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Should "Vader" have come back for the sequel trilogy?

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On one hand I used to be totally against it yet I now like the idea that people will twist history and make idols out of people for their own end. In that sense, you could have someone return as the new “Vader” with a desire to emulate the old Empire. This would have been an interesting idea IMO.

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Do you mean like an actual clone of Vader?

“The other Sequels were the result of an over-anxious press. The original intention was to make three [films], and that was really the end of it. It was not until 10 years after the first [film] that I thought of doing a back story.” - George Lucas, speaking at the Premiere of ROTS in 2005

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Darth Retcon said:

Do you mean like an actual clone of Vader?

Kind of or more like someone just using the Vader costume. The idea is someone trying to aspire to be him. I think they did something kind of like that with Ren and his mask. You would then have Luke trying to defend his father’s act of redemption etc.

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If we’re bringing back OT villains anyway they should’ve just brought back Darth Vader and made him the villain of the whole trilogy

Reading R + L ≠ J theories

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No Vader shouldn’t be brought back. It was a bad idea when Veitch wanted to do it in Dark Empire, and Lucas said to resurrect Palpatine instead.

I thought that Kylo was going to put on the mask and suit and become Vader, i thought JJ would do that. I’m glad he didn’t do that. I also think it was bad they basically did a worse version of the Darth Caedus story from the EU and just gave him Revan’s mask. They also had not Jaina Solo, Rey Skywalker to oppose him sort of.

Nothing they did was original.

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Well, Leon White died before TROS, so I don’t think Vader could’ve been in the whole trilogy.

LeonWhiteVader

😉

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Personally no, I don’t think so. I know this isn’t really what the question is asking but I have to say in terms of Vader coming back? I really feel the ST missed the mark on not having Anakin just once speaking with Kylo. But as for an impostor or even Vader coming back? I’d say no. To me, Vader’s story had been told in the previous six movies and while they were decanonized? We got so much in various novels, comics, the radio dramas and more. Having more Vader to me just would come across as tacky and too focused on fan-appeasement when with the ST I want something different, fanservice is fine but I want it to be used in ways that enhance the story instead of reminding me I could be watching another film.

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In the Art of The Force Awakens book they have some concept art for a force ghost Anakin that doesn’t maintain a static visage. I rather like that idea, like he’s still atoning for the things he did somehow.
Having said that, the only Vader cameo I ever wanted for the ST was a scene where he comes back as a force ghost and tells his grandson, “not in my name you brat.”

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regularjoe said:

In the Art of The Force Awakens book they have some concept art for a force ghost Anakin that doesn’t maintain a static visage. I rather like that idea, like he’s still atoning for the things he did somehow.
Having said that, the only Vader cameo I ever wanted for the ST was a scene where he comes back as a force ghost and tells his grandson, “not in my name you brat.”

I remember that, especially the quote that talked about it where it said that it was inspired by an idea in the Earthsea novel series where the darkness that’s inside you doesn’t just go away when you atone, it’s always gonna be a part of you no matter what. That was a really cool idea that I wish they’d considered for at least the ninth episode, it would’ve worked really nicely to have Anakin sit down with Ben and just state how wrong the crimes he committed were.

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My idea for that scene, however controversial, would’ve involved ghost Anakin taking a holoprojector from the DSII wreckage and showing Ben a small recording of Padmé. Anakin would talk about his regrets and how he could never see her again, warning Ben profusely about his path. It would parallel Rey and Luke’s discussion, furthering the dyad theme.

If ghost Anakin is more involved in showing Ben the light (or has his own arc through the ST of helping the heroes), perhaps a reunion with ghost Padmé would be a good (albeit cliché) touch.

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JadedSkywalker said:

No Vader shouldn’t be brought back. It was a bad idea when Veitch wanted to do it in Dark Empire, and Lucas said to resurrect Palpatine instead.

off topic but I’ve never heard about this before, wow.

“Remember, the Force will be with you. Always.”

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BedeHistory731 said:

My idea for that scene, however controversial, would’ve involved ghost Anakin taking a holoprojector from the DSII wreckage and showing Ben a small recording of Padmé. Anakin would talk about his regrets and how he could never see her again, warning Ben profusely about his path. It would parallel Rey and Luke’s discussion, furthering the dyad theme.

If ghost Anakin is more involved in showing Ben the light (or has his own arc through the ST of helping the heroes), perhaps a reunion with ghost Padmé would be a good (albeit cliché) touch.

That could work very well, especially since the recording could easily be of a small moment from either the prequels, TCW or maybe something else and it would work because then depending on how they chose to deal with it and have Kylo either be redeemed or not, it could shake Ben to his core to hear so earnestly from his grandfather just how much this path took from him and if it doesn’t redeem him? Then it’d be emotional for Anakin as he’s watching as one of his descendants is not only going down the same route he is but he’s making even worse mistakes.

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There are ways to make an idea like this work. The key is that you need to turn the whole concept on its head in some way. You want the new “Vader” to be imposing and authoritative and worthy of the mantle, but he also needs to be a very different character from Vader once we peel back the layers and see his inner motivations.

That’s why I like the idea of Ben Solo taking up the “Vader” mantle reluctantly, and hating the role he feels he has to play. Maybe he isn’t actually even on the Dark Side. I’d go all in on emphasizing the “play-acting” nature of the character.

But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.

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It would have been a destruction of the character. But what if we didn’t know who the new Vader was, Luke is missing. at the end of Force Awakens the New Vader removed his mask and its Luke Skywalker. Not Ben Solo.

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JadedSkywalker said:

It would have been a destruction of the character. But what if we didn’t know who the new Vader was, Luke is missing. at the end of Force Awakens the New Vader removed his mask and its Luke Skywalker. Not Ben Solo.

Reminds me of the “Luke is Kylo Ren” theories floating around before TFA came out. I wasn’t a fan of that idea.

But we can’t turn back. Fear is their greatest defense. I doubt if the actual security there is any greater than it was on Aquilae or Sullust. And what there is is most likely directed towards a large-scale assault.

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They should have leaned into Kylo Ren worshiping Vader or some kind of cult centered around Vader imitating him. Then either Luke or Anakin’s ghost or both try to convince them that the real Vader was a slave to the dark side and not someone to be imitated or admired but pitied.

Likewise the First Order if anything should have been more of a cargo cult of the Empire or terrorists inspired by the Empire, not more technologically advanced than the Empire.

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Servii said:

JadedSkywalker said:

It would have been a destruction of the character. But what if we didn’t know who the new Vader was, Luke is missing. at the end of Force Awakens the New Vader removed his mask and its Luke Skywalker. Not Ben Solo.

Reminds me of the “Luke is Kylo Ren” theories floating around before TFA came out. I wasn’t a fan of that idea.

Yeah that’s lame. That’s just as bad as what we got, as far as misunderstanding Luke’s character.