Star Wars is a franchise that often delivers intimidating villains: Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, Darth Maul, Count Dooku, and General Grievous, among others. Come The Force Awakens, J.J. Abrams positioned the mysterious Kylo Ren to join them... but he didn't quite live up to his predecessors.

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The words "emo" and "whiny" were often associated with Adam Driver's character, but as the first trailer for Rian Johnson's Star Wars: The Last Jedi showed, the franchise has become a lot darker and Kylo seems to be much more assertive and menacing. That's the impression we get now, but this could be deceiving. We have some thoughts on how Rian Johnson can secure Kylo Ren's status among Star Wars villains.

Don't Rush Kylo's Backstory

kylo ren in star wars: the last jedi

The Force Awakens mishandled Kylo's origins, revealing way too much, too fast and too early. Fans were ambushed by the revelation that he's the son of Han Solo and Leia Organa, the student who betrayed Luke Skywalker, turned to the Dark Side under Supreme Leader Snoke and then razed the new Jedi Temple.

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The thing is, with such a reveal, why didn't Abrams do it as a slow burn, or as a later surprise? Imagine not knowing anything about Kylo until he killed Han. That scene was lacking in tension; we already knew too much. Given that we didn't see or hear from Luke until the end of the movie, Kylo's betrayal of the Jedi Order could also have been kept secret until that point, but instead Abrams rushed this Skywalker family dynamic before we even got a chance to know (or in Luke's case, reconnect with) the current players on the board. If Johnson is patient in unraveling this backstory we'll be good to go.

Don't Make Kylo a Vader Rehash

What disappointed even more were the quick flashbacks of the Knights of Ren with Kylo and the Jedi temple's downfall. There wasn't any emotional connection built up to this tragedy, yet we were supposed to quickly accept Kylo as a galactic Judas? With all Kylo's history now out in the open, fans can see it's a bit similar to his grandfather, Anakin Skywalker. Johnson has his work cut out for him if he wants to differentiate Kylo Ren's turn to the Dark Side from Anakin's. Most importantly, Kylo's gravitation to Snoke needs to feel organic, especially if it's to avoid being a Vader/Palpatine rehash.

Why is Kylo Ren so obsessed with his grandfather? If Johnson can explain that, we may even end up empathizing with Kylo Ren. We all know Vader was seduced to the Dark Side - but what if Kylo had actually sought it out, encountering Snoke along the way? That would be an intriguing twist to explore -- an apprentice seeking a master, and not the other way around.

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More Sith, Less Brat

Neither Kylo Ren nor Snoke is a Sith Lord, but they certainly bear some resemblance to the group. Kylo Ren may be into genocide and control, but his other spoiled brat attitude doesn't necessarily fit the Sith mold (unless you count Anakin, of course). When Kylo took off his mask and went into brat-mode, destroying a work station in a hissy fit, it left us scratching our heads - this wasn't the sinister subtlety past Star Wars villains employed.

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Making Kylo angsty or angry isn't necessarily a bad thing, but Force wielders on the Dark Side are typically more cold and calculating. In the trailer, we saw him smashing his helmet. We're hoping this is him burying the past and his failures. After all, Starkiller Base fell under his watch, Rey bested him in battle, and to top it off, he got slashed across the face. Johnson has hinted at a darker calm within Kylo, however, which could well be why he extends his hand to Rey in the now iconic trailer. He has already been trying to turn her to his side, and maybe he will finally be successful. This Sith-like behavior would help remedy what Abrams botched.

Spill More Blood

Seeing Kylo ready to kill yet another parent is another big step forward. More so, losing his mask shows he's ready to bear these burdens out in the open and let his enemies see him as the face of fear. Egotistical? Maybe but if he has a greater thirst for blood, then so be it.

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Johnson has to show Kylo as ruthless, someone who's not going to take prisoners -- a tactic which clearly didn't work out for him in TFA. We need to see him killing his enemies -- and his subordinates -- mercilessly if we're going to really buy him as evil.

The Force Unleashed

From the trailer for The Last Jedi, Luke made it clear to Rey that he's seen raw power like hers before - he is very likely referring to Kylo. Johnson needs to show us this because so far, Kylo hasn't been all that impressive with the Force. Despite having much more experience than Rey, she beat him in a duel and we also saw her mentally blocking him, even pulling off a Jedi mind trick. Which leaves us asking -- what is Kylo's "special" factor Snoke spoke of?

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Johnson has to elaborate on this potential that made Kylo think he could transcend conventional Jedi limits. When Vader went crazy using the Force at the end of Rogue One, fans were stunned because we'd never seen that kind of display onscreen -- at least in live-action. Kyle doesn't need to be the new Vader, but he does need to have his Vader moment.


Arriving Dec. 15, director Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi stars Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern and Benicio del Toro.