CT Vader's thoughts upon meeting Luke in ESB?

Are there any insight into what Vader was thinking about Luke throughout their first meeting/duel on Cloud City? I have to imagine it must've been a range of emotions seeing his son, who he thought was dead, for the first time, and also seeing how strong his son was with the Force.

 

It is not the first time they meet actually. They first meet soon after ANH in canon.

 

I always felt Vader was impressed by Luke. But also very jealous.

 

"I like you! I told them not to be so proud of the technological terror they created, but oh no they didn't listen. I told then, the power of the force was much greater than the ability to destroy a planet, but oh no they didn't listen. They said I couldn't find the rebel's hidden fortress and i did.
You helped me prove all the naysayers wrong, whilst also using the force, irony!!"

But he got overwhelmed and forgot it all.
He'd even planned a party on Bespin for him, but the guy with the ice-cream machine was running late, so once again Vader got angry. Then Han, Leia, Chewbacca and his old Tatooine mate C3-PO arrived early and he just got even more angry.

Well that's my head canon for events!

 

It’s hard to say. At this point in the story, Darth Vader truly is “more machine than man”, if I may paraphrase Obi-Wan Kenobi. It obviously ends up stirring a serious emotional conflict in him, but within the moment, he’s very cold and dispassionate about it. He doesn’t see Luke Skywalker as his son, someone to love and care for, but as a useful tool and ally in his quest to overthrow the Emperor and rule the galaxy himself. He obviously knows, as both Obi-Wan and the Emperor know, that his offspring would be a serious threat to the Emperor. And he believes that he can leverage the familial connection to make Luke turn (obviously, that doesn’t work).

He’s still twisted and evil at this point, you must remember. Only towards the end does he manage to unearth a never-before-seen compassion within himself.

 

It's just weird to see Vader in ESB. Seeing him interact with a whole new generation of heroes. People being in the same situations he was in the prequels and not giving a damn. Just using Leia and Chewie as leverage. Torturing Han without any mercy or care. Vader in ESB is truly, in many ways, a totally different person from Anakin. It really is like Anakin is dead. Even the way he speaks is unlike Anakin.

 

I don't know what 'canon' you refer to, but there's no hint in the films, the novelizations or the radio drama.

I concur with @Kuro, just look how fiercly he tries to hit Luke with his lightsaber inside the corridor of the weather vane complex. If Luke hadn't been fast enough, he would have been dead.

The way that scene unfolds I'd say that Vader would have accepted Luke's death had Luke not proven himself to be an adequate opponent.

However, I can't help but wonder whether Vader made the 'mistake' of playing the "My son" card. It almost appears (at the end of ESB) as if he starts to think about the issue more thoroughly than ever before...

At the occasion here is the scene from the October 1978 draft (before Vader had become Luke's father):

VADER
The Force runs strong in the Skywalker line. You will achieve great power… Come, join with me! Together we will be the most powerful… even stronger than The Emperor.

(INSERT B – DIALOGUE ADDED HERE)

LUKE
No!… Never…

Luke starts backing away from Vader, his strength gone at last.

VADER
There is no escape. You must join me or die. Don’t make me destroy you here… The Emperor is strong with The Force. But if you join me, together we could overthrow Him. Do not resist. It is our destiny!

LUKE
Never.

Luke lunges for Vader with his laser sword, but misses. He stumbles to the other side of the platform. In the distance, the wind can be heard working its way up the long shaft. Luke is out of breath, exhausted, bleeding. He hears the wind rising and gives Vader a long, hard look.

LUKE
Never!

Luke staggers to the edge of the platform and jumps off into the endless abyss. Vader rages in disbelief.

VADER
No!

 

Well, when Vader had some time to really think about his relationship with Luke, I think it stirred something within him that he’d probably thought he’d quashed long ago.

Also, reading the original version of the climax, I can totally see why George Lucas felt the need to add the familial connection to spice it up. Without the “I am your father” bombshell, it just plays sorta flat.

 

Impressive.....Most Impressive

 

Splinter of the Minds Eye?
As to Old Canon (but not really) met before

 

Remember that the new comics are canon too, and what Jedi Knight Fett mentions happens in the first numbers of the series ‘Star wars’ covering what happens with the main trio between ANH-ESB.

