It’s the question Star Wars fans have been asking since 1977. What the heck is that box on Darth Vader’s chest that looks like an old cassette player? Of course, we now know that it’s Vader’s life support control panel, to keep the big guy breathing and functional. But back then, to most people watching A New Hope, it was just a doohickey with big buttons that looked like something you got from Radio Shack. Well, this video from the YouTube channel Auralnauts (via Laughing Squid) has fun with this idea, presenting Vader walking around the Death Star with an actual tape player attached to him and playing music with it. You can watch Cassette Deck Vader – Episode 1 below:
We can’t help but chuckle when our favorite Sith Lord (sorry, Maul) plays his own theme music when walking around Princess Leia’s ship. Look, if John Williams had given us a kickass theme like “The Imperial March,” we’d probably do the exact same thing when we entered a room. Vader playing a different music as he chokes out that one Imperial Admiral whose lack of faith he finds disturbing? That also put a smile on our faces. Grand Moff Tarkin still had no time for this Sith foolishness, though. Not when there’s a strategy meeting to get to.
Another hilarious part has Darth wandering around the halls of the Death Star playing the Bee Gees’ “Staying Alive.” That thing on his chest is keeping him alive after all, so using that particular song does track. Besides, Saturday Night Fever also came out in 1977, just like George Lucas’ original Star Wars, so it fits. The folks at Auralnauts have been making comedic Star Wars edits for years. They were the ones responsible for the Ahsoka ’80s sitcom-style video, and Zack Snyder’s Star Wars. (The intentionally funny one, not Rebel Moon.) For more of their wackiness, be sure to head on over to their YouTube channel for more.