Kylo Ren Comic Provides Backstory Into Ben Solo's Turn To The Dark Side

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is about to end the Skywalker Saga, and bring about a conclusion to the story of Kylo Ren. But what about the beginning of that story? A new Kylo Ren comic, Marvel's Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren, is here to fill in those details. The first issue is now available, and it's loaded with info regarding Ben Solo's turn to the Dark Side.

Now that The Rise of Kylo Ren is available, what does it reveal about everyone's favorite angry Darth Vader fan boy? Well, for one thing, Snoke (remember him?) and Ben Solo met long before Ben turned to the Dark Side, and in the early days, Snoke was kind of a nice guy. Maybe. In addition to that, it seems that Luke is the one who disfigured Snoke's face. And remember that flashback in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi that talks about Ben/Kylo destroying Jedi Temple? It looks like that's not exactly what happened. The Temple explodes for reasons unknown, and Ben ends up getting blamed for it. Bummer.

Over at StarWars.com, The Rise of Kylo Ren author Charles Soule delves into the story a bit. For one thing, there's an entirely separate character called Ren, and he's very buff, and very burned. See for yourself.

Ren is the figure that most inspires a young Ben Solo to become Kylo Ren. "I think the key to writing Ben Solo is to write him as a lost teenager who is deeply in touch with emotions that teenagers often feel," Soule says. "He feels like no one understands him...So when he sees Ren, he's like, 'Wait a minute — maybe there is somebody like me in the universe. Maybe there is a path for a guy like me. Look at the choices he's made. I could make those choices, too, and I could be cool.'"

"I wanted [Ren] to read like a charming Darth Vader," Soule continues. "A Vader who is charismatic and who is appealing. That's why [Ren's] skin is burned and he sort of looks the way that he does. He's embracing the seductiveness and the damage that the dark side does. Darth Vader, as impressive and imposing and terrifying as he is, is remote and cold and distant because he has the suit surrounding him. Whereas Ren isn't hiding behind it. He's someone you could have a beer with, in theory."

Soule adds:

"The entire seductiveness of the dark side poured into one character engineered for Ben Solo is Ren. He's sort of a charming evil rascal that can be really fun to write and I really like where he goes in the series. But if Kylo Ren is going to take over the Knights of Ren, which we know that's what happens, there should be some transition."

The author also says that "This is a story about legacy," and "a story about family and expectations and the fact that Ben Solo is part of a vast network of galaxy-changing individuals from his mom and his dad, to his uncle, to his adopted uncle, Lando, to his namesake Ben Kenobi, to his grandfather, Darth Vader...Within one step of him are arguably some of the most important people in the galaxy. So his story is their story and you can't tell Ben Solo's story without knowing all the other ones backwards and forwards."

The first issue of Marvel's Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren is available now.