Leia is afraid of him since the first scene, just look at her eyes. The next time we see him, is when he fights Obi-wan and literally kills him. In the trench run, he kills Luke’s comrades one-by-one, and this builds more and more the tension and the fear that Luke might be his next victim. So, yeah, I’m consistent: I felt he was an actual constant threat in ANH.
Alderaan said:
[…] It was implied in TFA that he was a badass, I mean he stopped blaster bolts in mid air and telekinetically froze people and threw them through the air. […]You know, if you think about it, he wasn’t that badass, considering Poe had no problem making fun of him since the very first scene 😄
Good guys always mock the bad guys. Or do you really think Tarkin smelled and kept Vader on a leash? 😉
“Always” not sure (honestly, I can’t remember other fitting examples in the OT), but you’re right about Tarkin 😄
Doesn’t help that’s Ren’s first scene. Again, consider that’s not Vader’s case in ANH, hell in the whole OT. These guys are supposed to be the main villains, after all 😄