History YouHaveFailedMe / StarWars

** Later, when Ren finds out that Rey has escaped, he howls with rage and slashes a chair apart with his saber. Two stormtroopers walking down the hallway hear Ren's outraged roars and see pieces of the chair flying out of the room, [[CrowningMomentOfFunny they promptly decide to quietly]] [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere walk back the way they came]].

** In others, he's evil, not stupid - while he's brutal to those he's decided are useless, "the last time" was ''never'' the first time; you had to screw up habitually, badly, or in Ozzel's case, ''both.'' According to Franchise/StarWarsLegends, Ozzel was a [[TheNeidermeyer Neidermeyer]] who loved to [[NeverMyFault blame subordinates for his own mistakes]] and kept his job mainly through family connections, meaning that Vader was looking for any excuse to get rid of him. Indeed, in ''[[Literature/StarWarsAllegiance Allegiance]]'', Mara Jade asks Vader to keep an eye on then-Captain Ozzel, with the implication that his promotion to Vader's flagship is Vader's way of doing exactly that. Vader was certainly harsh but he wasn't ''completely'' unreasonable; if your failure was the result of something you had control over (e.g. you didn't utilize resources properly, you gave up too quickly, you had poor judgement, [[RunningGag you were Admiral Ozzel]]) then you said goodbye to your trachea. However, if the failure was a result of something you had no control over (you lost a battle because of unexpected enemy reinforcements) he'd let you live, but you ''damn well better'' plan for whatever tripped you up the next time. This would seem to be the intended characterization from the films, as seen when Vader ''didn't'' kill Piett when the ''Falcon'' escaped. In this case his trap failed because R2 arrived with Luke and repaired the sabotage to the Falcon--something that Piett couldn't have expected, and was in fact partially ''Vader's'' fault because he'd drawn Luke there in the first place and just locked the R2 out and let the droid go instead of destroying him. EU materials apparently had Piett go on to survive a ''string'' of bad days for the Empire until his death at Endor.

* He does it ''again'' to the hapless Captain Needa before the film's even halfway done, despite the man having the foresight and backbone to personally apologize to Vader for losing track of the ''Millennium Falcon'' (hence Vader's line "Apology accepted, Captain Needa"). Needa's expression when he tells his men that he's going to apologize personally to Vader tells the whole story; he ''knows'' Vader will kill him--[[TakeMeInstead but if he takes the blame]], [[HeroicSacrifice none of his underlings will]]. Strangely enough, there's [[https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/151963/did-captain-needa-die-in-the-empire-strikes-back a small percentage of fans]] who think Needa might have ''survived'' Vader's punishment because of his willingness to take responsibility for his failure; the reasons for this are due to how he clearly pulls his legs up when being dragged off, and how quickly this happened after he lost consciousness (not long enough to die of asphyxiation). Alas, all official sources in both the old and new canon say that he died.
* And ultimately subverted by the end of the film when the ''Falcon'' escapes to lightspeed. Piett visibly soils himself as Vader strides toward him, only to brush right past, either because he knew it wasn't Piett's fault or because he was too depressed about losing his [[LukeIAmYourFather son]] to kill any more underlings today, possibly both.

-->'''Vader:''' Ozzel, the power closing about your throat is the Force. It is my anger reaching out to end your life. It would be ''pointless'' to merely ''punish'' someone so ''useless''.

** Bevel Lemelisk, lead designer of the Death Star, was executed by Sidious having him EatenAlive by piranha beetles as punishment for overlooking such a massive design flaw...and then brought back to life with a clone body and [[BlackMagic Sith Alchemy]] because despite this mistake Lemelisk was too much of an asset to throw away. Sidious proceeded to make a point of [[AndIMustScream executing and resurrecting Lemelisk]] every time something went wrong with the Death Star II's construction, with [[CruelAndUnusualDeath a new and unique method of execution]] every time. The punishments we learn about are the aforementioned Piranha Beetles, getting BlownOutAnAirlock, lowered inch by inch into a vat of molten copper ("It was what the smelter used that day."), and being chained in a drive tube while the engine was slowly powered up. This happened ''six times'', meaning there were two more punishments that we never learned the details about. When the New Republic finally got ahold of Lemelisk and sentenced him to death, his request to the firing squad was that they "do it right this time." At least Vader is business-like about killing you; Sidious will make sure you ''suffer''.

--> '''Thrawn''': I. Will deal with ''you''. When I ''return''. '''Governor'''.

** Towards the end of the series this is strongly implied by Thrawn towards Governor Pryce after she ends up destroying most of the planet's fuel supply in an attempt to kill the escaping rebels, [[EpicFail a blunder so colossal]] that unlike the sole example of him doing this in Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy, he is visibly ''seething'' with so much rage that he [PunctuatedForEmphasis can't even use full sentences]].

