[bai-xue]

In TLJ, the first scene between Kylo and Snoke emphasizes that Snoke only values Kylo for his heritage, not for who he is

The final scene between Kylo and Rey emphasizes that Kylo values Rey for who she is, not her heritage

Kylo may have said it in the most assbackwards Mr-Darcy-level-idiotic way possible, but don’t you dare tell me that was him trying to manipulate or abuse her. That boy has been told for years that he wouldn’t matter if not for his grandfather, and now, in front of his abuser’s dead body, he’s affirming that someone else matters to him in a way he never mattered to his abuser.

[cloudyfacewithjam]

[desxtroy-deactivated20180624]

‘You can’t be doing this, the effort would kill you.’

He dosnt seem mad to realize Luke isn’t really there. The blind rage is gone, the tantrum is over. There’s no more ‘I want to kill you!’ Or ‘You are killing yourself so I can’t.’ It’s a sad resignation. The little sigh and pressing his lips together, he’s sad and angry but a part of him understands. He knows that wherever Luke is, he’s about to die alone. He understands his Uncle is killing himself just to apologize. Look at Ben’s face and tell me there won’t be a damn redemption arc.

[justcallmesandwich]

Reblogging for ☝that comment. 👏👏👏

[benreyreylolove]

^ same.

[drnucleus]

And my favorite part is the “See ya around, Kid”. Kid was always Han’s line. It was the cruelest yet most beautiful thing that Luke could say to him in that moment. Honestly if we DON’T get sassy force ghost Luke in IX I will riot. Like I need him sassing the shit out of Supreme Leader Kylo Ren and giving him more ammunition to follow that path back to the light, and to Rey. I love that he’s sad knowing that Luke sacrificed himself not just to save the resistance, but to apologize. He gave Ben closure in a way that didn’t get anyone hurt. He diffused all of Ben’s righteous indignation and rage at his family for abandoning him to be murdered by his uncle by his uncle simply admitting that he was wrong and that he failed him as a teacher. It’s the HARDEST thing for Ben to hear but it’s what he needs. 

This entire movie was setting up these characters to face the hardest things they’ve ever faced. Rey’s was learning that her past doesn’t matter that her place in the story is rooted in her connection to the present and the future not the past. Luke’s hardest thing to hear was that he fucked up and created the monster who destroyed everything he loved out of fear of that very same monster. Snoke had his hardest thing to face was an apprentice who no longer buys into his singular ideology. Poe had to learn how to be a leader and not a hero. Leia had to learn that sometimes hope is not enough. Finn had to learn that there is nowhere to run. That the war will just continue as long as it’s profitable so he might as well take a side and help end it. Rose had to learn that sometimes your heroes aren’t what you think and not everything has an easy answer or solution. 

And I love that the 3rd lesson was for Ben. That his hardest thing to hear was the man who he trusted, who betrayed him and tried to kill him (in his mind yes Luke definitely looked crazy) that man was sorry for hurting him. Was admitting he was wrong and wouldn’t actually clash sabers with him and fight him like Anakin v Obi Wan in ROTS. No Luke took the route he knew would work. The route he knew would shoot straight into his nephew’s psyche and heart and needle it’s way in to show him that his trauma was real. It is valid and that at least for Luke’s part in it, he was truly sorry for it. And that is just beautiful.

[enjoyallneednothing-blog]

@youdonthavemysmile 💔💔😭😭

[psy-kylo-gy]

I have many thoughts about this favorite ever scene of mine and why the crazy Luke fanboys are just so blind to hate the neverending beauty of it and the beauty of the possibility of Bendemption by Lukedemption.

I don’t know if Luke could have actually hurt Ben as a Force projection. Ben felt the dice in his hand as if they were real, so I would think Luke could have skewered Ben with Anakin’s saber and that would have been a huge “fuck you!” to the Vader fanboy. But for discussion sake let’s say he couldn’t hurt Ben as a projection even if he wanted to—people seem to forget that Luke had another option: he could have come in person and *actually* squared off against Ben if he wanted to. If he felt like that was what the Force wanted him—an instrument of the light—to do he would have dragged up his X-Wing still on Ach-To and left to find Leia the second his conversation with Yoda was over, hellbent on killing Ben (like he should have done years ago.) He knew Rey’s plan was going to fail. This was a completely different situation than what Luke experienced with Vader. No matter how he felt about her, Ben needed something personal from Luke that Rey couldn’t give him: closure.

