I believe that Anakin/Vader is the Shakespearean tragic hero in it's ultimate form. His journey, fall, and redemption is perfect.

As a kid, I suffered from constant Asthma attacks; when I was 9 I was hospitalized. For this reason, I have always admired Vader. Someone who despite his disability, refused to let anyone stand in his way from being the imposing powerhouse he was. This is why when I was hooked up to a respirator, I imagined I was Vader in his meditation chamber, feeding off the power of the dark side. Every villain may be the hero of their own story and Darth Vader will always be my hero.

My favorite character of all time. I’ll never forget watching Star Wars for the first time as a five year old from the prequels to the OG trilogy and thinking of how tragic it was for Anakin to fall into the dark side but how rewarding it felt to see Darth help his son and save the galaxy at the end of the OG trilogy. The character left such an impression on me as a little kid, and still does to this day.

I love the feeling you put into this, I think you did a great job of articulating how much this character means to everyone who loves him. He's truly one of the all around greatest villains in fiction, and you broke down the tragedy of his character very well. Keep up the good work friend!

Vader is a great example of a chosen one character done right . Being chosen one doesn't just mean you have the power of the whole world and that everything will go right for you . Being chosen one means having the responsibility of the whole world forced onto you . They are forced to live up to people's expectation . They have no free will and have to follow a pre destined path either they want to or not .This obviously leads to them hating their own destiny and make terrible mistakes in their life . A chosen one's story isn't about beating the bad guy , It's about overcoming the struggle that comes with being a chosen one and fulfilling their own destiny . When an author acknowledges these facts while writing a chosen one only then they can create a compelling chosen one character that everybody can appreciate . And that's why Anakin along side Aang from ATLA are my favorite chosen one characters in fiction . Sorry if my English is too bad . It's not my first language 😅

If Darth Vader hadn't been redeemed, his character would have probably suffered from a backstory. But because of his redemption, it helps to see where he came from, how he became Vader, who he could have been, and how he became Anakin again

i never really understood his character until I rewatched the prequels, his character is so complex and multi dimensional that became the symbol of power, fear and corrupt influence of the dark side and his character design is one of the coolest designs I’ve seen

19:19 whoever made this extract is a literary marvel, and the narration as you speak it with the tone of rage is beautiful. This was a beautiful video and my eyes have been opened

“Nor the bravery as the child of a Puerto Rican woman” bruh felt that on a spiritual level💀

Vader is iconic, hands down one of the best characters to ever bless the eyes of the public. He deserves to be held high as an icon

Darth Vader is too much of an all time icon to not talk about him once in a while.

Absolutely fantastic analysis of Anakin/Vader. He’s one of my favorite characters ever and it’s always great to see more people talk about his story. That quote from the book adaptation of Episode 3 is HAUNTING.

Vader has always stood out from most villains. Even among the best in all of writing, he stands out. His tragedy is more beautifully handled than any other tragic villain, his badassery is more badass than any other badass villain. And the conclusion to his story is quite literally perfect. And same goes for Luke. I think he stands as just as good a hero as Anakin is an villain

Vader made a huge imprint on us all as children and even at the age of 20 he remains by far my favorite fictional character, thank you for this beautiful analysis of Vader

You know a character is great when you literally find yourself bargaining with the movie. Like, just don't make this character do what I know they're going to do. That's what happens every time I watch ROTS. Anakin is so good at the start of the movie. He's having fun, he's trying to save everyone he can, he's ecstatic when he finds out about Padme's pregnancy. To then juxtapose that with him cutting off Windu's hand. You know he's made a mistake. HE knows he made a mistake. But there's no going back. And nothing will ever go right for him unil literally the day he dies. It's almost a crushing feeling. To know what could have been. As much as I enjoy watching Vader be a villain (and believe me, I enjoy it), I can't help but sometimes wish Anakin had taken a different path. Even though Star Wars wouldn't be Star Wars if he had. And Star Wars is the only franchise I've ever felt this way about. That's how damn good Anakin's story is.

