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I sat up in shock when I read this passage. Don’t worry, I’ve edited it so it’s not a spoiler. They do a lot of shooting at a lot of things. Han sent a storm of laserfire right across its midsection, ripping it in half. “You know,” Taka said, “the thing about cutting people in half is it doesn’t always–“ With another burst from the cannons, the head and torso exploded into nothing. “–take,” Taka finished. “Okay, that oughta do …
LyricalRiot asked if I’d seen Wayward Jedi’s recent video on Ben’s redemption. I started to reply as a comment, then decided the topic merited its own post. Yes, I did see it, and I was going to post about it, but I didn’t want you guys to get sick of me just parroting someone else’s thoughts. But since you asked… I agreed with the general points WJ made. I think he oversimplified the crimes that Ben’s committed as Kylo Ren, …
So… I don’t think anyone but Luke knew that Vader died redeemed. He told Leia, and presumably Han, after the fact, but I don’t think anyone else knew. So then how did Snoke and Rey know? A million guesses as to Snoke, but Rey… I can only assume Leia told her before Rey took off to find Luke. Hmm….
The timing doesn’t add up to me. How did Snoke and Ben know anything about the transports or Crait? DJ doesn’t make his deal until long after Rey and Ren are already in the throne room, or so it was presented to us. We don’t see Snoke get informed of the development, so how did he know about the transports, and how did he know when they actually launched (bc they didn’t even launch until after Finn and Poe were …
Wrong again! Those sneaky, sneaky attendants–I never noticed them anywhere in the movie until I started studying scenes and watching closely. Ironically, I paid more attention to the camouflaged guards than the very visible attendants. Not only were they in the first scene with Snoke, they were there later, too. They were there when Ren brought Rey to Snoke. They were there when Snoke started monologuing. And then they’re just gone, and you don’t see them again. Guess it was …
I was wrong! We do see the attendants in TLJ. They’re barely noticeable in Ren’s first scene in Snoke’s throne room. See them in the middle there by the oculus? Their glowing eye lenses. So creepy. Still don’t know where they were during the fight with the Praetorian guard, though.
On Snoke’s page in the TLJ visual dictionary, there is a picture of a tall creature draped in a deep purple robe. You can see nothing but the robe and two glowing circles where their eyes should be, and very faintly, a buggy-looking face. I don’t recall seeing them or hearing about them in the film, so either it’s from deleted material or it’s just fun information for the dictionary. Wookieepedia says they were considered for TFA and Rogue One, …
I remember this passage in the TFA novel really got my attention: [Snoke:] “I have never had a student with such promise—before you.” Ren straightened. “It is your teachings that make me strong, Supreme Leader.” Snoke demurred. “It is far more than that. It is where you are from. What you are made of. The dark side—and the light. The finest sculptor cannot fashion a masterpiece from poor materials. He must have something pure, something strong, something unbreakable, with which …
Also, I noticed a parallel I hadn’t yet: Snoke at the beginning of the movie, mockingly: “The mighty Kylo Ren.” Luke during his second lesson with Rey: “For many years, there was balance–and then I saw…Ben. My nephew. With that mighty Skywalker blood.” Probably a coincidence (is anything in this movie a coincidence?), but still interesting.
As I continue to study Kylo Ren/Ben Solo, I’ve come across interesting tidbits of information that make me rethink what I thought I knew. For instance, in the visual dictionary for TFA, there’s a segment that reads: “The Supreme Leader believes Ren to be the ideal embodiment of the Force, a focal point of both light and dark side ability.” Furthermore, on Ben’s page on Wookiepedia (they also cited the TFA dictionary): “…Ben was eventually, in his late teens, targeted …