What drew you in/Grew attached to Reylo?

For me I was on Pinterest and saw an intimate drawing of Rey and Kylo, and I was like hmmm what's this about? I came upon Star Wars Connection on YouTube, and I was immediately hooked. I can't even put a finger on what drew me to Reylo and why I've grown so attached to them. In fact, I think the last couple in a series I grew fond of was Damon Salvatore and Elena Gilbert in The Vampire Diaries, which blew me away because I was never one to pay attention to the sexual tension between characters. I can see them share the same dynamics as Rey and Kylo now.

I never was a fan of AU novels either, until Reylo! I think I'm driving my husband mad with how attached to them I've become, and I'm pretty sure every day I wake up nerdier than the previous day. However I think why I most want this pairing to happen is because not only is it a completely fresh and different approach in the Star Wars universe, but because I think it brings a powerful message to what forgiveness is about.

I explained it quickly when I joined this board...

When I frist saw TFA I wasn't impressed... I didn't hate it but it was to much of "a new hope" remake for my taste.
I also thought Rey is Luke's daughter and I hated it- not because I wanted anything between her und Kylo (I haven't even considered it back then) but because I found it so..  I always thought if they will make Luke say "I am your FATHER" in the second movie I'm done!

It's embarrassing- but I didn't like Adam as the cast for Kylo Ren at first either... I found him weird looking (almost ugly) and couldn't understand why they would cast him as the son of Han and Leia.  

So time went by.. and then accidentally I saw an interview with Adam Driver - I didn't even recognized him at first   - but I found myself intrigued.
You know most US- Stars try too hard to please the audience in interviews or TV-shows - it's just fake. Adam was so refreshingly different- in a good way. He was so unfeigned (is that a word? ) and humble. I started to like him and my perception of him changed as well...

Anyway he was the reason I rewatched The Force Awakens in July- and that's when I first noticed...something
I still was under the impression Rey is gonna end up being Luke's daughter, it was just weird.  
So I googled a bit and stumbled over the word REYLO...

I watched different podcasts and videos on youtube about fan theories and a few weeks later I ended up here.

Why I'm so invested in the Kylo/Rey relationship? Certainly not because of some kind of kinky dark fantasy  
I heard some really insulting accusations from Antis - often they compare Reylo to Twilight or even worse- 50 shades of Grey
No offense to anyone who like this stories bit I hate both!

The truth is- I love complicated relationships... particularly "enemies to lovers/friends" kind of stories. It's interesting and intense...they have to overcome their hate, prejudices and learn to understand each other first. It's about the journey.

Where would be the tension in pairing up Rey with Finn or Poe??? It would be so...boring in my opinion. But that's just me

I've said it before, but antis pushed me to Reylo. I came out of the movie most attached to Finn of all the characters, but as I looked into the fandom out of curiosity, I thought back and noticed all the nuance in Kylo's character and how Adam played him. Back then, I fully expected Rey to end up a Skywalker and was intrigued by the pet theory at the time that Ben turned at 15 after Snoke's manipulation and spared Rey from his massacre on the students.

I saw Reylo around and wasn't surprised that people would see that in their dynamic. But because I assumed they were cousins, I didn't pay it much mind. I saw antis latching on and sort of rolled my eyes and felt sorry for Reylo shippers, because my former big ship was rife with those same complaints. At the time, since I eventually fell for Kylo hard and wanted to think and read about him in a romantic dynamic, I started consuming Kylux fic and art. That stayed my favorite ship for a while until I felt as if Kylo was starting to get sidelined and Hux's character was starting to become more out-of-character fanon than canon in most Kylux works.

During that whole block of time, I started getting more and more irritated at how antis were treating Reylos. After a while I decided, because screw them, to look into Reylo fandom and see what folks were seeing in the pair. As I read metas and character analysis, I first started liking Reylo fam because they understood and respected Kylo's character more than any other group of fans. And beyond that, you were looking at the story as a whole and where the characters fit in it in a much more mature way than any other fan circle, which focused either on characters banging, Mary Sue whining, or some weak social justice whining that made it clear they knew nothing of Star Wars and what it represents. I started looking to Reylos for interesting predictions on how the trilogy would go and how Rey and Kylo's dynamic would evolve. I quickly became an admirer of how Reylos were theorizing and hoping for Reylo to become real, but still. Rey was a Skywalker.....right?

