Star Wars: The Force Awakens — Decoding Kylo Ren

We are now one full week out from the release of the third and final Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer, and it seems that for now, news and information from the film is finally starting to slow, and has begun to power-down until December 18, when it premieres worldwide. There were so many great scenes from that last trailer, that it’s hard to pick just one, so Dork Side of the Force is going to begin decoding each and every character we know about from The Force Awakens, beginning with the enigmatic Kylo Ren.

What we know: Kylo Ren

• Kylo Ren is portrayed by Adam Driver from HBO’s Girls.
• He is not a Sith, but is a Dark Side of the Force acolyte, whose surname is not actually Ren, as that is more of a title referring to the order to which he belongs — the Knights of Ren.
• Kylo is strong enough in the Dark Side to use powers to torture Poe Dameron, and use basic maneuvers such as Force Push.

• Kylo’s lightsaber is a unique crossguard lightsaber that he may have constructed himself. Upon close inspection, the saber looks unstable and roughly put together — wires exposed — lending credence to the rumor that Kylo’s training in the ways of the Force are not complete.
• Kylo and the Knights of Ren are working with a group risen from the ashes of the Empire called the First Order.
• Kylo has his own special shuttle which he will use in the film to fly special missions.
• Kylo is being controlled by another more powerful being. We first hear this being’s voice in the first teaser trailer, when he asks Kylo, “There has been an awakening. have you felt it? The Dark Side…and the Light.”  This being is portrayed by Andy Serkis in a motion-capture role as Supreme Leader Snoke.
• Kylo is obsessed with Darth Vader. He keeps the deceased Sith Lord’s burned helmet on his ship, and talks to it (as is evident in the third trailer).

What we think we know: Kylo Ren

• We think Kylo is the son of either Luke Skywalker or Han and Leia. Either way, the popular theory is that he is of Skywalker lineage.
• We think Kylo is the twin brother of Rey (Daisy Ridley), and that the two will have an epic showdown or meeting where they recognize each other, at some point in the film.

• As with all Star Wars films, we think there is a representative of the Dark Side and the Light Side. Here we believe Kylo to be the Dark and Rey to be the Light, as is shown in the film’s official poster.
• We think that Kylo Ren was lured to the Dark Side by Supreme Leader Snoke, because of his rage at being abandoned or taken from his family at an early age. You can see how he swings his lightsaber, that his rage completely takes over and the brutality of the Dark Side is showcased.

• Finally, we think that Kylo Ren modeled his mask after Vader’s, and is passing himself off as the embodiment of the Sith Lord’s second coming. This may be a stretch, but The Force Awakens takes place 30 years after Return of the Jedi, and stories of the Jedi and the Sith are now considered legend, or myth.

Kylo Ren is certainly going to be fun to watch on the big screen, come December 18. Withthout having seen Andy Serkis’ Snoke, Adam Driver’s Kylo Ren is the only Dark Side user we’ve seen in the trailers. As to the question of whether we will see Kylo face-off with Luke in some sort of epic Dark Side vs the Light showdown, I have my serious doubts, but remember, this movie is just the setup for the next two films in the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, and literally anything could happen.

Next: Men in Their 30s Most Susceptible to The Force Awakens