I have one question. Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the wise?

Man I'm sobbing Anakin's story has always meant the world to me ever since I spend every Saturday watching Clone Wars as a kid. His story through all six movies and the animated shows truly captures what makes a great character and arc. Especially watching his fall to the dark side tears at your heart strings cause it is inevitable and yet there's a hope, a desperation for it to work out, for him to stay good, to be happy.

We appreciate the amount of work and effort that went into this. We wish you the best of luck.

Idk if it's canon but "Darth Vader the Selfish" is just cool & tragic at the same time.

Before even watching the video I just wanna say it feels like I’ve been waiting my whole life to see you make a video on vader😁😁😁

Anakin as Vader is a perfect example of the Sunk-Cost Fallacy, also distilled down to the old saying, "In for a penny, in for a pound." He always had the choice to turn aside from his erroneous ways, but felt he'd already put too much into it to go back. Eventually, it is the threat of losing Luke--his last connection to the love that Padme represented to him--that helps break the cycle, but it took years of suffering as Vader to help get him to push past that Sunk-Cost Fallacy.

Man, the wait is finally over. Without a doubt one of the most iconic characters I've ever seen.

The wait is finally over. Thanks for delivering, as always!

an iconic character that has left an lasting imapct on popular culture from his origins as Anakin skywalker the "chosen one" to his transformation to the villain we all admire. the stuggle between light and dark was a constant struggle with him with his increased control for power with the promises from the dark side to his internal conflict steming from his desire to protect his loved ones and prevents tragedies he witnessed. i believe he became the embodiment of a tragic hero following the narrative pattern of a noble character with great potential who experienced a tragic downfall due to a flaw - his attatchment to loved ones and fear of loss. actions and descions driven by misguided sense of protection and desire for power. truly love his character and thank you for making this video

The passage that describes Anakin Skywalkers life in the novel is one of the greatest things l have ever read thank you ao much for bringing attention to it

23 years in the light, 23 years in the dark. He truly brought balance to the force

Possibly my favorite characters of all time great video man

I proudly can call myself a Darth Vader Stan, I've read all of his comics, watched all the movies, tv shows, I've consumed every aspect of media about Darth Vader. I saw the title of this video and was expecting this to be just another run in the mill character analysis video rehashing the same themes and dynamics we've all heard a million times. Because he's such a beloved and iconic character he's already been well researched and analyzed by the public for such a long time now. But this video is truly different you bring a new aspect of Vader that I did not see, his sense of greed and selfishness. The narration of this video is amazing, the music accompanied with the story telling is beyond captivating. I've watched all of your videos and I believe this to be your BEST video by far, Just all around a great watch.

It's here at last the tale of Darth Goat, and one of my favourite scenes ever from any media is Obi Wan Kenobi standing over Anakin after beating him and slowly walking away while he lays there

I will never be bored with characters with layers of depth like Darth vadar and guts and punpun, the time these depths are reveal one by one we appreciate it while also feeling the pain they go through... Thanks The masked man for giving this video and this is just the perfect analysis on Darth Vader Thank you Masked man I request if you can make a video on the old republic and why there should be more adaptation of it

I have been obsessed with Vader and Anakin for years and this gave me a whole new level of understanding for him

29:55 But didn't Palpatine surv- No. No he didn't. He died like the cackling monster he was, Anakin had his last minute redemption and Luke won the battle of spirit.

This, geestly, and vile eye are the best Vader character breakdown vids and I haven’t even watched this all the way lol Worth the hype

This video made me truly emotional what the hell. Good stuff Masked, I always knew he was a tagic character, but this video made me feel true melancholy.

Villains in movies used to be essentially people with too much empathy, but then they snapped. Great video

Thank you for sharing that beautiful panel of Vader walking through his life and lord at 21:56 the music you used absolutely embodies the tragedy of his character.

I've been a fan of Star Wars my entire life, but you just explained Darth Vader to me in a way I've never even thought of. 10/10 Liked and subscribed

23:13 really made tear up😢 trully one of the saddest star wars moments.