And then we started getting hints that she wasn't, and I started truly burying into the Reylo fandom, beginning with joining here after being intrigued by the discussions I saw you all having. I honestly don't remember how exactly I found this forum, haha. The rest is history!

When Kylo unmasked, his face was so unusually vulnerable and he was so Princely that all little hints that came before (once upon a dream - One Boy/What Girl, the meeting in the vision, and then bridal carry) fell into place and knew right there they were going to be the biggest romance in SW history.

Because it's the Grand Unified Theory of the ST and possibly the entire franchise. Sure there's the villainous crush as a source of endless jokes, but those kids have to stop fighting 'cause the Force has a larger mission in mind for them besides going to Space Prom together. It's also a brilliant way to address the cosmology of the Force in a larger context that's unique but also grounded in personal/political history, world-building and intimate character drama. I mean, if you're going to have something new to build on Han and Leia's tumultuous romance in the OT, this is both equally as compelling but also grounds the drama in family dynamics, coming-of-age and into power for a young woman, and expands the Cosmology. Also LOL at the thought that poor Han Solo, the guy who disdained the Force as a young pirate helped set off this cosmological Big Bang because he decided that feisty princess who told him off was kinda hot. The final reason, the film critic Roger Ebert made the suggestion in his original review of RotJ that the next trilogy should explore the origins and nature of the Force. So we get d*ck jokes and world building cosmology instead of a repeat of what's come before, best of both worlds!

Death and the Maiden by ohtze and Bride of the Monstrous from ashesforfoxes. Also Star Wars connection podcasts and final "nail in the coffin" that cemented me as Reylo was the Scavenger's hoard podcast.

I have never before encountered so well put together and well informed analyses about fictional medium before Kudos to these ladies!

I knew when I left the theatre on Dec 18 2015 that Reylo was the thing ( there was no name for them at that point) But I knew. On leaving the theatre and getting in a taxi in NYC I pointed this out to my daughters and they laughed at me! They were both total FinnRey's because of the marketing for TFA which I studiously avoided. After my kids laughed at me I went looking on the internet thinking am I the only one who thought those thoughts? and of course I wasn't but Reylo's where still in the minority of fandom in January of 2016. Well well guess who had the come to Jesus moment since the TLJ trailer dropped and Mom has come to visit for the holidays? I got to say it! I TOLD YOU SO..

In my own evolution over the past two years, I have come to be a Rey fan as much as a Reylo fan and Rey's emotional journey is as important as the eventual EPIC conclusion of the ST, and for that matter so is Kylo's , so I am not in a rush to see Reylo in EP8 .

The movie is what intrigued me (I saw it in theatre... 7 times), followed by all the laughable fan reactions that focused on who Rey's parents were. Eventually my sister googled around a little and found a thread where people were discussing Rey and Kylo's connection as romantic in the overarching trilogy, and I got sucked right into that conversation, on one hand because I genuinely loved the movie and on the other because I was confused by the then-popular viewpoint that Reylo had to be this Phantom of the Opera-style non-reciprocated romance or else (yes, this was prevalent even amongst hardcore Reylos in the first few months). Anyway, my education background is in children's/English lit so I knew right away that SW wasn't going to be mirroring a Gothic story arc from start to finish, but would likely have more akin with modern myths and fairytales that have dominated popular storytelling all over the world for decades now.

