Darth Vader has long been one of Star Wars's most popular characters, the epitome of villainy for the series. His tragic life, vile acts, and eventual redemption are the foundational text of the Saga, the rock upon which everything else sits. In recent years, Lucasfilm has been handing out movies and TV series to all kinds of characters, so why have they ignored Darth Vader?
Marvel's Darth Vader comic has proven how rife with story potential Vader is and bringing those kinds of stories to a wider audience would be an amazing idea. However, Lucasfilm's record with Star Wars hasn't been perfect lately, so there are some definite drawbacks to a Vader series, whether it be in theaters or on Disney+.
10 A Series Would Work: Using It To Tie Up Loose Ends
One of the great things about shows like The Clone Wars, The Bad Batch, and Rebels is that they've allowed Lucasfilm to tie up a lot of loose ends. Plot holes happen, especially in a series like Star Wars; even now, with the Story Group supposedly there to enforce canon and prevent plot holes, all kinds of things slip through the cracks.
A series starring Darth Vader could do a lot this kind of work. The Imperial era, especially pre-A New Hope is wide open and there are all kinds of places where a bit of work is needed to make sense of things, something that a Vader series could easily do.
9 A Series Wouldn't Work: Lucasfilm Doesn't Have The Writing Talent For It
A big problem in Star Wars has always been the writing; even though people have re-evaluated the Prequels and are giving George Lucas more credit, there are still a lot of problems there. Post-Lucas, the company hasn't gotten much better. Sure, anything with Dave Filoni involved has been mostly good but the movies themselves aren't the best written, the comics aren't as well done as before, and the Story Group is bad at its job.
A Darth Vader series is going to need a lot of smart writing because Vader is not exactly sympathetic during the Imperial years and a show that focuses on a villain has to be well written. Current Lucasfilm just hasn't proven it can handle something that complicated.
8 A Series Would Work: It Could Introduce Doctor Aphra To The Masses
One of the ways to mitigate the type of difficult writing that a Vader series would need to work is to find a co-lead, one that the audience would find more palatable. A character like that has already introduced and worked with Vader- Doctor Aphra. There are few beings in the galaxy that Vader respects but the good doctor is one of them.
Aphra is a great character, a charming, roguish presence that is fun to play off of Vader and works on multiple levels. Making her co-lead gives the writers something they're more comfortable with and can lighten the tone of what would be a dark and somber series.
7 A Series Wouldn't Work: Any Victory Of Vader's Would Depress The Audience
Star Wars is no stranger to villains winning; the Prequels are all about that. However, post-Disney Lucasfilm has tried for feel good stuff and has conditioned their audience for that sort of thing. Rogue One may have killed all of its heroes but it ended on an up note. The Last Jedi tried to pull off a Empire Strikes Back ending but closed with the survivors laughing and joking.
Even The Mandalorian, instead of drawing out Gideon's capture of Grogu as a cliffhanger, went for a rather happy ending to the season. Lucasfilm doesn't want to depress its audience and any way a Vader series ended would be dark in some way. That just wouldn't fly in Lucasfilm's current climate.
6 A Series Would Work: There Could Be Some Epic Fights
One of the great things about the Marvel Darth Vader is the amazing fights. Darth Vader is one of the most feared warriors in the galaxy and a series starring the Sith Lord would almost certainly include some breathtaking battles. Picture the Vader sequence from Rogue One; now multiply that sort of thing by several magnitudes.
A Darth Vader series would be a showcase for great action scenes; Vader wading through swathes of Rebels or battling Jedi that have been in hiding or Force users from a small sect that escaped Palpatine's notice. There's just so much potential for great action with a Vader series.
5 A Series Wouldn't Work: His Life Is Getting Kind Of Crowded
Lucasfilm has been spending a lot of time filling up the events of Vader's life; his comic series have outlined his life in the gaps between movies, Rebels and Rogue One showed him pre-A New Hope, he's about to be in the upcoming Obi-Wan series, and the Cassian Andor prequel series is coming out, taking up more story space.
That's not even counting what The Bad Batch will do with the character or any of the novels. Since everything now counts, canon is getting crowded and it cuts down on story potential for Vader. The Story Group isn't great at enforcing canon but ignoring it too much would anger fans.
4 A Series Would Work: It Can Show The Imperial Side Of Things
Star Wars doesn't focus on the villains too much. Even with the Prequels, Anakin is only evil at the end of Revenge of the Sith. If it does focus on a villain, one knows that there will be a redemption arc or it will end for the villain in death; usually both. However, people love the villains, especially the Empire. Stories rarely get told from that perspective.
A Vader centric series can take a closer look at the Empire, giving fans a look at its workings and showing it in more depth than ever before. This would allow it to be different than what came before and show a new side of the Star Wars universe.
3 A Series Wouldn't Work: They'll Probably Job Him Out
Jobbing is wrestling term for when promoters have a wrestler lose to make someone else look better. Lucasfilm has proven that they like doing this sort of thing to Original Trilogy characters; the entire Sequel Trilogy was basically about tearing own the OT's heroes so the ST's heroes could look good in comparison.
This disturbing tendency hasn't been used on Vader yet but the temptation would be there and Lucasfilm isn't above doing this kind of thing to a beloved character. General audiences who don't dig too deeply into Star Wars lore aren't used to seeing Vader as weak and this shock could start a backlash against whatever series he's in.
2 A Series Would Work: He's One Of Star Wars' Biggest Names
Darth Vader is one of the most recognizable names in pop culture. Since his debut, he's cast a massive shadow and he's one of the most well-known fictional characters in the world. Putting Darth Vader on a series is guaranteed to sell Disney+ subs or tickets and put eyes on the product.
Since the disaster that was the Sequels, Lucasfilms has been steadily rebuilding the brand and a Vader series could go a long way towards helping that along. People love Darth Vader and if they don't screw it up, a Vader series could do great numbers.
1 A Series Wouldn't Work: They'd Probably Try To Use It To Fix The Sequels & Mess Things Up More
The current Darth Vader comic has broken Star Wars. In it, Vader finds out about Exogol, the fleet of Xyston-class Star Destroyers, and Palpatine's cloning experiments. This opens up a massive hole in canon because why wouldn't a redeemed Anakin, either before his death or as a Force ghost, warn Luke about it?
Lucasfilm has shown a disturbing tendency to try and make sense of some of their bad choices for the Sequels by justifying them in other media, only making things worse. The Darth Vader comic has suffered because of this and doing it with a Vader series wouldn't be any better.