The true story of the Star Wars sequel trilogy has dramatically shifted once again. A new revelation makes it clearer than ever before that the loss of Ben Solo was never as it appeared, changing the legacy of the Skywalker family forever.
The world watched as Ben Solo was restored, returning to the light side in The Rise of Skywalkeri. Now in Star Wars: Legacy of Vader, fans have an even more definitive answer to the big question: was Ben Solo truly corrupted into falling to the dark side, or simply forced into service by Emperor Palpatine?
Bringing the ‘Supreme Leader’ Kylo Ren face to face with another servant of the dark side of the Force, his true position is laid bare. A man trapped and coerced into serving the dark side, not a servant of it in any fashion
Star Wars Confirms: Kylo Ren Never Actually Fell, He Was Only Caged
Star Wars: Legacy of Vader #9 by Charles Soule, Stefano Raffaele, Nolan Woodard (Marvel Comics)
For those who haven’t been following the Marvel series, The Legacy of Vader covers the period after The Last Jedi and before The Rise of Skywalker. A crucial pivot point in Kylo Ren’s story, the story picks up largely where writer Charles Soule’s previous Rise of Kylo Ren origin story left off. With the ‘death’ of Ben Solo a major story point.
The films posed a simple sequence: Luke’s fear turned him against Ben, sending him down a path to the dark side, and to Snoke (a restored Palpatine in disguise). Yet it was The Rise of Kylo Ren which revealed Ben Solo was trapped by the dark side, not seduced like his grandfather. And Legacy of Vader is leaving no doubt, having Tava Ren state it plainly:
“Supreme Leader? Please. You’re a wild man, Kylo Ren. You’re a free man. And yet you live in this cage. You have the key and still you stay.“
The Failure of Palpatine is Even Greater With This Kylo Ren Retcon
This isn’t the first time that expanded novels, comics, or other media has rewritten the Star Wars sequel trilogy’s character arcs. For its part, The Force Awakens introduced a very obviously torn version of Ben Solo, doubting his ability (and arguably even needed assistance) to kill his own father in service of the dark side. Even then, his ‘fall’ was not complete.
Later films would show Ben embracing the idea of Kylo Ren, while lacking the devotion of Darth Vader (whose legacy he claimed to be serving). But as ScreenRant’s own Tom Bacon noted at the time, Kylo urging Rey to “surrender” to the dark side in The Rise of Skywalker exposed his true relationship to Palpatine’s influence.
In the grand scope of potential Jedi being attracted, seduced, and ultimately corrupted by the dark side, the difference between ’embracing’ such darkness and ‘surrendering’ to it matters. Kylo Ren was only ever a “caged” man. Acting as further insult to Emperor Palpatine, but also revealing an even more important retcon.
For those who felt Kylo Ren’s turn from villain to hero fell short of Darth Vader’s, this highlighting of Kylo Ren’s nature helps explain why. Unlike Vader, Ben Solo always possessed “the key” needed to return to the light. As the movies show, the loss of his mother (and visit from his father) were all he needed to finally set himself free.
Star Wars: Legacy of Vader #9 is available now from Marvel Comics.
- Died
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Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise Of Skywalker
- Alliance
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Jedi, First Order
- Race
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Human
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