Can you use "return" with noun adjuncts?
My friend used a phrase "the dark side return" meaning "the return of the dark side".
I have a feeling native speakers would never put it that way, but can't articulate my position. Is that true? Can anyone help me?
I have a vague idea that maybe action nouns (here "return") don't take noun adjuncts or attributive phrases (here "the dark side") something like that.
Edit for more context: It was a Pink Floyd cover band concert, so "The Dark Side Return" was the concert headline.
English titles are not the same as regular English speech or writing.
Often, titles will use a genitive and avoid awkward-sounding nouns-to-adjuncts.
The Dark Side of the Moon [a formal title].
Can you say or write: the moon's dark side. Sure, you might say it or write it. Would you use if for a title? Probably not.
Shakespeare wrote "The Merchant of Venice". And not: the Venetian Merchant.
Also, he wrote: "The Merry Wives of Windsor", and not: the merry Windsorian wives......
This idea is especially true for places: the Moon, Venice, Windsor.
Another title that comes to mind is the The Beatles' song: A Hard Day's Night.
This is the opposite phenomenon. They take "the night that comes at the end of a hard day" which does sound a bit odd and give us: A Hard Day's Night. Why? Well, maybe because they wanted to show the ordinariness of everyday things. Who knows exactly? But it works.
Let readers decide: Which sounds better?
The Return of the Jedi? Or The Jedi's Return?
Is the "Jedi's return" grammatical? Sure it is. Does it sound like a good title? NO. :)