"Dark Lord's Fury" is the eighth episode of The Empire Strikes Back radio drama. It first aired on National Public Radio on April 4, 1983.^[1] The episode adapts events from Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back taking place in Cloud City, centering on the betrayal and capture of Han Solo and the Princess Leia.

Opening crawl[]

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, 
there came a time of revolution, when rebels 
united to challenge a tyrannical empire. Now,
it is a dark time for the Rebellion. While 
the Empire hunts scattered and demoralized 
Rebel units across space, Luke Skywalker has 
gone off on his own to further his training 
as a Jedi knight.

Han Solo, Leia Organa, Chewbacca, and See-
Threepio have been forced to seek refuge in 
Cloud City, a huge gas mining complex 
floating in the atmosphere of the planet 
Bespin. But Luke is now speeding towards 
Bespin in his X-wing fighter, convinced by 
glimpses of the future that his friends are 
in horrible danger.

Plot summary[]

Leia and Han are in the luxurious accommodations that Lando has provided in Cloud City. Leia still does not trust Lando, and she believes her suspicions confirmed when Chewbacca arrives carrying See-Threepio in pieces. The droid has been shot with a blaster. Han still wants to trust his friend, but when Lando arrives, Han does not tell him about the incident.

Lando invites them to join him in a banquet hall. There they are greeted by Darth Vader himself. The dark lord easily thwarts Han's attempts to fight him, and the entrance of a squad of troops with Boba Fett leaves the Rebels no choice but surrender. Lando tries to explain that he turned over Han in exchange for a guarantee that Cloud City would remain free of imperial interference. But Vader oversteps the limits of their deal immediately. He subjects Han to torture and will allow Fett to bring him to Jabba the Hutt; he orders Leia and Chewbacca to remain in the city indefinitely; and he threatens to occupy the city with a garrison of stormtroopers. Sensing the deal breaking down, Lando tells Lobot to put the city's guard force on alert.

Chewbacca works to repair See-Threepio in a holding cell. The droid regains consciousness and becomes angry when he realizes his head is on backward. Han is brought in, and Threepio is able to explain to him that he was shot by stormtroopers. Leia is brought in next, soon followed by Lando. Lando explains that Vader is not after them except as bait for Luke Skywalker. He tries to justify his actions, saying that this was the only way that he could protect his people. Han tries to hit him and is subdued by guards. When Lando leaves, both Leia and Han express hope that Luke will sill be able to help them, even if he is walking into a trap.

A trooper tells Vader that Luke's X-wing snubfighter is approaching the planet. Vader orders that Luke be allowed to land unopposed. He tells Lando that he is planning to put Skywalker into carbon freezing to bring to the Emperor. Lando warns that this might kill him; Vader decides to test the process on Captain Solo—yet another breach of their agreement. He orders Lando to bring all the Rebels to witness Han's fate, even Threepio, though he still has to be carried in pieces. Up in Bespin's atmosphere, Luke tells Artoo to be ready for a battle.

In the carbon-freezing chamber, Chewbacca tries fruitlessly to fight back; Han talks him down. Leia tells Han she loves him; he says, "I know." Finally Han is lowered into the machine to be frozen in a block of carbonite.

Continuity[]

Lobot had been portrayed as mute in The Empire Strikes Back film,^[2][3] but already the Star Wars comic had shown him to be capable of speech.^[4] "Dark Lord's Fury" was the first time his voice was actually heard: he says two brief lines to Lando. Later Legends sources would explain that Lobot's cybernetic implant had degraded but not destroyed the speech centers of his brain, as well as make him more inclined to communicate with computers than with people.^[5]

Credits[]

Appearances[]

Sources[]

• The Empire Strikes Back: The National Public Radio Dramatization
• "Boba Fett: Mystery Man in Not-So-Shining Armor" — Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 1

Notes and references[]

External links[]

• Star Wars: the Empire Strikes Back Radio Drama on the Internet Archive