http://geektyrant.com/news/did-you-know-darth-vaders-neck-was-broken-in-star-wars Looks like it to me from this. Thoughts?
I wonder when he got it. I didn't think the injuries he suffered on Mustafar was neck breaking, but maybe they were. Perhaps he was dropped on his head when Obi-Wan cut off his arm and legs?
If bones are broken, they just heal right back into form, unless they completely shatter. My guess? Vader did this voluntarily to enhance his strength.
Maybe, but spinals are tricky to heal in the first place. But yiu do make a point, its probably tiresome to hold up a heavy metal helmet 24/7.
could it possibly have been done in order to strengthen that area to handle the weight of his helmet and armor.
It would be pretty unfortunate if all the spinal bones get broken at once. That would also point to a voluntary replacement. Vader already has so many cybernetics, why not have a few more if they benefit him? Those artificial bones are probably more durable than flexible ones which is good if you're thrown against a hard surface. I think replacing all the spinal bones would also be very tricky.
Palpatine is a crafty old S.O.B. Way back when he was supervising Vader being plunked into that suit he figured, well, what if Vader actually gets his act together one day and tries to off me in Sith traditional style? So he put a few strategically placed bits of metal into Vader whilst he could, the better to facilitate any time he might need to get zappy with his uppity apprentice. True story.
I've been knowing that ever since I read the essay about Darth Vader's injuries years ago. He didn't break his neck in ROTS, as he was able to move via dragging himself along the rocks and raising his head a time or two. If his neck were broken then, he wouldn't have been able to do that. I think it happened at some point after ROTS, not sure when though.
I was thinking this, the amount of time he wears the helmet combined with his ability to strengthen his neck muscles with his obvious disability. Or it could be precautionary as a way of strengthening his skeleton to match the strength of his prosthetic limbs.
Vader had been through a lot. He had an iron will to live up until he elected to save his son from Sidious. He walked away from many, many things that would have killed most people.
There is this theme of Sith surviving the seemingly impossible. Maul, Vader ... and even Palpatine looks like a desiccated corpse in ROTJ who should be long dead. But they still need a body to survive, they can't become ghosts according to TCW, they can't rise from the dead. So no resurrected Plagueis, Palpatine or Vader in episode VII. However, it wouldn't surprise me at all if the villains find an old Sith Lord surviving the centuries in suspended animation.
In the old eu, i used to think ot happened below From Darrh vader and the lost command. His has been seriously hurt here and is basically surving off the force and is have delusional angry visions. The femalenis a native shaman and the man is tarkins son. The next panel showsnhim in the empal surgical reconstruction clinic aka the med facility were the armor was first put on him. Palpatine states he brough the whole building a huge castle down on top of himself
Good point. I was thinking about that, too. Vader had a great deal of self-loathing. But he also had a will to live and a fear of death. He had a desire for revenge and power that made him keep on living.
Well, rejection is almost too weak a word to describe how Vader viewed his former self. It takes a very special kind of insanity to refer to your former self as a different person. One scene in the Tarkin novel that stands out to me is that when Palpatine talks about Vader and Anakin like they are the same person, Vader immediately corrects him. Palpatine, being a simple sociopath, is not fully capable of grasping the complexities of Vader's mind. But yes, his will to survive was even stronger than his insanity.
Here's an article from the Star Wars Technical Commentaries discussing this subject. I seem to recall it being Ben Burtt who had the idea for the 'x-ray' effect with Vader in ROTJ... I remember reading about it in Making of ROTJ but I can't quite recall the details right now.
I never noticed it but I think it did happen during the rots fight. Jedis are able to jump so high and when Anakin jumped he couldnt break his fall because his limbs got cut off. So yeah even though Hayden lifts his head up some GL had already had the idea that Vaders injuries came from The Duel with obi wan when making rotj.
