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I have a lot to say about Ben Solo& #39;s death and Rey& #39;s ending on Tatooine. Many people hate it and for valid reasons. Why did an abuse victim who has finally redeemed himself die? Why is Rey alone when she wanted a family?
Allow me to explain why I love it.
Allow me to explain why I love it.
Halfway throughout the movie, Leia sacrificed herself to reach her son. It was Leia& #39;s sacrifice and Rey saving Ben Solo& #39;s life that allowed him to overcome his darkness and become the Jedi he was called to be.
I& #39;ve said it so many times that throughout these movies, Rey& #39;s character arc is mainly about her finding her own identity, discovering/fulfilling her purpose, overcoming her insecurities, and most importantly, learn how to be her own person. I still stand by that.
Ben Solo needed to learn this same lesson and he does. Seeing him return to help Rey during the darkest hour was really powerful and one of the best moments in the movie. That saber transfer was epic. I loved it.
Now here comes the complaints. Palpatine uses the dyad& #39;s strength to become stronger and Rey and Ben Solo get separated. This is not going to be easy for me to explain. I& #39;m going to do my best here.
While I acknowledge that Reylo is apart of the story here, I do not interpret it the same way as many other people do. Yes, Rey and Ben Solo have chemistry together but I do not think they were called to live the rest of their lives together.
I find this very interesting. When both characters fought each other in all three movies, the force interfered all three times. However, when both characters try to fight Palpatine together and they kiss, the force interferes.
I think these characters called each other together but not to spend the rest of their lives together but to restore the Jedi Order. I think needed to beat Palpatine by herself. She is the hero of this story.
While Ben Solo isn& #39;t the villain of this story, he isn& #39;t the hero either. His characters is much more complex than that. The way to story went, I think Rey needed to survive and Ben Solo needed to die physically. Rey& #39;s defeats Palpatine by herself.
However, it was too much for her to handle and she dies. Ben Solo could have done two things.
1) He could have walked away with his own life and either live as a fugitive or get arrested by the Resistance.
2) He could give up his live to save Rey.
Ben Solo chose 2).
1) He could have walked away with his own life and either live as a fugitive or get arrested by the Resistance.
2) He could give up his live to save Rey.
Ben Solo chose 2).
Ben Solo revives Rey and lives the happiest moment of his live when he kisses Rey. I used to bash this scene a lot. Now I finally understand the meaning of it. After the kiss, he dies.
I understand why so many people are upset by this, however, I love his death. I think his arc needed a bittersweet ending. He didn& #39;t just sacrifice himself to save Rey. He sacrificed himself to save the galaxy. The force called Rey to restore the Jedi Order.
The Last Jedi made it clear that the Jedi are a beacon of hope and are needed to inspire hope and fight against injustice. Both characters were called to restore the Jedi Order but in very different ways.
The fact that sacrifice was involved instead of having everything working out makes the ending of the movie much more powerful. Now let& #39;s talk about Rey& #39;s ending.
Many people complain about Rey being alone in the desert and not having anyone to be with. I completely understand that complaint. However, I disagree. I think the ending is amazing for several reasons.
Many people see Reylo and Rey finding a family as the entirety of Rey& #39;s arc. I disagree. I do not think Rey& #39;s arc is about finding a family and I think Reylo is part of Rey& #39;s arc, not the entire thing.
Personally, I love the idea that she& #39;s single. I do not think she needs anyone to complete her, given that her arc in TLJ is about her learning how to be her own person. I do not think she needs Ben alive to be happy in life. Rey& #39;s character is so much more than that to me.
Many people she that scene as a girl who has regressed. I couldn& #39;t disagree more. I think the scene is about her looking back at where she as come from and much she has progressed in life. When she first started her journey, she was a depressed savager who was lost.
Now, she is a hero who saved millions of people, restored the Jedi Order, and is finally secure with herself. Many people interpret Maz& #39;s scene in TFA as what Rey& #39;s is seeking is a family. Rey is really seeking security.
Yes. Rey WANTS a family. She believed that would give her the security she is looking for. In TFA, she put all of her hopes in Han Solo. Ben Solo killed him. In TLJ, she put all of her hopes in Luke Skywalker. She struggled with his own issues and he ended up sacrificing himself
She also put all of her hopes in Ben Solo. He wasn& #39;t ready to redeem himself and become a Jedi again. Rey believed all of these people would be the answer to all of her problems and give her everything she needs.
Rey needed to learn the hard lesson that she needed to find the answers herself. She needed to find her identity. She needed to discover her purpose. She needed to overcome her insecurities. She needed to be her own purpose. No one could do that for her.
Yes, Rey WANTED a family but she NEEDED to become secure with herself.
In terms of Ben Solo dying. "No one is ever really gone." "If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine." Ben Solo is dead physically but he is one with the force. He can become a force ghost.
Now I know many people complain that Ben Solo& #39;s force ghost doesn& #39;t show up. I think that happens for a reason. Again, the ending is supposed to focus on Rey& #39;s accomplishment. Having another main character in the Sequel Trilogy would take away its emotional impact.
Also, with all of the Skywalkers dead, now Skywalker is an idea instead of a lineage. It& #39;s a really powerful message and enforces the theme of TLJ that anyone can be a hero.
