ZED-6-7

ZED-6-7
Production information
Date destroyed	3 ABY, Polis Massa (later rebuilt) Between 3 ABY and 4 ABY, Executor (rebuilt) Between 3 ABY and 4 ABY, Mustafar (rebuilt)
Model	SP-4 ISC
Class	Analysis droid Forensics droid
Technical specifications
Height	Less than 2.03 meters
Pronouns	He/him
Sensor color	Blue Purple (Under Scourge infection)
Plating color	Brown
Chronological and political information
Affiliation	Galactic Empire Crimson Dawn Darth Vader Droid uprising Scourge (As a vessel)

"…forensics droid Zed Six Seven, trained in all aspects of data retrieval, collection and analysis…reporting for service!"

―ZED-6-7

ZED-6-7, also spelled Zed Six Seven or Zed-Six-Seven, was the designation of an SP-4 ISC forensics droid that served the Galactic Empire. In 3 ABY, ZED-6-7 accompanied the Sith Lord Darth Vader on his search for those responsible for hiding Luke Skywalker, rebel pilot and secretly Vader's son. When ZED-6-7 met Vader, the Sith Lord adjusted the forensics droid's motivator, forcing the droid to self-destruct if it ever revealed their mission. While attempting to investigate the late Senator Padmé Amidala, Skywalker's mother, Vader and ZED-6-7 encountered Sabé, a former handmaiden of Amidala who was seeking information about her death.

Biography

Investigation on Tatooine

"You came to punish someone…but unfortunately…there's no one left."

―ZED-6-7, to Darth Vader

During the time of the Galactic Empire, ZED-6-7 served as a forensics droid for the regime. In 3 ABY, ZED-6-7 was summoned to assist the Sith Lord Darth Vader. Vader intended to search for the Rebel Alliance pilot who destroyed the Death Star, Luke Skywalker, who, unbeknownst to the droid, was Vader's own son. ZED-6-7 reported to the Sith Lord aboard his flagship Executor, boarding a shuttle alongside a unit of death troopers. Aboard the shuttle, Darth Vader approached ZED-6-7, adjusting the droid's motivator to force it to self-destruct if it revealed any details about their mission.

ZED-6-7 and Darth Vader, on Tatooine

Following Vader's threat, ZED-6-7 requested to know what Vader's mission would involve. Vader gave the droid Skywalker's name, and ZED-6-7 reported that the rebel pilot had gone missing. However, Vader did not wish to seek out Skywalker himself—his intent was to track down and destroy those who hid his son from him. ZED-6-7 proposed to start where Skywalker was first seen, the desert planet Tatooine. Their shuttle landed at an Imperial facility, and they were greeted by Lieutenant Ardo Banch. ZED-6-7 asked to use a terminal with local records, finding the location of Skywalker's childhood home, the moisture farm of the Lars family. As Vader and ZED-6-7 explored the home, the forensics droid recounted the history of its owners.

As they left the moisture farm, ZED-6-7 detected objects beneath the surface of the ground, and discovered the graves of Cliegg Lars, former owner of the house, and his wife, Shmi Skywalker Lars, who, unknown to ZED-6-7, was the mother of Vader, formerly Anakin Skywalker. Angered by the memory of losing his mother, Vader used the Force to push away the sand in the nearby area, knocking ZED-6-7 aside. As Lieutenant Banch approached to inform Vader of transmissions he had picked up, a gang of criminals attacked the Imperial forces, destroying Banch's vehicle. ZED-6-7 attempted to suggest moving away from the resulting explosion, but Vader remained standing where he was. Vader used the Force to crash the criminals' U-wing, and killed the criminals with his lightsaber.

Following Amidala

"The apartment of Senator Padmé Amidala. Sealed since her death. But I remain confused. Why are we—"
"She was the mother."
"The mother? Skywalker's mother? Ah, yes. This makes sense."

―ZED-6-7 and Darth Vader

ZED-6-7 investigates the apartment of Padmé Amidala.

With the criminals dead, ZED-6-7 asked if their mission was finished, but Vader had further plans. They traveled to the planet Coruscant, visiting the abandoned apartment of the late Senator Padmé Amidala. The forensics droid questioned the purpose of the visit, and Vader revealed that Amidala was Skywalker's mother. The information led ZED-6-7 to conclude that the Jedi Anakin Skywalker was the father.

However, ZED-6-7 was unable to confirm whether Amidala's son had been taken to the apartment after her death, as the security records at the time had been deleted. ZED-6-7 surmised that someone had something to hide, discovering a scout transmitter hidden in the apartment. After analyzing the spy droid to learn who it was reporting to, ZED-6-7 led Vader to the planet Vendaxa, in the Expansion Region. Before arriving at Vendaxa, ZED-6-7 accompanied Vader to a cantina, where the Sith Lord killed a man who had been posing as Luke Skywalker. The two departed for Vendaxa, and the trail led to a facility that was under attack from native Vendaxan land squid, which Vader killed. Upon entering the facility, Vader and ZED-6-7 saw an individual who appeared to be Amidala. ZED-6-7 noted the similarity between Amidala and the woman, who claimed to be the late senator back from the dead. Vader Force choked the woman, and ZED-6-7 remarked on her mistake.

