With 2019 coming to an end, it's official: Marvel Comics' "Vader Down" was the best Star Wars event of the decade... even counting the movies. When Disney purchased Lucasfilm back in 2012, most fans assumed the comic book rights would soon be returning to Marvel. They were right, and in January 2015 Marvel began their current Star Wars publishing program.
The first wave of Marvel Comics showed the publishers weren't fooling around, launching Jason Aaron's Star Wars and Kieron Gillen's Darth Vader, both set in the immediate aftermath of the first Star Wars movie. In November 2015, Marvel launched their first crossover event between the books: "Vader Down." The basic premise was an exciting one, recounting Darth Vader's previously unknown story of a quest for Luke Skywalker, leading him to be stranded on a remote world, hunted by the full force of the Rebel Alliance. And though nobody necessarily realized it at the time, "Vader Down" would prove to be the best Star Wars event for years to come.
Gillen and Aaron are both exceptional writers, among the best in modern comics. Together, they wrote a compelling and action-packed Star Wars story that demonstrated Darth Vader's mastery of the Force like never before. The Sith Lord headed to the remote planet of Vrogas Vas as part of his hunt for Luke Skywalker, and unwittingly stumbled upon a major Rebel base without any support. Vader immediately demonstrated his skills as a pilot, single-handedly taking down three squadrons of starfighters before he was brought down by the only pilot he decided was worth his time - Luke himself. Even then, the only way Luke could deal with the TIE Fighter was to plot a collision course. With both grounded, what followed was a strange game of cat-and-mouse, as the rebels hunted Vader while Vader sought to capture Luke.
Like any story set in the original trilogy era, the outcome of "Vader Down" was never in doubt. And yet, Gillen and Aaron used that as an actual narrative tool, demonstrating Darth Vader's power with increasingly unbeatable odds. He cut a bloody swath through the Rebel Alliance, effortlessly evading capture. It was a spiritual forerunner of the much-loved closing scenes of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, in which Vader attempted to reacquire the Death Star plans.
The most compelling character arc belonged to Princess Leia Organa, who was initially driven to seek revenge upon Darth Vader, no matter the cost. Leia knew Vader as the man who had tortured her on the Death Star, and who had stood by while her homeworld of Alderaan was destroyed. The opportunity to capture, or preferably kill Darth Vader initially led Leia to abandon her good judgment. She ignored the hunt for Luke in order to focus on Vader, and at one point attempted to use her own radio signal to attract the danger to herself, instead. Leia only regained her priorities (on full display in the following films) when some of Darth Vader's allies arrived and came close to capturing Luke Skywalker, Han, Chewbacca, and the droids.
The event is what the Star Wars spinoffs could and should have been; character-rich adventures that truly mattered in terms of developing the heroes of the Skywalker Saga, rather than answering questions nobody asked. There's a narrative boldness to "Vader Down" that remains strikingly impressive, and the spectacle outstrips anything even the sequel trilogy has managed. What's more, it all serves to show just why Darth Vader kept his place as Emperor Palpatine's Sith Apprentice, even though his body had been crippled by Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.
With the final Sith Lord returned to the Star Wars spotlight thanks to The Rise of Skywalker, there's no better time for fans to remind themselves just how iconic Darth Vader truly is. Look no further than "Vader Down."
More: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - Every Easter Egg & Reference
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