I started out more on the side of a Kylo redemptionist and slowly became enchanted by the idea of Reylo as the narrative core of nine movies in its power as a metaphor for romantic or sexual awakening. It's not just the Force as an ancient energy that flows through every living thing, it's the Force as a binding power that balances what should not be unbalanced--masculine and feminine energy. A metaphor like this is the best form fictional sexuality can take in my eyes because it can be be read on innumerable levels by people of all ages and backgrounds. Kids can watch it and love all the colours, spaceships and emotion--adults can watch it and admire the unique study on the Force not just as the basis for a mythical theology, but as a tangible thing that brings people together. It's just so GoOOooODdDddDDD.

As for why I'm still here, I really love this community and the excitement of seeing our predictions come true is pretty addictive! I wouldn't still be here if this forum was never made as a place for speculation that was deemed inappropriate, banned or was downvoted vigorously everywhere else on the internet. Until recently, I'll add. It's gotten a lot better. As far as I can tell the trailer burst wide open a hole that was already forming and served as a huge wake-up call for a lot of theorists.

What drew me in was ....I felt Kylo was filmed and portrayed completely differently to other bad guys in Star Wars. I had a wee crush i hoped or felt they would give this character a love interest and that is just ....drugs right there lol

Let's see - where to begin with this. There's so many different aspects about this pairing that I love, it's hard to begin with one. I guess I'll start with my first viewing of TFA. I had no idea what he looked like underneath all that black, but between the way he walked, his smooth modulated voice, and his overall persona, I was beyond enamored with Kylo Ren. I remember about a third of the way into the movie admitting to myself and thinking, why am I attracted to this character? He could look like Greedo underneath all that, for all I know...

It was then revealed he was Han Solo's son, but it didn't quite register that there's a (probably hot) young man underneath all of that. Then the interrogation scene came. When he unmasked, I think my jaw dropped. He was BEAUTIFUL. Amazingly, I had not yet caught onto his dynamic with Rey, even though it was clear to me how different he was with her as opposed to Poe.

It wasn't until the final snow fight happened and he offered to marry *ahem*, be her teacher that I finally caught on what was happening. The line itself took me aback, but it was the choker shots that followed with the way they stared intensely at one another that told me everything I needed to know. The exact phrase that went through my head at that moment was, "OMG WITH HIM?!?!"

I was hooked and there was no getting out. It made sense to me, and I didn't even question if maybe I was overanalyzing things. This was the only descendent of Anakin Skywalker in the film, and OF COURSE this is how it is going to play out! I had yet to discover the behemoth that would become Reywalker, and that thought had never crossed my mind. All I knew is that these were the loneliest two people in the galaxy, Rey was the hero, and she would save him in every way possible, while turning his world upside down.

I've been into heroine/villain ships my life, and I was ecstatic at the possibility of seeing one of my favorite types of love stories play out in one of my favorite franchises.

A few things. The first time I watched TFA, I was curious if Rey and Kylo's paths would cross. When he froze her in the Takodana forest and looked her up and down, I was intrigued. Then when he proceeded to bridal carry her across a battlefield in four different panoramic shots, I was like, "Okay, they're going somewhere with this." When the interrogation scene started, and he was crouched down watching her sleep before he woke her up, that pretty much did it for me, and before they'd even started talking I knew they were setting this up. What really sucked me in was that they both have so much in common; they're two lost souls who were ignored, abandoned, (and in TLJ) manipulated by their mentors. Their dynamic mirrors the other, and it's a beautiful Yin-Yang depiction with a proper emotional cornerstone. I went out of the movie cheering for Rey and her victory over Kylo, but I was a shipper from the word go. It was hard not to be. They made it obvious (in my mind) that these two are going to mean a lot to each other in many different ways going forward.

So, I would describe myself as General Audience before TFA....I loved the OT, I grew up with it. Loved Luke, Leia and Han. The prequels, did turn me off to Star Wars for awhile. Though, now having kids and they love them....I have learned to appreciate the story that they were trying to tell. I just wish someone besides George were directing those movies, but I digress.

