You know…
As a child abuse survivor, I relate so strongly to Kylo Ren. I still tear up every single time I watch him take down Snoke, reclaiming himself and his power as his abuser taunts that he cannot be beaten.
But this? THIS is the scene that resonates down to my bones.
We’re watching him be berated and abused. We’re watching Snoke grind him down into dust. We see him at his breaking point, we see him exhausted and worn down and just destroyed by the years of manipulation and the weight of everything he’s done.
AND HE STANDS UP FOR HIMSELF ANYWAY. This is the man who has tortured his mind for years, brainwashed him, convinced him that he’s worth nothing and led him to throw away everything. And Kylo reaches a point where he can’t take it anymore and rises up to fight back. It may not have worked, but goddamn it, he was not taking one more word of abuse in that moment. It makes his ultimate murder of Snoke that much more satisfying, that we see him stretched so thin and desperate to defend himself against his abuser beforehand.
I know he took a big step backwards afterwards, and that he’s continuing to make poor decisions, but that narrative of Kylo as Abuse Survivor hits me so hard because it’s so fucking real.
Healing takes time. Recovering agency and learning how to interact with anger and grief in a healthy way takes time, and it comes with a lot of mistakes along the way. You can never go back to being the person you were before the abuse, but you can transcend it.
I still believe in Ben Solo.
“She sensed pluck and wit, and steel blood and a sharp mind… and by the blood of Alderaan is this one going to be a fighter.” “Kid’s gonna get in trouble one day. Every kid does, but with the blood of a scoundrel and a rebel princess in his veins, his defiance will shake the stars. ” Leia and Lando knew what the fuck they were talkin’ about. B) (no but seriously these quotes make me feel so much. Gives me hope)