Here is part two! Just fixed the thumbnail haha. It's been a long few weeks indoors. Enjoy! @@

Ben us one of the best characters from the franchise in my opinion. His story is just too heartbreaking for me to hate him.

Kylo Ren is a great character I wish Rey accepted his offer at the end of the last Jedi but I guess her not taking the offer was a test of her courage and she passed

Kylo Ren/Ben Solo is my favorite sequel character. Adam Driver was the perfect choice to play Kylo Ren/Ben Solo 💙🖤❤

I love how Kylo was the Darkest and the lightest we’ve ever seen him in TROS. The same thing with Rey. It’s like a Ying and Yang. Kylo is a fantastic character. I honestly think he might be a better character then Vader in some ways. Kylo Was also the strongest in TROS and he almost beats Rey several times in that film. Like when he’s about to kill her but Leia gets in the way.

Nice analysis. Kylo definently has been fighting with his Self Identity the entire trilogy. Which makes him the most interesting villain ever.

Ben Solo was the main character in the trilogy by far and portrayed amazingly by Adam Driver. Your video is excellent, combining all the information to hand to round out the movie giving even more depth to the character that is Ben Solo & trying to be Kylo Ren. Whilst the movie TROS was a little disappointing overall, Adam Driver's performance will long be remembered, and not only by me. Thank you.

Agreed. My brother and all his friends, all lifelong SW fans, have also said the sequel trilogy would've been better if Kylo had been the focus all along. How perfect would it have been to have the ST mirroring the PT by having it be about Kylo's turn back to Ben Solo vs. Anakin's turn to the dark. Such a wasted character, imo. I will forever mourn Ben Solo. *cries* ETA: Also, I'm so glad you're making these videos and giving Ben's story the proper attention and analysis it deserves because there are far too many people out there that really hate Kylo/Ben and think he's pure evil and I just don't get it! I'm like, did we watch the same films??

Well in the immortal words of Adam Driver... "I agree". For me, Disney should have recognized that the Kylo Ren/Ben Solo character was driving the story forward and that Driver was that great of an actor that he could carry the sequel trilogy on his back. Kylo/Ben reminds me of those two lines in a Led Zepplin song that go like this Yes, there are two paths you can go by But in the long run, There's still time to change the road you're on."

I was under the impression from JJ that Ben and Rey were both the protagonists and if you think about how they ended up being a dyad, it makes sense. Ben is my favorite by far, but I also have no problem with Rey's part in the movie. I kind of considered her story as a coming of age/ growing up story. Ben was my favorite from the beginning and I believed he would get redeemed by the end. Wish they hadn't killed him off, but I thought they did it the best way possible. He gave his life for someone he loved, just like Leia gave her life for someone she loved.

This is why Kylo/Ben is one of the best characters in Star wars. Played masterfully by Adam driver.

That Snoke comic was good af. And Rise of Kylo Ren comics too. Sad this is all we will get for our boy Ben Solo.

And I think the dice have more power when you know that the spent his childhood telling whoever would listen that he would become a pilot like his dad, and he spent his time playing with those dice. Again, amazing video. To quote Kylo when he starts shooting at Luke, MOOOORE MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORE MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORE

Very good job in analyzing the character's growth in the trilogy. It should help those fans that hate the movies. By the way, Adam Driver did a SUPER job as Kylo/Ben Solo. The movies would have been boring without him!

Kylo ren is pretty much what I wish anakin was in the prequels. His conflict and emotional struggles are so great and understandable. You say kylo is the sequel trilogy and I totally agree. Anakin is supposed to be the prequel trilogy but I just can't connect with him the way I can with kylo. (In clone wars anakin's pretty great tho). No matter how many complaints can be said about the sequels, we at least have Ben solo. I love this new trilogy and Ben is a big reason why. Keep exploring his character, please ATAT!

This was great and perfectly summed up everything about Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. It's a shame that we have to pull from so many sources (comics/movies/novelizations) to get Ben's full journey. I understand that's how it's meant to be but after reading everything, the ending of TRoS is far more tragic than what we see in just the film. And you think about Ben and what he could have been and then you think about Han, Leia, Chewie, Lando, and Luke and how Ben's turn affected them and you find yourself down this awful rabbit hole of emotion. Curse this whole thing LOL (but I still love it).

