I love Luke Skywalker from the Original Trilogy and Legends/Expanded Universe stories. Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) was the film that made me love Luke’s character. He’s the kind of hero who started off as brash, reckless, cocky, and young yet later becomes wise, confident, compassionate, and stoic as a Jedi Knight.

There was this internal conflict within him of either leaning towards the dark side or remaining in the light side of the Force. He could have suffered the same fate as Anakin Skywalker in Revenge of the Sith (2005) when he executed Count Dooku at the Invisible Hand’s vessel. However, the guidance of Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, and a deeper understanding of his father’s past sins made Luke aware that if he killed Darth Vader, he would not only destroy his entire life as the servant of the Force but doom the entire galaxy through the menacing grip of Emperor Palpatine known as Darth Sidious. Sheev Palpatine is one evil son of a bantha!

Other than that, what I admired about Luke’s journey is the idea that a hero has to make mistakes so that wisdom and experiences mold the individual into something remarkable. Luke from the two previous films, lacked a lot of wisdom yet gets humbled by Master Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back (1980). Luke lacked patience and self-control as you witnessed these problems during his training on Dagobah and his first duel encounter with Darth Vader on Bespin. I’ll also note that Luke did lose control over his emotions during his last duel with Vader due to the dark side influences of Darth Sidious, but luckily he remembered his duty as a Jedi and to save his father.

Luke Skywalker is one of the most humble and good heroes in fiction. He not only exemplifies the heroic traits of a hero but illustrates what it means to be a force of good in the face of darkness. Make better choices, forgive, and not let hate run your life. If he’d allowed hate to control him in the final battle against Vader, he could have made the same bad decision as his father when he gave himself over to the dark side.

By making a good decision, Vader kills Sidious while being redeemed through his selfless act as Anakin Skywalker. Luke later establishes the new Jedi Order and gets married to the formal Emperor’s Hand, Mara Jade (Legends/EU continuity, which is my canon).

Sources

Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. (2024, November 24). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_Episode_III_%E2%80%93_Revenge_of_the_Sith

Star Wars: Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back. (2024, November 28). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Empire_Strikes_Back

Star Wars: Episode VI- Return of the Jedi. (2024, November 29). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Return_of_the_Jedi

https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Wars:_Union