Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 1

Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 1 is the first issue of the canon comic book series Star Wars: Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith. It was written by Charles Soule, illustrated by Giuseppe Camuncoli, and published on June 7, 2017 by Marvel Comics. The issue also includes the comic story "No Good Deed...," by Chris Eliopoulos and Jordie Bellaire.

Publisher's summaryEdit

The most fearsome villain of all time returns with an all-new series! When Anakin Skywalker fell, both to the pull of the dark side and to the blade of Obi-Wan Kenobi, he rose back up, more machine than man. Having lost everything that was once dear to him, the former chosen one must take his first steps into a darker world…as Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith!

Plot summaryEdit

The Clone Wars are over. The Jedi are defeated.
Palpatine has become Emperor, finally in position to
bend the galaxy to his will through the power of the
Sith.

Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker has fallen to the dark
side of the Force. Swayed by Palpatine's promise to
help prevent the death of his pregnant wife, Padmé,
Skywalker betrayed the Jedi and became the Sith Lord
Darth Vader. Defeated by his old friend and former
master Obi-Wan Kenobi, Vader was left to die on the
volcanic planet Mustafar.

Retrieved by Palpatine, and placed into a suit of
cybernetic armor to preserve his life, Vader awakens to
learn that wife has died. Now, for Darth Vader, there
is only rage, pain, and the new Galactic Empire....

Rage and painEdit

In the Grand Republic Medical Facility on Coruscant, Darth Vader repeats the word "No" as he remembers choking Padmé Amidala on Mustafar. As his new master, Darth Sidious, smirks, Vader lashes out with the Force, destroying the medical droids and even throwing the Emperor against the wall. Vader asks why Palpatine cannot bring her back as he said he could, and he replies that in his rage, Vader chose a different path, and even the dark side of the Force cannot bring her back. However, in her death, Padmé has given Vader a gift of pain, which he must accept or die. Vader agrees to live, and Palpatine says "Good." then shocks his apprentice with bolts of Force lightning. As Vader struggles in agony, Palpatine tells him to defend himself with his lightsaber. Vader replies that his lost it in the duel with Obi-Wan Kenobi, and that the Jedi took it with him. Palpatine tells him that the blade belonged to another—a Jedi—and he is a Sith. Acknowledging is has been a traumatic time for Vader, he warns if he touches him again with the Force, he will finish what Kenobi could not. He tells Vader to rise as he has something to show him.

On the steps of the Jedi Temple, Mas Amedda is conducting a ceremony, destroying the lightsabers of the many Jedi slain and sent into hiding by the Great Jedi Purge, telling the citizens that they will never again fear the Jedi, and that Palpatine has saved them from their treachery. Watching from above, Palpatine asks Vader if he knows why Sith lightsabers are red. When Vader replies he does not, Palpatine mocks the Jedi for hiding the knowledge they found uncomfortable, which has led to their downfall. He continues that a Sith kyber crystal is no different to any other, except it has been made to bleed—the living crystal from any Jedi's saber can be converted by pouring one's pain and agony into it, until it turns crimson—the color of rage. In the courtyard below, Amedda places the lightsabers into an incinerator where they begin to melt, then recoils as the kyber crystals explode, blasting a fierce beam of energy and flame into the sky. Vader notes that Palpatine could have given him one of the now-destroyed lightsabers to corrupt, even Yoda's. Palpatine replies that the saber of a Sith is not given, only taken.

The Mid-RimEdit

On board a Theta-class T-2c shuttle, Vader and Palpatine travel to a Mid Rim desert world. As they land, the Emperor notes that he had acquired a ship to give to Vader on his mission to make a lightsaber, but it appears to have been stolen. He tells Vader to embrace the dark side and let it guide him. Vader leaves the shuttle and uses the controls on his belt to adjust the optical scanners in his visor, revealing tracks where his ship had been dragged through the desert sands.

At their base, two slavers admire the starship, saying even if they can't slice its encryption, they can sell it for more than a year of slaving will make them. The Aqualish slaver is hit by a piece of machinery, hurled using the Force by Vader, standing on the wall as he says "That ship... is mine." The slavers open fire as Vader leaps from the wall, hurling machinery and shrapnel. A Pau'an slaver gets a hit on Vader's armor and boasts that he "Got him!", but Vader lifts the bodies of his fallen comrades to shield himself, then hurls them at the Pau'an. The last survivor asks Vader what he wants, and Vader replies "From you? Only this." and snaps his neck with the Force.

DevelopmentEdit

On April 24, 2019, Marvel Comics republished Darth Vader 1 as part of its "True Believers" program, with a suggested retail price of $1 USD.^[2]

ContinuityEdit

In Darth Vader 1, Yoda's lightsaber is destroyed during the celebration of the eradication of the Jedi Order. However, the 2016 reference book Star Wars: Complete Locations mentions that Yoda has a lightsaber in his hut on Dagobah.^[3]

MediaEdit

EditionsEdit

• UPC 759606086665; June 7, 2017; Marvel Comics^[1]
  • 00111; Cover A; Jim Cheung, Matthew Wilson
  • 00121; Cover B; John Tyler Christopher
  • 00131; Cover C; Lucasfilm Ltd.
  • 00141; Cover D; Phil Noto
  • 00151; Cover E; Mark Brooks
  • 00161; Cover F; Adi Granov
  • 00171; Cover G; Skottie Young
  • 00181; Cover H; Blank
  • 00191; Cover I; John Tyler Christopher
  • 00116; Cover J; David Lopez
  • 00117; Cover K; Rod Reis
  • 00118; Cover L; Francesco Mattina
  • 00112; Cover M; Jim Cheung, Matthew Wilson
• UPC 759606094370; April 24, 2019; Marvel Comics; True Believers^[2]
  • 00111; Cover N; Jim Cheung, Matthew Wilson

Cover galleryEdit

Cover A Cover A, unlettered Cover B Cover C Cover D Cover D, unlettered Cover E Cover F Cover F, unlettered Cover G Cover G, unlettered Cover H Cover I Cover J Cover K Cover L Cover L, unlettered Cover M Cover N Add a photo to this gallery

AppearancesEdit

CollectionsEdit

• Star Wars: Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith Vol. 1 — Imperial Machine
• Star Wars: Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith Volume 1

BibliographyEdit

•  In Marvel's New Darth Vader Series, We Will See the Sith Lord's Rise, the Construction of His Lightsaber, and More on StarWars.com (backup link)
•  Charles Soule on the Powerful First Arc of Marvel's Darth Vader on StarWars.com (backup link)
•  Writer Charles Soule on the Journey to Marvel's Star Wars: Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith's Climactic End on StarWars.com (backup link)

Notes and referencesEdit

Explore all of Wookieepedia's images for this article subject.

External linksEdit

•  Darth Vader (2017) #1 on Marvel Comics' official website (backup link)
•  True Believers: Star Wars - Darth Vader (2019) #1 on Marvel Comics' official website (backup link)