Sith Lords And Creep Levels: Who Can Be Redeemed in Star Wars?

So the Rise of Skywalker came out. I spoiled myself, naturally, by accident. My feelings are, “okay.” Also, I am sad that they put in Leia’s death, even knowing that it was necessary. We know the princess will always be with us, but still we all miss her. Carrie Fisher was an icon.

Kylo Ren and Rey apparently are the forefront of the new trilogy. Rey is a girl who is Force-sensitive and Kylo Ren is interested in grooming her to be his successor. As they move down their opposing paths, Rey holds onto the hope that tyranny won’t win again and that the Force will show her who she is.

Here is the problem: I don’t like Kylo Ren because the first movie established him as a creep. He freezes Rey when she tries to defend BB-8, knocks her out and carries her to his ship. They literally just met and all he knows is that she’s hot. Rey hates him, but in the second movie starts to bond with him via psychic link. She hopes that she can succeed where his parents failed, but Kylo Ren is

The issue with redemption is that you want to ensure that the person hasn’t crossed unforgivable lines. Those lines are subjective, obviously, but you want to ensure that someone who can reform hasn’t caused irreparable harm. Prince Zuko from Avatar is the standard that

Like Grandfather, Like Grandson

Was Anakin a creep? Yes, he was. He spied on a woman who was five years older than him, to the point that she turned off the security camera in her room during an assassination attempt. During his bodyguard duty, he would flirt with her and playfully wrestle. Padme even points out that their relationship was forbidden by their duties. She has to be Senator, not a mother, and Jedis aren’t supposed to feel. Anakin despite himself married her. Padme decided to do her best to make the relationship work.

What made Anakin more sympathetic than Kylo Ren? The mere fact that for much of his life he was trying to do good. He started as a slave boy who helped out a Jedi and a random girl by racing for the parts they needed. Then he flew into battle, proving himself before the Jedi Temple accepted him.

Also, to the point, Anakin Skywalker fell. He indirectly killed his wife, blew up planets, tortured both his children and was going to get the Emperor rule out of despair. His ultimate redemption was choosing to die to save his son, to prove that he would honor the spirit of his late wife. Luke and Leia would have to live with his memory, without Anakin having to face the consequences of his actions. Anakin living would mean having to repent for a lifetime.

Has Kylo Ren proven that he did good things before wiping out the Jedi Temple? Nope. We only know that he trained, and Luke feared darkness in him. The kid fell in his twenties, and he had two parents who loved him. Killing Han and trying to kill Leia was something that Anakin never did.

Not to mention that Anakin never took away Padme’s agency the way Kylo did, until the end. The moment that he chokes his defenseless wife, who is pregnant, is when we know that he has truly fallen. Only then does Obi-Wan draw his sword and fight. It’s not a good thing that Anakin hurts the person he’s trying to protect. And it shouldn’t be good that Kylo hasn’t exactly made up for that.

Kylo Ren’s a great character, mind. Adam Driver plays the role with finesse. But I doubt that watching the next movie will convince me that the creep factor from Kylo Ren’s character has vanished. It has to do so much more. May the Force be with the last movie from this trilogy, to perform better.