It took my second viewing to see what was happening with the sequel trilogy. My second viewing of the interrogation scene, I saw that these two characters were being foreshadowed to have a romantic relationship. My jaw dropped when I finally picked up on the subtext in the scene. My experience in regional opera told me that there was no way this was a mistake. I have not wavered. I was a little confused for a bit with 'romance gate' only because I don't believe the foreshadowing I saw was a lie. Come on, this is a movie....they can cut out the inappropriate stuff and reshoot things if it doesn't fit into their story. So anyway, I do believe these two will eventually fall in love. I have adjusted my expectations for the TLJ kiss.....but I hope for an organic epic love story between these two characters. I believe, this romance is going be epic!!!

As for me, I wouldn't say that I became a Reylo from the very beginning. By this time, I still lived in Berlin and watched the movie in German version without subtitles. I went to the theaters with no big expectations although I felt exitedby the return of the trilogy. But I had no a priori about the story and the charactersalthough I was looking forward to know about their relationship and arc. I must say that I first felt  exited when I heard Rey talking about Luke with her childish wide-eyes and thought: "OMG! Maybe she is talking about her own father!". And I remember that I reacted like anc exited kid as Snoke confirmed that Kylo was Han's son (and so I came to the conclusion that he was also Leia's). I even remembered that I turned to my friend who couldn't understand German very well and I said: "Did you hear that? He is Han's son!'.

I must admit that I found Rey's interactions with Finn really cute and his confession emotional. Honestly I didn't rule out FinnRey after my first viewing. Still, there is no moment that I remember so well as the first time I saw the interrogation scene. First, because I was soo surprised how Kylo Ren was good-looking here. I am pretty sure that I even missed Rey's reaction because of that. And then what set off the alarm bell was his German voice. The way he talked to Rey was way too intimate. It really  gave me the feeling to be an intruder watching a couple during foreplays. And of course, I felt kinda disturbed by this first because it was supposed to be an interrogation but also because I didn't rule out the possible of Reywalker.

I was satisfied with the movie in general. I never saw TFA as a poor remake of ANH but as a moviesetting big potential for the whole trilogy. I must say that I didn't get so interested in the ST within the first months after I went to the theaters. I think that I watched it again maybe noticed the strange dynamic. But what really brought me to Reylo were definitely the wonderful meta that I read about the analysis of TFA i.e. the post about Kylo and Rey as Yin/Yang by @gemini or the post about the parallels between the Son and the Sun by @FrolickingFizzgig and all these posts about the callbacks to R&J, BATB and Anidala. I would say that I was definitely convinced by the parallels with BATB, especially the musical clues. And then I was intrigued because I realized that there was much to analyze about the movie. And when I came to this forum, I read wonderful meta and analysis that made me want to be par of this board. And really I am happy to discuss here because thank to you I have learnt of lot of things and I realized how much Reylo is a compelling dynamic with so many potential.

It is not only about a brightlooking girl changing a naughty man into a gentleman and bringing back to the light. What makes the relationship so compelling is that they are twin souls in a way that I never felt in another fictional couple: they oppose and complete each other like true halves of the same. They are two lonely people with equal abilities who have the potential to develop an awesome realationship despite enormous barriers (she is a scavenge,; he is a prince; she is with the Resistance, he is with the FO; she is rather on the Light side; he is rather on the DS). And they both have this raw power that make them unique and the same: they are not Beauty and the Beast; they are both Beauty and the Beast. So I grew attached to Reylo because I see in them two lonely persons who need to find their place in someone who would completely understand them.

And what I love about Reylo is that the relationship is strangely sensual and yet not over-romantic: the cliche (i.e. bridal carry, hand offer) are used cleverly to create a strange dynamic that remains ambiguous. Thus, I really had the sensation to see another movie while analyzing it deeply. Really, I think that J.J. deserves a lot of credit for the movie he did. I hope that there  won't be too many reactions like "Rian made such an amazing job compared to J.J." because J.J. is the one who created solid basis for this compelling dynamic and beyond. And so I am truly happy that he is the one who will conclude the trilogy because I am sure that Reylo will turn to be an epic love story in the end although so many people didn't see it coming or dismissed this idea.

