Warning: SPOILERS for Darth Vader #27A key Star Wars moment, once unique in the series, is now overused to the point of absurdity - and Darth Vader's image is seriously hurt in the process. The story of Star Wars is the story of Anakin Skywalker, with a character arc that spans six films and countless novels, televisions shows, video games, comic books and other supplemental material. In Darth Vader #27, a key moment of that story is told - but Star Wars fans will find the moment strikingly familiar.
2015's Darth Vader series was quite popular with fans of the franchise; the series humanized Vader while still portraying him as an unstoppable force when in battle. Additional characters such as Doctor Aphra and the two droids Triple Zero and BT-1 (evil reflections of C3PO and R2-D2) became fan favorites. But a massive twist occurred in 2020's Darth Vader series when Darth Vader found a woman who appeared to be the newly-resurrected Padmé Amidala. In reality, the woman was one of the Queen's handmaidens, Sabé; the handmaidens were chosen to act as decoys for Padmé, and as such look nearly identical to their leader.
In Darth Vader #27, written by Greg Pak with art by Raffaele Ienco, Darth Vader, Sabé and their allies launch an attack on the corrupt Governor Tauntaza, in league with Crimson Dawn. Vader uses an astromech droid to launch his lightsaber into the belly of Tauntaza's vehicle, allowing him access to the interior. After a pitched battle, Vader destroys the vehicle, but is seriously wounded in the process: his suit's power is all but drained and his mask is partially destroyed. Vader's eye is seen by Sabé, who ultimately decides to save Vader after reminiscing about Amidala.
The image of Anakin Skywalker's eye seen through the broken mask of Darth Vader is a haunting one, and is an excellent way to show the good man trapped behind the evil visage. Unfortunately, Star Wars fans have seen this image for years now: Vader's mask breaking and revealing Anakin's eye was featured in 2008's The Force Unleashed, 2014's Star Wars Rebels, 2022's Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney+, and now Darth Vader #27. At this point, the visual is as overused as a character losing a hand after a lightsaber fight, but has even less of an impact on modern-day audiences.
Star Wars focuses on legacy more than most franchises, and creator George Lucas has defended this tactic by stressing the series does not repeat itself, but rather "rhymes." The exact semantics aside, fans are beginning to notice the same visual beats in different Star Wars media. Star Wars need not prove that Anakin is human underneath the Darth Vader helmet at every opportunity; there is no redemption for the character if he is redeemed long before Return of the Jedi.