Movies - TV
Darth Vader’s Red Lightsaber Came From A Far Less Famous Star Wars Character
By DEVIN MEENAN
Darth Vader's image wasn't always inseparable from the image of a menacing red lightsaber. However, the alteration occurred as a result of the artistic vision of Ralph McQuarrie.
McQuarrie initially depicted Vader wielding a blueish-white saber. During these early stages, before he evolved into Vader, he was Anakin Skywalker, a fallen Jedi.
Red was the ideal choice for Darth Vader's lightsaber, symbolizing anger and blood. This choice is not only for Vader but all evil Sith lords and their apprentices.
Vader's lightsaber is associated with the character Master Kirak Infil'a, introduced in Charles Soule and Giuseppe Camuncoli's “Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith” comic series.
Set during “Revenge of the Sith,” the comic begins with Vader awakening in his new body and armor. Darth Sidious orders that Vader gain a Sith weapon by earning it.
Ordered by Sidious to earn a Sith weapon by killing a Jedi. Vader singles out Master Kirak Infil'a, an alien Jedi on a pilgrimage who wielded the green lightsaber he needed.
First, losing to Infil'a, Vader gains the upper hand. Infil'a offers his life and blade for the city's safety. However, filled with the evil of the Sith, Vader seizes everything.
Inside the weapon is a Kyber crystal, a force-sensitive mineral. In Vader's possession, Infil'a's lightsaber turns red, a phenomenon known to the Sith as “bleeding.”