Why Are Kylo Ren/Reylo So Controversial? (the answer is a lot more complicated then you think)
So it turns out antis have some deep seeded issues. Who knew?Â
I just recently found this amazing Youtube channel called Pop Culture Detective. Heâs made some pretty incredible videos and I totally recommend checking out âThe Case Against The Jediâ because it is mind blowing. Today, however, I will be writing a post that is inspired by Pop Culture Detectiveâs (PCD) post âHow The Last Jedi Defies Expectations (about male heroes).â While PCD explores how TLJ shook fanboys to the core with nuanced and woke portrayals of heroic masculinity, Iâm here to talk about how the sequel trilogy shook fanboys to the core with nuanced and woke portrayals of masculine villains (and their romances with heroines.)
Letâs start with Kylo Ren. Iâve already talked about why so many fan boys (not all fan boys, for clarityâs sake. Letâs call them the âFan Boy Antisâ) have this deep (and in my opinion borderline obsessive) hatred for Kylo. Letâs recap. At the beginning of TFA Kylo makes this big scary entrance. Heâs wearing a mask, heâs got a fun outfit, and cool Force powers. The audience has this expectation that heâs going to be an evil badass who kills without mercy, and yet there are little clues planted in this first scene that start to put us on edge. Kylo is mocked by Poe, Lor San Tekka says âyou cannot deny the truth that is your family,â and, most importantly, Kylo sees Finn display defective behavior and he lets him go. That moment subverts our expectations and was placed there (by the film makers) to tell us: âKylo isnât just your ordinary bad guy.â Despite Kyloâs attempts to be âjust another Vaderâ (or the toxic masculine persona instead of the real Anakin Skywalker) he fails and thatâs huge.
As PCD says âHegemonic Masculinityâ (Iâm shortening it to HM because Iâm lazy) is the âsocially constructed ideal of manhood,â aka the way man are told they have to behave. These behaviors are sometimes positive (like brave or hardworking behaviors.) Unfortunately, HM also demands that men are always physically strong, aggressive, dominating, competitive, emotionally suppressive, and hetero-normative. The important thing to note is that this is an impossible and unhealthy âidealâ that men are told they must strive for. Toxic masculinity/hyper masculinity, as PCD says, is
âthe set of attitudes and behaviors associated with the âpursuitâ of that HM ideal⌠(which) includes competition, sexual conquest, and destructive/risk taking behaviors. Hyper Masculinity is also obsessively anti feminine⌠Hyper masculine behaviors are how men are taught to perform their manhood to prove that they are closer to that âidealâ then the other men around themâŚâ
Thatâs why there was such a backlash towards the Prequelâs portrayal of Anakin. He was emotional, insecure, vulnerable and complicated. While, from a literary standpoint, this is an amazing character choice, it totally shattered this Darth Vader persona of the real DV/Anakin that âFan Boy Antisâ had built up in their minds and glorified during the original trilogy. These guys saw DV as a sort of Hegemonic Masculine icon (despite the fact that many of his actions were reprehensible) and when the prequels came around and challenged/explored this unhealthy persona of an vulnerable man, it hit way too close to home for some fans. You know why? Itâs because they saw themselves in Anakin.
A lot of fans love to forget that the whole point of Return of the Jedi was DV becoming Anakin again and choosing to let go of his toxic persona (because of the unconditional love he had for Luke.) These fans disregard the prequelâs exploration of a manâs indoctrination into a culture that demonizes emotional vulnerability and the beautiful redemption of DV back to Anakin when he finally lets himself care for another person.
But back to Kylo. Kyloâs failure to become a toxic masculine person (as is shown by his inability to embrace a Vader-like persona) really rubs some fans the wrong way. Kylo even kills Han who, to these âFan Boy Antis,â symbolizes a perfect âmasculine hero.â It might be an echo of their own failures to match up with an HM ideal or the subversion of the expectation that they were signing up for a âbadassâ villain that they could love to hate instead of a complex Anti hero who challenges them. These fans mock Kylo for being âwhinyâ and âemo,â (aka emotional, because this is considered a feminine trait) but itâs really all about their own insecurity. Itâs called projecting, dear reader.
And now we get to Reylo. Reylo subverts these dudeâs expectations because time and time againâFan Boy Antisâ have been taught that the Hyper Masculine Hero âgets the girl.â
âWhat is this hogwash?â they complain, âThe emotionally vulnerable guy who is unable to perform HM masculinity has a girlfriend? Well I wonât stand for it!â
These âFan Boy Antisâ canât understand the fact that Reyhas been given her own agency and is not just a prize to be won. At least in the âReylo viewingâ of TlJ Rey is not only given the agency to choose her own partner but she also chooses a guy who these fans have decided is âunfitâ for her because he doesnât perform TM and they canât stand it.
Thatâs all for today. I hope that certain people (you know who you are) in the Star Wars fandom get a grip and realize that characters who embrace their emotions and vulnerability have some of the most powerful  and important arcs that we really need right now. Â
And to all of the fans who embrace these characters and their stories, thanks for making the Star wars experience awesome.
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