And I must say that I am one the one hand glad that the suspense will soon end but on the other hand a little sad because it was so fun to speculate. But I am really happy with all we know about TLJ so far and what Rian said about how he sees the ST. So I am looking forward to 13th december

This feels a bit like a confessional.

So, I saw the movie 4 times in the theatre. I have no regrets.

I came out thinking that Rey was Luke's daughter. Why? In retrospect, I think it was a bit of confirmation bias and expectation. Remember: This was all before Bloodline. Once I read that, I started having doubts because - well, I don't have to go into it; you already know. But, it still worked for me (Reywalker) after a bit of mental gymnastics. And since I had this expectation, I obviously didn't ship Rey and Kylo. I just didn't.

But, the carry to the shuttle confused me. The entire interrogation scene gnawed at me. Then, as Rey and Kylo were finding the Force together at the end, I was trying to figure out why he wasn't just tossing her off the cliff.

Have I mentioned that I'm "of a certain age" and generally identify as a fan of the OT? Yeah, that's important in this narrative because I love Han Solo. Seeing him impaled by his son's lightsaber did not go over well for me. I was pretty sure he couldn't come back from that. Ever. I also majored in History and English in college - I was better at History than English, but I got through it. So, while I know how to analyze themes and symbols in fiction, it's not my first instinct.

But still - what was I missing? A friend of mine was a Reylo from the start, so I knew about it, but I dismissed it because I thought she was a Skywalker.

Then, a fanboy friend passed along Bloodline and the chinks in the Reywalker theory started flying. Also around this time, I was still operating in my Harry Potter fandom, writing fanfic, starting a new job, and so I just didn't think much about Star Wars.

Fast forward to late June 2017 - I was futzing around on You Tube and stumbled on Vincent Vendetta's Reylo video. I've since realized how problematic that video really is in large part due to his lackadaisical method of crediting others and some things he has said, but it did serve to get me very curious. So I started wandering around, looking for Reylo videos, metas, and so forth. In that quest, I found Star Wars Connection, the Knights of Rant, and Scavenger's Hoard (in that order.) And I found home! But I wanted to talk to people about this, and Tumblr is not the place for meaningful conversation, at least it wasn't for me. BUT, Frockling Fizzgig mentioned the forum in a comment and so I ran here posthaste in hopes to find a discussion about this topic. And here we are.

What made me become invested? I watched TFA again, this time with a Reylo point of view, and the movie made sense.

I was hooked.

I think for me it was always the subtext that JJ tried to set up now that we know for sure from his commentary. The meeting in the woods & bridal carry really spoke to me. I'm a sucker for both those things. He took his mask off for her but not Poe. She was his "guest" but Poe was a prisoner. The expressions in Adam's eyes during the interrogation scene.
Then the fight at the end & all of the symbolism there (hence my signature picture). And the way they looked at each other during the "I can teach you dialogue." But most of all, it was just a strange inkling, the chemistry is undeniable even if it makes some people uneasy. Daisy's chemistry with John is so very different & to me wouldn't be as compelling of a love story. I couldn't really explain it, more of a gut reaction (which I know isn't a good argument when people want evidence.)
Lastly, I watched all 6 seasons of Girls & the 5th one came out right after TFA. Adam's chemistry with actress, Jemima Kirke, was crazy intense (even if you don't like the plot line). In fact out of all the roles I've seen him in his chemistry & dynamic with her on Girls & with Daisy in SW are the strongest. And every once & awhile I'd see him look at Jessa (Girls) similarly to expressions he had in SW. So by February when that season started I began to really think Reylo was Real & that I wasn't just imagining things.