Luke knew all this time what facing Ben would mean… one of them would have to kill… and one of them would have to die. Ben’s raw power and rage would ensure that. But projection? Luke could talk to Ben without worrying about his own safety. He could try to reach the scared boy underneath the thin shell of Kylo Ren… he could apologize even if Ben wasn’t ready or willing to hear it. “I can’t save him” but he can give Ben guidance to save himself. Because why bring the dice into the equation it at all if he truly believed Ben was gone? He chose to project the dice, he chose himself to die instead. His parting gift of life to his sister, to Rey, and to the Resistance… and his parting gift to the boy he failed: a tough lesson and a mercy in not adding more check marks to Ben’s death tally. That is the most Jedi Master Luke thing he has EVER!!! DONE!!! Luke had every right to want to kill Ben, to get revenge on him for his best friend Han and his temple and his students but no—he died to apologize, died to save them ALL. This isn’t a “Oh Rey can just kill him later” type deal… this is Luke deliberately choosing Ben’s life over his own and giving Ben a chance to heal. And I think during the time jump, Ben will begin the healing process (salt of Crait = metaphor for disinfecting the open bleeding wounds, etc) and will mature enough to realize both his uncle’s genuine remorse and exactly what Luke did for him in the the end. Ben learning forgiveness and confronting his own guilt is SO IMPORTANT.

I also think Luke had to know Rey’s survival was imperative even before Yoda saying “Lose Rey we must not”… I mean he caught the Jedi killer and the (future) last Jedi alone together, holding hands over a fire… staring into each other’s eyes… she had visions of his future for pete’s sake! Maybe, just maybe he eventually came to the (correct) conclusion that the Force had a plan for those two somehow. I mean… guys, come on, Ben not following through on his family’s sacrifices and not helping Rey in the end to stop this war (finish what Grandpa started) would just be terrible writing. Han and Luke’s sacrifices not only redeem themselves but will help save their legacy child they failed and by extension the galaxy. And to me that would be a fucking beautiful ending for this 42-year epic family saga.

[inwildspace]

Reblogging for these absolutely incredible insights and to add this:

Star Wars is about family, hope, love, and redemption that is made possible through those things— not death and destruction.

Ben Solo will be redeemed. The road to redemption began in the first few minutes of The Force Awakens when Ben felt compassion for Finn on Jakku.

Ben will be redeemed through the sacrifice that Han made on the bridge of Strakiller when he tried to bring his son back home. Ben will be redeemed through Leia’s hope— through her deep love and concern that Ben could feel through the Force. Ben will be redeemed through Rey’s compassion— through her love for him and her faith that he can be the man he was meant to be. Ben will be redeemed through Luke’s sacrifice on a Crait— through an apology that was so important that Luke laid down his life to make it.

Man, I can’t wait for IX.

[ratgirl-mcsqueakers]

THIS IS THE BEAUTIFUL KIND OF DISCUSSION I JOINED TUMBLR TO HEAR!

When I’m one of two people I know irl who cares about Ben Solo and his redemption, it can get really exhausting when I’m constantly hearing people irl and online say there’s no light left in Ben. Even though it may seem like an overreaction, this kind of stuff really affects my mental health since I identify so much with the character of Ben Solo.

So thank you to everyone out there who is rooting for Ben and his redemption. Thank you.

[bai-xue]

In TLJ, the first scene between Kylo and Snoke emphasizes that Snoke only values Kylo for his heritage, not for who he is

The final scene between Kylo and Rey emphasizes that Kylo values Rey for who she is, not her heritage

Kylo may have said it in the most assbackwards Mr-Darcy-level-idiotic way possible, but don’t you dare tell me that was him trying to manipulate or abuse her. That boy has been told for years that he wouldn’t matter if not for his grandfather, and now, in front of his abuser’s dead body, he’s affirming that someone else matters to him in a way he never mattered to his abuser.

[kittrose]

“If he doesn’t end up in Rey’s arms by the end of IX I will sue”  (Tom Shone)

Full picture | Follow my Instagram!

[little-lackadaisical]

This is by far the best piece of Star Wars literature ever made

Since everyone’s going crazy, the title of he book is “Are You Scared, Darth Vader?” By Adam Rex

[sufferingcity-deactivated202301]

adam driver meowing at oscar isaac’s cat in inside llewyn davis

(it is an orange cat)

[rad-braybury]

if i ever don’t reblog this you can assume i’m dead

[reylolujah]

Did he..?

Is there even a single thing he does that doesn’t become suddenly attractive?

[reyloandstormpilot]

I can’t words

[chobbsknob]

There’s no light left in Kylo Ren. // If I go to him, Ben Solo will turn.

