Is Darth Vader Dead in ‘The Mandalorian’?
One of the things that we know is that there are a lot of iconic characters in the storyline of Star Wars, but there’s no doubt that Darth Vader stands at the top as the most iconic in terms of what he has done and in terms of how popular he is. Of course, we also know that The Mandalorian, now the most talked-about Star Wars series, takes place after the fall of the Empire. So, does that mean that Anakin is already dead in the events of The Mandalorian?
Darth Vader is already dead during the events of The Mandalorian because Vader died as Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi when he sacrificed himself to kill Emperor Palpatine. Meanwhile, The Mandalorian takes place five years after the death of the Emperor.
As popular as Darth Vader may be, he is already dead during the events of The Mandalorian. That means that it is unlikely that he will appear in this series, especially regarding the present-day events of The Mandalorian. Still, there’s a good chance that he will appear in flashback scenes. So, with that said, let’s talk about Darth Vader’s possible appearance in The Mandalorian.
When Does The Mandalorian Take Place?
We know that many different Star Wars movies and series take place in different timelines of the Star Wars lore. Of course, Star Wars movies take place during precise eras in the galaxy. But what we know about The Mandalorian is that it takes place in its era and in a timeline that doesn’t get talked about a lot in the lore of Star Wars. So, when does The Mandalorian take place?
The Mandalorian takes place between the fall of the Empire, which took place on 4 ABY, and the events of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, which took place on 34 ABY. Of course, when The Force Awakens happened three decades after the end of the original trilogy. That means there is a very long gap between the two eras.
That is where The Mandalorian comes in as the first canon Star Wars storyline in the long gap between Episode VI and Episode VII. The Mandalorian takes place on 9 ABY, five years after the fall of the Empire on 4 ABY. Of course, a few years may have passed since The Mandalorian’s start. Still, the point is that the storyline of The Mandalorian takes place years after the death of Emperor Palpatine.
When Did Darth Vader Die?
We all know that Darth Vader lived during the time of the prequel trilogy (as Anakin Skywalker) and the age of the Empire in the era of the Empire. However, Darth Vader died in a manner that allowed him to redeem himself for contributing to the fall of the Jedi Order and the deaths of millions or billions of people in the galaxy. He died to save Luke Skywalker from the onslaught of Emperor Palpatine. But when did Darth Vader die?
Darth Vader died during the events of Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi when he grabbed Palpatine while the emperor was blasting Luke with his Force lightning attack. Vader threw the emperor through the exhaust shaft that led directly to the power core of the second Death Star to kill the Sith Lord. However, this also led to Vader’s death as Palpatine’s lightning damaged his life-support system.
The Return of the Jedi events occurred on 4 ABY, four years after Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. As such, Vader’s death happened five years before the events of The Mandalorian, which takes place on 9 ABY and beyond. That means that Vader has been dead for at least five years during the events of The Mandalorian.
That is why, as far as we know, no Sith exists during the events of The Mandalorian, considering that both Vader and Palpatine (before his eventual return) were already dead. And that’s why the era of The Mandalorian is extremely interesting because it bridges the events of Episode VI and Episode VII, where Vader was already long dead but still lived in his grandson’s mind, Kylo Ren.
Could Darth Vader Return in The Mandalorian?
At this point, it is safe to say that we all know that Darth Vader has been dead for at least five years already when The Mandalorian started. But we know that anything can still happen in Star Wars. So, is there a possibility that Darth Vader could return to The Mandalorian?
It is unlikely that Vader will return during the timeline of The Mandalorian because he is already dead and will never come back to life. That means that fans of the character should expect him to stay absent during the era of The Mandalorian, which focuses more on the Mandalorians and on how the remnants of the Empire are still looking to try to regroup five years after the death of the emperor.
Of course, there’s a good chance that Darth Vader could still return in The Mandalorian, but in a flashback even. Let’s not forget that Grogu once lived in the Jedi Temple during the events of Order 66 and was there when the clones attacked and killed the Jedi stationed in the temple. Grogu’s memories also steadily return to him as the series progresses, so we might see more of his past.
We know that Grogu made it out of the Jedi Temple with the help of Master Kelleran Beq, who risked his life to rescue a youngling from the wrath of the clones. But we don’t know what happened to Kelleran after that. As such, it is more than possible that Darth Vader will return at one point in the future of The Mandalorian in a flashback scene that would allow us to see how he would deal with the remaining Jedi, including Kelleran Beq.
So, while Vader may never return during the actual events of The Mandalorian, he may still return in a cameo scene involving the past when he was purging the universe of the Jedi that survived the events of Order 66. And it would be great if he would return to show how he contributed to Grogu’s past.
