After Empire Strikes Back, Darth Vader had to literally remake himself when his suit was reduced to junk. And now, his armor is stronger than ever!
Summary
- Darth Vader's suit was destroyed by Emperor Palpatine after Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back.
- Vader had to rebuild his suit with outdated droid parts that amounted to little more than junk.
- Darth Vader has made so many upgrades to his suit since then that he can now remotely control droids and cyborgs through it - and all of this happened between the events of Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
Warning! This article contains spoilers for Star Wars: Darth Vader #42 Many Star Wars fans have absolutely no idea what Darth Vader went through between the events of Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. The original trilogy may seem like a contained story on the surface, but further exploration into that era of Star Wars canon shows that the movies barely scratched the surface of what these characters got themselves into. And Darth Vader is perhaps the best example, especially because he turned his armor from junk into a superweapon after Episode V.
Marvel Comics’ ongoing Star Wars: Darth Vader series (which launched in February, 2020) picked up right where Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back left off, all from Darth Vader’s perspective. At the end of Episode V, Darth Vader tells Luke that the two of them can overthrow the Emperor and rule the galaxy themselves. Then, in Episode VI, Darth Vader is back to being the Emperor’s loyal soldier. So, what happened?
While the series is still ongoing, and hasn’t quite answered that question yet, Darth Vader’s journey within this period of time has been one filled with demoralization in the face of failure, but also triumph in the face of adversity. Though fans don’t yet know how this comic book storyline will feed into Episode VI, they have been shown Darth Vader broken down to close to nothing, only for him to rebuild himself into something stronger.
Related"No One in the Galaxy Is More Powerful": The Sith's New Rivals Boast They're More Powerful Than the Jedi
In the Star Wars era of the Sith-ruled Empire post-Order 66, the Jedi are barely considered a threat at all, especially compared to a new enemy.Darth Vader Rebuilt His Suit With Junk, & Now It Can Remotely Control Droids
Emperor Palpatine punished Darth Vader for trying to recruit Luke and overthrow him immediately following Empire Strikes Back by dismantling Vader’s suit - including his robotic limbs - and leaving him where he found him in Episode III, on the lava banks of Mustafar. This happened in Star Wars: Darth Vader #6 by Greg Pak and Raffaele Ienco, and it forced Vader to tap into his mechanical genius by using spare parts from outdated droids to rebuild himself.
The impact of this early story arc is still being felt to this day in Darth Vader’s current run, as he just made personalized upgrades to his suit that allow him to remotely control droids and even cyborgs after learning how to create his own closed-circuit hivemind system following his encounter with the Scourge during the recently concluded Star Wars: Dark Droids event. Now, Vader can infect droids and cyborgs and control their actions with his mind, making him the ultimate puppet master of an all-new cybernetic army, and it was only made possible after his suit was broken down into nothing, and then rebuilt by Vader himself.
Darth Vader Is About To Face A Crushing Downfall Before Return of the Jedi
Things are almost a bit too good for Darth Vader in Star Wars comics at the moment. He’s overcome all of Emperor Palpatine’s tests, he manipulated the Scourge and learned how to strengthen himself as a result of that conflict, and he’s on the precipice of raising an army of droids and cyborgs only he can control. So, why would he go back to being so fiercely loyal to the Emperor by the time of Return of the Jedi? Again, that’s still a mystery, but the only thing that makes sense is that Darth Vader will soon face a hurdle he won’t be able to clear, and the Emperor will effectively beat him into submission so thoroughly, that Darth Vader will believably be delivering his own son to Palpatine’s feet in roughly a year’s time from this current point in Star Wars canon.
Regardless of what may or may not happen to Darth Vader in the future of this Marvel Comics series, right now, he’s a champion. Darth Vader’s suit was reduced to soldered-together pieces of abandoned junk right after Empire Strikes Back, but now it’s a superweapon with the power to control an army of droids of cyborgs, which is an undeniably awesome piece of Darth Vader’s Star Wars history - and it’s still unfolding.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #42 by Marvel Comics is available now.
Related Topics About The AuthorSpencer Connolly is a Staff Writer for Screen Rant. With years of writing and journalism experience under his belt, Spencer joined Screen Rant in 2020. Prior to writing for Screen Rant, Spencer was a Photojournalist and News Producer. Throughout his career as a journalist and even his entire life, Spencer always had a deep love for comics and is now applying everything he has learned throughout his career to the fun and informative articles he writes for Screen Rant. You can follow Spencer on Twitter: @TheSpencerVerse.
Recommended Articles
ncG1vNJzZmirk6eyprrRmqWtZpOkunCwwKuroWWmlrGmvoytrKumlZl6or7MqKlmoqWjuG6%2F1Kmcq6%2BVlr2wuoysq5qqXayus7%2BO