[desertcirce]

“Kylo Ren, a damaged anti-hero trying to prove himself as a villain while longing for a connection to anything else… That said, I was certainly aware that I was writing a middle chapter of a story that’s yet to be finished, and I was cautious about not stepping on anything that might be better explored in the concluding chapter. That’s why, for instance, you don’t get a lot of interior thoughts from Rey or Kylo after the throne-room duel. Those motivations belong to Episode IX.”

—

Jason Fry, abridged (full interview in source link below)

Me right now

Excuse the multiple posts. I am just stoked that Fry would say something so brave.

[organicslut]

[xreyoflight-deactivated20180923]

[winterswake]

Ben staring at Rey (♡´❍`♡)*✧ ✰ ｡* [insp].

[imashybear]

Kylo: *looks at Rey*

Kylo: *gulps*

[bevsi]

there they go

[weepyreylo]

0-18 inches is considered intimate distance. Just saying

[chubbykylo]

If they didn’t want me to fall in love with the villain, they shouldn’t have cast a big squishy mouthed puppy dude.

[starawr-deactivated20200502]

@chubbyreylo You joke, but Lucasfilm DID want us to fall in love with the villain. THEY DID.

I mean look at this:

No way they didn’t shoot this scene to make Kylo look beautiful. There’s a reason that under the mask, he doesn’t look like, idk, Snoke or Voldemort. 

To quote from this meta:

Kylo’s age bracket is perfectly calculated to appeal to a wide audience: it’s what I call the ’Mr Darcy age’, young enough to appeal to a younger woman audience, and old enough to appeal to older women without making them feel icky about it. He has a manly, imposing physique, contrasted with a much younger-looking face (I suspect some CGI wizardry there, btw) but without any ’cutesy’ features that would make him look too boyish. He looks every inch the Hades archetype. His costume, movement, and carefully coiffed Byronic hairstyle are all designed to maximize his dark-themed physical appeal. This is in no way intended to be a repulsive villain. They knew he would come across as sexy to a significant portion of the audience.  

Summary: Kylo is HOT & we’re supposed to love him. YOU’RE DOING IT RIGHT.

[bratprnce]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

And I think this is what aggravates some fanboys. He’s a villain appealing to the female audience, not the male audience.

Sorry boys. It’s our turn.

[reylo-convert]

SORRY BOYS. IT’S OUR TURN!!!!!!!

[bratprnce]

You know it.

[drnucleus]

That’s actually my favorite thing about this. That they chose Adam - who is unconventionally attractive. He doesn’t have the classic James Dean look like Han or the boyish charm of Anakin in the prequels. He’s handsome in such a unique way. When I first saw Adam in anything I was like “oh fuck.” because he looks like he could just be an ordinary dude, but there’s something about him that draws your attention. Maybe it’s the eyes. Or how interesting his bone structure is, narrow but not in a straight up Adrian Brody narrow. And he’s tall with broad shoulders and isn’t the skinny lean muscle build you see in most movies where someone is the romantic lead. He’s got strength in his limbs and torso but not to a point where it’s overdone like a marvel movie (sorry Evans, really I still love you.)

Stephen Colbert NAILED it when he called Adam a millennial sex symbol. Because he is. 

And coding Kylo/Ben that way through the female gaze is something so revolutionary in film. Usually we get men coded through the male gaze with super thick rippling muscles and boyish charm (The Rock, the Chrises, etc.). 

And here we get this, flowing haired, dark prince who has a tortured and pained air to how he speaks and acts without it feeling trite like some media has portrayed the tortured Byronic hero (Sorry Edward Cullen, but true all the same). 

I love that the fanboys are butthurt over it. While though I do know several guys who were shocked when they heard me gush about my love for Adam Driver. Because they are used to me gushing over Evans or Pine because that’s what media has shoved down my throat as classically attractive for so long. Finding Adam’s beauty in his uniqueness is so fucking refreshing.

Like he takes the best of the well-muscled male heroes that Evans, Hemsworth, Pine, and co embody and adds a depth to it in complexity and resonance. My favorite things about TLJ are the scenes where we get to really focus in on Adam’s face. I know right? He’s so hyper expressive and there’s such beauty in the way he emotes.

We joke about fanfic and how eyes always tell emotions so blatantly in fic. But Adam’s eyes can do that very thing we have all written about and read trillions of times. And it’s unsettling and mesmerizing to see it. 

Even JJ talks about him in that scene as a Prince to Rey’s Princess if they are talking about SW as a fairytale. And they make him so believably regal in that scene that it makes you honestly buy it that he’s the last Prince of the Royal House of Organa, heir to the ashes of Alderaan. 