I think there's at least one more scene in The Force Awakens that is significant in Kylo Ren turning back to the light. The scene is during Rey's interrogation when she responds to Kylo "That happens when a creature is hunting you in a mask". His reaction to that statement IS to take off his mask. There is a part of him that desires to be seen as a man (re:Ben Solo) and not a monster (re: Kylo Ren). It's not for nothing that this is the first time in the movie that Kylo Ren removes his mask (and does so without being asked/ordered to; unlike with Han and later Snoke). Yes removing does create shock value but in terms of leading a successful interrogation there is literally no reason for him to do this. To me Kylo Ren uses that mask like one uses a security blanket and the minute the mask comes off is the minute he's more vulnerable. I do agree that the hand touch scene in TLJ is the first time Ben Solo completely lets his guard down around Rey.

Ben/Kylo has become one of my favorite Star Wars characters. The tragedy of his life is brought into painful clarity when you compare it with his good heart. He was the perfect combination of Skywalker and Solo that was warped and twisted by the darkness. His arc is such a cool story because it’s so relatable in my opinion. And TROS while not perfect is my favorite of the sequels because it finalizes the death of Kylo and the return of Ben in a really touching way. Han Luke and Leía all died to being him home. And Adams performance with everything from his subtle body language to his great physical presence and saber stunts really sold this character. @@ you did a great job in these videos. Ben Solo is the guy. (after my third viewing of TROS, I am starting to wish he didn’t die now. I thought it was perfect that he died when I first saw it but now.....not so much. They could’ve at least included his words to Rey that he speaks in her mind after he dies that’s in the novelization)

I wish Carrie Fisher were alive to have THE scene with her son, but congrats to the whole team behind TROS, because they tried to do everything to make this film feels like a homage to Leia. I wish his redemption arc in TROS were better. I don't mind the death (Even if my choice was exile in Ach-To with Leia, Luke and an object that reminds Han alongside him) but having the same attention that Rey received to her fight against predestination was really needed.

I’ve shown your videos to my friends who (although they don’t hate them) have had their reservations with the sequel trilogy. They now love the character of Kylo/Ben and you’ve straight up help them see a half glass full perspective of this trilogy. You’re seriously awesome man, keep up the good work!!

When Han confronts his son _yelling_ BEN! I thought: "Oh no. That was the worse way he could approach him."

The Pull To The Light! I suspect another great video sir!

I'm still very upset about the rise of skywalker, but your point of view of ben's arc, made it much better. I really agree with you of kylo ren "IS" the sequel trilogy, cause the story surrounds him. he's the most interesting character of this trilogy, even then rey (of course) and one of the best of the saga.

Thanks for sharing your perspectives. It's good to find folks who are genuinely enjoying these sequels, even while acknowledging the problems.

Kylo in the last Jedi was perfect in tfa He was okay in tros he was amazing

What if Kylo Ren was the protagonist of the sequel trilogy...sounds like a great video idea 👍

Again, well said.

HELLO THERE!!!! I’ve just finished rewatching TROS an hour ago, and here we are. :)). ⚔️⚔️⚔️⚔️👏👏👏👏. Adam and Harrison working together is amazing as hell. 👋👋👋⚔️⚔️⚔️⚔️. Especially seeing the comics tying to the movies together well, additionally, this analysis made me love Kylo even more, and seeing Luke as a projection never gets old. The past is inevitable to remember, and I haven’t binge watched your channel in so long, yet here I am.

Fresh AT-AT vid 🔥🔥🔥

Been looking forward to this!!

I never noticed how powerful that line to Rey from Kylo Ren is: "you can't go back to her... Like I can't" ... It shows us that Kylo has progressed down the path to the dark side so far, and become so much more broken, that he has nothing left to fight for. He is so alone, that his only motivation at this point to continue down his path is that he feels like it's too late and he has lost his family forever. He achieved the power he sought after with the First Order and was more broken than ever. The only reason he had to continue fighting was that he had no other choice. Killing his father destroyed him on the inside, but left him feeling like there was no turning back. And then both Leia, Rey, and Han show him that it's not too late after Luke had tried to show him in the previous film. Damn. It took me some time to fully realize this, it's powerful. I disagree with you on Kylo/Ben being the best part of the ST though. The villain is always the cool part. With the OT it was Vader, with the PT is was Darth Maul, with TDK it was the Joker. The villain is always the coolest and most intriguing character. But Rey is such a great protagonist. The ST could not have had a better protagonist (minus the Palpatine connection). I think Rey is the heart of the ST. She is one of my favourite characters ever. I mean, so is Kylo Ren, but let's not let the "cool factor" of villainy rule over such an incredible protagonist.

