This hilarious fan theory explains all the Darth Vader plot holes in the ‘Star Wars’ prequels
Over the past year, we’ve seen lots of fan theories. Many of them have been really good. Some of them have been pretty bad. Others have been absolutely hilarious, and a brand new Star Wars fan theory falls into this last category. But actually, along with being hilarious, this theory is also kinda spot on.
With Star Wars: The Force Awakens opening in FIVE. DAYS. you might find yourself thinking about that galaxy far, far away a lot this week. As you reminisce about the good times with Luke, Leia, and Han, your thoughts might drift to the prequels. Oh, those prequels. One character that can be found in both the OG trilogy and the prequels is Darth Vader, who once upon a time was Anakin Skywalker.
Love the prequels, hate the prequels, wherever your stand with them, they explain what caused Anakin to turn to the Dark Side. At the end of Revenge of the Sith, Anakin’s bae, Padmé, gives birth to twins, and li’l Luke and Leia are separated and hidden away from Anakin, in hopes of keeping them safe. Leia gets a new last name and a Princess title. Luke, meanwhile, keeps his family’s name, and actually goes to live with Anakin’s step-brother on Tatooine. Maybe at some point you’ve thought to yourself, “uh, wouldn’t Anakin have like, checked there first for his son? Come on.”
Yeah, he probably should have. But he didn’t. If this bugs you, you’re not alone, and it’s one of the biggest plot holes spanning the prequels to the original trilogy. Why didn’t Anakin-turned-Vader return to Tatooine, where he was born, where he spent his childhood and his mother married and live there until her death, where his relatives were still living, to find his son?
Answer: because Vader hates sand.
As one Reddit user points out, Tatooine is actually the PERFECT place to hide Luke, because there’s no way Vader was ever going to go back there himself. In Attack of the Clones, Anakin explains his dislike of sand — in what is maybe one of the best lines of dialogue in all of Star Wars, IMHO — mentioning that it’s “coarse, rough, and irritating. And it gets everywhere.”
While Anakin has just described a typical day at the beach, he’s also talking about the root of his disdain for the planet Tatooine. If he doesn’t have to go back there, he’s not going to. Why spend the time and energy hiding Luke REALLY WELL if you can hide him in plain sight in the middle of a sand dune?
Yes, this is a hilarious fan theory. Because of course Anakin isn’t going to subject himself to sand again. But along with being funny, it also cleverly explains why Luke was never discovered, and why Anakin never bothered to check there in the first place. Because, sand. Sand is just downright irritating, friends.
(Image via Lucasfilm.)
