Regarding some wank in Tumblr.txt thread about how Kylo Ren doesn't ~deserve~ redemption: Now I want like, Redeemed!Balanced Force Teacher!Kylo that has been going by Ben Solo for years and have someone flip their shit like, "You're letting KYLO FUCKING REN teach younglings and be on the Jedi Council and and and--" And he's all resigned to it and prepared to acknowledge his sins and explain that he's been trying to work past that... and a ton of former and current students and war buddies all jump to his defense and it's very dramatic I'll just go cry in my shame hole. also Hux too because they rebel at the same time because they're together because I'm Kylux trash and he's a brilliant strategist for the New Republic idfk okay
*POPS OUT OF SHAME HOLE LIKE A GOPHER, SCREAMING* AND THEN FOR SOME REASON HE HAS TO ~TAKE UP THE MANTLE OF KYLO REN~ AGAIN MAYBE HE'S A SPY OR SOMETHING FUCK I DON'T CARE AND THERE'S A BIG HEARTWRENCHING PERSONAL STRUGGLE AND LOTS OF FLASHBACKS. GIVE ME ALL THE TROPES. GIVE THEM TO ME NOW! *ducks back into shame hole*
oh no. I want to read this. (I'm picturing him being defended by a bunch of smol children, because cutes.)
smol bebes with harmless light-up plasteel practice sabers moving to stand in front of him in flawless form and he he's so fucking proud he could explode but like "No, babies, this is my fight--" and they won't move because they love him and aaaaaaagh
I just kicked myself in the feels, this isn't fair I usually do this to other people. *curls in a ball*
let me join you in the shame hole plz, those tropes are the best tropes Related, I feel like yall would enjoy the Double Agent Vader series, it's exactly what it sounds like
Man, just in general I'm super fucking excited to see where Kylo's character goes. His arc could go anywhere and I love it. He could go darker, he could go light, he could do anything! I'm good with anything, too. Shine on you crazy diamond.
I'm pretty sure he'll get a redemption arc, I mean, he's Han & Leia's kid, of course they'll bring him in from the cold possibly through the power of hatemakeouts with Rey/Hux/idfk but they're going to drag him through the mud for a while first. He's a Vader parallel, and heartwrenching villain redemption sells movie tickets. Especially if that redemption is preceded by getting the absolute shit kicked out of him by a tiny scrappy scavenger chick from Bumfuck, Nowhere. My black, twisted shipper heart really wants him to be dragged kicking and screaming back to the Light through sheer power of rivalmance. Possibly with Rey going "LOLNO" from a tanglebuddy pile with Finn and Poe the whole time. So sue me.
My biggest hope for Kylo Ren's role in future Star Wars movies is that he not pull the Redemption Equals Death trope-maneuver. I would be cool with a Kylo Ren that spirals down into total self-destruction, probably. But if he's getting a redemption arc? I want that damnable man to have to live with himself and his past choices. Death would be too easy and too dramatically satisfying. Living is harder. edit: Rivalmance and hatemakeouts are all pretty great. I'm so down for Kylux trash, but I can see a Ren just infuriated with, like, Rey. How does she keep beating me? What is her secret knowledge of the force? It's that she isn't a dick like you, Kylo.
I'm 90% sure they're going for the redemption, just because he hit the "no turning back" point too early. If he was going to keep being a/the primary antagonist, he wouldn't have killed Han or gotten his ass kicked in a lightsaber duel by Rey in the first movie of the trilogy. The script even makes a point of saying that he expected to feel all free of doubts after killing Han, but instead he feels more conflicted. At the very least, I'm sure we're not going to get two more movies of Kylo playing Vader- even if he doesn't turn Light again, I expect he'll break his role somehow.
Now I'm imagining angry Kylo clinging to a rock at the bottom of the ocean--with floaty kiddie swim wings on labeled "friends" and "family" pulling him up.
Thing that popped into my head while waiting for the bus today: you know who one of the closer character parallels to Kylo Ren I can think of is? Azula from Avatar: the Last Airbender. Snoke is equivalent to Ozai, and Leia is equivalent to Ursa. "My own mother thought I was a monster" plus the deep-down knowledge that yes, she was afraid of him, but she still cared about about him anyway and wanted to protect him... but still, from his perspective, abandoned him. So he clings to the figure who's always there and offers him the hope of belonging and doesn't realize/want to admit that it's a hollow lie and Snoke is just using him.
YES THIS. god, kylo ren is like if you mashed zuko and azula together. all that certainty that the parent knows they're a monster, all that being groomed by someone who wants them for their power, all that angry defensive blustering, and wrecking things when anything doesn't go his way.