 

He was probably very focused on getting him to turn

 

The Emperor had told him that Luke was the son of Anakin so somewhat surprised at this. Anakin was dead in body and soul now was a chance to be formerly introduced to his son. He was already crazily obsessed with finding Luke i take this as meaning that Luke had foiled him back at the Death Star and Vader wanted to return the favour Sith style.

 

Why do you sayjealous? I never ever got the sense that Vader was ever jealous of Luke. Even in ROTJ, I think his love for Luke meant he was preparing himself for Luke to become the new Sith Lord and future ruler of the galaxy (which is against the traditional Sith mentality).

 

The confrontation was inevitable ... Vader wanted Luke to join him ... at all cost ... =O

 

He also forgot to sweeten the deal with his full plan for afterward they overthrow the Emperor. Namely once they were ruling the galaxy , they'd take in a Pod Race together and catch up. And maybe they would change the name from "Galactic Empire" to "Vader and Son's Galactic Monarchy". And with Palpatine out of the way, he'd set his son up with a cute red-headed assassin in their employ.
Vader: 'What was her name...Lara Cade? Sara Rade? Eh, who cares."

But in seriousness, in issue five or six of Marvel's Vader comic is pretty much what we see on How it Should have Ended for Empire Strikes Back, "I have a son." Except not as giddy, and he doesn't run around the Star Destroyer telling everything and everyone including the mouse droid that he's a father.

 

IMHO, Vader isn't that ruthless in this point of the duel. His movements look to me too wide, more towards the walls and not very straight against Luke. Luke must run away of course, but he will be very dumb, if he wasn't able to, because Vader leaves him space to run after all. That isn't the way to go against someone, if you want really to harm him. When he means really harm, he go straight to Luke's hand and Luke hasn't time to react. So, in the corridor, IMHO, Vader is just like: "Well, let's make this a little tougher!" and not really angry. When he does get angry for being hit, the duel ends in - how long? - 4 seconds or so.

 

@IrB

The way Vader pops up from hiding and goes for Luke suggests otherwise, IMHO: https://starwarsscreencaps.com/star-wars-episode-v-the-empire-strikes-back-1980/72/

@Bob the X-Winger

I believe if Vader held a grudge against anyone stealing a moment of triumph from him during the Battle of Yavin, it would have been Han Solo.

Well, as a matter of fact Vader did return the favour in Cloud City's torture chamber and the carbon-freezing one.

 

He certainly did when it came to Han Solo although he did say "the force is strong with this one" in relation to Luke.

 

Yep. He always had mental trauma, but he was this theatrical monster who utterly accepted his new way of life and saw no way out....and didn’t want a way out. He was only thinking about killing the Emperor and ruling the galaxy with Luke at that point.

 

I concur. I believe these feelings were accentuated by the time of ROTJ. You can tell that he feels pride, jealousy, fear, love, and other emotions when Luke confronts him. That's why we like Vader. There's a lot going on there.

 

Could even be a jealousy stemming from his own days as a young Jedi. He’s reminded of a life that simply doesn’t exist for him anymore. He’s now living the life of Palptine’s enforcer.

 

His initial thoughts when meeting Luke in ESB (I'm not counting things like the "canon" comics, just the films please) seem to include:
-"I am in total control of this situation"
-"I am anxious to see how this plays out"
-"Let's see how much this boy knows"
-"What is the best pressure point to press to turn him?"

 

IMO -

Anakin had respected Palpatine as a father figure and mentor until his loss to Obi Wan when he truly realized what he had done and that there was no going back. At that point he became trapped in a bubble of hate and self loathing that persisted until he realized he had a son who was willing to risk his life to bring Vader back from the darkness and into the light.

In ESB Vader was surprised and impressed by Luke's abilities and realized he could use his son to help do what he would not be capable of on his own, defeat Palpitine, the person who was at the root of Anakins fall and losses.

By the time of ROTJ the internal conflict between Vader and Anakin had begun to break thru Vaders defenses and culminated in Vader killing Palpitine and saving Luke.

Some of the novels show Vaders thoughts and below is a video on this topic -