The Star Wars saga isn't just a space opera with spaceships and armies; it's a personal story, chronicling the saga of the Skywalker family and their role in the clash of Light vs Dark. Chronologically, Anakin Skywalker was the first major Skywalker in the movie saga, and one generation later, his son, Luke, also helped make galactic history.
Father and son didn't even meet until Luke was already a young man in the Rebellion, but even if they were far apart, the two Skywalkers were remarkably similar in many notable ways, and Luke totally lived up to Anakin's legacy without even realizing it.
10 Luke & Anakin Grew Up Without Fathers
Neither Luke nor Anakin had a father in their lives; in fact, Anakin didn't have a biological father at all. His mother, Shmi Skywalker, was impregnated with the Force itself thanks to Sheev Palpatine, so of course, he grew up in a single-parent household.
Luke may have had two biological parents, but neither was present for his boyhood. His mother Padme was already deceased, and his father, Darth Vader, was in no position to serve as a parent. So, neither Skywalker had a biological father present growing up.
9 Luke & Anakin Are Gifted Pilots
Many ace pilots populate the Star Wars franchise, and ace piloting seems to run in the Skywalker family. Anakin was a natural pilot even as a boy, quickly learning how to handle small and large spacecraft alike. During the Clone Wars, he was all but invincible in the skies and in space.
His son Luke was much the same, expertly flying T-16 Skyhoppers across Tatooine's rough terrain until moving on to X-Wings when fighting for the Rebellion. On a similar topic, Anakin's grandson Ben Solo/Kylo Ren was an expert pilot himself, flying a TIE Silencer with incredible talent.
8 Luke & Anakin Hated Tatooine, Where They Grew Up
Neither Anakin nor Luke were actually born on Tatooine, but they did spend most of their respective childhoods on the harsh, remote world, and they couldn't stand it. Anakin was a slave, working in Watto's junk shop, and won his freedom when Qui-Gon Jinn came along.
One generation later, Luke arrived on Tatooine thanks to Obi-Wan Kenobi, hiding the boy from his Dark Side father. Luke was desperate to leave, but his aunt and uncle didn't allow it. All that changed when the Empire wrecked the Lars homestead, grimly unlocking Luke's future off-world.
7 Luke & Anakin Have A Reckless Streak
Action-adventure heroes need to be proactive people who get things done, and Luke and Anakin both fit the bill. They are always eager for adventure and excitement, and they often worry or exasperate the people around them. But they usually get away with it.
In the movies, Anakin recklessly chased after Zam Wessell on Coruscant, and he went wild during the Clone Wars. Later, Luke risked his life to rescue his twin sister, Leia, from the Death Star and helped assault that station. He also rushed off to Cloud City to save his friends, despite Yoda's warnings.
6 Anakin & Luke Both Learned From Obi-Wan
Obi-Wan Kenobi had the honor of training not one but two historically significant Jedi Knights, starting with Anakin. After Qui-Gon's death, it fell to Obi-Wan to train Anakin, and he did just that. Master and apprentice were like brothers until Palpatine drove them apart.
Nearly 20 years later, Obi-Wan finally came out of hiding and handed down Anakin's lightsaber to Luke, giving the boy some much-needed training while en route to Alderaan. Luke learned well, and he continued his training with Yoda on Dagobah.
5 Anakin & Luke Both Witnessed The Fall Of The Jedi
In the Star Wars movies, the Jedi Order fell not once but twice, and Anakin and Luke each witnessed one of these downfalls. In particular, Anakin actually helped facilitate the Order's first fall, personally leading clone troopers into the Jedi Temple to slaughter everyone inside.
Luke would never do such a thing, but he still failed to bring back the Jedi Order for long. He founded a new Jedi school, only for Ben Solo to fall to the Dark Side, and the Order was destroyed. Dismayed, Luke abandoned the Jedi way and fled to Ahch-To, refusing to deal with Jedi until Rey the scavenger came along.
4 Anakin & Luke Gave Their Lives To Save The Galaxy
Luke and Anakin not only started their lives in similar ways, but they also ended their lives in similar circumstances. Anakin gave his life first, redeeming himself back to the Light Side to save Luke's life and temporarily destroy Darth Sidious aboard the second Death Star. He died a happy man.
Much later, the First Order muscled in, and the Resistance couldn't hold out for long. Kylo Ren nearly crushed the Resistance on Crait, but Luke projected himself onto that planet to hold Kylo off at the cost of his own life. Rey and the Resistance escaped to fight (and win) another day.
3 Anakin & Luke Were Both Inspired To Believe Again
Anakin and his son both gave their lives to save the day, but the parallels don't stop there. Both Skywalkers had, until that point, been cynical defeatists until someone inspired them to believe in hope and justice once again.
Darth Vader had given up on himself as a Jedi and hero, but Luke's plight convinced him that he did have a trace of his old self remaining, and he acted on it to destroy Palpatine. Luke had been dejected for years, until Rey inspired him to fight the Dark Side once again at any cost. Hope never truly dies.
2 Anakin & Luke Got Along With R2-D2
Anakin and his son, despite being a generation apart, had many of the same associates, most of all Obi-Wan. But there's more. Anakin and Luke both had the lovable droid R2-D2 in their party during their adventures, and R2-D2 was loyal to both.
R2 was nestled in Anakin's fighter during the Clone Wars and followed him everywhere. In the original trilogy, R2 became Luke's best droid friend, helping him control his X-Wing and more. R2 and Luke met up again on Ahch-To in the sequel trilogy, a happy reunion for both.
1 Darth Sidious Sought After Anakin & Luke
Darth Sidious was always on the lookout for worthy apprentices, such as Count Dooku/Darth Tyranus and Darth Maul the assassin, but the real prize was the Skywalker family. Palpatine successfully befriended Anakin and turned him to the Dark Side, but he was dismayed that Anakin suffered such serious injuries on Mustafar.
Sidious made good use of Vader, but he soon realized that Vader's son, Luke, would make for an even better apprentice. He and Vader ruthlessly hunted Luke and finally captured him in Return of the Jedi, where Sidious tried to turn Luke. It almost worked, and if Luke really had turned, the galaxy would have been doomed. Skywalkers make for strong Sith Lords.