till the day i die

“It was Obi-Wan and Anakin again from the good old days” OBI WAN KENOBI: A JEDI’S RETURN

Arctic Monkeys at Cala Mijas Festival, 01/09/2022. (Photos by Sharon López)

shh x

505, Rockwave [05-06-2016]

2012 & 2016

Euripides, tr. by Anne Carson, Grief Lessons: Four Plays by Euripides

Darth Vader in: Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022) Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005) Star Wars Rebels (2014-2018) Thrawn: Alliances (2018) Star Wars: Darth Vader (2015) #24 Star Wars: Darth Vader (2020) #22 Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)

But the younger audience watching the prequels—the one that had grown up with Vader to an extent, but not to the same degree—learned from these movies that good people can be corrupted by those who want power and don’t value the lives of inferiors. We learned that men in power struggle with their emotions. We learned that boys can cry too, and that they can become overcome with emotion while the women around them can be practical, logical, and successful. We watched these movies and got to know Anakin as Anakin—an endearing anti-hero who took risks and loved the people around him. We got to see what happens when someone is overcome by their fears and anxieties. We learned how fear-tactics and rhetoric can bring about fascism. The values in these movies are strong, yes, but at their heart they are just a really good story. Regardless of awkward dialogue, direction, and CGI, George Lucas told us a really good story about family, love, loss, and our collective existence. Kids like good stories. Hayden, Ewan, Natalie, and all of the other actors did a really good job telling us that story. The prequels add so much depth to the original trilogy. They are what makes the Skywalker story a space opera. It’s shakespearean. It’s just a really, really spectacular story, one that most of the older generation didn’t want to be told.

For him to come back after 17 years to the role he got so much flack for, have his big scene show not even half of his face (and have that face caked in makeup and prosthetic), have his voice distorted, and still deliver the way he did? Still convey all the rage and evil and arrogance but also pain and sadness within Vader? Show everyone this is why he landed the role two decades ago, because he can be frightening and vulnerable and devastating even with just one eye and the corner of his mouth visible? Show everyone he is Anakin/Vader, and make everyone consider he was good all along? Incredible, amazing, the chosen one indeed. Thanks Deborah Chow and Ewan for making this show, thank you Hayden for coming back.