Kylo Ren is trying to protect the balance between Light and Dark

This whole theory is utter nonsense to me. I'm sorry. But it sounds like a lot of hooey created by fans of a character who want to make excuses for him. I've encountered this before . . . especially within the "LOST" fandom.

Exactly how old was Ben when he became acquainted with Snoke? Nineteen? Twenty? How old? Because he was close to thirty in the movie.

 

if you're referring to the theory in the OP, i can't help you there.
if you're responding to my answer to your question, all i can say if that i'm operating from information we're given directly in the film and in the book, so it's not really much of a theory, just piecing together what few facts we have.
though i guess everything anybody talks about with regard to any of this could be considered speculative.

as for how old Ben was when Snoke got his claws him, we don't know. could have happened anytime from the moment he was born.
the point is we know he was disturbed by Snoke's meddling and that's why Leia tried to protect him by sending him to Luke.
Han calls him a "boy" (which could be interpreted variably), and the script/novel infers Han hasn't seen him as a man, so he's been gone a good while, most likely.
we may yet find out differently in the novels/films to come, but for now, it is strongly suggested that he was a child or a teenager when Snoke got to him, and this is the information we're working with.

 

I'm just curious as to why you think 'bring balance to the Force' was one of Vader's unfinished goals? Wasn't that really Anakin's thing? Didn't Anakin fullfill that goal when he returned to the Light, destroying Darth Vader in the process and then killing Sideous to save Luke? So really, Darth Vader was the first Sith Lord to go, closely followed by Sideous when Anakin brought balance to the Force? So then, why would Kylo percieve bringing balance to the Force as an unfinshed goal?

It does seem like Kylo is into Vader, not Anakin so much, as he does ask the helmet to show him the power of the darkside? Though I guess he refers to the helmet as Grandfather, not Darth Vader, when he talks to it, so that's not entirely set in stone. He does seem to prize the family connection, moreso than just idolising Darth Vader.

Also, doesn't it seem as though Snoke is the one more interested in the coexisting Light/Dark thing, moreso than Ren, at this point? You know, with his prediliction towards sculpting the boy with the pure Light/Dark mix? Not that I'm saying Snoke is into bringing balance to the Force or anything, especially if you take the viewpoint that the Dark side is like a cancer making the galaxy sick, and thus needs to be eradicated for natual harmony to be restored. Makes me wonder if the ruling the galaxy thing is the means to something, not necessarily an end.

 

these are great questions! i have no idea if i have great answers ~ hahaha

i'm guessing (based on Ren's monologing in the book) that he thinks his destiny is bigger than mere rule. and speculating that he knows the full story of Anakin's rise and fall (we get hints of that). Snoke has made him favor the Vader side of the narrative, but i think he likely knows or perceives that Vader was the "chosen one". and if Snoke has convinced him that the galaxy is in disorder (why else would they have an FO if he did not?), then Ren has been likewise convinced that Vader failed (because of his "sentimentality" ~ which Snoke also explicitly tells him in the book).

what's actual or real is kinda irrelevant, in other words. this is about Snoke manipulating Ren by preying on his perceptions and emotional state.

does that make sense? not sure i articulated that very well (again).

to wit: Ren favors the family connection because that's obviously where he fits in, it's just that Snoke has convinced him that the Vader narrative is the "proper" one and that the Anakin narrative is "false".

i also agree that Snoke is the one who is interested in the Light/Dark mix (always makes me feel like we're talking about a bucket of chicken ~ hahaha), so maybe the way i expressed that before was not very good.
what i meant was that Ren's got this idealistic scenario in his head in which they're out "saving" the galaxy, while Snoke is really just in it for himself.

hopefully this clarifies some of the points i was making? if not, i can try again.