8) It Fixes The Biggest Plot Hole Ever
Star Wars fans will be forever thankful for Rogue One for fixing one of the most glaring plot holes in cinematic history; the question of why the Death Star has such an obvious weakness in A New Hope. An exhaust port that leads straight to the Star’s core seems like a bizarre design flaw, from the Empire’s point of view. In Rogue One, though, we find out that it wasn’t part of the Empire’s plan at all.
In a handy retcon, the movie explains this as a deliberate act of sabotage from the reluctant architect Galen Erso, who was forced to work on the project by Director Krennic. He always intended to betray the Empire and work in a flaw that the Rebels could exploit to bring down the weapon of mass destruction.
Of course, this does leave the question of why a similar weakness is also present in Starkiller Base in The Force Awakens, but let’s take one plot hole at a time. Besides, it’s just about possible that the Base was based off Erso’s plans for the Death Star – deliberate design flaws and all.