Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader had a secret conflict between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, one that Star Wars set up six years ago and was finally paid off in 2023. As seen in the canonical comics published by Marvel, Star Wars has revealed a significant number of major events between films, including the times when Vader and Luke clashed before and after their biggest on-screen duels. However, this secret conflict in particular speaks to their shared power in the Force itself.
As seen in the canonical and ongoing Star Wars comic series, Luke Skywalker is actively continuing to train and follow the Jedi path in the aftermath of The Empire Strikes Back, explaining his evolution into a Jedi knight as he’s seen in Return of the Jedi. This includes the creation of Luke’s green-bladed lightsaber and its kyber crystal he first interacts with in Star Wars #35 by Charles Soule and Madibek Musabekov. However, Luke also connects with a kyber crystal that had been bled by the Sith, resulting in the epic payoff for a Darth Vader tease back in 2017.
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Luke Skywalker & Darth Vader Clashed In A Mystical Experience
Spanning Across Time And Space
As seen in Charles Soule’s Darth Vader (2017) series set in the aftermath of Revenge of the Sith, the Dark Lord had his intimidating castle built on Mustafar as seen in Rogue One and Obi-Wan Kenobi. However, the comics reveal that it was specifically designed to tap into a locus of dark side energy, allowing Vader to enter a Force nexus in the hopes of bringing his late wife Padmé back from the dead. Following Padmé’s refusal to join him in Darth Vader #25, Vader is approached by a being composed of pure blue energy, contrasting with Vader’s own Force form with its chaotic black and red.
This unknown being forced Vader back into the physical realm where the Dark Lord would subsequently commit himself even further to the dark side, serving Palpatine for years to come during the Dark Times. However, Star Wars #35 has confirmed that this blue being was indeed Luke’s Force form as had been largely speculated. Upon tapping into the bled kyber given to him, Luke faced his father in this mystical realm before he was effectively forced back to the physical realm, just as Vader had been years prior. As such, this seemingly confirms that Luke and Vader effectively faced each other across time and space.
The Luke Skywalker/Darth Vader Duel Took Place In The World Between Worlds
Or A Very Similar Force Nexus
All things considered, it certainly seems as though Luke and Darth Vader faced each other in a version of the World Between Worlds. As seen in Star Wars Rebels and the live-action Ahsoka series, the World Between Worlds is a Force nexus offering access to multiple points in time and space, the closest thing the Star Wars franchise has to time travel in the galaxy far, far away.
To that end, it certainly seems as though both Vader and Luke found themselves in the very same nexus or one that’s at least incredibly similar. Having both used the Force in unconventional ways, it stands to reason that they each accessed this nexus which offered them both glimpses into the past, present, and future before they truly faced each other in the mystical realm, respectively representing both the purity of the light and the chaos of the dark. Likewise, Star Wars #35 supports this idea with Luke confirming that he indeed saw his father upon exiting the nexus.
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Luke & Vader’s Experience Prove They Are Of Equal Power
Their Connection To The Force Is The Same
Going beyond the very exciting reveal that Luke and Darth Vader battled in a Force nexus, the conflict’s ending is fascinating. From their own perspectives, Luke and Vader each get forced out of the World Between Worlds by the other. Furthermore, the panels themselves are intentionally paralleled as mirror images despite being published six years apart. It’s a strong confirmation pointing toward their equal power. As the son of Anakin Skywalker and the Star Wars galaxy’s New Hope, it makes sense that Luke’s connection to the Force would be just as strong as his father’s who eventually fulfills his destiny as the galaxy’s Chosen One.
