Darth Vader: Is he really a villain in Star Wars?

Photo Credit: Luasfilm

Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious is the real villain, not Darth Vader

The theme continues in Attack of the Clones when Palpatine is filling Anakin’s head with seeds of evil and selfish thoughts. In the most recent Anakin and Obi-Wan comic, the young Skywalker spends time with Palpatine, who encourages him to embrace his power and to seek more of it out.

During the events of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, we see more of Anakin and Palpatine’s relationship on display, with the latter taking advantage of every opportunity to turn Anakin to the Dark Side.

His sinister plans were finally revealed truly for what they were, starting with the infamous opera scene in Revenge of the Sith, as you can see for yourself.

Palpatine is less subtle as time moves on, finally revealing to Anakin his true nature, the nature of the Dark Side. He is the real villain and devil so to speak, not Anakin. The heroic young Skywalker gets played, falling into natural human temptations.

Anakin’s reason for turning into the perceived vision was ones that started with noble and selfless intentions. All he wanted to do was save his friends, save his mom, his Jedi foes, his wife, and the galaxy.

Thanks to the web spun by Palpatine, not only did Anakin not achieve any of those things, but he was responsible for their undoing. Not as a villain, but as the victim.