* In direct contrast to Vader was [[Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy Grand Admiral Thrawn], Pellaeon's superior, who deconstructs the whole idea of this trope. Throughout the Thrawn Trilogy we are shown just how widespread the practice of killing people for failure was, not just for for Vader but the Empire in general, with Pellaeon still expecting it to happen even long after Vader was dead. The poor captain was so thoroughly conditioned by this treatment that he kept expecting Thrawn to go ballistic and kill him or ''anyone'' every time something went wrong, but with the sole exception of the tractor beam operator mentioned below he never did, which results in Pellaeon ''intellectually'' realizing Thrawn won't do it but still instinctively bracing himself for an eruption every time something goes wrong. The result of Thrawn's refusal to kill underlings wantonly for failures beyond their control and rewarding them if they showed initiative and cleverness meant that his crew followed Thrawn out of genuine respect and loyalty rather than fear. Thrawn's entry at the Star Wars Wiki says he was ''appalled'' at the "Vader style" of command, and a large part of this is that Thrawn, unlike many Imperial officers and leaders, [[KnowWhenToFoldEm knew how to admit defeat]]. In the Thrawn Trilogy, after the New Republic bested him in battle Thrawn outright said (not in so many words), "Okay, we've been beaten this time. Let's shake it off and have another go."

* As ''ComicBook/StarWarsLegacy'' shows, the Sith are pretty big fans of this in general, at least in the Legends continuity. It’s made clear they tend see anyone who’s not a fellow Sith or related to them as [[AMillionIsAStatistic expendable and interchangeable]], so their attitude is pretty much “if I kill this dude who’s failing, a new dude will replace him and maybe won’t screw up”. The result, of course, is that most of the stormtroopers and imperial officers hate them, with most only serving out of fear or loyalty to the Fel Empire, which the Sith forcibly took control of. Special mention has to go to [[AxCrazy Darth Azard]], who seems to brutally kill subordinates for failure [[UpToEleven in every single scene he’s in]]. At one point we see him chop one poor guy in half [[DisproportionateRetribution just for getting]] [[JediMindTrick mind-tricked]]