I noticed Reylo on my first viewing of TFA   . I had seen all the spoilers (Han’s death at the hands of his son, Kylo’s appearance, etc.) because I have no self-control , and I knew that a lot of people thought that Rey was "obviously a Skywalker", so I had that in mind while I was watching the movie.
At first, I assumed that Finn and Rey were going to be the couple of this trilogy and I thought that they were cute (but a little bit boring to be honest ). Then, Rey met Kylo on Takodana and he carried her to his ship that way: I found it odd    but I didn’t make anything out of it because I thought I was seeing things . My perception totally changed during the interrogation scene, I remember thinking: “OMG, what is going on there?!   She can’t be a Skywalker/Solo, that would be kind of weird now” (Because he was leaning so close to her that for a moment I thought that he was going to kiss her! ). I needed to see if someone has seen the same thing so I started researching and found the Star Wars Connection podcast on Youtube and this forum on Google    and I became more invested in their connection and Kylo’s backstory.
I told myself that I wouldn’t ship them until after The Last Jedi because I didn’t want to be disappointed if they turned out to be related (I still had doubts about Rey’s parentage). I totally failed (no self-control   ) and after reading your posts for a while I finally decided to join this forum.

I think I felt something was up when they showed Kylo Ren take off his helmet. I never saw Adam Driver in anything but I had seen his picture online and thought he wasn't good looking or anything like that. But clearly they wanted us to see him as princely and attractive. You don't do that in a movie where you cast an unconventionally looking male actor who is supposed to be the bad guy. If he was supposed to be the bad guy they could have easily filmed him to look like one in a very superficial way.

Then I saw people saying Rey was Luke's daughter and that was so ridiculous I knew then that people were in denial because they couldn't think of the possibility of the bad guy who killed Han Solo being redeemed and "winning" the girl. As if.

I won't mind if they don't fall in love, but I think they will through a Force Bond because that will make them understand each other in ways most people can't. So she won't have any trouble forgiving him and he won't have any trouble letting her help him. It makes good story sense and it seems obvious to me that's where this is going. But who knows? Maybe there will be a twist! But if there is, I doubt it will be that Rey is related to the family or anything like that.

My story is not so different that many of you already told.

I went to theater quite tired that day and wasn't in particular good mood. The only reason I went was the nostalgia - I grew up with OT, and been a bit taken aback by PT afterwords.
I got interested in a new, Disney SW after I heard that OT trio would be in it. So, I went there to see Leia, Luke and Han.

Also, I heard of a couple of spoilers (Han's being killed by Kylo Ren guy etc)

I do remember vividly that I set in the theater and was feeling completely indifferent not even excited as I used to be while hearing the fanfare and seeing "A long time ago..." on the screen.

During Jakku village scene two things happened: I realized Kylo is Han and Leia's son (you can't deny your family..etc) and being hooked into movie by Poe's remark: "Who talks first?" and Kylo's somehow atypical dark side reaction. He didn't force choked Poe at once but rather nodded like a puppy with his masked head.

From that moment I was in the movie.
The Reylo moment came during the interrogation scene: Kylo's approach to Rey to me looked like "dark side" Han Solo is trying to pick up a girl.
Of course he wanted the map first place, but there was also something more in it. First of all: demasking in front of her - why would any serious dark side veteran do that?

I got interested in Reylo because of the gothic romance tropes. Although set in a Star Wars universe, Kylo shares many characteristics with fictional character I have made up many years ago. You know, how you have a story that you keep thinking in your head, but never write down. Even down to the scar Kylo receives.

Some of the tropes I have been thinking over and over again in relation to the fictional character I have been replaying in my head since teenage years. It was always a fantasy for me to think whenever I got bored. And somehow I found it in Reylo. Suddenly my ideas aren't original, but they have manifested in characters where I have never even tried to look for it. Not in Star Wars.

I wasn't really excited for TFA, but I liked it when I first watched it. I didn't even pay attention to the chemistry between Rey and Kylo, but something in my consciousness stayed though. I didn't consider Rey being Luke's daughter, but internet was filled with the destroyed academy theories and the next movie become less interesting to me.

Then somebody at Tumblr I followed reblogged that Adam quote about Kylo's humanity. At that point, I become obsessed and read everything I could find about Kylo's redemption and that brought me to Reylo. I haven't really been into fandoms, this is the first one I am actually writing something. I decided to participate in the discussion, because that "What's the deal with Reylo?" video came out for my birthday and I always feel alone at my birthdays. So I decided, maybe it's a sign I should stick with this ship.

