dpThe Fall of Kylo Ren promises to be the conclusion of Kylo Ren’s arc in between the events of The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, finishing the story that began with the Kylo Ren: Legacy of Vader comic miniseries that ended earlier this year. Having disappeared on his Force-related sabbatical in that series, in this one he returns to the galaxy and the First Order to resume his quest for galactic domination.
I was admittedly underwhelmed to learn that this series presumably won’t be touching on the mysteries of the Force like Legacy of Vader did (although it would be foolish to rule it out completely), and instead begins with Kylo Ren solving problems in the First Order. Writer Charles Soule succeeds in telling an interesting story here, though; we learn that in Kylo Ren’s absence, the First Order has become divided and reduced to squabbling amongst itself without his central leadership, making its military appear weak and ineffective.
This scenario is used effectively to fill in a couple of First Order-related plot points that were established between The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker; namely, the dynamic between General Hux and General Pryde, and how the latter climbed the First Order ladder before the events of the final film. The First Order hierarchy was a bit unclear going into The Rise of Skywalker, and this issue brings clarity to that confusion.
It’s always amusing watching General Hux interact with his First Order rivals, and that’s probably one of the high points of this issue, though Kylo Ren himself gets a nice dose of action to remind us how dangerous he is with a lightsaber. Charles Soule always knows how to write interesting stories for Kylo Ren, and I look forward to seeing where this goes after a strong start.
Spoilers ahead…
The state of the First Order in this issue is fascinating. I love Soule’s reveal that a rivalry between Hux and Pryde has created such a huge divide in the organization, with staff loyal to Hux wearing red bands around their shoulder, and those loyal to Hux wearing gray bands around theirs. It’s always hilarious to watch Hux be undermined and descend into petty squabbles with his rivals, but his insistence that Pryde’s tactical experience is actually archaic and useless is an interesting idea to explore.
Though of course it is rendered pointless, as Pryde’s experience with sabotage and subterfuge is what wins him the day. We’ll never know if Hux’s plan was the better one at Hetzal Prime, but it certainly seemed like it would have worked had Pryde not sabotaged the Finalizer‘s main cannons.
It is even more interesting to learn that without a strong figurehead to guide it, the First Order is reduced to petty squabbling in less than a year. General Hux is right in pointing out that struggling to defeat an agricultural world full of farmers is pretty embarrassing for a military as large as theirs. It’s fascinating to realize that the First Order’s dominance in the galaxy is a fragile one; Kylo Ren’s leadership is necessary to avoid it from splintering off into rival factions.
Kylo Ren tasks Hux and Pryde to resolve their differences quickly so the embarrassment at Hetzal Prime is not repeated, though we learn by the end of the issue that really he just needed an excuse to bump Hux down the pecking order. We’ve known since The Force Awakens that Kylo Ren and Hux have always hated each other, and it’s no surprise that Ren was secretly rooting for Pryde to show the general up.
Kylo uses Pryde’s victory at Hetzal Prime as a way to effectively demote Hux without it looking like a manifestation of his vendetta against him. This is clearly the beginning of Hux’s traitorous arc; it seems this series will show us why he was so eager to bring down Kylo Ren at any cost. Taking away his seniority at the top of the First Order’s military is a great start.
It was also nice to see Hetzal Prime reappear in a different era of the Star Wars timeline. Readers of The High Republic publishing initiative may remember Hetzal Prime’s role as a key location in the Republic’s war with the Nihil pirates, which Charles Soule himself introduced in his opening novel for the era. It’s fun to learn that the planet had continued to be an agricultural centre over a century later, making food and medicine for the entire galaxy, though it perhaps does raise the question of why this hasn’t been mentioned as a strategic location in either the Clone Wars or the Galactic Civil War. You’d think Hetzal Prime would have been the site of several battles if it’s this important to the galaxy.
It was also fun to see the planetary shield gate make a return for the first time since Rogue One, with Pryde specifically mentioning he remembered the Empire using one at Scarif. That and Hetzal Prime’s return make for a couple of fun easter eggs in an interesting and engaging story.
One last point to discuss — the title of this series and the issue’s opening pages make it clear that we are exploring the fall of Kylo Ren, though it’s not entirely clear what that will entail. In The Rise of Skywalker, the First Order appears to be stronger than ever, we know he gets his Knights of Ren back and Kylo seems more assured than ever by that point. So what will change in this series that informs the character in the film?
Will we learn that Kylo is secretly filled with doubt over his role as a galactic conqueror, or will something happen that makes it clear that Ben Solo was always going to resurface sooner or later? We’ll have to wait and see. Personally I hope we get another conversation with Luke, but whatever happens, Charles Soule is bound to have something fascinating for us.
Rating: 7/10
Josh is a huge Star Wars fan, who has spent far too much time wondering if any Star Wars character could defeat Thanos with all the Infinity Stones.
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