The best well written tragic villain in modern history. It took you weeks to make this vid and you did it Justice. I tip my hat to you Maskedman.

That was a wonderful breakdown of Anakin's fall and, ultimately, redemption. I like the interpretation that he lied about Luke to protect him from Palpatine. His son was the one bit of Padme he had left, and he wouldn't lose that for the galaxy.

A truly beautiful narrative about the most iconic character in cinematic history. Very well conceived, analyzed and told beautifully. A compelling way that brings a remarkable tragedy to an empathetic serene victory.

Was feeling a bit of a star wars fatigue but your video has single handedly revitalized that love. Thank you 🤝🤝😅😅

I’m honestly surprised by this video; all the details are incredibly interesting to discuss and I appreciate what you created. Thank you for sharing this with us and even though I don’t know you personally, I wish you a good life.

The wait is finally over! This was a really great analysis.

Awesome video man. I was a huge Star Wars nerd back in middle school and the first novel I ever read front to back was about Darth Vader. Would like to see you cover other characters that aren't anime related.

you actually went so hard with this one, ive always seen you as the goat of voiceovers but this one went even beyond that

The hype for this video was so well deserved! This was an incredible analysis from you, Masked Man! You have definitely reminded me why I also love Anakin's character and story so much as well! Hope you do more SWs analysis like these with other characters at some point! :)

This was an incredible video masked boricua! You snapped from the editing to the script just 10s all around . This shit better blow up

Your description of how it feels to be Anakin forever gave me goosebumps bro. Such vivid imagery in that description. Good shit.

This was so god damn well done dude. You hit every bullet point thats important for The Chosen One's character i feel many overlook. There's songs (three parts) from the band Lorna Shore called "Pain Remains" with so many moments that *scream* Anakin/Vader for me. "The face behind the silhouette! In this world I made to be infinite! But within the expanse...I finally see! A world without you isn't meant for me! ... And after all that I've done! After all of my pain! After all that I've become... Will I disappear?!"

Yoda: Hide the children, we must. Obi-wan: A planet with a lot of sand. Bail: And place to give them an elevated position.

Not gonna lie, this video analysis of Darth Vader & Anakin Skywalker was well put together, and really your love and appreciation for the character. Explaining his sad and tragic downfall all the way to his death really got me emotional 😢. i admit i kinda cried a little when listening to your video, not to mention the sad music tracks you played in the video just made it more emotional. (Which quick question whats the name of the music tracks you used in the video?) Anyway really great video analysis 👍.

I'm a child of the Original Trilogy, I watched "Star Wars" in the theater with my grandmother. A mistake about the Prequels that I, and the children of the Prequels, have made, is that the PT is told exclusively from Darth Vader's point of view. Not from an observer, the Jedi, or even Anakin, but Darth Vader. In true biased documentary fashion, it shows true things, but only partial truths. This is Vader's story and he's telling it like he remembers it. Those who grew up with the PT tend to harshly criticize the Jedi, whereas my generation tends to criticize the PT for its treatment of them. Even Padme is not blameless in his story. She should have run in terror from Anakin after Attack of the Clones, not married him. She was far too wise at that point in her life, with her experiences, to tacitly condone what he did to the Tuskens, and his thoughts on dictatorships, coming from a Jedi, should have been a huge red flag. As for the Jedi, they have thousands of years of experience raising younglings, they know better than to try to have just one conversation about attachment with a 22 year old man. Vader shows us these things in this way because it shifts the blame for his decisions on to the shoulders of those around him who "failed" him when they should have given him better advice and had more understanding. From a moviemaking perspective, a writer/director more focused on acting and dialog over simply capturing scenes that he could later manipulate digitally could have made this story a genuine masterpiece. Instead, it comes out as stilted and corny. The audience can't trust the script's subtle nuances and is forced to accept it as a straightforward reliable narrator...or, that is the script as George intended, and Padme and the Jedi Order acted totally out of character at every crucial stage of Anakin's young life.

This is the perfect explanation of Anakin's downfall! I applaud you for this brilliant work!

Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, the best fictional character ever written.

the greatest character in all of fiction and one of my favourite youtube videos of all time

We were waiting for this...

"Padme, Help Me" is probably the most spine shivering quote Darth Vader quote. I believe he says it.

Vader has been in his shadow of hatred for so long that it’s honestly heartwarming seeing him walk back to the light, finally free from the chains that bind him to the sith.😺

Vader is such an amazing character it's unreal!! I'm a long time fan and I'll have to say this is my favorite video from your channel man❤❤

I'd love to hear to talk about EU characters like Mara Jade, Kreia, or Revan because this analysis was HEAT.

This makes me miss Revan.

Anakin/Darth Vader is in my top 2 favorite characters from Star Wars. Great video you did him justice

i can relate to anakin/darth vader so much i love his story it’s so hauntingly beautiful

Star Wars is something I hold so dear to me and Luke and Vader are some of my favorite characters ever, this video nailed what made Star Wars so special to me as a kid, I just fucking love this series man

As a huge Vader fan I am glad to see him done so well, also, yes, fuck whoever decided to bring palpetin back

The episode 3 novel was a huge exploration of this and so amazing. From the very start we learn about the dragon and the fear in Anakins heart growing and growing and how he hasn’t slept in days. The ways the council and the chancellor have been going one after another and how the Jedi are viewed by the galaxy and Palpatines manipulation.How the actions of the Jedi turn Anakin away from them knowing or not and how Palpatine seems to provide a solution when Anakin sees less and less answers. His bond with Obiwan is well done and explored and we see how it affects him and how without him . The duo of Anakin and Obiwan and how Anakin is viewed as a hero.Palpatine has more power over him. Even the effect of politics on Anakin and how it causes this anger at even Padme and how all consuming the love is for both Padme and Anakin when they’re together. His drive to control and his own selfishness and greed. And now as Vader Palpatine is all he has, The Jedi Order destroyed , Obiwan gone with C-3PO and R2-D2 ,Padme dead and what he believes to be their child, even his persona as Anakin. The love of the people, the hero without fear, that perception burned away. Palpatines the only one who knows him and the last connection he has left.

Great video. My favorite character of all time is The Joker and I hope one day I can express my reasons why as well as you did for Vader. One small bit of feedback: I've noticed you have a tendency to edit the audio of your videos a little inconsistently. Sometimes your voice is clipped at the end of a sentence or there's no pause and you immediately go into your next thought.

Bro is quoting the movies w the same rhythm and feel of the characters mid sentence without breaking up the feel of any of his statements. Masked da 🐐 no 🧢 This was a pleasure to watch, especially after seeing youd uploaded 1 minute after my shift started today 👌🏾

Darth Vader is the most iconic villain to ever hit the big screen and he's my favorite too 😎

The final issue of the Darth Vader run you mention is absolutely unbelievable. It’s completely stunning.

So hyped

This was a great video how you articulated the true tragedy of vader. As for palpatine coming back....well least the dark empire comic did it a bit better