I actually didn't like TFA all that much on my first viewing and gave it a pretty harsh review. However two things stood out: right off the bat, I thought that Kylo was a genuinely great character and one of the nicest surprises I got in a cinema (when I came across the pre-release promotion, I just rolled my eyes and went, oh I see they're recycling Darth Vader, how dull). I also thought it was pretty bloody obvious that he was set up for a redemption story and I'm a sucker for those. And two, his and Rey's scenes together had a real charge to them; I couldn't articulate what the charge was about, but it definitely made me interested in their dynamic. I still mostly got onto the Reylo train because of the redemption story, but the onscreen chemistry between Adam and Daisy sure helped. The recently revealed "raw power" connection made me, for the first time maybe, truly excited about Reylo from Rey's end as well as Kylo's.

After a couple of views of TFA, I started Googling "Rey and Kylo Ren" a lot I was so curious where the story could go from there after Kylo had already been defeated in a way. Was he going to become unimportant moving forward, or were his strange interactions with Rey foreshadowing a new dynamic within Star Wars? Either way it was fascinating. I found out about the "ship" when I came across this on Pinterest:



and then I was hooked. A darksider falling in love with a lightsider? YES!!! I mean I could definitely tell that Kylo could develop feelings for Rey with his "pull to the light," and look of awe when she caught the saber. I couldn't figure out how Rey was going to fall for him though. After reading the novel, however, I gained a lot of sympathy for Kylo and figured that Rey could too. I NEED THIS TO HAPPEN, lol, and things are looking good All this thrown in to the epic drama of the Skywalkers= best potential love story ever to me.

I got really hyped for TFA when I saw the first teaser trailer in late 2014. After that I began speculating about the story of the ST, read all the news articles and interviews leading up to the film release and watched Collider Jedi Council regularly.  

Back then my theory was that Rey is the daughter of Han and Leia and Kylo is her older brother who has fallen to the dark side which caused the family to fall apart. So I thought the ST would be about Rey redeeming her brother and thus reuniting the family.

I started to have doubts about this theory however, when it became clear from the trailers that Rey was waiting on Jakku for her family to return. And of course the film itself made it pretty clear that Rey isn’t a Solo (I can’t believe that there are still people out there who think that after watching TFA...).

I never was a fan of the Rey Skywalker theory. Cousin vs. cousin is just lame. Also based on their character arcs in the OT, I thought that Leia and Han were most likely to provide the offspring for the ST and Luke would be the wise Jedi Master who is too busy rebuilding the Jedi Order to ever settle down and start a family.

However, I must admit that TFA made me consider the Reywalker theory for a while (mainly because of the Skywalker saber calling to Rey, both Luke and Rey’s parents gone missing and Kylo freaking out about a girl on Jakku as if he knew about her). But then I also thought that it would be too „obvious“ to go in this direction. Why not just reveal that Luke is her father in TFA? Since the majority of the audience is already expecting that she is a Skywalker, it wouldn’t make for a good twist anyway and on top of that would be total rehash of the ESB twist (only more lame...).

I had noticed something between Rey and Kylo during the interrogation scene at the time, but couldn’t pinpoint what it was.

So a few weeks after the release of TFA I came across the old Reylo thread on the JCF and after reading a few posts I remember thinking: „OMG, I love this theory! Why didn’t I think of this before?!“ . I’ve been an avid believer in Reylo ever since and was shocked/puzzled by the reactions it was getting from other Star Wars fans. Seriously, from enemies to lovers is a pretty common trope, so all the controversy is just ridiculous to me.

Night Huntress wrote:I explained it quickly when I joined this board...

When I frist saw TFA I wasn't impressed... I didn't hate it but it was to much of "a new hope" remake for my taste.
I also thought Rey is Luke's daughter and I hated it- not because I wanted anything between her und Kylo (I haven't even considered it back then) but because I found it so..  I always thought if they will make Luke say "I am your FATHER" in the second movie I'm done!

