Marvel’s Darth Vader Will End In August

marvelswvader 25 cover

Some disappointing news this morning for comic fans. IGN broke the news that writer Kieron Gillen plans to end the Darth Vader series after the 25th issue, which is currently set for publication sometime in August.  Vader has been a solid addition to Marvel’s ongoing Star Wars line-up, so this news will no doubt take comic fans by surprise.

 

 

vader #6 cover

 

For those unfamiliar, the comic series takes place between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back.  After the Battle of Yavin, Darth Vader is disgraced as the Emperor blames the destruction of the Death Star on his apprentice.  Over the course of the series, the pendulum has swung back and forth between Vader trying to get back in the good graces of the Emperor by doing his bidding, while at the same time, building a contingency of his own to one day overthrow Palpatine.  It’s been an interesting look into the dynamic between a Sith Master and Sith Apprentice, as the Emperor has been toying with Vader and is always one step ahead of his pupil.

 

vader #9 cover

 

Another issue that has come to light throughout the series is Vader’s search for Luke.  There is some serious turmoil stirred up in the Dark Lord once he realizes exactly who Luke is.  The seed of his obsession with finding Luke becomes the driving force of his existence once he realizes the young Rebel pilot is his son.  Vader devotes a large amount of his efforts to finding out exactly how it was possible for Padme to give birth in secret and how Obi-Wan played a role in hiding the boy from him.  Fans actually get to see every turn Vader navigates to get one step closer to the truth, and his determination to find Skywalker makes much more sense when we rejoin him in The Empire Strikes Back.

 

Kieron Gillen picture

 

Writer Kieron Gillen explains that he always had an end in mind for Vader’s story.  Speaking to IGN, “…we kind of looked where we were after Vader Down, and we realized we were probably actually nearer to the end than we thought we were. And it was a situation where we were like, “Okay, it’s better to actually end this story in a way which we think is the most effective. We don’t want to pad it out extraneously.” That was the kind of thing, we were like, “Oh yeah, this is the end of this particular story,” in which case it’s a natural place for Vader to move on”.  Gillen goes on to describe his goal in the final arc, titled End of Games (our review of the first issue in the arc can be found here), was to reestablish Vader as a powerful player in the Empire.  If the first issue of the arc is any indication, Vader is well on his way to standing on that bridge of his Super Star Destroyer, Executor, preparing to head to Hoth and bust up a Rebel base.

 

As one of the SWNN staff that reviews comics, I think I speak for many comic fans that we will be sad to see this series go.  That’s not too say the series was not without it’s problems, but it’s almost always been fun to watch Vader either squirm or come out on top.  I hope it’s not the last we see of great characters like Dr. Aphra and her diabolical droids that Darth Vader introduced us to.  As much as I’ll miss it, I’m happy Gillen has chosen to end on a high-note and a conclusion in a story he set out to tell just over a year ago.  After August, I hope Marvel comes up with a title to fill the void Vader will leave…perhaps something involving a certain Jedi Master and his Force-sensitive nephew.

 

 

+ posts

Kyle Larson lives in Portland, Oregon. When he's not running trails, he's reading and writing.

Kyle Larson

Kyle Larson lives in Portland, Oregon. When he's not running trails, he's reading and writing.

29 thoughts on “Marvel’s Darth Vader Will End In August

  • May 13, 2016 at 6:55 pm
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    Now I can get a trade paperback of the series! I don’t mind that…

    • May 13, 2016 at 8:04 pm
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      There have a TPB of the first two arc’s already out. I am hoping for a Hardcover that includes Vader Down

      • May 13, 2016 at 10:43 pm
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        That would be even better!

  • May 13, 2016 at 7:10 pm
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    “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!” – D. Vader

    • May 13, 2016 at 10:35 pm
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      It appears you have… beaten me to it.

  • May 13, 2016 at 7:24 pm
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    Here’s a thought. Maybe they ended this because Disney has plans for a Vader spin off movie after Episode IX. This could be a cool concept seeing that there was a lot going on between RotS and ANH for Vader and this allows creative freedom for the story team. If this spin off movie is after Episode IX, then it would come out in 2020. That is a long time for a comic series to lay down the story in the 19 year span between episodes. True, there would hopefully be plenty of adventures for Vader, but you don’t want to be restricted i.e. all of the now Legends novels!

