Things aren't going so well for Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith. The classic Star Wars villain is reeling from his son Luke Skywalker rejecting him at Cloud City at the end of Empire Strikes Back. Now, the latest Darth Vader comic series from Marvel Comics and writer Greg Pak takes place right after this moment, with Vader investigating what happened to his late wife, ignoring summons from his master, Darth Sidious.
Naturally, this can't put him on good terms with the Emperor, and Pak reveals as much in the SDCC 2020 Lucasfilm Publishing Panel. Read on to learn more about the consequences Vader will soon be facing.
Thus far, the latest Darth Vader series has been running for two issues from writer Greg Pak with art by Raffaele Ienco detailing his hunt for answers, with another three dedicated to his search according to Pak at the Lucasfilm panel. So far, Vader has traveled to the Lars homestead on Tatooine, seeking to punish those who made his son weak. However, there is no one left for him to find.
He then heads for the Imperial capital world of Coruscant to Padmé's apartment, hoping to discover what happened to his late wife after he left her on the planet of Mustafar at the end of Revenge of the Sith. Seeing that the security footage is missing, Vader traces its removal, putting him in the path of Sabé, one of Padmé's former handmaidens. Together, they go to where she hid the recordings: on Padmé's homeworld of Naboo. Naturally, Vader's search along with just being near Sabé creates conflict within Vader, bringing the past he had pushed down back up to the surface, especially because Sabé served as a decoy for Padmé, meaning she looks almost exactly like his dead wife.
According to Pak at the panel, whatever happens with Vader's investigation will end after the fifth issue, and a new arc will begin for the Dark Lord: "At the end of our first arc, Vader claims to have settled all of his previous business. But the Emperor knows better. He knows that Vader hasn't settled anything and Vader is going to suffer a terrible punishment." Fans will remember from Darth Vader #1 that Vader when left for Tatooine, he ignored a summons from his master.
The Emperor seems amused by the news that Vader won't be coming to deliver a report of what happened, most likely relishing the terrible punishment coming Vader's way as a result of ignoring his master's call. What will the consequences be for Vader, not only for his insolence but also for failing to kill Luke after Luke's rejection to join him? His last order from his master was to either turn or kill his son, and neither of those things happened. Fans will have to wait and see what sort of consequences are coming the Dark Lord's way as Darth Vader continues.