This is Anakin Skywalker: The most powerful Jedi of his generation. Perhapse the most powerful of any generation. The fastest. The strongest. An unbeatable pilot. An unstoppable warrior. Om the ground, in the air or sea or space, there is no one even close. He has not just power, not just skill, but dash: that rare, invaluable combination of boldness and grace. He is the best there is at what he does. The best there has ever been. And he knows it. HoloNet features call him the Hero With No Fear. And why not? What should he be afraid of? Except--- Fear lives in him anyway, chewing away at the firewalls around his heart. Anakin sometimes thinks of the dread that eats at his heart as a dragon. Children on Tatooine tell each other of the dragons that live inside the suns; smaller cousins of the sun-dragons live are supposed to live inside the fusion furnaces that power everything from starships to podracers. But Anakin's fear is another kind of dragon. A cold kind. A dead kind. Not nearly dead enough. Not lomg after he became Obi-Wan's Padawan, all those years ago, a minor mission had brought them to a dead system: one so immeasurably old that its star had long since turned into a frigid dwarf of hypercompacted trace metals, hovering a quantum fraction of a degree above absolute 0. Anakin couldn't even remember what the mission might have been, but he'd never forgotten that dead star. It had scared him. "Stars can die---?" "It is the way of the universe, which is another manner of saying that it is the will of the Force," Obi-Wan had told him. "Everything dies. In time, even stars burn out. This is why Jedi form no attachments: all things pass. To hold onto something---or someone---beyond its time is to set your selfish desires against the Force. That is the path of misery, Anakin; the Jedi do not walk it." That is the kind of fear that lives inside Anakin Skywalker: the dragon of that dead star. It is an ancient, cold dead voice within his heart that whispers "all things die..." In bright day he can't hear it; battle, a mission, even a report before the Jedi Council, can make him forget it's even there. But at night--- At night, the walls he has built sometimes start to frost over. Sometimes they start to crack. At night, the dead-star dragon sometimes sneaks through the cracks and crawls up into his brain and chews at the inside of his skull. The dragon whispers of what Anakin has lost. And what he will lose. The dragon reminds him, every night, of how he held his dying mother in his arms, of how she had spent her last strength to say "I knew you would come for me, Anakin..." The dragon reminds him, every night, that someday he will lose Obi-Wan. He will lose Padmé. Or they will lose him. All things die, Anakin Skywalker. Even stars burn out... And the only answers he ever has for these dead cold whispers are his memories of Obi-Wan's voice, or Yoda's. But sometimes he can't quite remember them. All things die... He can barely even think about it. But right now he doesn't have a choice: the man he flies to rescue is a closer friend than he'd ever hoped to have. That's what puts the edge in his voice when he tries to make a joke; that's what flattens his mouth and tightens the burn-scar high on his right cheek. The Supreme Chancellor has been family to Anakin: always there, always caring, always free with advice and unstinting aid. A sympathetic ear and a kindly, living, unconditional acceptance of Anakin exactly as he is--the sort of acceptance Anakin could never get from another Jedi. Not even from Obi-Wan. He can tell Palpatine things he could nrver share with his Master. He can tell Palpatine things he can't even tell Padmé. Now the Supreme Chancellor is in the worst kind of danger. And Anakin is on his way despite the dread boiling through his blood. That's what makes him a real hero. Not the way the HoloNet labels him; not without fear, but stronger than fear. He looks the dragon in the eye and doesn't even slow down. If anyone can save Palpatine, Anakin will. Because he's already the best, and he's still getting better. But locked away behind the walls of his heart, the dragon that is his fear coils and squirms and hisses. Because his real fear, in a universe where even stars can die, is that being the best will never be quite good enough. This is how it feels to be Anakin Skywalker for now. -Mathew Stover, Revenge of the Sith novelization

Watching my fourth Darth Vader analysis lets go

Just recently went through all of the prequels and original trilogy for the first time at 22 and already Anakin/Vader is one of my favorite villains of all time. I love the complexity that was added to him in the prequels and his redemption in the original trilogy. Truly one of the most tragic falls of such a promising prodigy ever

I never expected you to cover my favorite character of all time. Anakin has also been my favorite ever since I first watched the prequels as a child. He was such a hero and so inspiring and I really loved that. I didn't truly appreciate his downfall and redemption until I was a bit older in my teens but man, once you grasp the whole situation, Anakin's tragedy is one of the best character arcs there are.

I liked the Prequels and Darth Vader is a great villain.

Excellent analysis! I appreciate all the time and effort it must have taken to put this video together. Vader has always been a favorite of mine. After seeing A New Hope in the theatre in 1977, 13 yr old me got a poster of Darth Vader that hung on my bedroom wall for many years. I was in the minority of people who liked the prequels. I found his backstory fascinating, your analysis has made it even more so.

