Darth Vader (2020) 50

Darth Vader 50 is the fiftieth and final issue of the 2020 canon comic book series Star Wars: Darth Vader. The issue was written by Greg Pak, illustrated by Paul Fry, Adam Gorham, Raffaele Ienco, Luke Ross, Federico Blee, Guru-eFX, Alex Sinclair, and Frank William, and published by Marvel Comics on September 18, 2024. The issue is made up of four chapters: one featuring the climax to the Schism Imperial storyline, an epilogue to Schism Imperial focusing on Ochi and Darth Vader, a story about the possibility of Princess Leia Organa joining the dark side of the Force, and a tale about Kitster Banai and Wald returning to Tatooine.

Publisher's summary

GIANT-SIZED DARTH VADER EPIC! The longest-running DARTH VADER comics series ever reaches its stunning conclusion as THE DARK HEART OF THE SITH comes full circle! Darth Vader finally unleashes the unfathomable power he's accumulated through the SCHISM IMPERIAL against the only person in the galaxy he hates more than he hates himself – EMPEROR PALPATINE! Also featuring the final twists in the saga for key characters like LUKE, LEIA, SABÉ, OCHI, ZED, SLY MOORE, the members of the Schism Imperial and more!

Opening crawl

TERMINUS 
Sly Moore's Schism Imperial, a covert group
within the Empire determined to overthrow
the Emperor, has continued to grow. Now,
after various betrayals and double crosses,
it all comes down to the final confrontation
for control of the Empire….

Plot summary

Chapter 1: Destroyer

On the Outer Rim planet Caranthanax B, Luke Skywalker recovers from a blast that should have been lethal. Administrator Sly Moore of the Schism Imperial wonders what happened, only to find out that Darth Vader blocked the blast. Vader approaches Moore and Governor Tauntaza, leading Moore to use Vader's Kyber-infused Zaly Shield to attack him with a massive energy blast. Vader blocks the attack with the Force, and a technical flaw in the weapon causing feedback to injure the wielder incapacitates Moore and Tauntaza. Vader then collects his shield and electrostaff.

Luke is approached by the Rebel cyborgs of M.A.R. Corps, only for former handmaiden of Naboo Sabé to fire on the individuals who arrived to the planet with Vader. Luke is able to defuse the situation and convinces Sabé and Warba Calip to land their stolen Imperial Troop Transport for the Rebels to board. He even convinces former Imperial Security Bureau Agent Fabarian to join their cause. Luke tries to learn more of who Sabé is, and she implies that she reminds Vader of Padmé Amidala without revealing to Luke any information. She decides to stay on the planet and confront Vader.

As the stolen transport leaves, Sabé approaches Vader, blaster drawn. She tries to understand Vader, if there is still any good in him, why he let Luke go. Vader simply says that Luke was not ready, nor is the Emperor. Only he himself has ever been ready. Vader takes off in a Lambda—class T-4a shuttle and flies towards Tauntaza's Death Machine. Realizing Vader's intentions, Sabé rushes to Moore's starship and convinces them to take off into the air, even though the ship is not space-worthy. On the Death Machine, Vader throws Captain Corleque into a railing and entrenches himself in a tangle of wires and power cells atop the machine. Vader activates the Death machine, draining the life force from all organic life in the area, absorbing it all for himself.

The ripples of the act are felt through the Force by Luke, Leia Organa, and Emperor Palpatine. The latter wants his apprentice to wield this immense power, and calls forth an army of Stormtroopers and Sith Eternal cultists atop juvenile summa-verminoth to attack Vader. Vader leverages the power of the many energy cells he collected to devastate the opposing forces. With his increased power, however, he also feels the fear and deaths of the Stormtroopers. In understanding them through the Force so intimately, Vader's internal anguish is greatly heightened. It evokes in him the memory of his massacre of the Tuskens following his mother's death.

Reeling in his hatred, Vader pulverizes his foes, only for Palpatine himself to show himself. He goads his apprentice to attack him. Sabé rushes to Vader and tries to remind him how hate leads to suffering, and that any power he may gain from his hate only brings chaos, not order. As Sabé reminds him of the people he once cared about, Palpatine reminds him of how he failed each of them, which was all part of Palpatine's plans.

With so much hate, Vader uses both of his weapons against his master, imagining atomizing him with the energy but hating himself just as much. The energy and feedback loop coarse through Vader's body and armor, damaging the eye pieces of his helmet. The still intact Palpatine approaches his apprentice and reveals to Vader that he gave allowed him to amass such power to prove that beyond a shadow of a doubt that only Palpatine has ever been ready. Vader ultimately capitulates in subservience to his master, kneeling before him, as he imagines the disappointed looks of those he once held dear.

Chapter 2: In Service of the Emperor

Later, on Imperial capital Coruscant, the members of the Schism Imperial, including Corleque, Tauntaza, and Moore, meet up with Ochi of Bestoon, who ridicules their doomed attempt at a coup d'état. Ochi realizes he misspoke when the Emperor congratulates Moore on her job well done. This shocks the members of the Schism as they realize Moore was working for Palpatine all along. They are equally surprised to find out that Senior Lieutenant Enric Pryde, such a vocal supporter of Vader, was also working with the Emperor in secret. Pryde informs the others that he still is a believer in Vader, but that he always recognized Vader's true destiny is in service of the Emperor. Palpatine informs them all that they played an important role in teaching Vader to learn his true place of subservience to his master. Vader then appears, downtrodden and small.