[mai-komagata]

I think that is the beauty of casting Adam Driver. You *could* make him look really ugly if your goal is to make him unattractive to the audience – give him a weird haircut or light him to emphasize his nose or imperfections. If he looks sort of magical in a scene it isn’t that he just is a classically handsome actor – you know it isn’t accidental. Someone went out of their way to poof out his hair and light him correctly to give him extra eye reflections and highlight the shape of his face. And it think this gives you perspective as a viewer as to what Rey is seeing because it is intentional and it is shocking.  Like, I love Adam, and I like how he looks (understatement, cough), but he doesn’t naturally look like Kylo Ren in TFA. He looks markedly more ethereal there. Like, if you see him in Undercover Boss: StarKiller Base, he looks very different, and it is not just the inferior costuming.   That said, I often have the strongest disagreements about the movie with people who don’t find Adam attractive – because they end up interpreting the same scenes in a very different light because they don’t see what Rey is meant to see. It is a fine line to tread. 

[fluffycakesistainted]

“people who don’t find Adam attractive – because they end up interpreting the same scenes in a very different light because they don’t see what Rey is meant to see.”

^^ You know what, I never would’ve thought too much of that in terms of fandom responses to Reylo - bc personally I don’t have to find the male characters (as I’m straight) in my ships attractive to ship them with someone - but I think you hit a nail on the head with this one. Because some of the misinterpretations of Ben, especially concerning his dynamic with Rey, are so egregiously wrong in the face of what’s actually been presented on screen, and sometimes flat-out explained by the directors and the cast. 

Could also be another reason Kylo fans/sympathizers/redemptionists skew more female than male. We’re seeing Rey’s storyline through Rey’s eyes and POV, and Ben was clearly set up to be intriguing and physically attractive through the female gaze, specifically Rey’s female gaze. But if people don’t understand that, or don’t see what Rey sees, then yeah, they’re not gonna get it. And this is on top of the fact that he’s “the villain” and people keep transposing villainous motivations onto him that aren’t actually there, so he’s gotta be one of the most misunderstood Star Wars characters ever. But at least that’s balanced out with him also being a fan favorite of this trilogy. 

[benreyreylolove]

^

[diaryofmusings]

SOMEONE FINALLY PUT THE RIGHT WORDS TO IT.

My husband just doesn’t understand why I’m obsessed with the acting and character development and how the actors portray the characters in general - he’s adamant that they aren’t that great and that Kylo isn’t designed to be attractive. We have to agree to disagree on the sequel movies (he still watches them with me, because Star Wars), but he doesn’t SEE it the way it’s been designed, how they used flattering angles and specific lighting and let Adam act with microexpressions and emotion conveyed with his eyes.

Whatever, his loss. 😂

[fluffycakesistainted]

A big driver of the sequel trilogy discourse is that some people don’t SEE it the way it’s been designed, or don’t WANT to see it the way it’s been designed. But like you said, whatever, there’s still plenty of pre-ST Star Wars for them to enjoy. I’m sure it’s disappointing to have to accept this whole trilogy as a personal wash because it’s just not their cup of tea, but it is what it is. 🤷🏽‍♀️

[hope-lives-in-the-galaxy]

YES FCKING YES

[reyloiseverything]

Look at this lighting, angle, hair styling and tell me that we’re not supposed to view him attractive?

He looks like a prince for Christ’s sake.

Even the dialogue supports our view of Kylo’s attractiveness ; Rey’s comment about how she’s being hunted by a “creature in a mask” and then the wam-bam-thank-you-mam reveal of his human face.

[unexpectedreylo]

I didn’t “see” it either at first; in fact I remember some shots in TFA that reminded me of Young Snape more than anything else.  Now it’s really obvious.  They shot this in the most flattering way possible under the circumstances, revealing to Rey for the first time the man beneath the bad guy persona, i.e. there is someone of beauty beneath it.  It doesn’t ciick for her until TLJ and that’s where it first clicked for ME.  (I’m a 48 year old woman in case you’re wondering.)

There’s something about the way Kylo is presented that makes me think of the way David Lynch presents his “troubled” girls or femme fatales:  sexy, glamorous, and mysterious.  But it’s a man.  Byronic heroes are nothing new and Kylo fits the job description to a tee but we’re seeing how that’s attractive to a woman’s perspective.  Interesting.

[kylo-wouldnt-like-those-chips]

So, that relief Rey felt in the novel when she saw Kylo there with her in the hut? Imagine her relief when it’s all over and he’s really hers. 

[reyloandstormpilot]

Person: So what does Kylo Ren rule exactly?

Me:

[im-reylo-trash-and-i-dont-care]

Well that, and every woman’s ovaries…

[hope-lives-in-the-galaxy]

👆

[anafigreen]

Can we meet in the middle?