Warning! This article contains spoilers for Star Wars: Darth Vader #38-40 Star Wars fans are only a few short issues away from the galaxy (and, in fact, Palpatine himself) facing the greatest threat yet: a Scourge-infected Darth Vader. While this has been the goal of the Scourge since the beginning of Star Wars’ Dark Droids crossover event, the prospect of it finally coming to pass is one of true terror for every living thing in the galaxy far, far away – including and especially for those who live on Coruscant.
Coruscant is the capitol world of the Empire, and has been the center of political power in the galaxy for ages, no matter the regime. Coruscant is where Palpatine spends most of his time, and from which he commands his Empire. During the early days of the Empire, it was more necessary than ever that Palpatine kept a strong presence on Coruscant, as he needed to personally manipulate Senators to continue to vote in favor of every political overreach he brought before the Senate, allowing his perversion of democracy to slowly make him a dictator. It’s for that reason that Palpatine actually cares about keeping up appearances on Coruscant, as shown in Star Wars: Darth Vader #20 by Charles Soule and Giuseppe Camuncoli. In that issue, Darth Vader accidentally killed a Senator who Palpatine needed to vote in his favor, after causing widespread damage near the Senate building, and creating fear and panic within upper-class society. While Palpatine wouldn’t care about any of this on any other planet, he made it clear to Vader that Coruscant was off-limits when it comes to exhibiting the true malevolence of the Sith. But now, it seems Vader is about to attack that very planet with an entire droid army behind him – all controlled by the Scourge.
Darth Vader Can Hurt Palpatine By Attacking Coruscant
In Star Wars: Darth Vader #38 by Greg Pak and Raffaele Ienco, Darth Vader just defeated an entire army controlled by the Scourge, and the issue ended with Vader boarding his ship, heading to Coruscant. However, the issue also ended with a bit of a cliffhanger, as the Scourge somehow followed Vader to Mustafar where it possessed an absolutely massive abandoned battle droid from the Clone Wars era (manufactured by the Techno Union). Based on the evidence in this issue, plus the information made available by Marvel Comics on the next two upcoming issues, it seems as though this giant Scourge-infected droid will succeed in possessing Darth Vader, and then take him to his previously desired location of Coruscant, effectively making him (as the solicitation for issue #40 describes), the “Scourge of Coruscant”.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #40 Preview Confirms Vader’s Attack
The cover art of Star Wars: Darth Vader #40 shows Darth Vader leading an army of Scourge-infected droids on the ground on Coruscant, which not only indicates that Vader does – in fact – get possessed, but that he does the one thing Palpatine warned him never to do again: mess with Coruscant. While it’s less important to keep up appearances at this point in Star Wars lore (since Palpatine has since dissolved the Galactic Senate), the safe and flourishing city-world of Coruscant still represents the power and security of the Empire, and an attack on the planet is a direct challenge to the Emperor himself.
While Palpatine’s victory in this upcoming conflict is all but assured, the injury to his pride and reputation upon Vader’s storming of his palace will still be something he won’t soon forget, as Darth Vader’s new title, “Scourge of Coruscant”, makes him Palpatine’s worst nightmare.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #38 by Marvel Comics is available now, #39 is available October 4, 2023, and #40 is available November 8, 2023.
