The Star Wars franchise has a bad habit of forgetting how dangerous Darth Vader truly is. Before becoming a dreaded Dark Lord of the Sith, Anakin Skywalker’s astounding connection to the Force – and the subsequent theory that he was the prophesized Chosen One – led the Jedi Order to allow him into their ranks, despite the traditions broken by doing so. Anakin’s potential power in the Force also led him to be targeted by Palpatine, who sought him as his Sith apprentice. As a Sith, Darth Vader was one of the most powerful and feared individuals in the galaxy.
The Star Wars original trilogy depicted Vader as a nearly unbeatable threat until the end of Return of the Jedi, in which Luke Skywalker – nearly a true Jedi himself – finally overpowered his father and nearly succumbed to the dark side in the process. Unfortunately, several properties in both the canon and Legends continuities undermine this crucial moment of defeat for Vader by having him suffer other defeats before the events of Return of the Jedi. Luke Skywalker is obviously not the only character capable of defeating Vader, but these moments nevertheless are detrimental to Return of the Jedi’s finale.
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Darth Vader’s First Defeat Happened… Before The Empire Strikes Back
Splinter of the Mind’s Eye
Darth Vader’s first defeat in a lightsaber duel was, fascinatingly, depicted before The Empire Strikes Back was released. Splinter of the Mind’s Eye, a 1978 novel by Alan Dean Foster, has Darth Vader duel Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa on the planet Mimban between the events of A New Hope and Empire. Luke, unsurprisingly, is no match for Vader, but he receives assistance from the Force ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi and augmentation from the Kaiburr crystal. With difficulty, Luke manages to slice off one of Vader’s arms and the Sith Lord falls into a deep pit.
Splinter of the Mind’s Eye has a good excuse for this premature defeat, however. Its story was originally conceived as a low-budget sequel to A New Hope if the movie failed in cinemas. When the movie became an overwhelming success, the sequel was canonized as a novel, becoming an early property in the Expanded Universe, which would later become an alternate continuity in 2014. Since Splinter was nearly the only sequel to A New Hope, it can be easily forgiven for having a nearly untrained Luke defeat Vader, and their rematch in Empire arguably makes up for Luke’s victory.
Star Wars Legends Gave Darth Vader Too Many Defeats
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed & Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II
Later Legends-era works would, unfortunately, lack the excuse that Splinter of the Mind’s Eye had, having Darth Vader suffer major defeats before the events of Return of the Jedi. While it is perfectly reasonable to have Vader struggle to a degree in his earliest days as a Sith Lord – he was, after all, honing his use of the dark side of the Force and becoming accustomed to his suit – having Vader bested as an experienced Sith is detrimental to his original trilogy portrayal. The Star Wars: The Force Unleashed multimedia project is perhaps the guiltiest of this in Legends.
In 2008’s Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, Starkiller – Darth Vader’s secret and unofficial Sith apprentice – defeats the Sith Lord, leaving Vader’s armor catastrophically damaged. Its 2010 sequel, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, has Starkiller’s clone best Vader yet again, leading to the Sith Lord’s capture by the Rebel Alliance (a plot thread that was never resolved, as there was never a follow-up installment). Although Starkiller and his clone are exceptionally powerful, they could have been depicted as such without cheapening Darth Vader in the process.
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Star Wars Canon Has Continued The Problem
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Unfortunately, the problem persists in the modern Star Wars canon. Like Legends, canon can be forgiven for having Darth Vader suffer defeats early in his Sith Lordship, but several properties show a fully trained Vader losing duels or at least failing to kill opponents who should not be able to outmaneuver or escape him. Vader’s failure to kill or capture all the Spectres in Star Wars Rebels season 2 comes dangerously close to cheapening his threat level, as does his duel with Cere Junda in Jedi: Survivor. The worst example, however, is found in Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Obi-Wan Kenobi’s victory over Darth Vader on Mustafar was not only essential but it also made sense in-universe. Obi-Wan’s and Vader’s rematch in Obi-Wan Kenobi, however, has no such excuse. In order to not undermine Vader’s duels in A New Hope and Return of the Jedi, the final duel in Obi-Wan Kenobi should have ended in a draw. This would avoid harming the Star Wars original trilogy in multiple ways, including the fact that Obi-Wan finally lets go of his faith in the good man Vader once was, yet allows him to live and commit more atrocities.
