Unpopular Last Jedi Opinion II: Kylo Ren is Beyond Redemption

Picking up from my previous post, I’m talking of one more unpopular opinion about The Last Jedi: how Kylo Ren was handled.

While I understand why Rian Johnson and J.J. Abrams hinted that the Skywalkers and Rey could bring Ben Solo back from the dark side, to keep insinuating that it is possible is a travesty.

Freudian Excuse is Not An Excuse

Your past does not justify the lives that you take in cold blood. Soldiers may have orders, but leaders have responsibility. You have to bear all the victories and the sins.

Someone like General Hux is more convincing as a villain because the film doesn’t make any bare bones that his freudian excuse of having to work his way up does not make up for all the terrible things he does. Also, Hux is a more competent leader and villain that gets shafted because he’s an ordinary galactic white supremacist arguing with Sith Lords. This is always a bad idea. It makes one pity Hux while condemning him.

The backstory reveals that Ben Solo felt neglected by his parents, and was shocked when it came out that Darth Vader was his grandfather. I call nonsense on this. Han and Leia loved Ben dearly. You can see it in the way they interact in his presence. Han puts down his weapons and tries to talk him down, while Leia stares sadly into outer-space, as if she’s expecting her son to murder her.

It’s good when a villain is given sympathetic traits. It means they are scarier because they are closer than home. I dislike, however, that Kylo Ren’s sympathy lies in that his uncle was contemplating murdering him. You know why? Because Kylo Ren may have tried to kill his uncle in self-defense, but then he murdered most of Luke’s other apprentices and took the ones who would join him. That was not cool. They had nothing to do with Luke’s decision. Also, Han and Leia would have never approved of Luke doing such a thing, and Ben betrayed them anyway. Not cool.

Wanting The Hero As Your Girlfriend Is Not the Same As Wanting Redemption

Kylo Ren is physically attracted to Rey. He wants her on his side so that he can bone her. What’s more, he feels entitled to her. He knows nothing about her, but kidnaps her personally because she is hot and has the information that he needs. Compare to how he captured Poe. The Stormtroopers restrain Poe after Kylo Ren paralyzes the latter, who snarks as much as he can before he’s dragged off to interrogation.

WIth all this, Kylo Ren is a creep. He’s a creep of the worst kind because of his entitlement. Rey saw him lead an attack on a neutral planet, merely to get a map from a droid. One shudders to think about what Kylo Ren would do to BB8, if he is willing to mind-rape enemies, physically abuse his loyal men, and submit to an manipulative leader like Snoke and obey him despite his consternations and inner doubt. Unlike Darth Vader, who was led to believe that he had no choice but to join the dark side, Kylo Ren had a choice. And he chose to be a creep.

Rey trying to redeem Kylo Ren is enabling his entitlement. Yes, the villainous Snoke was the one who created their mind link, and Luke does all that he can to dissuade Rey of the notion that Kylo Ren can be saved. The special bond is forged by an emotionally abusive Sith Lord who only understands emotions enough to manipulate them.

Ben Solo Is Not Anakin Skywalker

Anakin Skywalker got redeemed. Mind that he only got redeemed through death. If he had made it off the Death Star alive, he would have been tried for various war crimes. Leia would not want a relationship with him, after he tortured her, blew up her home planet, tortured Han, and cut off Luke’s hand. Luke wants to redeem him but doesn’t consider the ramifications of befriending a Sith. A death that occurs when he saves his son is the most merciful outcome for all parties, to be honest.

There is also the fact that Anakin lost everything he wanted, in his quest to save his wife. He lost his status as a Jedi, the respect and love of his master, and his wife and children. As Palpatine grins in the shadows, Darth Vader screams when he realizes that he sealed the fate he saw in his dreams by trying to prevent it. Even when he learned his kids were alive, they had grown to resent everything Darth Vader and the Empire resented.

Ben Solo has not lost everything. He’s not at the point where Vader was: an zombified cyborg who could only serve the Emperor and carry on Palpatine’s reign of destruction. He still has to face consequences for his actions. While he has been tossed around in both movies, he has committed two sins that Vader would never have even conceived: patricide and matricide.

The Sith Lord’s Greatest Sins

Kylo Ren has committed one of the greatest sins: patricide. He murders his unarmed father in cold blood. It is absolutely sickening, because of how Han refuses to lift a finger against his grown son. Han doesn’t say, “You murdered all of Luke’s students. Not cool.” He doesn’t say, “You broke your mother’s heart and stole all the victories she made to give you a better future.” Han says, “Come home.”

Again, Snoke may have set up the circumstances, but Ben still made that choice. He did a terrible thing, one that sets Chewbacca the Wookie against him. It kills any chance that Rey and Finn would not fight against him, Rey at first to avenge Han Solo, and Finn to protect Rey. Rey later is tricked into thinking she can redeem Ben, but her first reaction is to shoot him.

Kylo Ren then leads a charge to murder his mother, and to wipe out her attempts to restore hope and freedom to the galaxy. This is matricide, another great sin, and one especially cruel given that Leia never gave up on her son until the very end of the movie, when she and Luke have their final conversation. It doesn’t matter that Kylo couldn’t fire the killing blow. He still led men who would make the shot. And then, to top it off, he decides to wipe out the dregs of the Resistance just because he can, and he wants to establish himself as a strong tyrant.

Nevertheless, the Franchise will Still Redeem Kylo Ren

We can see it coming a mile away. Star Wars is about balancing the light between the darkness, and of course the murderous white dude will get permission to do his thing. That’s how this story is going to go, even though Kylo Ren has not earned his redemption.

I do hope the story takes a different direction, for the reasons stated. Poe, Finn and Rey are the heroes that need a break. They have been taking on too much in the previous film. Let them have their happy ending without having to redeem the unredeemable.