My Reactions to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #22 - Fortress Vader, Part IV

My Reaction to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #22  | Anakin and His Angel

I come to you today in a state of absolute shock! But before reading any further you must know this post contains my immediate and *spoiler heavy* reactions to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 22: Fortress Vader, Part IV which is written by Charles Soule and illustrated by Giuseppe Camuncoli. Please keep in mind this isn't your typical review post where I will be covering all of the events that took place in this issue but rather a reaction post to the insanely unexpected piece of information that was revealed.

This issue was released on October 17th. I haven't been following the Darth Vader series too closely as comics aren't really my thing but I most definitely had more interest in the upcoming issues due to the fact that these stories would be exploring Vader's castle on Mustafar. Last night my husband Jason told me that I needed to read this comic as soon as I could after he read a review about it online. I found this extremely interesting not only because I'm the one who typically informs him about all the latest Star Wars news but because he had a very urgent tone. I purchased the issue on Amazon ($3.99) and read it on my Amazon Kindle App.


My Reaction to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #22  | Anakin and His Angel

My Reaction to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #22  | Anakin and His Angel

The story in it's entirety was actually quite interesting. In fact, we find out Darth Vader actually made a request to Palpatine that the planet Mustafar be given to him to do with what he will in issue #20. Darth Vader chose this planet over places like Naboo and Tatooine per his Master's recommendations. Palpatine also gave him a second reward for eliminating a member of the Galactic Senate. Who would have ever thought that the gift would be Padme Amidala's ship? I'm still processing this event and this wasn't even the information that floored me! In issue #21 Vader reaches Mustafar in the Naboo Royal Starship but it is almost destroyed after entering the atmosphere though Vader seemed to take a liking to its new design.

My Reaction to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #22  | Anakin and His Angel

My Reaction to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #22  | Anakin and His Angel

My Reaction to Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #22  | Anakin and His Angel

In issue #22 we find out that Palpatine assigned Architect Alva Brenne to help build Vader's castle and that he also gifted Darth Vader the Sith Lord Momin's mask, a mysterious Dark Side artifact, to help with the inspiration of the build. The story takes us a bit deeper into the history of Momin which was all quite fascinating and worth reading. The powerful mask is the home of Momin's entity that can ultimately possess people by taking control of their bodies. Momin destroyed the architect claiming that his own design for Vader's castle would better suit his interests. His castle design is the key to opening the door to the Dark Side which will pierce the veil of time between life and death through the locus, the Force's source of energy at the core of the planet Mustafar. Page 22 is the golden page my friends! My eyes widened and my heart began beating a thousand beats a minute as I realized what this meant. Rather than Darth Vader's castle being a place of meditation like many of us assumed, and perhaps it does serve as that at times, it actually had a much more significant purpose. His desire was to use it to reunite with his wife, Padme Amidala. *INSERT FANGIRL SCREAMS HERE* But what will Vader do if Momin is successful? What would he communicate with Padme? Would he try to bring her back to life? In the previous series, Darth Vader #24, he didn't respond well to his visions of Padme so what would future interactions between them look like? It's possible none of this will actually happen as Momin could be using Darth Vader in some way. I think it's safe to say if the story does take this route we all know how Momin's story would end.

I would have never guessed this would be the reason for Vader's castle just as I never thought that the fear of losing Padme Amidala would bring upon his downfall. I think it's so interesting to see this side of Darth Vader. For me, it solidifies what Padme and Luke always believed about him. That there was still good in him. If he had turned completely I don't think that he would have allowed himself to be affected by his past. He wouldn't have wanted anything to do with Padme's ship, Mustafar, or to reach his wife through the Force.

What's also very interesting is that Palpatine gave him these gifts. Why else would he save the Naboo Royal Starfighter but to use it against him in some way? Why would he offer planets that held significant memories? Not to mention Momin's mask, an extremely powerful tool. I can't help but think of the moment at the end of Revenge of the Sith when Darth Vader asks Palpatine about Padme. Palpatine snickers to himself as Vader experiences immeasurable anguish over what he's done. He wants Vader to be hurt, to be filled with rage. He knows he can't control himself which only makes him more powerful. Is Palpatine's plan to use these things of his past life to make him stronger in the Dark Side of the Force? I wouldn't be surprised. I've always believed that Palpatine planted the dreams Anakin was having of his mom and wife inside his head to create the perfect Apprentice for himself. He had much more control in his life than I think a lot of fans realize. Why would he stop now? He wouldn't. That's not in Palpatine's nature.

The only other reason I could see Paplatine allowing all of this to take place is because he knows about Mustafar and its capabilities. If you don't remember, he once tried to access this power in the episode A World Between Worlds in Star Wars Rebels. I'm obviously very intrigued by this story line and can't wait to see what happens next! What did you think? Leave a comment below!


Special Thanks To: My sweet husband for knowing just how much I would love this story. And to Adventures In Poor Taste and CBR.com for the photos.

7 comments

  1. This is kind of a neat premise. I never knew Vader had a castle on Mustafar. Mustafar is probably one of my favorite Star Wars planets because of the meaning behind the planet and how it showed the ultimate showdown between Anakin and Obi-Won

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    1. guess you didn't see rogue one?

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    2. Yes, isn't that awesome!? I think it can be easy to miss since we briefly see it in Rogue One when Krennic goes to see Vader but it's never mentioned where they're at. I'm eager to learn more!

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  2. Definitely gonna start following this comic now. Thanks for the great review. Awesome stuff

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    1. Awesome! I'm really excited about it and can't believe I had already missed so much! Thanks for reading :)

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  3. Love this article. Wish you would follow up on some of the earlier issues, but look forward to your next post! Thanks

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    1. Thanks! I actually didn't read all the of the issues before this one otherwise I would've commented more on what previously happened.

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