Every Star Wars fan will remember the first time they witnessed Darth Vader's iconic twist in the final minutes of The Empire Strikes Back, revealing he isn't trying to kill Luke Skywalker... but make him his apprentice, since he is the father Luke thought dead all his life. And now, the realm of Star Wars comics looks to finally address the part of the scene fans might choose to forget.

Fans are certain to debate just what the Emperor actually planned in the original trilogy, or just how early Vader decided to unite with Luke against his own master. But one thing is certain: if fans accept that Darth Vader was paying lip service to Palpatine, while secretly testing and preparing Luke for the truth... Vader's decision to mutilate his own son is hard to grasp. Now that a new comic shows what happened AFTER Empire Strikes Back, fans will finally see it addressed--in one way or another.

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It may not be a case of the comics being used to fix J.J. Abrams's biggest Star Wars regret, or even use the comics to link heroes of the past, present, and future of the Skywalker saga. It's a chance to place a microscope over a Star Wars moment that could be argued is more about shock value than a logical narrative. The idea that Empire's finale was actually Vader testing his son enriches what's on screen. At best, Vader's decision to dismember, not disarm is meant to send a message. But at worst, it's a painful injury that turns Luke against Vader, while also having Anakin Skywalker scar his own son as he himself was disfigured... without any actual payoff. But that's about to change.

Star Wars Darth Vader Luke Hand Comic

The first pages of Star Wars #1 have made their way online, courtesy of artist Jesus Saiz's manager David Macho (via Newsarama). They remove any doubt that Soule and Saiz's first issue really does begin right where Empire ends, showing Luke's hand being removed by Vader's saber in its opening panels. Well, it shows the image of Luke's hand being removed over and over again, along with a close-up of Vader's 'face.' That means either the storytellers are lending far more meaning to that act--from Vader's perspective--or Saiz just really liked the way it looked (we're betting on the former).

Considering how effective Soule proved at using existing Star Wars lore to make Anakin Skywalker's story infinitely better in his most recent Vader series, this choice of focus makes perfect sense. After all, Anakin Skywalker's own march towards becoming 'more machine than man' began with his own arm being removed (in a duel with Count Dooku). Having turned to the Dark Side and become his old enemy's new student, maiming his and Padmé Amidala's own child should mean something. And if that's where the next era of Star Wars comics is beginning, fan hopes can be raised another notch in response.

Star Wars #1 will arrive in January 2020, joined by a new line of stories that includes Darth Vader #1 by Greg Pak releasing in February.

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Source: Twitter (via Newsarama)