Considering most Sith Lords would be justified in their anger over discovering newly-colored undergarments, Sparks has a hard time believing Darth Vader would ever find humor in the situation, or any situation for that matter.
"Any dude that would blow up a planet doesn't have a sense of humor," Sparks says. "And I don't think he was kidding with that 'apology accepted' comment after the Force choke. There's nothing funny about being a macho jerk, which is exactly what Darth was. My biggest issue with the prequels telling the story about how Anakin Skywalker grew up to be Darth Vader is akin to making three movies to make Hermann Göring look sympathetic. 'Awww, see that's why he blew up a planet.' I remember sitting through The Phantom Menace secretly hoping the whole time that someone would kill Anakin, just to circumvent the inevitable. Sell the kid to someone else! Anakin is a bad kid because you already know what he's going to become."
"In Attack of the Clones, when he goes into the camp to save his dying mother, and he kills all the Sand People, I sort of understand that," Sparks continues. "But I don't buy how that transmits into the mentality of 'life is cruel so I'm going to join the dark side to kill everyone in my way.' Unrequited love aside, Darth Vader is a genocidal madman. He is not a misunderstood character. I don't think anyone on Alderaan misunderstood him. Do you know how many babies, women, sick old people and gardeners who never hurt anyone were killed when he did that!? I have zero sympathy of Vader."
"Just because Darth Vader is stupid enough to do what he's told all the time doesn't excuse him from the fact that he makes horrible choices that cost innocent people their lives," Sparks adds. "If they blew up one planet you have to assume that is something they did regularly. After they exhausted a planet, they just nuked it with the Death Star. And that almost resembles how we have been moving towards now. It's a bad deal. I don't like the prequels as much as the original trilogy because they make me feel like I'm supposed to feel sorry for him, and I don't. Lots of people's parents die in horrible situations, or have nightmares about their wives, and they don't wind up wanting to blow up planets. And as for that big pitiful NOOOO at the end of Revenge of the Sith when he discovers his wife is dead; don't start acting like you care now. Sheesh."
Anger-challenged Sith Lords aside, Sparks says the messages throughout the original trilogy truly inspired him as a kid to become the successful entertainer his is today. "As a kid the Star Wars films had a lot of positive messages for me to live by like, 'Don't get angry; but stay focused on what you're trying to accomplish," Sparks says. "And most importantly, don't let your emotions ruin the chances of your success."
To learn more about Sparks, visit his official web site here. For his touring schedule and blog, visit Hal Sparks on Myspace.
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