* The trope name comes from ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', and possibly the most famous instance: Darth Vader's "You have failed me for the last time" before choking Admiral Ozzel to death for botching the fleet's approach to Hoth, granting the Rebels enough advance warning to begin evacuating before the fleet is in position to attack. Captain Piett is then promoted to replace him before the body hits the floor. Ozzel's death deserves special mention, as Vader is doing it ''over the intercom/viewscreen.'' He's not even in the same room as Ozzel.
** According to the Franchise/StarWarsLegends, Ozzel was a screw-up who kept his job mainly by virtue of family connections, and Vader was looking for any excuse to get rid of him. Indeed, in ''[[Literature/StarWarsAllegiance Allegiance]]'', Mara Jade asks Vader to keep an eye on then-Captain Ozzel, with the implication that his promotion to Vader's flagship is Vader's way of doing exactly that. Which also explains why the TIE fighters don't hesitate to chase the ''Falcon'' into the AsteroidThicket; the pilots know damn well simply breaking off pursuit would be an instant death sentence from Vader.
* While the scene in the film makes no bones about Vader's displeasure, the radio drama accompanied it with an epic TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.
-->'''Vader:''' Ozzel, the power closing about your throat is the Force. It is my anger reaching out to end your life. It would be ''pointless'' to merely ''punish'' someone so ''useless''.
* He does it ''again'' to the hapless Captain Needa before the film's even halfway done, even when Needa had the foresight to apologize to Vader for losing track of the ''Millennium Falcon'' (There's a reason Vader says "Apology accepted, Captain Needa"). The turnover rate for Imperial officers must be ''appalling''. Needa's expression when he tells his men that he's going to apologize personally to Vader tells the whole story. Needa ''knows'' Vader will kill him--[[TakeMeInstead but if he takes the blame]], [[HeroicSacrifice none of his underlings will]].
* And ultimately subverted by the end of the film, when the ''Falcon'' escapes to lightspeed. Piett visibly soils himself as Vader strides toward him, only to brush right past, apparently too depressed about losing his [[LukeIAmYourFather son]] to kill any more underlings today.
* It's noted in one of the novels that the fastest way to promotion in the Imperial Navy was to get yourself assigned to Vader's flagship, the ''Executor''. The flip side of that coin is, as [[Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy Pellaeon]] says, that this meant the crew of the ''Executor'' was entirely staffed by people who were either hypercompetent or very lucky (Vader was known for strangling people who delivered messages to his quarters while he was in a bad mood, so the crew drew lots whenever someone had to do that, with the honor going to the loser), since they were the only ones who survived, which meant that when it was destroyed at Endor, the Empire lost more than a really big ship, they lost the best of the officer corps.
** Similarly, ''Tatooine Ghost'' at one point noted the only people in the galaxy more scared of Vader than the Rebels were the Imperial officers serving directly under him. Vader's reputation was ''that'' bad.
* Speaking of Pellaeon, his superior, Grand Admiral Thrawn, has the officer manning the tractor beam station executed after the heroes escape it, but only after he quizzes said officer about his performance and his answers confirm the Admiral's initial hunch that the operator is incompetent and insubordinate enough to have no hope of salvaging. Notably, when it happens again, Thrawn grills the replacement officer in the same way, but decides the officer acted to the best of his abilities and not only doesn't kill him, but ''promotes'' him. Thrawn's entry at the Star Wars Wiki says he was ''appalled'' at the "Vader style" of command. A large part of this is that Thrawn, unlike many Imperial officers and leaders, was able to admit defeat. After a loss in one of Zahn's novels, Thrawn outright says (not in so many words), "Okay, we've been beaten this time. Let's shake it off and have another go."
** Thrawn deconstructs the whole idea of this trope. Throughout the Thrawn Trilogy, because of Vader's penchant for this trope Pellaeon keeps expecting Thrawn to go ballistic and pull this trope on him or at least on ''someone'' every time something goes wrong. Except for the above incident with the Tractor Beam operator he never does, but despite Pellaeon intellectually realizing Thrawn won't do that he keeps expecting it to happen regardless as a kneejerk reaction. It shows just how prevalent this trope was for Vader and the Empire in general that Pellaeon still expects it on instinct even long after Vader is dead. However, Pellaeon notes that the fact that Thrawn won't kill underlings wantonly for failures beyond their control and will even promote them if they show initiative and cleverness means his crew follow Thrawn out of genuine respect, rather than following him out of fear like with the former Empire.
* Vader's tendency to do this is lampshaded in ''VideoGame/TheForceUnleashed'' where there is an achievement for killing a certain number of your own men while playing as Vader in the prologue. Bonus points for it being an ActorAllusion as well (Matt Sloane, the voice of Vader in that game, also voiced WebVideo/ChadVader, with the achievement being a direct reference to that series).
* There's a bit to Vader's choking habits that goes unexplained in the movies: According to sources in the Expanded Universe, and the Star Wars Wiki, Vader was harsh, but he wasn't ''completely'' unreasonable. If your failure was the result of something you had control over (e.g. you didn't utilize resources properly, you gave up too quickly, you had poor judgement, [[RunningGag you were Admiral Ozzel]]) then you said goodbye to your trachea. However, if the failure was a result of something you had no control over (you lost a battle because of unexpected enemy reinforcements), he'd let you live, but you ''damn well better'' plan for whatever tripped you up the next time.