When you get teary eyed watching your beautiful cut and narration of the Kylo/Han scenes from the two movies. Great video.

Once again, excellent video! Your analyses are great, AT-AT, I love watching them. I especially love Kylo/Ben. Keep up the good work!

Thanks for the video! Your editing between TFA and TROS scenes of Han and Ben was great! I'm sure the movies could have spoon fed the audience more trials and tribulations of Ben to create a clear charachter trajectory. But ultimately fans who were able to pick up on nuance got an amazing experience! All the books, comics, movies make for a very satisfying story.

Another really informative video Kylo and his link to Rey is my favourite part of the sequel trilogy I really dig the theme of the first 6 films being about a Palpatine turning a Skywalker into a Sith and the final 3 films are about the Skywalkers turning a Palpatine into a Jedi Essentially the Skywalkers beat Palpatine at his own game Just something kind of poetic about that and when I think of the sequel trilogy that theme makes them worthwhile films in the overall Skywalker saga for me

Agreed. I always thought Kylo was the main character, but his story is being seen through Rey's eyes. The entire plot is focused around him and what he does. I really love the ST and while not perfect, it is a great compliment to 1-6.

Mom: you should sleep.. Me: yes, mom give me like twenty minutes I have something very important to do.... Good work as always At-At I liked that in tros we see two different kylo’s Masked kylo: cold and distant not showing emotion; (in the book it says that is what bothered Rey how distant he was) Then you have unmasked kylo: so full of emotion and most of it is mainly body language, pain and sadness , but most importantly he just wants to be himself (that definitely didn’t work; and that’s why I love tie from the comics he is just a Jedi or how i immagine a Jedi to be) And for last but not least you have Ben solo: a mix of the funniest traits of both skywalkers and Han Solo, he is just so chilled and he is just cute and definitely strong. Honestly I think none of these (different people) is better than the other their all amazing. But I do think that everyone from the original trilogy did something wrong but it’s not a fault we as well as them are humans and mistakes are made. Leia clearly regrets sending Ben away Luke feels at fault because he was tempted by the dark and Han I think felt sorry because he wasn’t there enough. Of Course then you have old Palpatine and Snoke; the different voices that say horrible things to him I wonder if Ben actually ever cared about being a Jedi or if he just wanted a somehow chilled life like a pilot who knows? Sorry for the poem😅

Kylo Ben is such a fascinating complex character. What I love in ROKR comics is through Tai, we see that it's not a romance that motivates and pull him toward the light it's just a human connection. Of course when Tai is murdered in front of him it is the final nail to bring him to the dark side. However his entire stint as a darkside force user is a mental fight against his true nature. I love the dyad as a concept but I think it's important that he returns to the light because he is reminded of what compassion and love for others adds to our lives.

Nice summation of one of my favorite redemption arcs! Yes, it wasn't perfect, and I do think they should've made his issues with feeling unloved a bit clearer in the movies, and I think TROS not delving as deeply into his psyche in the first half was a mistake, as the movie where he gets redeemed should not be the one where we have the least insight into his character, but I truly love his arc despite all that. Maybe that's because I've read the supplementary material and know the stuff the movies don't go into, but I've also talked to people who just watch the movies and still found his character arc and redemption satisfying, so I do think the movies did a good job with him (largely thanks to Adam Driver's powerhouse performance, if I'm being honest), even if it would've been better if more screentime had been devoted to his storyline. But even with my (mostly minor) criticisms of his arc, I found it really satisfying and emotionally powerful, which is what I want out of Star Wars rather than cold, hard logic. I don't even mind his death, even though I would've preferred he live, because I'm just so happy he came back to the Light and became the man he was meant to be, and if he had to die, at least he had a final moment of happiness and died a hero in the arms of the woman he loves, and that's not nothing. Seriously, such a fantastic character, the best by far of the ST (and I like all the ST characters) and honestly my favorite character in SW. I love the sequels despite their sometimes inconsistent writing, but Kylo/Ben MADE this trilogy for me. It wouldn't have been the same without him. I'm so grateful to J.J., Rian, Kathleen and Adam for taking us on this wonderful journey with him!

KYLO REN NEEDS HIS OWN MOVIE.

Perhaps I'm asking too much, but do you plan talking about Rey's year one? Great video by the way.

