lj-writes:

I checked up on a blog I used to follow for the A+ ASOIAF content, which I had to unfollow alongside many others when they pretty much became a 99% reylow blog of the worst kind…. And it’s still is.

On the upside, I had a nice and long laugh at a specific piece of meta that argues that the millennium falcon has been purposefully written as a ‘Ben S’ parallel, including proof such as Rey fixing the poor broken and abused ship.

It starts reasonably enough, pointing out that Han has been looking for his beloved ship all this time, and for his son too. Which, OK, interesting premise, what else do you have that supports it?

…and then it proceeds to read EVERYTHING, and I do mean everything, in a reylow & “poor Ben” lens, not even supporting the initial “falcon = kyle Ron” angle but just taking it for granted and moving on to the shipping and projecting.

Gems include:
– the falcon being the first ship Rey pilots (what does that have to do with ‘Ben’? I mean, yes, sex metaphor – but why? This is still based on nothing, considering the previous ‘falcon is ben’ arguments are flimsy at best and this is not really an argument but rather a consequence of this wild speculation, made to fit into their “romance”),
– rey fixing the falcon in various ways (no comment…)
– the falcon’s cannon being stuck in the wrong position and rey making it point in the right direction (…why are reylows so fixated on rey healing kyle? Is there even anything else to their relationship as they perceive it?)
-rey’s “the garbage will do” apparently = reylow confirmed. ???
– han noticing how “good” rey is to the falcon and offering her a job with him (which somehow = han thinking she’d make a good girlfriend for his son. UMM?)
– porgs making a “domestic nest” in the falcon (I guess the op really 100% believes they’re going to start a family… Still, what!!)
– “Ben” saying to blow that ‘piece of junk’ = self loathing (?!)

Also, as a nice bonus, there was absolutely NO mention of Finn ANYWHERE (even though the “garbage” line is spoken to him, he is with her for her first flight in the falcon, he is the first one to touch her hand and so on and so forth). Leia, Han, and even Chewie get mentions, but I guess the one person who escapes from Jakku with her on the same ship doesn’t count… Maybe because he doesn’t know ‘Ben solo’, so he’s useless to their narrative.

All in all, though, the saddest part about this all is that I understand how they come to this level.
They start out taking something with actual depth (such as ASOIAF, which is as dense with symbolism as they come) and apply to these movies both the ability to read into the smallest details that they’ve learned through actually good stories, and the themes (like light & dark, death and the maiden – the kinds of tropes they love) they found in those stories.
Liondick isn’t even nearly good enough to have put even half of the symbolism they read in TLJ (and JJ sure wasn’t adding any reylow subtext to TFA), but thanks to him “teasing” it they feel confident enough to assume nearly everything that they’ve read into the sequel trilogy was absolutely intended and purposeful, down to the smallest details or further reaches.
Congratulations: you now have the delusions of a romantic love story full of wonderful and obscure symbolism and themes, a story of hope, love and redemption…
A shame it’s all in their heads.

At the latest stage, it probably acts in a way similar to the post I was describing: they grab onto an idea that has a teeny tiny bit of canonical support (han losing his falcon and son both > falcon = Ben), then they don’t even attempt to find any more proof outside of their ship (or headcanoning of Ben as an abused, tortured boy who just needs some love), and simply proceed to apply that tenuous connection to anything that can be viewed as reylow, including even the most headcanony of head canons (like reylow starting a family being supported by the ports nesting in the falcon!! Like what).
Because obviously it is a given that rey will fix ‘Ben’ and that they’ll love each other forever and ever and have a thousand little Skywalker kids, and everything should take it for granted.

They pretty much build elaborate castles (mimicking actual castles with good foundations) on thin air, using only what’s in their heads to support it, and then claim it was all intended, it was all meant to be, you guys, reylow is canon and you’ll all see!

The saddest thing is that readings like this can be fun. I mean, I’ve analyzed Harry Potter through lenses that were never intended by JKR, and I’ve had a lot of fun – but when you start thinking it’s all canon, all part of a grand plan, then you shouldn’t wonder why you’re seen as such a lunatic.

Reylows will rarely (if ever) accept seeing ‘Ben’ & rey as anything but what they’ve decided they are. There is no fascist murderer, just a boy who was manipulated and abused, and who simply needs to be saved. There is no woman who got brutally tortured and who had relevant relationships with people unaffiliated with ‘Ben’ – there is just a lonely girl who is, too, looking for love. (I’ve literally seen someone offhandedly mention they can’t personally bear the fascism in the reylow relationship be accused of gaslighting and manipulating. !!! When was ‘the FO is a neo-nazi parallel, and Kyle Ron a neo-nazi analogy as an angry & entitled white boy who also murders’ a controversial, nay heretical view?)
They’ll take and twist what they see until it fits the world in their mind – and anything outside it will just be ignored at best, erased at worst.

You literally can’t have a conversation with them – they live in another world, and will take any attempts to burst the bubble as a personal attack.

Here is to hoping this analysis helps someone figure out an actual way to talk to them civilly?

(Just to make it clear, this isn’t my work but a submission that I
published. I don’t think I would have had the fortitude to make it
through the whole meta asdjkl I assumed the interface would show the url
of the person making the submission, but I guess that’s not the case?
If the original submitter wants to identify themselves, please
contact me so I can give credit.)

Also in true Reylow meta fashion I can’t stop seeing the gun turret as phallic symbolism. Finn was the first person in years to take a ride on that broken cock and fire it so… Finnlo endgame, baby!