Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker arrives in theaters from today onwards and Marvel Comics is marking that with the release of
Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren #1.
While you might not think that a comic like this would reveal all that much, it sheds some light on those flashbacks in
The Last Jedi and even hints at a history between Luke Skywalker and Snoke. We also finally get to learn more about the Knights of Ren, their previous leader, and their beliefs!
This is arguably information the films should have revealed but it makes for a must-read comic.
How much of this, if any, will be referenced in
The Rise of Skywalker remains to be seen but it definitely feels like future issues will tie into that. For now, hit the "View List" button for this recap!
Meet "Ren"
While he reveals that it's not his real name, the issue kicks off by introducing us to "Ren," the leaders of the Knights of Ren. After he and his men murder dozens of soldiers in order to get to two men who have killed hundreds over the years, he reveals that the group recruits only those with Force abilities and offers one of them a fateful choice.
If he kills his brother, he can join the Knights of Ren but before he gets chance to do so, the non-Force sensitive brother guns him down. They don't need him so this mission was a failure.
The Beliefs Of The Knights Of Ren
Before the Force sensitive brother is killed, we learn more about what the Knights of Ren stand for. Their leader has a lightsaber and it seems they worship the blade they refer to as "The Ren."
The Force, meanwhile, is referred to as the "Shadow" and there are no obvious signs that this group are aligned with the Sith or Supreme Leader Snoke. Instead, it seems as if they're an ancient group that has their own perception of the Dark Side and they're trying to find a new member...
A Conflicted Kylo Ren
We then head to that flashback from
The Last Jedi and see the aftermath of Ben Solo and Luke Skywalker's confrontation. As the Jedi Temple burns around him, three fellow Padawans return and confront him. He's better and more powerful than all of them and while he easily overpowers them, he doesn't want to kill them and is visibly upset when one of them is badly wounded.
This just goes to show that there's still good left in him and while the other pupils Luke was training are all dead, Ben leaves them behind still alive and seemingly aware of what he's done.
Ben Solo Makes His Escape
With his fellow Force users in hot pursuit, Ben is forced to make a decision about what he's going to do next. He decides not to return home to his mother and is instead influenced by a mysterious voice we later learn begins to Snoke. As his fellow Jedi pursue him, Ben uses his skills as a pilot to blow out their engines even though he could have just as easily killed all of them.
The question is, why after slaughtering all those Padawans is he holding back? Well, it turns out that there's a very good reason for that and it's here we get the comic book's biggest revelation.
Ben Solo Did NOT Destroy The Jedi Temple
When Luke Skywalker woke up, he saw that the Jedi Temple had been destroyed at the hands of Ben Solo. Well, that's not quite true. In reality, a mysterious blast of lightning came down from the sky and blew up both that and the Padawans within. This means that Ben wasn't in any way responsible.
We're obviously supposed to believe that it was Snoke who did this but with speculation running rampant that he's Emperor Palpatine's puppet, this is more than likely his Force lightning!
Ben Solo May Not Be As Bad As First Thought
The Last Jedi made it seem as if Kylo Ren struck down those Padawans not all that differently to how Anakin Skywalker slaughtered those younglings. Well, as you can see above, he didn't want this.
While Snoke's voice puts the blame squarely on Luke Skywalker, all those deaths aren't something Ben wanted and it's clear that he's still a long way off from becoming Kylo Ren at this point in time.
Jedi In Hot Pursuit
Still alive, the three trainee Jedi find a way to track Ben and decide that they need to get justice both for Master Skywalker and the friend who has seemingly fallen to the Dark Side.
Common sense says that these three will meet their maker at the hands of the soon to be Kylo Ren but it's certainly going to be interesting seeing what sort of role they play here.
Supreme Leader Snoke's Base
Snoke isn't actually the "Supreme Leader" at this point (there's no mention of The First Order and he's never referred to as such) but he does have a very interesting home. As you can see, he appears to using a Moon as his base which was once beautiful but is now being ravaged by the Dark Side.
It's odd that this has randomly been introduced here as it was never referenced in the movies but we'll hopefully learn more about it either in future issues or even
The Rise of Skywalker this weekend!
Luke Skywalker Vs. Snoke?
Well, we may finally know where Snoke got those scars! While it's possible that he's lied to Ben, it sounds as of there was once a confrontation between Luke and the villain which ended with him being left horribly scarred. That's a story which has to be told somewhere down the line, right?
It could be in this series or something else entirely but there's more history here than we realised.
Ben Solo's Plan
At the end of the issue, Ben Solo reveals that he wants to find the Knights of Ren. Does he want to join them or destroy them? We know what ultimately happens but the cover for issue #2 shows Luke and Ben fighting them so he has a past with the mysterious group of Dark Side warriors.
Clearly, more big reveals are on the way as this series continues to play out from here.
What did you guys think of this first issue? Are you excited to see what else Star Wars: The Rise of Kylo Ren reveals? As always, share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.