* How bad a habit of Vader's this is is a DependingOnTheWriter thing. In some ExpandedUniverse works, he's a madman who will kill anyone at the drop of a hat; even if you did nothing wrong, being the guy standing nearest him when something goes wrong or even when he's just in a mood can mean an early grave. Very competent, very irreplaceable high-ranking Imperials lost forever for things they could have done nothing about? Very much a thing. People trying to avoid promotion because you stay beneath his notice if you value your life? Ditto. Only dumb luck decides whether or not you will be one of the few who actually survives working for him, and he's the best thing ''ever'' to happen to the Rebels since more high-ranking Imperials die at his hand than any other way. In others, he's evil, not stupid - while he's brutal to those he's decided are useless, "the last time" was ''never'' the first time; you had to screw up habitually, badly, or in Ozzel's case, ''both.'' This would seem to be the intention of the films; there's at least one instance of things going badly, everyone holding their breath for someone to get the Ozzel treatment, only for Vader to simply walk away without a word, on to plan B. Also, Piett survives a ''string'' of bad days for the Empire.
* Piett seems to go under 'Vader will forgive if it's a failure you can't plan for'. In Piett's case, his trap failed because R2, who arrived with Luke, repaired the sabotage to the Falcon--something that Piett couldn't have expected, and was in fact partially Vader's fault because he drew Luke there in the first place, and locked R2 out and let him go on his way rather than destroy him. Hence Vader doesn't blame him.
* PlayedForLaughs (somewhat) in the new EU novel ''Dark Lords of the Sith'', where Palpatine's advisor Mas Amedda expresses utter frustration with Vader's habit of applying this trope to every underling within reach.
* {{Subverted}} in the new EU novel ''Literature/StarWarsTarkin'', when Vader tells a Stormtrooper that he has failed for the last time, but ''doesn't'' kill him. Immediately afterward, Sergeant Crest captures the warehouse of a crime lord and Vader promotes him. It's implied that for the rest of his life, Lieutenant Crest never fails Vader again, so it really was "for the last time."
* Subverted in ''Film/RogueOne''. Vader summons Director Krennic to his residence and Krennic clearly expects to be killed, but Vader instead just threatens him and tells him to go clean up his mess. Then Krennic gets mouthy and Vader Force-chokes him to shut him up, but leaves him alive.
* The Emperor:
** Not explicitly shown in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', but Vader heavily implies that if the officer and the crew working on the second Death Star don't make sure that the station is fully operational by the time of the Emperor's arrival, the crew will end up suffering a punishment so horrific that Vader's use of the trope will seem like a sympathy-induced pat on the back in comparison. "The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am."
** Proven by Bevel Lemelisk. The lead designer of the Death Star, he is executed when Sidious has him eaten alive by piranha beetles as punishment for overlooking such a massive design flaw... and then proceeds to bring Lemelisk back to life with a clone body and [[BlackMagic Sith Alchemy]], because in spite of this mistake, Lemelisk is too much of an asset to throw away. Sidious proceeded to make a point of [[AndIMustScream executing and resurrecting Lemelisk]] every time something went wrong with the Death Star II's construction, with [[CruelAndUnusualDeath a new and unique method of execution]] every time. At least Vader is business-like about killing you; Sidious will make sure you ''suffer''.
** Various stories from the Expanded Universe show that while Vader might kill you for failing him, the Emperor will kill your entire family.
** One story, from ''Tales of the Bounty Hunters'', implies that while Vader will off underlings for many reasons, the Emperor will straight-up kill for pleasure, something Vader '''never''' does.
** Hilariously, ''ComicBook/DarthVaderDarkLordOfTheSith'' has a scene where ''Palpatine'' of all people feels the need to tell Vader to chill out and stop killing people over every little slight. “I do not wish to rule over a galaxy of the dead”. It’s [[PragmaticVillainy a reasonable complaint]], but also delightfully hypocritical given the stuff mentioned above and Operation Cinder below.
* ''Film/TheForceAwakens'': Despite worshiping the Empire's legacy to an almost cult-like degree, [[TheRemnant the First Order]] actually averts this trope. This could simply be PragmaticVillainy, as the First Order's numbers are much smaller than the Empire's.
** First, a terrified officer reports to Kylo Ren on how BB-8 and Finn have escaped aboard [[spoiler: the ''Millennium Falcon'']], the man fully expecting to be killed. Instead, Ren ignites his lightsaber and slashes a computer wall to pieces. When he's finished, he quite calmly asks "anything else?" as if nothing had happened. He does Force-choke the man when he starts to explain that BB-8 and Finn had the help of a girl (Rey), but said man is seen later, shaken but still alive.
** Later, when Ren finds out that Rey has escaped, he howls with rage and slashes a chair apart with his saber. Two stormtroopers walking down the hallway hear Ren's outraged roars [[ScrewThisImOuttaHere and quietly walk back the way they came]].
** Finally, when [[spoiler: Starkiller Base is about to collapse, Supreme Leader Snoke orders Hux to return to him, and gives no indication he's going to be punished for the loss of this weapon. Indeed, Hux is still in command of the First Order's military come ''The Last Jedi'', even if he's on a shorter leash as Snoke has arrived to personally oversee the destruction of the Resistance.]]
** However, while Snoke will not go out to kill you, he will still humiliate in front of your subordinates and force slam you, as [[Film/TheLastJedi Hux found out]] after the Resistance destroyed ''Fulminatrix'' and escaped.

