A few elements I've taken to give EPIV another layer of meaning:
- Owen as Anakin's friend
- Alderaan as the planet Anakin and Padmé fall in love on
So when the stormtroopers are sent off on a search-and-destroy mission on Tatooine for the droids, the death of Owen and Beru serves as another sign that Anakin Skywalker is no longer (given that Darth Vader sent them there without a second-thought).
When Alderaan is destroyed, it's another severed tie from Anakin's past (given Darth Vader's ambivolence to the event).
And of course, when Darth Vader kills Obi-wan, his former friend and master, it's yet another sign that Anakin is gone.