The queen's shadow

"Padmé is dead. But you wear her face. Speak with her voice. You're the queen's shadow…a handmaiden from Naboo."
"Ah, of course! Let me just cross-reference my Imperial data bank…yes! She's Sabé. The queen's double."

―Darth Vader and ZED-6-7

ZED-6-7 stands alongside Darth Vader and Sabé on Vendaxa.

However, Vader was unable to kill the woman, who escaped, and ZED-6-7 attempted to warn the Sith Lord. The two were attacked by more Vendaxan land squid, which Vader killed, and ZED-6-7 tracked down the supposed Amidala, who Vader deduced to be a former handmaiden of Amidala when she had been the queen of her homeworld of Naboo. ZED-6-7 compared the handmaiden to its Imperial databank, identifying her as Sabé, the queen's double. Vader concluded that it had been Sabé who visited the apartment, and Sabé accused the Emperor of being behind Amidala's death. Vader lied to Sabé, claiming that he was hunting down those who had hidden Amidala in revenge for her death, which convinced the former handmaiden to work alongside him.

ZED-6-7 accompanied Vader and Sabé as they fought off the remaining Vendaxan land squid, leaving the facility. Sabé ordered ZED-6-7 to help her bury her crew of soldiers, who had died fighting off the creatures. ZED-6-7 protested, arguing that it was not built for manual labor, but Vader forced the forensics droid to obey Sabé's order. ZED-6-7 reluctantly buried the dead soldiers, watching as Sabé mourned them. Following the burial, Sabé led Vader and ZED-6-7 to Naboo, where she had hidden the security recordings from Amidala's apartment.

Voyage on Naboo

"The sub's been making a terrible whine. Perhaps that's what's attracted them…although at this point, I don't suppose it really matters."

―ZED-6-7, as the group's bongo is attacked by colo claw fish

Arriving in the planet's Lake Country, ZED-6-7 remarked on the excitement of journeying to Naboo and accompanied Vader and Sabé to Varykino, the lake retreat of Amidala's family. The droid inquired why the former handmaiden had brought them there in search of the recordings, prompting the woman to confess she did not know the exact location of the files. In that moment, Vader was attacked by two men, though the Dark Lord of the Sith easily gained the upper hand. ZED-6-7 observed that the attackers had made a grave mistake, but Sabé convinced Vader to leave them alive, revealing them to be her associates Gregar Typho and Tonra, veterans of the Royal Naboo Security Forces who claimed to have hidden the recordings on Naboo. ZED-6-7 and Vader followed the group to the lower levels of Varykino, boarding a Gungan bongo submarine and voyaging into the depths of the planet's waterways.

ZED-6-7 and the others were attacked by colo claw fish.

The droid examined its new allies during the journey, questioning them on their activities related to Amidala. Analyzing its databanks, ZED-6-7 determined that Captain Typho had witnessed multiple assassination attempts against Amidala during the Separatist Crisis, causing the officer to believe that the droid was questioning his loyalty to his queen, though it mused that it was simply collecting relevant data. Later, it turned its attention to Tonra, an individual whose history following the Invasion of Naboo was unknown to the droid. As the man explained that he had gone undercover on a mission with Sabé, the group's bongo was attacked by carnivorous colo claw fish. ZED-6-7 noted the creatures to be uncommon in the shallow waters they journeyed through and speculated that the eels had been drawn by the whining noise of their Gungan vessel.

The fish bit into the bongo with their massive jaws, compromising the hull and ejecting the passengers into the water. Tonra attempted to use the droid as a shield against the beasts, an action ZED-6-7 noted would be useless if the creatures swallowed them all whole. Vader, however, subdued the fish, prompting the droid to encourage its companions to thank the Sith Lord, though it surmised that the organics would soon perish without oxygen. Tonra led the group to their destination, an underwater Gungan structure. ZED-6-7 took note of a mural within that depicted the aftermath of the Battle of Naboo, an event Vader witnessed as a child. The Dark Lord destroyed the artwork in anger.

Entrapment under the sea

"Well, well! You were trained to deceive, weren't you? This isn't a clue…this is a shrine to whatever compact you've made. But if we're all after the same targets, why bother—"

―ZED-6-7, to the Amidalans

Although Vader requested that the recordings be immediately given to him, Tonra challenged him and asked if he truly sought to avenge Amidala's death. After ZED-6-7 advised the captain that it was in his best interest to proceed quickly, Tonra produced a holographic device from a hidden chamber in the structure. ZED-6-7's Imperial programming allowed it to easily bypass the outdated Republic code and produce the recordings Vader sought. The footage depicted a young woman speaking to small a group of individuals, whom the droid determined to be Sabé, Typho, Tonra, and others.

In the recordings, the group christened themselves the Amidalans and swore to kill those responsible for their queen's death. After realizing that they had not found the clues they had been promised, ZED-6-7 questioned why Sabé had deceived them if they all wanted to eliminate the same targets. The handmaiden revealed that the Amidalans suspected Vader as the culprit all along and had brought him to Naboo to kill him. With the ruse discovered, Tonra activated a device, summoning an enormous sando aqua monster to destroy the facility.

