Warning: MAJOR SPOILERS for Star Wars: The Last Jedi!
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Star Wars: The Last Jedi sets up what will be one of the most significant events ever in the Star Wars: the End. The J.J. Abrams-directed Episode IX, of course, marks the the conclusion of this current trilogy, but based on Episode VIII could feasibly also wrap up Star Wars as fans have come to know it. And, just maybe, an end to the Skywalker family story may be for the best.
Director Rian Johnson already brought the story of Luke Skywalker to a close in Episode VIII, with the last Jedi returning from a self-imposed exile to help his sister Leia at her time of need and confront his former apprentice Ben Solo/Kylo Ren. Carrie Fisher's tragic death also raises a question as to whether Leia will appear in any fashion in Episode IX.
Related: How Star Wars 9 Can End Leia's Saga Perfectly
While Luke himself has become one with the Force and could appear as an apparition in Episode IX, the thrust of the story is in the hands of trilogy's young heroes Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron. In whatever form Rey's ultimate confrontation with Kylo Ren will take place, this resolution should lead to the grand finale of the Skywalker Saga, especially if Kylo Ren, the last character possessing Skywalker blood (that we know of), dies at the end.
THE SINS OF THE SKYWALKERS DOMINATE STAR WARS
It all began with a little slave boy who was born by the will of the Force on the desert planet of Tatooine. The crux of the main cycle of Star Wars movies is and has always been the Skywalker family, beginning with its patriarch, Anakin Skywalker. The Prequel Trilogy was about the rise and fall of the Jedi Knight as he succumbed to the Dark Side of the Force and became Darth Vader. The Original Trilogy centered around the adventures of his son Luke Skywalker as he accepted his destiny to become a Jedi Knight and redeem his father, the Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Vader.
The consequences of Vader, even decades after his redemption and death, carry over into the current trilogy and are personified by his grandson Kylo Ren, who followed in Vader's evil footsteps, as well as in Luke's role in Kylo's fall to the Dark Side. Three generations of Skywalkers who are powerful with the Force have reshaped the galaxy by their actions - especially Vader, who was instrumental in wiping out the Jedi and helping Emperor Palpatine rule the galaxy for decades.
Palpatine's machinations and lust for power sparked two wars: the Clone Wars, where he fashioned the Empire out of the Republic, and the Galactic Civil War, which saw the Rebel Alliance trying to bring down his new order. Vader's daughter Leia led the Rebellion in the latter war, and once more took up arms and formed a Resistance against the ambitions of conquest by Empire's successor, the First Order.
Related: The Last Jedi's Final Scene Changes Star Wars Forever (And For the Better)
Since then, Luke and Leia have devoted their entire lives to undoing the incalculable damage their father and now Leia's son Ben/Kylo Ren have inflicted on the galaxy, and both have lost loved ones along the way. "Too many losses," as Leia herself sadly reflected in The Last Jedi.
While it's easy to see this running forever, following the latest entry it feels like Episode IX needs to definitively resolve the legacy of evil inherited from grandfather to grandson lest all of the sacrifices and struggles of the generation in between were for nothing. And that means dealing with the last Skywalker scion, Ben Solo.
REY MUST END KYLO REN
Ben Solo can be "proud" that he surpassed his grandfather and role model Darth Vader. Vader massacred the Jedi, helped conquer the galaxy, and oversaw the genocide on the planet Alderaan. Kylo Ren began his fall to the Dark Side by killing his fellow Jedi students. He watched as Starkiller Base destroyed multiple planets and wiped out billions of lives. In The Last Jedi, he killed his evil master Snoke, just as his grandfather killed the Emperor, but unlike Vader, Kylo has reaped the rewards: he's now Supreme Leader of the First Order. Kylo Ren essentially rules the galaxy. It's the fitting conclusion to the Skywalker family's legacy of evil.
This means Ben Solo needs to be brought down in a way Vader never was. Rey already tried to redeem him in The Last Jedi and failed in her noble attempt. What she found instead was a monster more interested in his own personal power than in redemption. Ben did want a companion, but someone to rule beside him; sharing in his power is what he offered Rey, who flat out refused. Rey believed there was good still inside Ben that can be reached - and there's still that flicker of light - yet as we saw in when they came face to face a final time via the Force at the end of The Last Jedi, Rey literally slammed the door shut on Ben Solo and the idea of redeeming him.
Related: Was Kylo Ren Lying About Rey's Parents?
Rey redeeming Ben Solo seems unlikely at this point because, simply, Ben doesn't want to be redeemed. The light in Vader was stirred by Luke, his son; though he couldn't pull the trigger on killing his mother Leia, Ben doesn't seem to want a way out of the Dark Side. At this point, it seems inevitable they will fight one last time - to the finish. And, of course, the end of Kylo Ren would mean the end of the Skywalker bloodline. That would ultimately be the best thing for the galaxy (even Leia agrees when she confesses to Luke her son is lost).
THE RESISTANCE VS THE FIRST ORDER
Star Wars will and should always contain themes of good fighting evil, but the galaxy has now endured decades of repeated wars with the Skywalker family at the center. The Clone Wars lasted three years, followed by over twenty years of the Empire ruling while the Rebel Alliance fought them tooth and nail. The First Order's rise ignited a new war, and while it looks like evil is now dominant, there remains the spark of Rebellion aiming to bring down the First Order's rule. This fight isn't over.
But Episode IX should end it, somehow bringing down the First Order, and with it, the repetition of an evil, fascist military fighting an outmatched rebellion, along with the trope of the bad guys deploying evil planet-killing super weapons. Star Wars has been over-reliant on this form of storytelling. True, it's right there in the title: 'Star Wars', but once this saga concludes, there can be other stories set in this universe about other kinds of conflict.
Inevitably, a new saga will commence and it will surely be about an overpowering evil force taking on a plucky band of rebels. That formula is too ingrained in Star Wars' DNA - and per DJ's worldview, all but inevitable in the canon. But for the sake of resolution, the Empire/First Order vs. Rebellion/Resistance conflict as we know it feels like it needs to be brought to a definitive close, at least for this generation. As Star Wars is ultimately about hope, good must triumph over evil and give the fans that all-important spark of inspiration to continue to carry our love of the franchise forward.
Related: A Few Remaining Star Wars Questions The Last Jedi Didn't Answer
ENDINGS
Star Wars won't end. The Last Jedi's director Rian Johnson is poised to launch a new and unrelated trilogy in the years after Episode IX, and standalone stories like Solo and Obi-Wan Kenobi continue apace. But these are exemplifying how things can grow and diversify from just being about the Skywalker brood.
By coming up with a definitive way to end the First Order vs. Rebellion war and the elimination of Kylo Ren in some fashion that would cap the story of the Skywalker family, Episode IX is poised to conclude this entire 40+ year saga that has now involved three generations of Skywalkers and as many wars spanning decades that have affected and cost the lives of billions in the galaxy.
The awesome challenge for J.J. Abrams and his team is how to bring it all to a satisfying and resonant conclusion... with a new sense of hope.
NEXT: SO, WHAT'S EPISODE IX GOING TO BE ABOUT?
