had potential, but I have two issues:
1) They feel a lot like Lord of the Rings in space
2) George Lucas is a terrible Director. He killed Hayden Christensen's career and could have taken out Natalie Portman's too if she wasn't already a big star.
Force Awakens was fun, The Last Jedi was excellent, and the Rise of Skywalker is what happens when a studio lets internet fans write a screenplay.
The Mandalorian is well served by a slower pace and more character development of TV. The fact that the same frachise is alive this many years later is a credit to the source material, but its variance from the old "look and feel" of the movies is a natural modernization of franchise, and one that needed to happen.