If people were asked to name one thing about Darth Vader, they’d likely talk about his deep voice. But if asked to name two things about Darth Vader, they’d likely mention the voice thing then follow it up with terrible parenting skills.

But in reality Darth Vader was loving father who wanted nothing more than to see his children succeed and here is my proof.

1) He passed on his love of learning

Every dad hopes that his son will remain curious about the world, whether that means wanting to “join his friends at the Academy” or visit a small green guy to learn “the force.” It is important start your kid’s thirst for knowledge early, like “Who is my father” and “Why did Vader kill my father.”

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2) Encouraged him to go into the family business

The greatest honor a father can have is having his children want to follow in his footsteps. Lord Vader offers Luke Skywalker the opportunity to join the family business and even one day run it for himself.  Think of all the time they would have been able to spend together bonding on the Death Star.

3) Gave him enough space to either succeed or fail on his own

It’s important as a parent to give your children enough time and space to discover the world around them for themselves, and not to step in if they are going to fail. Lord Vader understood that the best way to make Luke stronger is help him fail a few times across his journey.

4) Left him a treasured family keepsake

In the category of leaving family keepsakes Lord Vader scores very high. First Vader builds a small robot as a child that will go on to serve his son as a translator and then follows it up by hands down one of his most prized possessions, his light saber.  It is a true dad who wants more for his children than himself.

5) Wasn’t afraid to use tough love when needed.

I understand most people are going to remove Darth Vader off their great dads list because of the whole “chopped off Luke’s hand thing” but you have to understand that’s just his way of showing tough love. In the world that Star Wars takes place, losing a hand doesn’t seem to be the big of deal (hello sweet robot hand) plus Lord Vader wasn’t actually trying to cut off his hand.

6) Was there for him when it really counted

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The trust of a dad is there for you when the chips are down and you need it the most. Sure Lord Vador might have used his tough exterior for most of the series but when son really needed him he got off the mat and did what was required of him to keep his family safe. 

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