I feel like ESB did more harm than good for Vader. I came across an article in an old issue of Famous Monsters of Filmland (around 1978) and it had a really interesting point about the code of honor which Vader seems to exhibit in the original Star Wars, and it read quite a bit of character into him that is easy to imagine being a reason for the spike of popularity he achieved between 1977 and 1980. I’ll try and post it if I can find it again. It made some interesting points.
Anyway, in Empire Strikes Back I feel like the nuance of Vader’s characterization was almost entirely lost. The constant killing of his subordinates (to a degree it almost becomes a running gag), the comparatively angry delivery of his lines versus the more soft-spoken delivery of the original, and the fact that his dialogue becomes considerably more blunt. He has his moments of greatness, certainly, but I feel like from the outset of development they were too far gone into making him over-the-top evil rather than the comparatively mysterious and intimidating figure he was in the original film.
I’m actually curious, does anyone else think this?
An interesting opinion, and I think you are on to something. ESB Vader is not someone you can imagine having a conversation with but in SW, yeah if you were of sufficient rank, I can see it. In SW he is far more of a human being rather then this uber-powered Sorcerer/Dark Paladin type character. Of course the Jedi themselves were conceived very differently too.
On of the most interesting things about Vader in SW77 is the question of his position in the Imperial Hierarchy. Apparently Vader does not outrank a Grand Moff nor, in all likelihood, other senior military commanders and government officials. Admiral Motti is certainly not afraid to express his poor opinion of Vader’s abilities and religious sensibilities; and in a very disrespectful manner. Deleted scenes from ROTJ, as well as early drafts of both it and ESBs scripts, show that he is not the unquestioned successor to Palpatine. Interesting stuff!