Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Star Wars: Battle of Jakku- Insurgency Rising #1Star Wars is finally revealing the backstory behind Darth Vader’s mask and who had it before Kylo Ren. Having recently wrapped up its canonical Star Wars series set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Marvel has now begun a brand-new trilogy of stories set in the aftermath of the Battle of Endor which will culminate in the Battle of Jakku. To that end, we now know who had Vader’s mask before Kylo Ren eventually gets his hands on it as seen in the sequels.
In the brand-new Star Wars: Battle of Jukku- Insurgency Rising #1 from Alex Segura, Leonard Kirk, and Rachelle Rosenberg, the Rebel Alliance is still on Endor, celebrating their victory over the Empire with the destruction of the second Death Star and the deaths of both Palpatine and Darth Vader. Having been redeemed by killing the Emperor and sacrificing himself to save his son, Vader’s body was taken by Luke to be burned on a funeral pyre, as seen in Return of the Jedi. Now, this new issue reveals someone else who visited Vader’s still smoldering remains after Luke:
While the rest of the Rebels are still celebrating with the Ewoks, Leia Organa is shown conversing with what’s left of the man who she only recently learned was her true father from her twin brother Luke (another key revelation). Wanting to speak with Darth Vader “face-to-face”, Leia finds none other than the former Sith lord’s charred and melted mask.
Leia Visited Darth Vader’s Funeral Pyre
Wanting To Speak With Her Father
Remarkably, neither Return of the Jedi nor any of the sequel movies take time to address how Leia felt about Vader being her father. That said, the 2016 novel Bloodline by Claudia Gray does explore Leia’s relationship with the fact that such an evil man and tyrant to the galaxy was secretly her biological father. However, it’s in the context of when Leia’s secret was exposed to the rest of the galaxy as a political move to undermine her work with the New Republic Senate. The Princess and the Scoundrel by Beth Revis briefly touches on Leia’s initial reaction when Luke first told her about their father.
Despite Vader’s redemption, Leia still holds anger for everything her father had done and all the pain he caused…
Now, Insurgency Rising is finally revealing more of Leia’s feelings not long after she learned the truth herself, mere hours after Vader’s death with his body is still on the pyre. To that end, it’s shown that Leia has quite a bit of anger towards the man who had a direct hand in torturing her and killing her friends, not to mention his role in the destruction of her homeworld Alderaan. Despite Vader’s redemption, Leia still holds anger for everything her father had done and all the pain he caused.
Leia Is The Reason Kylo Ren Eventually Gets Vader’s Mask
Discarding The Helmet Away From The Pyre
Before she returns to the celebration, Leia is seen throwing the melted helmet away from the burial pyre. As such, this explains how Vader’s mask will one day be recovered and fall into the hands of Ben Solo aka Kylo Ren. As seen in the sequel movies, Leia’s son uses the mask years later to center himself in the dark side of the Force following his corruption as Kylo Ren. To that end, it will be fascinating to see how Leia might reconcile with this anger toward Darth Vader she’s still holding onto in the immediate aftermath of Endor.
Star Wars: Battle of Jakku- Insurgency #1 is on sale now from Marvel Comics.
Leia Organa
The daughter of Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala, Leia inherited her mother’s political skills and her father’s Force power. She was raised on Alderaan as a member of the royal family, and followed in her father’s footsteps by becoming a senator who secretly worked alongside the Rebel Alliance. Alderaan’s destruction changed everything, and Leia became a leader in both the Rebel Alliance and its successor government, the New Republic. She served there for decades, eventually leaving to found the First Order when she sensed its darkness growing. Leia gave much for her ideals, but eventually gave her life to redeem her son Ben.
- Died
- Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise Of Skywalker
- Alias
- Boushh
- Alliance
- Rebel Alliance, New Republic, Resistance
- Race
- Human