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The closeups of Vader in Rogue One were surprising to me because I noticed the helmet lenses seemed noticeably amber. enter image description here (I'm using this image because the color is the most obvious. And, being licensed merchandise, the color must have been chosen deliberately)

Here's another:

enter image description here

Whereas in Revenge of the Sith, we also have extreme closeups, but I believe the lenses are meant to be the same as the rest of the helmet.

enter image description here

Was the depiction indeed inconsistent? Was it black in Episodes 3-6? And if so, which color is it really?

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    It's not the same helmet. The Ultimate Star Wars fact book mentions that he used a variety of different helmets over the next 20 years, not least because one was smashed during the Jedi Purge years
    – Valorum
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 7:39
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    Oh look, Darth Vader is shouting "Pop!" on the first box. I wonder who he's shouting to. I mean, who could he possibly be addressing?
    – Mr Lister
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 7:54
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    @Valorum, and others: Firstly, does mean people are agreeing the eyes are different colors as depicted in the films? Secondly, "he just had different helmets" strikes me as pretty weak if the claim is that it's black in 3-6, but amber in 3.9 (RO), which is immediately before ANH.
    – ThePopMachine
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 13:05
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    @ThePopMachine I think we all do agree. In fact, I remember thinking when I watched it that George Lucas would probably release future versions of films 1 through 6 with his eyes changed to red.
    – Mr Lister
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 13:21
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    @MrLister, oh, I just got it. Funny. First read, I thought it was a sarcastic comment about fans overanalyzing. --Pop!
    – ThePopMachine
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 13:30

2 Answers 2

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The answer is simply they were trying to tie into the correct colour in A New Hope.

Have a look at this (hi-def image from Star Wars Helmets, from A New Hope):

Darth Vader Helmet from A New Hope

And here when Vader is talking to Tarkin:

More Red Lens

As you can see there is a definite colour on the lenses (I always thought it was red).

If you read through the article you'll see the helmet changed significantly in each film (original trilogy). And in fact if you look at this internal detail helmet from ROTS it was supposed to be red even here:

Internal Darth Vader helmet from ROTS

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  • OK. I'd always registered the entire helmet as one piece of the same material, but I guess that was incorrect.
    – ThePopMachine
    Commented Feb 28, 2017 at 15:45
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Simplest answer: it's probably not all the same helmet. We know from 'Empire Strikes Back' that he takes it off when in his meditation chamber and in 'Rogue One'...

he is seen floating in a bacta tank sans armour and indeed, even limbs.

Then in the season two finale of 'Rebels'...

Ahsoka slices off a section of his mask, exposing his face.

...all of which means he most likely has numerous spare parts and replacements for his armour, apparatus and attire, hence the minor variations of his costume from movie to movie.

There's even a precedent for this with General Grevious in the 'Clone Wars' episode 'Lair of Grievous' where we see the the titular cyborg General has racks upon racks of spare parts, including many copies of his iconic mask.

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    But this doesn't explain the difference in lense color from Rogue One to EpIV as the two happened at most hours apart and I find it hard to believe (unless there's evidence that his helmet was damaged in the fighting at the end of Rogue One) that Vader changed helmets in that short span of time
    – WitchsFISTS
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 14:35
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    @Gandalf'sFISTS I believe in ANH they do have an amber tinge at certain angles.
    – HamHamJ
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 14:53
  • @HamHamJ They have a slight tint in EpIV but it's more brown than red and it's not as pronounced as the tint in Rogue One
    – WitchsFISTS
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 14:59
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    Obviously one can't really compare it side-by-side until Rogue One comes out on BR, but my impression was that it looked close enough to the ANH version. The finish looked dulled as it did in ANH vs. how shiny it was in tESB and the lenses had that same red tint to them. It's never going to be 100% exact since it's been almost 40 years and there's all kinds of variables from the lighting set-up, types of lenses and camera and the fact that it's a different performer wearing the suit that are going to subtly throw it off. The intent seemed clear perfectly though.
    – Kris
    Commented Jan 24, 2017 at 15:55

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