With Star Wars toys now officially seeded into the general public, it was only a matter of time before fans started looking way too close at these hunks of plastic for hints. Which is how I found myself watching this video of someone unboxing Hasbro”s Black Series Kylo Ren lightsaber.
Afterwards, there was only one conclusion to be had…Kylo Ren is making this up as he goes along.
This is about to get super nerdy, so buckle up.
Have you ever seen the inside of a lightsaber? Not a toy one in the real world, but a diagram of the inner workings that attempt to science up an in-universe explanation for laser swords.
To be fair, all lightsaber diagrams are from the old excommunicated lore, but the new novel “Heir to the Jedi” seems to confirm the construction remains similar to the old designs.
As you can see, the power cell takes up the base with the crystals in the mid and then the technology that converts the crystals into deadly plasma at the top. It”s the power cell connected to the blade emitter (in this diagram the wires connecting to the power cell are hidden behind the crystal energy chamber) that makes the lightsaber work.
Now look at Kylo Ren”s lightsaber from Star Wars Celebrations.
That thin red wire snaking along the outside of the hilt down to a welded on piece at the bottom? It”s a power cable. So there”s one of two things (probably) going on here:
Option A: Ren built the crystal focusing chamber first without realizing lightsaber need a source of power. Once he saw his mistake, he welded on an extension to his hilt to house the Diatium power cell and ran the power cord along the outside rather than try and snake it up past the delicately balance red crystals.
Option B: That welded on bit it strictly for the crossguard section of the lightsaber. Same basics apply, only instead of realizing he needed power for the whole weapon, the Diatium cells couldn”t support powering both the main blade and the two smaller ones.
Regardless, the result is an unstable and crackling lightsaber that seems ready to blow at a moment”s notice. Do you guys think Ren is even Force sensitive?