As for your spoiler.
I will say, Abrams did not write the film. The writer on TFA was the same guy that wrote Empire Strikes Back and Raiders of the Lost Arc.
So, the idea to include something like that and then get rid of it in the same film isn't really... new for this series.
But, I was glad it didn't devolve into a series of political debates and awful CGI locations.
And, while there was a rescue element to the film... it wasn't as bad as it was in A New Hope.
Or hell, the original trilogy in general. Ep 4, save the princess. Ep 5, save Han and the princess. Ep 6, Save Han.
