Warning: Contains spoilers for Star Wars: Darth Vader #50! Darth Vader committed no shortage of horrific cruelty throughout his life Star Wars story, from hunting down and killing rogue Jed to slaughtering a room full of children. However, one of the worst crimes fans believed that Darth Vader is responsible for can be officially removed from the list, as Star Wars Absolves Vader of a truly despicable crime that happened during the original trilogy.
in Star Wars: Darth Vader #50 by Greg Pak, Raffaele Ienco, Luke Ross, Paul Fry, and Adam Gorham, Sabé (the ex-girlfriend of Padmé Amidala) tried and failed to convince Darth Vader to put down his weapons and walk away from Palpatine. Vader was on a war against his master, but Sabé knew that his quest for revenge would only end in more pain and suffering. However, after Vader picks a fight with Palpatine and loses, resulting in Vader submitting once more to his master, Sabe decides to have a conversation with his daughter, Leia Organa.
Sabé needed to make sure that Leia would not succumb to the same dark temptations as Darth Vader. Vader is seemingly too far gone to be saved, and Luke Skywalker has already proven to be incorruptible. In Sabé’s eyes, Leia was the only person who could eventually become a serious threat to the galaxy like Palpatine and Vader, but after they spoke, Sabé’s worries were put to rest. During the conversation, the destruction of Alderaan was brought up, at which point Sabe clarified that, “This was Tarkin’s choice. Not from Vader“.
Star Wars confirms that Darth Vader was not responsible for destroying Alderaan, Tarkin was
Alderaan was destroyed by the Death Star in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope
On going back and watching A new hopeIt is clear that Darth Vader is not responsible for the Death Star’s destruction of Alderaan, even if Star Wars Fans have attributed that atrocity to him for decades. The Emperor gave Grand Moff Tarkin complete control over the Death Star upon its construction, and Tarkin flexed his authority to its fullest extent when he ordered the destruction of Alderaan.
Not only was Tarkin solely responsible for Alderaan’s destruction, but Darth Vader opposed the planet-destroying weapon from the start. in Episode IVDarth Vader calls the Death Star a “Technological terror“, and even considers it insignificant next to the raw power of the Force. Vader did not agree with the weapon’s mere existence, let alone its use. This, combined with the fact that Tarkin simply outranked Vader on the Death Star, and it It is easy to see how the destruction of Alderaan was not his fault – a point that was simply hammered home in this Star Wars funny.
Star Wars has been separating Darth Vader from the destruction of Alderaan for some time
Star Wars: Darth Vader #24 by Greg Pak and Marco Castiello
Star Wars: Darth Vader #50 is not the first time this Star Wars Comics have clarified that Darth Vader is not to blame for the destruction of Alderaan. in Star Wars: Darth Vader #24, Vader admits that he felt the terrible disturbance in the Force the moment Alderaan was destroyed. All these lives taken in an instant was too much, even for Vader, and he carried the weight of this horror throughout the original trilogy. If it was up to Vader, the Empire never would have taken such cruel steps to defeat the Rebellion. But, it wasn’t to Vader, it was Tarkin’s call.
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While Darth Vader is still responsible for crimes that cost the lives of countless people across the galaxy, the destruction of Alderaan is not one of them, as Star Wars Officially absolved Darth Vader of his most heinous original trilogy crime, instead placing the full blame on Grand Moff Tarkin.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #50 by Marvel Comics is now available.