I loved it. It really did feel like the spiritual successor to the OT in almost every single way that the PT failed miserably. It has its issues, some of them typical for Star Wars, some of them typical for a JJ Abrams film, and some of them typical for a reboot of a multi-billion dollar franchise with expectations and a fanbase built in, but I think the overall package can't be considered anything less than a rousing success.
Might as well tackle the negatives first - chief among them is John Williams' (sadly predictably) limp noodle of a score. I cannot think of a film series in which the original score is as integral to the film as Star Wars. And in that regard, the film lays an egg. The few briefs moments where the score evoked something in me was when old themes (like the godly Force theme, which never fails to give me chills) were trotted out. Otherwise the score was basically unmemorable noise. As tends to be the case for most Abrams films, this sucker needed another pass or two in the writer's room. It's quite messy at times, jumps around a lot, and certain events and character motivations are foggy. It's nowhere near the mess his ST2009 was on a writing level, but it still is clunky at times and occasionally delved a bit too far into fanservice. As far as fanservice goes, I can't put all the blame on Abrams. Clearly this was designed to be a safe film from the get go. This is both a negative and a positive. The negative being that the movie doesn't really do anything original or take any risks, and hews closely to the structure of A New Hope. The positive being that it delivers pretty much exactly what fans have been clamoring for the past 30 years. My last minor complaint is that, while I loved Daisy Ridley and her performance, I thought her acting got really dodgy whenever she had to express pain or anguish.
Other than that, I really, truly loved it. It's gorgeously shot. It looks and feels like what this world would look like 30 years after the OT. The dirt and lived in feel that was sadly lacking in Lucas' second trilogy returns here in spades. Abrams' direction and the editing always keep the film moving and exciting. The marriage of CG to prosthetics and real sets and locations was amazing and evoked the OT perfectly. The movie was hilarious and the cast was impeccable and all the new leads had great chemistry. Despite mentioning her above as a negative, 95% of the time I absolutely loved Daisy Ridley - what a discovery. Boyega and Isaac feel like they were both born to be in a Star Wars movie. Harrison Ford appeared to give a shit again here, and his performance brought a smile to my face. What the film really nailed for me was the snappy banter between characters(very OT-esque) and the "moments". It nailed them. Things like Solo's return or the Force theme swelling when Rey uses the force to pull Luke's lightsaber out of the snow. Or the Luke reveal. That stuff was perfect (even if Luke was a big fat tease).
Nothing is knocking Fury Road down off the pedestal for top blockbuster of 2015, but The Force Awakens is a close second for me. A great, if too safe, resurrection of the OT spirit. Can't wait to see Episode VIII.
1. The Empire Strikes Back
2. A New Hope
3. The Force Awakens
4. Return of the Jedi
5. The Phantom Menace
6. Revenge of the Sith
7. Attack of the Clones