why do you think reylo will be resolved romantically? instead of a platonic or one-sided ending with rey patting kylo on the back and saying she's glad he made the right choice for the greater good? i hope this doesn't come across confrontational or anything i'm just curious because it's been so low-key in the movies so far and i don't know why they would go so painfully subtle with it if it was the actual endgame romance.
Because Reylo was already depicted as romantic in TLJ, and backtracking from that makes no sense—it would only mean they’re insecure about what kind of story they’re telling and that there’s no communication between directors and no overall plan on Lucasfilm’s part and I. don’t. believe. any. of. those. things.
Lowkey and painfully subtle you say?
Sure, nothing screams LOWKEY like a game-changing, unprecedented force bond spanning light years, canonically described in terms like “primal”, “raw and powerful”, “a live wire in the wreckage of a starship”, “intimate”, “incredible intimacy” (I’ve honestly lost count of how many times Rian Johnson has used the word “intimate” in relation to Rey and Kylo)—a connection that allows them to communicate across galaxies while the rest of the world disappears around them (pay attention to the sound effects) and tap into each other’s consciousness and deepest secrets and fears and desires and even physically touch each other.
^ and be coordinated in battle too. Oh god, they perfectly move together. So lowkey. Not highkey drift compatible avenging battle couple at all.
Nothing screams SUBTLE like visions of their shared future exploding in their minds like brain orgasms at the barest touch of their fingertips, in a softly candlelit scene in front of a fireplace, while she’s all wet and wrapped in a blanket like a maiden from a painting and looking more vulnerable than ever and he shudders and cries for her.
^ but only after removing his glove, ffs. Who doesn’t love skin-on-skin contact with your platonic buddy? Oh, by the way, this was described by the actual director of TLJ as “the closest thing to a sex scene you’ll ever see in Star Wars”. That’s certainly a strange joke to make about two characters who aren’t on a romantic arc. Speaking of gloves and hands, that actually sounded like a gauntlet thrown at JJ Abrams. Hopefully he takes it.
Nothing screams PLATONIC like Rey stuttering and flushing as she stumbles upon a half naked Kylo, who gets up close and personal in all his scarred glory as she holds his gaze and makes herself focus (LOL). That one was surely just fan service and not used to introduce a blatant sexual element in their relationship at all, am I right? And the fact that their scenes are almost invariably intimate one-on-one encounters between the two of them alone, eyes locked in intense prolonged eye contact often emphasized by choker shot camera angles with lots of quivering and audible breathing and gasping and looking at each other’s lips/neck/chest is… probably just a coincidence? The only scene in which they’re not alone with each other is the one in Snoke’s throne room, and interestingly it ends with them killing everyone in that room so that they’re both alone again and Kylo walking up to her to make a tear-soaked, overemotional marriage ruling proposal after which they both cry and plead each other to stay with them. Platonic buddies being platonic, nothing to see here.
^ this moment was especially platonic. Very PG-13. Not looking ravenous at all, Adam. I’m sure Kylo was going to give Rey a pat on the shoulder here.
The one-sided train left for Never Going To Happen City the moment Rian Johnson chose to depict Rey as the one who consistently initiates physical contact and moves closer—she offers him her hand, she gets in his personal space in the elevator scene and speaks softly to him, she considers touching his face and hair, she crosses light years against all judgment and caution and ships herself in a box to get to him and make him come back. With her. But surely she went through all this ordeal only to see him make the right choice, selfless principled redeemer of random bad guys she is. It’s not like it’s explicitly stated (in the novelization) and perfectly conveyed (in the movie) that she enjoys his presence, doesn’t want to be alone again and doesn’t want him to be alone again either and that just the barest glimpse of him at her side in a mysterious future was enough to move her to tears.
It’s not like she WANTS HIM as much as he wants her, right? It can’t be.
^ look, the face of someone who just saw a vision of a reformed Ben Solo going on his merry way after redemption. I too cry when people I’m definitely not in love with do the right thing for the greater good that has nothing to do with me.
(seriously: why is it so hard to see that Rey is attracted to Kylo? Is it because we can’t recognize female attraction, or because it’s only acceptable in a heroine when the recipient is considered worthy?)
I mean Reylo was so ~painfully subtle~ in TLJ that virtually ALL reviews, positive and critical, praised the INSANE chemistry between Adam and Daisy and the dynamic between Rey and Kylo as the strongest part of the movie. It’s so subtle that Reylo content is now completely mainstream on social media (including official sources), that Rey and Kylo are often marketed together, and that the ship literally exploded in popularity after the movie. Methinks it means TLJ was not subtle at all, what do you think?
“But they didn’t kiss or say that they love each other yet, and every interaction between them can be read as non-romantic”!—sure, if you squint a lot and like being wrong.
The lack of kissing only means that this dynamic needed TWO movies of build up rather than one like in Han/Leia’s and in Anakin/Padme’s cases. Reylo has simply much more ground to cover (it starts as a hero/villain dynamic, so it requires more development, which TLJ does beautifully) and, unlike Ani*dala, it’s probably not going to unravel into open tragedy in Act III, which means there’s no need to skip the slow burn and squeeze the actual hook up in Act II. The… romantic consummation is going to be a huge climatic moment, so it has to happen in the third and last act. Their relationship is also more complex and rich than the ones above since it’s inextricably linked to mystical elements (the force bond, the balance) and central plot elements (it’s going to be the key to Ben’s redemption and probably to the defeat of the First Order too).
By being romantic, this dynamic raises the stakes from a storytelling perspective—because with Han, Luke and presumably Leia all gone Rey is the only one who is invested in Ben Solo for personal and not simply ideological reasons (she actually has something to lose if Ben doesn’t redeem himself, and it’s a future with him, which we know she wants badly). A friendship arc that has the same emotional impact of a love story is not a viable option in this case, not after it was made explicit that they’re NOT related (so family/sibling feels can’t be the common ground to build a relationship on) and especially not after the blatant eroticism of their most recent interactions.
Will it be “resolved” romantically?
It depends on your definition of “resolve”—it could end very badly or they could go for an open ending, and leave (some) things unspoken so that there’s still more story to tell about them, especially if they plan to continue using these characters in comics, novels, tv adaptation or even future movies. But the romantic/sexual elements are only going to grow more intense and explicit, and this is a safe prediction to make. The three-act structure of these movies implies a progression in which the narrative tension and the stakes escalate until they reach the final climax, and there’s no reason to think the central dynamic of this trilogy—Rey and Kylo have been defined “two halves of a protagonist” by the director—won’t follow this pattern too.
