Rose's Medallion In 'The Last Jedi' Is More Important Than You Realize
One of the most exciting and important new characters that Star Wars: The Last Jedi is adding to the franchise is Rose Tico, a maintenance worker on board the Resistance's ship who finds herself taking on a much larger role in the battle against the First Order after an unexpected encounter with Finn. One thing you may notice about Rose early on is the crescent-shaped medallion she wears around her neck and clearly treasures. That necklace becomes a pretty big deal later in the movie, but what does Rose's medallion in The Last Jedi really mean? It has a heartbreaking backstory, as well as a practical use. Spoiler alert: If you haven't seen The Last Jedi yet and don't want Rose and Finn's story ruined for you, don't read on.
We actually see the crescent medallion almost right when the movie starts, except not Rose's. A gunner on board one of the Resistance's bomber ships clutches the medallion around her neck as she rushes to release the bombs to take out one of the First Order's massive dreadnaught ships, killing herself in the process. It is not until a bit later in the movie that we finally meet Rose Tico, who is monitoring the escape pods on the Resistance cruiser to make sure nobody tries to desert the cause. She is wearing a medallion similar to the crescent-shaped one we saw the bomber clutch before she died, and we quickly discover that the bomber was Rose's older sister, Paige. The crescent medallions were clearly something Rose and Paige shared as a physical representation of their bond.
But even though that pendant obviously means so much to Rose, she is willing to part with it later on in the film in order to save the Resistance. After she and Finn pick up a shady hacker named DJ (played by Benicio Del Toro) and enlist him to help them break into Snoke's ship, she only briefly hesitates before handing over her medallion to him when he demands a downpayment for his services, much to Finn's surprise. It's clear that although Rose holds the reminder of her sister dear, she will do anything she can to help save the Resistance and defeat the First Order.
Surprisingly, DJ didn't want the medallion for financial reasons, but practical ones. When he reaches the final door to the center of Snoke's ship, DJ whips out Rose's medallion and uses it to short-circuit the operating mechanism and open the door, before handing the keepsake back to Rose. He then briefly quips that the metal the medallion is made of is the best conductor in the galaxy, and he knew he needed it to complete his break-in. It's one of the only actually sweet moments we get from DJ, who ruins all of our good will towards him quickly afterwards when he sells out the Resistance to Captain Phasma for a boatload of money. If DJ does return for Episode 9, you can bet that Finn and Rose will be out for revenge against him.
Luckily, Rose gets to keep her pendant in the end, although she doesn't wind up in the most promising state as the credits begin to roll. After crashing her ship into Finn's to save him from a deadly cannon blast, Rose is badly injured and falls unconscious after a few inspirational words and a small kiss. Finn manages to bring her back into the Resistance's stronghold and a medical team quickly gets to work on her, but fans are left wondering whether Rose will make it to see Episode 9 or not. If she does die, then at least she went out as a hero, just like her sister.
