Why Obi-Wan Kenobi Part V's Big Vader Flex Makes So Much Sense To Disney Parks Fans
Darth Vader (voiced by James Earl Jones) is one of the few villains who seems to grow more terrifying nearly every time he is on screen. Gone are the days where the dark lord of the Sith could be seen clunkily dueling with an elderly Alec Guinness. Now, the Darth Vader we have witnessed since the Disney acquisition of "Star Wars" is a one-man-army, destroying anyone who might stand in his way with relative ease.
Disney's emphasis on Vader's immense strength began in the iconic "Rogue One" hallway sequence (which saw him taking down an entire rebel squadron with hardly any effort at all) and continued throughout his appearances in "Star Wars Rebels" and the video game "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order." Vader's latest appearances in "Obi-Wan Kenobi" have further solidified him as the strongest warrior in the galaxy. In "Obi-Wan Kenobi" Part III, we watched him effortlessly defeat his former master in one of the most one-sided duels in the entire series, and in Part V, his mastery of the force was on full display as he managed to defeat the Third Sister (Moses Ingram) without even raising his own lightsaber.
Still, perhaps the greatest display of his strength came during the climactic final moments of Part V, in which Vader managed to stop an entire starship from flying away with a single hand. Vader casually pulls the ship out of the sky and back to earth, before ripping it apart with the force. This kind of power is something we've never seen before in any live-action "Star Wars" projects –- though it may not be all too surprising for fans of the Disney Parks ride "Star Tours –- The Adventures Continue."
Vader pulls down the Star Tours cruiser during the ride
"Star Tours –- The Adventures Continue" is a flight-simulator ride at Disney's Hollywood Studios, which takes passengers on a tour of several iconic locations set within the "Star Wars" universe. Anyone who's been on the ride before will know that things get out of hand very quickly when the tour –- led by C-3PO (voiced by Anthony Daniels) and R2D2 –- attracts the unwanted attention of the Empire (or the First Order, if you've ridden the ride in recent years). In the Empire variation of the tour, Darth Vader himself stops the ship before it can leave the hanger, claiming that there is a Rebel spy aboard. Using the force, Vader is able to stop the ship in its tracks, and effortlessly tosses it around the hanger.
Fans on Reddit were quick to point out that, while Vader's immense display of power in Part V may have been surprising for some fans, others ought to recognize it immediately from his appearance in the Disney Parks ride. "Darth Vader in Disney's Star Tours vibes for sure" wrote u/originalcrisp.
"First time the ride has spoiled anything for me!" echoed u/JuniorCaptain. "'Of course he can stop the ship, it's happened on my Star Tours cruise multiple times.'"
It's hilarious that fans are able to draw comparisons between a lighthearted theme park ride and the terrifying display of strength we see in Part V of "Obi-Wan Kenobi" –- especially since the scene is clearly meant to emphasize just how ruthless and scary Darth Vader can be.