Pawn of the Scourge

After the battle for the Executor, ZED-6-7 was infected by the Scourge, which used him to enter a Techno Union droid factory on Mustafar and then infect an octuptarra tri-droid. The incident ended with the infected ZED-6-7 being decapitated by Vader. ZED would later be rebuilt.

Characteristics

Imperial droid

"If you ever reveal what you learn on this mission…you will self-destruct."
"Oh! Wonderful! I do appreciate thoroughness! Tell me everything, then!"

―Darth Vader and ZED-6-7

ZED-6-7 did not enjoy demeaning work.

An Imperial forensics droid, ZED-6-7, known as Zed Six Seven, also spelled Zed-Six-Seven, was the same model as the SP-4 ISC crime scene analysis droids formerly used by the Jedi Order. ZED-6-7 had plating colored in various shades of brown and had blue photoreceptors. The droid stood at a height shorter than 2.03 meters. As a forensics droid, ZED-6-7 was not constructed for undertaking manual labor and objected to doing so.

ZED-6-7 was eager to serve and analyze data. Upon noticing death troopers when reporting to Vader, ZED-6-7 was pleased that it would have plenty to analyze. When Vader adjusted the forensics droid's motivator to force it to self-destruct if the details of their mission were revealed, ZED-6-7 was surprised but not scared, instead being pleased by how thorough Vader was. ZED-6-7 was a skilled analyst, able to use its extensive database to make deductions. The forensics droid could scan an individual's traits, including physical features and voice, and determine their identity based on cross-referencing its database. It could also detect heat signatures to track individuals.

Vader's servant

"Every time we fall, we are rebuilt and made useful again… in the service of Lord Vader."
"Hooray."
"Seriously, now… what other droids have such purpose?"

―ZED-6-7 and Ought-Six

Serving under a Dark Lord of the Sith, ZED-6-7 was enthusiastically loyal to Darth Vader. It eagerly anticipated the occasions upon which the Emperor's servant could deliver violent judgement, watching with excitement as Vader fought against the likes of Sabé and the Amidalans. The droid was surprised that individuals like Typho and Tonra could think to kill the Sith Lord and believed that transgressions of that sort would not go unpunished.

Equipment

When ZED-6-7 was summoned to assist Darth Vader, the forensics droid brought a number of boxes containing equipment.

Behind the scenes

"We're telling a story with a lot of subtle moments involving characters like Vader and ZED-6-7, whose faces literally don't move."

―Greg Pak

ZED-6-7 first appeared in Darth Vader (2020) 1, a comic written by Greg Pak, illustrated by Raffaele Ienco, and published by Marvel Comics on February 5, 2020. While the droid was only named "Zed Six Seven" in the comic, the second issue, also written by Pak and published on March 11, 2020, provided his formal designation of ZED-6-7.

In a response to fan letters published at the end of Darth Vader 2, Pak mentioned that the series' art team allowed the comic to tell a story that included subtle moments involving characters such as Vader and ZED-6-7, despite the fact that their faces could not emote. For ZED's decapitation in Darth Vader (2020) 39, artist Raffaele Ienco decided to ink ZED's neck as leaking sparks and pondered if the visual would be too graphic for Lucasfilm Ltd. However, it was approved without issue.

Appearances

Darth Vader (2020) 1 (First appearance) Star Wars (2020) 5 Darth Vader (2020) 2 (First identified as ZED-6-7) Darth Vader (2020) 3 Darth Vader (2020) 4 Darth Vader (2020) 5 Darth Vader (2020) 18 (Wreckage only) Darth Vader (2020) 20 Darth Vader (2020) 21 Darth Vader (2020) 22 Darth Vader (2020) 23 Darth Vader (2020) 24 Darth Vader (2020) 25 Darth Vader (2020) 26 Darth Vader (2020) 27 Darth Vader (2020) 28 Darth Vader (2020) 29 (Variant cover only) Darth Vader (2020) 30 Darth Vader (2020) 31 Darth Vader (2020) 36 Darth Vader (2020) 37 Darth Vader (2020) 38 Darth Vader (2020) 39 Darth Vader (2020) 40 (Mentioned only; in the opening crawl) Darth Vader (2020) 41 (Indirectly mentioned only; in the opening crawl) "Tool of the Empire" — Revelations (2023) 1 Darth Vader (2020) 42 Darth Vader (2020) 44 Darth Vader (2020) 45

Sources

• Padmé's Handmaiden Hunts a Sith Lord in Marvel's Darth Vader #20 – Exclusive Preview on StarWars.com (backup link)
• A Podracer Once More in Marvel's Star Wars: Darth Vader #26 – Exclusive Preview on StarWars.com (backup link)
• Star Wars: Timelines
• Darth Vader Returns to Mustafar in Marvel's Star Wars: Revelations (2023) #1 – Exclusive Preview on StarWars.com (backup link)

Notes and references

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