I Will Change Your View of Anakin's Turn to the Dark Side in 3 Minutes

Anakin Skywalker's turn to the dark side was 'fast' in the eyes of many Star Wars fans. However, in 3 minutes I will explain to you how it is not fast at all, and why his turn makes so much sense. In fact, I would argue his turn was justified (not his actions, those were messed up, but his turn).
Order 66 aside, Anakin's years of being put down and held back by the Jedi was a test for him to overcome his impatience, however, when he couldn't save his mother, the process had really begun.

I believe, like Dave Filoni said, had Qui-Gon Jinn beat Darth Maul and trained Anakin, then Qui-Gon would have been the father figure Anakin always needed. Anakin wouldn't have turned. However, Obi-Wan as his master, was not fully ready for such a padawan.

Anakin's turn is a reflection of the treatment and abuse he received over the years at the Jedi Temple.

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edited by Nick D

[TophDaGreat]

The irony of Padme's fate was it ended up being a self fulfilling prophecy. No wonder Vader hated himself.

[ChupeTTe]

Anakin: goes through shit

The Jedi order: Emotions are not for sharing

[doublea]

"Anakin had so many flaws, that's why I didn't like the prequels."
Uh... yeah. That is literally the entire point of a tragedy: the protagonist is flawed.

[averagemale]

Padme was the one person who understood Anakin. The one person who knew him like no other person did, inside and out. Besides his Mother, who died in his own arms, out of all of those in the galaxy including his closest friends, none of them showed him as much love, support, and affection as Padme did despite his many flaws and mistakes. And with all the years upon years of nothing but pain and trauma just building up, it should surprise nobody how that would make him realize that she was the only one who truly mattered to him, and as such had to do everything he could to keep her alive. He loved her so much that he would’ve sold his own soul to the devil to save her, and he did just that. And yet she dies anyway... And he is made to think that it was his own fault.

If that wouldn’t create a monster out of you, then nothing would.

[geremydunn]

“Anakin, you’re breaking my heart!”

“Don’t be silly, Padmé. It’s pronounced ‘neck.’”

[iNabber]

your passion for the prequels is unmatched

[anthonyfonseca]

This is why watching him turn hurt so much. You know from the beginning how things will end, but you come to love Anakin and almost wish the outcome were different, but inevitably he becomes Darth Vader. Just leaves you feeling like you can’t accept there wasn’t a happy ending for him. But it’s also an outstanding ability Lucas has to make the audience feel connected to a character and then feel all these emotions from things like this. Hayden was also amazing. They couldn’t have chosen a better Anakin.

[spinach]

Palpatine to Anakin regarding Dooku: "He's too dangerous to be left alive."
Mace Windu to Anakin regarding Palpatine: "He's too dangerous to be left alive."

Well done Mr. Lucas

[ngjingkai]

Star Wars Phantom Menace: Anakin had FEAR. In attack of the clones: Anakin had ANGER. In Revenge of the Sith: Anakin had HATE. After he became Vader, Anakin had SUFFERING. The prequels geniusly depicted the fall of Anakin and thats why i love the prequles more than anything else. Like yoda said in episdoe 1 to anakin, " Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering." It shows how much planning and love the prequels have unlike the sequels

[gimpsterthekid]

When the guy on the left said “yeah”, I really felt that

[caitlinlawrence]

Clone wars adds a lot of depth to his turn as well. The constant discouraging of "having attachments" he had the biggest heart and cared so deeply for everyone and the jedi around him are constantly saying "eh, if they die they die. We must be ready to let go of our attachments. Do not have attachments" etc. Too blinded by their ways to see the damage they were causing.

[b.l.a.c.k.s.t.a.r]

I remember when I told people Anakin was my favorite, they would just brush it off as an edgy character. He wasn't angsty for the sake of being angsty, he was like that because of years frustrations. I also really like his style and confidence in fighting, flying, and leading. He doesn't talk like a politician, he talks like a human with dreams and aspirations, not tied down by policy.

[hamishbartholomaeus]

“The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.” is not an empty saying...

[lapplandkun]

bunch of people: *says anakin's fall was done too quickly*
me: *looks at when anakin slaughtered the tusken raiders and his dark moments in the clone wars show*

[brennengrimes]

i also wanted to point out that there's a line both Palpatine and Mace said at different times of this movie. "He's too dangerous to be kept alive" So to Anakin, there's no difference in being a jedi or sith. They both wanted to kill their enemies and do whatever it takes to gain the open hand. But only too Anakin, one side is shutting him down while the other insisted to help him with his dilemna.

[joshuakrusiewicz]

Anakin's turn was always entirely comprehensible to me, but that never kept it from being sad. I think that was because as a 7 year old boy, Anakin Skywalker was my role model, hero, and even idol. I was obsessed with Star Wars as a kid, and I wanted to be a Jedi so badly (I think there's probably others who can relate to varying degrees). But because I saw so much of myself in Anakin, or as Anakin, I used him to inform my ideal version of myself, attaching whatever his fate was to mine. When Anakin served the light side, I felt like I could triumph, like I could crush my enemies with the force, powerful, revered. When Anakin fell, I was afraid that I would become like that, that I would be hopeless and abandoned and villainized. And, by and large, it became a self fulfilling prophesy. I'm thankful that as an adult, I can examine the effects this had on me as a child, and have a deeper appreciation of the wonderful and truly legendary work performed by Hayden Christensen.

[EmpireFanProductions]

“From my point of view, the Jedi are evil!”

[guitarguru.]

I’ve always empathized with Anakin. Honestly, I look at Star Wars as a whole as HIS story. That’s what pissed me off about Disney undoing his redeeming deed in The Rise of Skywalker. Anakin is the chosen one, not Rey. And she’s not a Skywalker.

[atholkay]

I like Dave Filoni's take that Darth Maul killing Qui-gon Jin was the turning point that sets Anakin's fall in motion. Anakin trained by Qui-gon doesn't fall to the dark side, Anakin trained by Obi-wan does fall to the dark side. The music during the battle is called "Duel of the Fates" and it's literally a duel for the fate of Anakin. It just takes the next 12+ years to get to the place where he turns to the dark side for the reasons SWT lays out in the video.

[jacobforrester]

Imagine if Anakin found an outside the orders Grey, or a Je'daii. A natural Grey Sentinel Master. Someone who would have at least tried to help with his questions and goals. Someone who would have helped him find the fine balance between Anakin and Vader. A true home within himself.
To me, the Jedi and Sith are both a problem that needs solving.