Warning! Spoilers ahead for Star Wars #17
In the latest issue of Marvel Comics' Star Wars, it's revealed that Luke Skywalker considered killing Darth Vader before Return of the Jedi. Tying into the current War of the Bounty Hunters crossover, Luke and his Sith Lord father were caught in a starfighter battle of epic proportions. Using himself as bait, Luke has been attempting to keep Vader distracted from Han Solo - who's still encased in carbonite - providing his friends with one less obstacle as they attempt to save the infamous smuggler. And it's just been revealed Luke actually got the jump on Vader, providing a rare opportunity to end Vader's terror once and for all.
In previous issues of War of the Bounty Hunters and its tie-in issues, Darth Vader threatened to kill Solo in his carbonite prison unless Luke came before him. While Leia had wanted Luke to rise to the challenge and face the Sith Lord, the young Jedi did not feel ready considering his recent defeat at the hands of Vader in Empire Strikes Back, combined with the reveal that the Sith Lord is his father. As a result, Luke chose to call Vader's bluff, challenging him to take to the skies in his TIE fighter to pursue Luke in his X-Wing instead. Vader surprisingly complied, pursuing his son with the intent to kill.
Now, Star Wars #17 from Charles Soule and Ramon Rosanas sees Vader springing a surprise attack on Luke, emerging from beneath the waters of the polar sea on Jekara where Crimson Dawn was auctioning off Solo. However, Luke wasn't caught off guard for long, seeing as how his own skills as a pilot rival his father's. As a result, Luke caused Vader to crash-land, providing him with the perfect shot in his X-Wing to kill the Sith Lord.
But while the Dark Lord was prepared to defend himself, the shots never came as Luke decided he still wasn't ready to face Vader, especially with the new knowledge that he's his father. All things considered, Luke's choice to spare the Sith Lord makes sense (beyond the fact that fans already know they have a battle that's yet to come in Return of the Jedi). Since their duel on Cloud City, Luke had been having visions of openly facing Vader again, and each time they've ended in him losing in some fashion. As such, Luke has determined that he needs to progress much further in his Jedi training before that happens, and he's absolutely right. Vader's hopes of ruling with Luke by his side have ended, meaning that if they were to fight one another directly, Vader wouldn't hesitate to kill his son.
However, Luke definitely had the advantage in this new issue, and it's certainly possible he could have succeeded in killing Vader with his X-Wing's cannons had he chosen to. Even so, while getting the upper hand against the Sith Lord is of course a rare opportunity, it does feel as though Luke made the right decision. Had Darth Vader somehow survived the considered attack, Luke Skywalker probably wouldn't have survived his father's retaliation in this latest issue of Star Wars.