Wow this video was extremely well made and illustrates the power of a good story. Despite the flaws in the CGI and dialog of the prequels, it’s so easy to look past because they are simply tools to serve this masterclass of a story. On the other hand it also emphasizes the overwhelming gravity of disneys failure with the sequel trilogy. When you compare it to the story of the first 6 movies, it’s so blindingly clear that they didn’t give one fraction of a shit about the story. Kathleen Kennedy and whatever other executives responsible for this absolute disaster had the arrogance to disregard George Lucas and all the other magnificent stories in the books and comics from after the 6th movie, and thought they could come up with something better, only to completely fumble the ball, shit the bed AND STILL pat themselves on the back for it by ruining more of the universe with their trash Star Wars shows. Disneys ruination of Star Wars will go down in history not only as one of the greatest failures of all time, but also one of the best examples of corporate influence corrupting the soul of a good thing. I can only hope that a competent body can buy the now worthless rights to the Star Wars franchise from Disney and commit some of these stories from after return of the Jedi to film. Because my god would they make great movies.

The duel in the Chancellor's office is a very fascinating scenario to analyze. Ultimately, I think the true tragedy of it is that it was a no win scenario for the forces of Good. Sure, Anakin wanted to stop Windu from killing Sidious for all the wrong reasons, but he WAS proposing the best possible course of action. Just look at Sam Jackson's face before he goes for the kill. Mace wasn't driven by determination, by a sense of justice or anything like that: he was driven by anger. The Dark Side was guiding his hand just as much as it was guiding Anakin's. My best guess is that, had they agreed to kill the Dark Lord, we would have had a "Gandalf claims the One Ring" type of scenario. As they had agreed they were going to do after removing Palpatine from the picture, the Jedi would have felt entitled to claim absolute power for themselves. For the time being, of course. For all the right reasons, of course. To "ensure a peaceful transition" and all that. Of course. I mean, you see where this is going. Power would have corrupted them. They would have found reason after reason why the Senate could not be trusted anymore, why the fate of the Galaxy was going to be safer in the Jedi's hands. And soon enough the Sith would have simply been reborn from within the Jedi themselves. Hell, possibly, these new "agents of Evil" would have been even worse. Because, like Gandalf if he had claimed the One Ring, they not only would have been evil, like Sauron or The Emperor. They would also have been driven by the self delusion of being good. Therefore they would have made Good seem just as ugly and revolting as Evil. In both cases, the Dark Lord being physically destroyed would ironically have made his victory even more complete.

I’ve been watching your channel for a couple years now and my boy you have impressed and astonished me how much you’ve improved.

Darth Vader, certainly a character of all time.

1:06 that caught me of Gard😂

Damn dude, the part where you point out his tragic flaws blew my mind! I've never really thought about it like that. Incredible video, you must be very proud!

I have never seen a Star Wars movie and don't know much about this character but you almost made me tear up with this video, great job man

Great video the ending line really sealed it

Darth Vader really is the main character of star wars. George said it that Vader is still the Chosen one. Anakin fulfilled the Prophecy he brought balance to the Force. I like the prequel it shows how Vader is still a human. A slave kid who deeply cares for his love ones. If only his emotions are acknowledged same as Luke, he will be the Hero. However, Anakin is a flawed person thats why we love Darth Vader.

Great video brother, you can definitely feel the decades you spent with this character, and really feel the Shakespearean lengths that went into the evolution of the smallest feelings that turn ppl into who they become

Masked Man Masterclass 👏

Phenomenal video, man. This sub was well-earned.

I've been waiting for this

It’s finally here bois

This was an amazing video, very in depth and analytical, while also being very introspective about Anakin/Darth Vader's character 💯.

Great analysis - sympathetic, yet realistic and honest. Well done!

When I was little, I never saw Vader as evil.

Finally it's here

What a video. Listening to this while walking to work and it almost made me want to binge Star Wars.

This vid was worth the wait 👌

Man was this video worth the wait. You know, i'm not the biggest fan of the prequels, but videos like this that make me realize, yes, it is a very flawed trilogy ( or franchise to some extent), but the way you tell the story of this loveable kid turning into one of the most tragic man in fiction was so good. Keep it up my brother