Moore gives Ochi the task of leading Vader in an exercise. The two travel in a shuttle back to Caranthanax B. While en route, Ochi reaffirms his loyalty to Vader, in spite of the many times Vader physically abused him, since Vader has always been shown to be the strongest. Vader's exercise is to battle two juvenile summa-verminoth who survived his previous confrontation, though this time without his energy weapons. These creatures also are super-charged from draining a few Death Machine energy capsules that were left behind.

The summa-verminoth attack Vader with electricity, but in spite of the strain Vader ignites his lightsaber and redirects the lightning back at the creatures, killing them. In the aftermath, Ochi spots a couple of youths who witnessed the attack, and encourages Vader to kill them. Vader spares them, which makes Ochi wonder why Vader is so weak to show mercy to the children, to Skywalker, and to Sabé. In anger, Vader brutally attacks Ochi with the Force. Sly Moore eventually arrives and mocks Ochi, but is pleased that he was able to help awaken Vader once again.

Chapter 3: There is Another

Some time later, Sabé arrives to the spot of Ochi's defeat. She gives Ochi water to help him recover. Ochi confirms it was Vader who did this and that in spite of any perceived weakness, he will go after her still. Sabé's fear is not herself, but Leia.

At Rebel Base E322 on the Outer Rim world of Feleantor, Leia Organa and other Rebels prepare an emergency evacuation after Imperials discover their location. Leia boards a landspeeder with Daian for her evac shuttle, only for driver to go the wrong way. Leia discovers that it is not Daian, but an imposter. Leia punches the suspected Imperial, causing the landspeeder to crash. The interloper, Sabé, tries to convince Leia to trust her, and the two try to take out a couple of viper probe droids. Sabé tells Leia she knew her father, which Leia interprets as Bail Organa, an ally of Padmé Amidala. At this point, Leia recognizes Sabé, and blames her for working with Vader.

Sabé keeps trying to take Leia's measure. Leia uses a thermal detonator to take out the probe droids, and Sabé sees the strength of Padmé in her. The comparisons she draws confuse Leia, and Sabé expresses her regret for working with Vader and her unwillingness to follow through with what that path may have led to. She worries that if Vader saw Leia's true strength, Vader would try to get her to be the Empress at his side. Leia scoffs at the idea of ever being an undemocratic ruler. Sabé, pleased with Leia's fortitude and good heart, has her droid stun Leia. She then calls for the Rebels to pick Leia up, recognizing that Leia is perfect.

Chapter 4: Phantoms

When Vader fought Palpatine on Caranthanax B, Kitster Banai and Wald engaged in a daring evacuation with their team onto Vader's shuttle, fleeing the system. To their fortune, Wald even stole a number of power cells and the two revel in their luck.

They return to their homeworld of Tatooine, where they sell a power cell to a merchant for a large sum of credits. They then go to a moisture farm and purchase the freedom of all of the slaves, but their focus was their childhood friends Amee, Melee, and Seek. The friends reminisce and talk about their friend Anakin Skywalker who went off and became a Jedi. Realizing the Jedi are gone, Melee nevertheless feels that Anakin is still out there somewhere.

When Kitster flashes an energy rod, he is shot in the shoulder by a group of raiders who tracked them from the merchant. They force Kitster and Wald to hand over all of the energy rods but are themselves slain by Ochi, who takes the rods for himself. He does however, spare the freed slaves.

In Fortress Vader on Mustafar, Ochi delivers the rods to Vader. He informs the Sith Lord that the thieves were the slaves from Tatooine, causing Vader to worry that Ochi may have killed them. Ochi reveals that he spared them in case Vader himself wanted to intervene, and that they talked about a Jedi named Anakin Skywalker. Vader tells Ochi his actions are acceptable because Anakin Skywalker is dead.

Development

An exclusive first look into Darth Vader 50 was put out on August 16, 2024, by AIPT Comics, which featured unlettered artwork and first revealed the issue would feature four different chapters.[3]

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Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 Marvel-TemplateLogo Star Wars: Darth Vader (2020) #50 on Marvel Comics' official website (backup link)
  2. ↑ The events of Darth Vader (2020) 50 take place after the Escape from Cloud City and before the Rescue of Han Solo, which are dated to 3 ABY and 4 ABY, respectively, by Star Wars: Galactic Atlas.
  3. ↑ Premium-Era-real EXCLUSIVE Marvel First Look: Star Wars: Darth Vader #50 on Adventures In Poor Taste (backup link)

External links

Star Wars - Darth Vader logo
Dark Heart of the Sith: 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5
Into the Fire: 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10 · 11
War of the Bounty Hunters: 12 · 13 · 14 · 15 · 16 · 17
Crimson Reign: 18 · 19 · 20 · 21 · 22 · 23 · 24 · 25 · 26 · 27
Hidden Empire: 28 · 29 · 30 · 31 · 32
Unbound Force: 33 · 34
Target Aphra: 35 · 36
Dark Droids: 37 · 38 · 39 · 40 · 41
42 · 43 · 44 · 45
The Razing of Exegol: 46 · 47
48 · 49 · 50
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Related media
Darth Vader (2015) · Darth Vader (2017)
In Service to the Empire · Revelations (2022) · Tool of the Empire
The Curse · Phantom Menace Special
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