    • May 13, 2016 at 10:36 pm
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      “THE GREAT JEDI PURGE
      The newly appointed apprentice of DARTH SIDIOUS and the Dark Lord of the Sith, DARTH VADER, travels to Kashyyyk to seek out and destroy one of the last of the handful of remaining Jedi…”

      • May 14, 2016 at 7:43 am
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        I like it!

      • May 15, 2016 at 9:24 pm
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        They kinda already did that w/ the Purge comic series…and The Force Unleashed. ‘Great Jedi Purge’? Go watch Ep. III – it was called Order 66…

        • May 15, 2016 at 9:26 pm
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          1) My comment was based on those things, hence Kashyyyk.
          2) ‘The Jedi Purge’ is the period between 19 BBY and 0 BBY during which the Jedi were being hunted. It’s canon, look it up. 😉
          http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jedi_Purge

          • May 16, 2016 at 5:25 am
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            1) Absolutely, your worship
            2) Hence, loosen the bun, b/c none of us take you as seriously as you clearly take yourself
            3) If you actually read your link, it shows a dearth of what I know gets you fans of fan-wank revved up (i.e. – Sidious was NOT the conniving strategist we thought & absolutely BUTTLOADS of Jedi were just EVERYWHERE in the Empire time period – Order 66 be damned!). Puh-leeze, move on! Spoiler alert / harsh reality inbound: There WON’T actually be in the new canon just tons of Jedi running about in the ‘Rebels’ era, b/c *shocker* Yoda adequately explained it in Ep. VI, following Kenobi’s adequate explanation to Luke in Ep. IV…(‘When gone am I’ / ‘all but extinct’)

          • May 16, 2016 at 1:13 pm
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            You have issues, mate. 😛

  • May 13, 2016 at 7:26 pm
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    This is a great book.. why end it? Yes, complete the story arc, but then start a new one… There’s plenty to tell surely. Does this really make sense in light of Vader’s potential return in Rogue 1?

    • May 13, 2016 at 8:03 pm
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      There are only so many stories to tell between ANH and ESB. Maybe we will get some more stories later on but I don’t think that the story group has decided what the story is in that TP yet.

  • May 13, 2016 at 8:11 pm
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    so you’re saying it might end very close to episode V? Or that by the end of the series we have Vader from ESB?

    • May 13, 2016 at 8:24 pm
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      From Gillen’s comments in the IGN interview he kind of sidesteps the question. He says by the end of the series Vader will be the Vader we see in TESB. Back on the Executor and in the good graces of Palpatine.

      • May 14, 2016 at 1:01 am
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        That’s… interesting.

  • May 13, 2016 at 8:20 pm
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    A Luke/Ben Solo comic would be just the best thing ever.

  • May 14, 2016 at 12:09 am
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    I want a Rebel Alliance comic next about the formation of the Rebellion, and starting operations!

    • May 14, 2016 at 5:52 am
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      Don’t they have a show about that?

      • May 15, 2016 at 5:48 am
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        Yep, it’s called “Rebels” or something like that. It’s obscure, so not that many people on this song know about it.

  • May 14, 2016 at 12:40 am
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    Nooooooo…

  • May 14, 2016 at 12:48 am
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    Go out on a high rather than running the series into the ground. Good move. I haven’t picked this up yet but I’ve heard good things.

    I’ve recently been reading the main Star Wars title with my son & found it surprisingly good. It overdoes the fan service slightly – ooh AT-ATs, speeder bikes, Boba Fett, Vader meeting Jabba, etc. but it’s a fun read. We’ll definitely pick up Vader and the Vader Down crossover.

  • May 14, 2016 at 5:54 am
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    I have a feeling that after VIII (assuming it addresses Snoke, young Ben, Luke and his teachings, etc.) that we will get a pre-Force Awakens comic about the Early days of the Knights of Ren.

    • May 15, 2016 at 5:47 am
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      The second this current trilogy ends, the amount of pre-TFA, and in-between comics & novels will be astronomically high.

      • May 15, 2016 at 6:07 am
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        you think we have to wait till after IX? I think we will get some stuff post VIII

  • May 14, 2016 at 7:31 am
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    Good, This comic was overexposing him anyway and those are some goofy ass covers to boot.

    • May 14, 2016 at 9:17 am
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      None of the covers were any goofier than any of the other Star Wars Marvel comic covers.

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