Darth Vader (2020) #4 – Comic Review

Darth Vader #4 – Dark Heart of the Sith Part IV continues with Vader’s relentless quest of revenge against everyone who hid his son, Luke Skywalker—taking him on an emotionally dangerous path as his tragic past slowly reopens old wounds through unexpected reunions, alliances, and betrayal.

Check out our review for Part III before moving on.

Darth Vader is now faced with betrayal by the Amidalans, a resistance group loyal to Queen Padmé Amidala of Naboo who pledged to hunt down and kill whoever was responsible for her death. Issue four turns up the action as the Amidalans—after accusing the Dark Lord for the murder of their queen and her Jedi protector, Anakin Skywalker—unleashed the wrath of the infamous Sando aqua monster, the apex predator of Naboo’s core, first encountered on the silver screen by Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan in The Phantom Menace.

After the intense encounter with the ravenous beast, Vader continues his relentless pursuit to find out about Padmé’s death. This is when the issue gets even more intriguing as the Dark Lord is faced against more and more hordes of Amidalans. Amongst them some familiar faces from the prequels—cleverly reintroduced by Raffaele Ienco’s pencils and Neeraj Menon’s red tones through Force echo panels that so far have served as a framing device for Vader’s memories. Apparently, meeting Captain Gregar Typho and Captain Tonra in the previous issue was just the beginning.

The final struggle of the Amidalans against Vader intensifies as the Dark Lord reaches Padmé’s burial site and is a step away from discovering the truth. Every blow suffered by Vader triggers heart-wrenching memories, temporarily debilitating him until he finds a way to use them to refuel the dark side. These last few moments of Dark Heart of the Sith Part IV bring the emotions to a crescendo—the last panel hanging the reader in suspense to what’s to come in the next issue.

The new Darth Vader series is truly a page-turner. Make sure to pick up your copy of Darth Vader #4 – Dark Heart of the Sith Part IV today from your favorite local comic book shop and share your thoughts about this must-read series on social media!