I enjoy your videos so much! I feel like, with the popularity of a franchise, comes this entitlement by fans to only see what they want out of it, instead of being led through a story and listening to what it's trying to convey. So many of the other videos on the films nitpick to the extreme, make little to no effort in paying attention to the story being told to them, and downplay significant plot points to make as many ridiculing punchlines as possible. It's hater-tainment. I think those videos get too much attention just for banking on a popular hate parade based on the entitlement of viewers who held their personal narrative expectations as the gold standard for Star Wars. Your videos are thoughtful and insightful of all the materials for the franchise and you draw so many connections that I would've missed! Thank you for your videos!

imagine making ben the main character of the sequel trilogy. while i do like all the other characters, his whole backstory is so rich and they had so many opportunities to go heavily into his arc, but they didn’t

Had a long day. Working on physics since the morning till 10:30 but with this upload and your commentary track to go with TROS copy I picked up, I don't even mind. Thanks for the good end to my day as always

I've been back and forth about this trilogy. I'll just say I wasn't feeling to good about it. But now with this and your novel explanation helps. You are my Star Wars saviour!

Hey, hey. What an interesting concept. Kylo went to the dark side because he didn’t think he was loved. Contrast that with Rey, who in TFA kept talking about her family coming back for her. You wonder why a 19 year old girl is still holding out hope that her parents would return for her. But even ignoring the trauma she’d face if she finally facing the fact that her parents abandoned her. You look at that pivotal scene in TROS Ben tells her that she ‘remembers more than she says’ and we are shown a tender scene of a 5 year old Rey hugging her parents. I always thought that what sustained her all those years on Jakku, made her fight and preserve was that her parents loved her (and that she was valuable). So don’t ever think that you have no impact on someone. But the thing about Rey is that even by the end of TLJ when she accepts the fact (as it was thought at that time) that her parents were worthless people who didn’t love her. She was able to bounce back and come to the realization that she is still a worthwhile person due to all that she has accomplished. The skills she learned and her drive to keep living instead of giving up and sinking into anger and self-pity. It’s that which made her realize that she can be the hero the resistance needed. Rey was able to fight back or pick herself and make the right choices because she didn’t solely rely on others to define her and tell her what she was worth. She had supportive friends. But of what she gained came from her accomplishments and ability to survive. Contrast that with Ren who -to put it bluntly-tagged all of his self-worth to his status to others. And how they treated him. He made that his litmus test. And as anyone who has interacted with people. You know that they can be fickle. You can’t rely on others (or circumstances) to decide who you are going to be and how you will behave. That leads to disappointment.

Great vid at at, literally love anything Kylo Ren related haha

"Ow."

Thank you very much for these breakdowns, AT-AT! They are a great companion when rewatching the films to keep the emotional complexity and conflict of Ben in mind. Helps to contextualize every scene he is in! Great work!

7 months late to this party, and I’m sure it’s mentioned elsewhere, but I find that there’s a nice parallel with a Palpatine leading a Skywalker into the darkness through the first three films, and a Palpatine leading a Skywalker into the light through the last three. Not a popular opinion, probably, but I enjoy this idea. You know what they say about poetry and all that.

I could go off on one of my lengthy essay comments but you know what I'm going to drop this instead. I think it not only may apply to the video but also what we all need to hear right now I hope it doesn't sound out of place though but I'm gonna go ahead: "Darkness: The truest darkness is not the absence of light. It is the conviction that the light will never return. But the light will always return to show us things familiar...Our darkness was deep and soon to swallow all hope. But...hope is real-you can see it all you have to do is look." (Lois Lane, Justice League)

Another thing I found interesting was that according to Wookiepedia, even though he was aligned to the Dark Side he still studied the Jedi teachings under Snoke's mentorship because it further stoked his conflict.

great vid man keep up the work

Once again you kill it with another video. Love your stuff bro best SW channel on YT

Nicely done, Nick! 😊

Excellent analysis! Bravo 👏

AT-AT Chat you have forgotten that when he held Reys lifeless body on him you can see the looks of of him that he will lose everything his parents and Rey. Plus when he looked on her abdomen he remembered the exact scene she healed him and he returned the favor by not only healing her but giving up his entire life and legacy to her. It’s because Leia Han and Rey are the ones that made his journey to the light. Ben succeeded the one thing his grandfather didn’t saving the woman he loved.

