Despite the fact that Kylo Ren idolized Darth Vader more than anyone else during Star Wars’ sequel trilogy, one piece of extended lore confirms that the two couldn’t have been more different through a direct side-by-side comparison regarding how each of them grew into two of the strongest Dark Side wielders in the galaxy.
Like his grandfather, Anakin Skywalker, before him, Ben Solo was corrupted by Emperor Palpatine (disguised as Snoke) after being seduced to the Dark Side while studying to become a Jedi. In Ben’s case, he was studying under Luke Skywalker within the newly-formed Jedi Order, while Anakin fell to the Dark Side after becoming a Jedi Knight and even a junior member of the Jedi Council (since he wasn’t granted the rank of Master). Small differences aside, the fact remains that two members of the same family were turned to the Dark Side by the same Sith Lord, and both became incredibly powerful as a result, which rightly leads fans to assume that Darth Vader and Kylo Ren are way more similar than not–however, the methods behind how they each sought to increase their strength are exact opposites.