It's embarrassing- but I didn't like Adam as the cast for Kylo Ren at first either.

Anyway he was the reason I rewatched The Force Awakens in July- and that's when I first noticed...something
I still was under the impression Rey is gonna end up being Luke's daughter, it was just weird.  
So I googled a bit and stumbled over the word REYLO...

Why I'm so invested in the Kylo/Rey relationship? Certainly not because of some kind of kinky dark fantasy  
I heard some really insulting accusations from Antis - often they compare Reylo to Twilight or even worse- 50 shades of Grey
No offense to anyone who like this stories bit I hate both!

The truth is- I love complicated relationships... particularly "enemies to lovers/friends" kind of stories. It's interesting and intense...they have to overcome their hate, prejudices and learn to understand each other first. It's about the journey.

Where would be the tension in pairing up Rey with Finn or Poe??? It would be so...boring in my opinion. But that's just me

@Night Huntress

Same thing on all these points. First time I saw TFA I thought it was ok but wasn't thinking "I can't wait for Episode VII!" I would have seen it but it would have been just another franchise movie. Then would I heard about Reylo and all the possibilities it could take the stories I started to dig it more and more. And I also thought it was just ANH remake until I started delving deeper into it and saw all the hidden symbolisms and nuances of the characters, especially Kylo's and Rey's. Now I'm like Rey marking tally's on the wall for it to come out.

And I never really knew of Adam, except he was on Girls, and when I saw him I thought "this guy's suppose to be the villain? He doesn't look that scary or intimidating? He strikes me as a comedic actor, if anything." After my first viewing, I was impressed by his performance as Ben Solo and thought he was the best character from the new flick. Now if he's in a movie I will give it a go just to see him in his craft.

And I thought Rey would end up with Finn. And like "Rey Skywalker" it doesn't do anything for either characters or the overall story. There was no tension; nothing about being with each other that challenges them to change or grow. If they ended up together they would just stagnate as characters. Her pairing up with Kylo, though, you could see the effects immediately. Instead of being the tough and brazen girl, always on guard, she became more vulnerable, overwhelmed by these feelings that she never felt before and wasn't sure how to handle it, two things she never experienced while living on Jakku. While she was "just a scavenger" she only had to worry about finding enough material to buy food and fighting someone trying to steal from her, all Things that were second nature to her at the point the audience meets her. And yes she was probably use to guys hitting on her and could handle it easily; see when Finn asked "do you have a boyfriend? A cute boyfriend?" and she curtly told him none of your business. The first time she meets Kylo she is confused and unsure and is easily bested, things that probably never happened to her in battle before. Next time she sees him she is edgy and defiant but more curious than anything. Then in another instant she is angry and confused by his actions and hates him, to the point she beats him up. Every time Rey is around him she is awash of different swirling emotions, not able to get a real read on what kind of bloke he really is. With Finn there was never any of that. It was always just one speed with no twists or turns in their interactions.

Darth Dementor wrote:And I never really knew of Adam, except he was on Girls, and when I saw him I thought "this guy's suppose to be the villain? He doesn't look that scary or intimidating? He strikes me as a comedic actor, if anything." After my first viewing, I was impressed by his performance as Ben Solo and thought he was the best character from the new flick. Now if he's in a movie I will give it a go just to see him in his craft.

@Darth Dementor

I sort of had the opposite reaction. I had seen him on the show, but only a couple of times (that wasn't something I watched). I thought he would look really scary and mean when he took his helmet off and instead he was all clean and pretty with his hair all nicely done. But I didn't really know him as an actor much, so I didn't know he did comedy or could be sweet too!

So after finally watching TFA again with my husband, and telling him everything that we've discussed and the subtle hints in the movie, novel, etc...I finally got him to say that he can actually see the potential in a romance between Rey and Kylo. That's a huge revelation for him! I'm one proud Reylo