There goes sleeping early🤣

One of the biggest disappointments of the ST for me is not seeing the Ben and Chewie interrogation scene. That would have easily topped the final Han and Ben scene and that was the high point of the movie for me.

Awesome video!!!!

Excellent analysis!!

This video alone makes Ben a far better character than the movies explain.

Ben solo is the high light of the sequel trilogy as Obiwan and palpatine were for the prequel trilogy

Ben had a close relationship with Lor San Tekka, Luke and Tekka often took young Ben on missions with them to find ancinet Jedi temples and artifects. Ben is naturally curious and has a thirst for knowledge like Luke, Ben knew Tekka intemetly because of Tekka's friendship with Luke. I think his stance in this moment is because he is conflicted about seeing him again, he end up killing him as a reaction to what he said to him. I think Tekka was with Luke and Ben when they fought the Knights of Ren for the first time, I am not sure though, but all of this is in the comic "Rise of Kylo Ren". Kylo does not enjoy killing anyone just for the sake of killing, he does it as a means to an end when he has to. Had Kylo wanted to kill Rey, he would've done it the first time they met, if not then than when they fought in their final scene in "The Force Awakens", instead Kylo reminds Rey of the Force by telling her she needs a teacher and he can show her the ways of the Force while he has her pinned to an edge of a cliff. His curious nature takes over and he wants to know how powerful she really is, so he reminds her of the Force to see what she can do. He had stated to Snoke before that "She is strong in the Force, untrained but much stronger than she knows". He also tells a stoormtrooper "The longer it takes to find her the more powerful she'll become". She just accssesed his hard drive when she turned his mind prop on him, she got so much knowledge from that alone. Kylo only "lost" to Rey because he didn't want to kill her, he was also badly injured from Chewies Bowcaster and his mind was unbalanced after he murdered his father. There is a reason for why every single SW movie makes it a point to show how extremely important it is tohave a balance in the mind, if there isn't balance there is conflict and if there is conflict is one's mind, the perons doesn't act with logic but on impulse.

Great vid! If only he had one constant in his corner that wasn’t whispering lies in his ear, lot of this could have been avoided.

I’m glad he doesn’t shit on the sequels during these videos the sequel hate is getting annoying and these videos are showing the positive side of these movies

"That might to much to ask from the audience these days." Me: That's how we got that terrible ending. Edit: On a different note. Has anyone else been watching Star Wars Rollout? The Ben Solo three parted just finished yesterday, and it's so cute 💓. I'm really starting to think that the writers haven't given up on Ben, I mean more than ever.

It's like making a spicy curry but putting sugar in it for no reason it don't work

Normal guys after rejection: goes to a bar Kylo Ren after rejection: blows up a salt planet 🪐⚡️

I love Ben Solo/Kylo Ren but the thing I just cannot understand is why Leia chose to call out to him then. Why not earlier? Why not before all the death, destruction and pain?

will you something like this for rey

I saw Ben-demption in TFA. Abrams remade New Hope with a gender swap.

he is my Favorit Charakter

He shouldn't have died at the end he was the last Skywalker and the best character in these movies

I respect anyone's opinion if they like TROS, but to say it was a satisfying ending to a 40+ year old story is naive imo. The ending should have been Ben Solo in the pilot seat of the Falcon, Rey by his side. Anyone who disagrees just doesn't grasp the true lesson in Star Wars.

His Return the the Light?

It’s fan service. No explanation necessary.

All that made sense until the video got to the TROS Smh

The the

I kinda wished he stayed bad tbh.

I cannot believe we had a cool character like Ben and they kept shoving Rey in our faces 🤮

Yeah it only makes sense if you read all the novels and comic books lol

This shows a problem I have with the Rise of Skywalker and kind of the sequel trilogy in general. Ben doesn’t show enough emotion when he changes back to Ben or in the Han scene in 9, I kind of want it to be cheesy have Kylo hug Han say he’s sorry while crying saying he feels like a failure. Show that Ben is actually sorry for what he’s done not the same puppy dog expression lol.

Quality videos but so upset at how u can talk about so much in the prequels but such little in the new trilogy. Like basic themes but are over inflated and analysed as the makers didn't really give depth to the lord unlike Lucas. Is what it is. Star wars fans are tired of complaining

Reya story is dead they made her the number one as feminism

With that nose all is possible

Kylo turned to the light because Reylo is a racist ship nothing more. The Racist Reylo's had to stop the black man from ending up with the white woman.