** Later in the series, the Grand Inquisitor himself chooses to let himself die after failing to defeat Kanan rather than live and report his failure to Vader.
** Towards the end of the series, strongly implied by Thrawn towards Governor Pryce after she ends up destroying most of the planet's fuel supply in an attempt to kill the escaping rebels.

* The new Star Wars Expanded Universe has this in the form of Operation Cinder, a "contingency plan" ordered by Palpatine in the event of his death. Far from being some form of retribution against the Rebellion, instead it's one final act of spite against the entire galaxy and the Empire, using special climate satellites to devastate hundreds of worlds, ranging from Rebel-held systems to loyal Imperial planets, all for the simple "crime" of being unable to protect him and, in Palpatine's twisted, [[ItsAllAboutMe self-absorbed mind]], proving itself unworthy of existence.

** However, while Snoke will not go out to kill you, he will still humiliate in front of your subordinates and force slam you, as [[Film/TheLastJedi Hux find out]] after the Resistance destroyed ''Fulminatrix'' and escaped.

* Subverted in the new EU novel ''Literature/StarWarsTarkin'', when Vader tells a Stormtrooper that he has failed for the last time, but ''doesn't'' kill him. Immediately afterward, Sergeant Crest captures the warehouse of a crime lord and Vader promotes him. It's implied that for the rest of his life, Lieutenant Crest never fails Vader again, so it really was "for the last time."
* {{Subverted}} in ''Film/RogueOne''. Vader summons Director Krennic to his residence and Krennic clearly expects to be killed, but Vader instead just threatens him and tells him to go clean up his mess. Then Krennic gets mouthy and Vader Force-chokes him to shut him up, but leaves him alive.

* The trope name comes from ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', and possibly the most famous instance: Darth Vader's "You have failed me for the last time" before choking Admiral Ozzel to death for botching the fleet's approach to Hoth, granting the Rebels enough advance warning to begin evacuating before the fleet is in position to attack. Captain Piett is then promoted to replace him before the body hits the floor. True to form, Piett survives a number of failures, once Vader realizes the heroes may actually count as a legitimate challenge. It helps that he didn't take any foolish chances like Ozzel was punished for. Ozzel's death deserves special mention, as Vader is doing it ''over the intercom/viewscreen.'' He's not even in the same room as Ozzel.

* As ''ComicBook/StarWarsLegacy'' shows, the Sith are pretty big fans of this in general, at least in the Legends continuity. It’s made clear they tend see anyone who’s not a fellow Sith or related to them as [[AMillionIsAStatistic expendable and interchangeable]], so their attitude is pretty much “if I kill this dude who’s failing, a new dude will replace him and maybe won’t screw up”. The result, of course, is that they most of the stormtroopers and imperial officers hate them, with most only serving out of fear or loyalty to the Fel Empire, which the Sith forcibly took control of. Special mention has to go to [[AxCrazy Darth Azard]], who seems to brutally kill subordinates for failure [[UpToEleven in every single scene he’s in]]. At one point we see him chop one poor guy in half [[DisproportionateRetribution just for getting]] [[JediMindTrick mind-tricked]]

** According to the Franchise/StarWarsLegends, Ozzel was a screw-up who kept his job mainly by virtue of family connections, and Vader was looking for any excuse to get rid of him. Which also explains why the TIE fighters don't hesitate chasing the ''Falcon'' into the AsteroidThicket; the pilots know damn well simply breaking off pursuit would be an instant death sentence from Vader.

** Proven by Bevel Lemelisk. The lead designer of the Death Star, he is executed when Sidious has him eaten alive by piranha beetles as punishment for overlooking such a massive design flaw... and then proceeds to bring Lemelisk back to life with a clone body and [[BlackMagic Sith Alchemy]], because in spite of this mistake, Lemelisk is too much of an asset to throw away. Sidious proceeded to make a point of [[AndIMustScream executing and resurrecting Lemelisk]] every time something went wrong with the Death Star II's construction, with a new and unique method of execution every time. At least Vader is business-like about killing you; Sidious will make sure you ''suffer''.

** However, while Snoke will not go out to kill you, he will still humiliate in front of your subordinates and force slam you, as [[TheLastJedi Hux find out]] after the Resistance destroyed ''Fulminatrix'' and escaped.

---> '''Vader:''' Ozzel, the power closing about your throat is the Force. It is my anger reaching out to end your life. It would be ''pointless'' to merely ''punish'' someone so ''useless''.

* {{Subverted}} in ''Film/RogueOne''. Vader summons Director Krennic to his residence and Krennic clearly expects to be killed, but Vader instead just threatens him and then tells him to go clean up his mess. Then Krennic gets mouthy and Vader Force-chokes him to shut him up, but leaves him alive.

** Finally, when [[spoiler: Starkiller Base is about to collapse, Supreme Leader Snoke orders Hux to return to him, and gives no indication he's going to be punished for the loss of this weapon.]]

* He does it ''again'' to the hapless Captain Needa before the film's even halfway done, even when Needa had the foresight to apologize to Vader for losing track of the ''Millenium Falcon'' (There's a reason Vader says "Apology accepted, Captain Needa"). The turnover rate for Imperial officers must be ''appalling''. Needa's expression when he tells his men that he's going to apologize personally to Vader tells the whole story. Needa ''knows'' Vader will kill him--[[TakeMeInstead but if he takes the blame]], [[HeroicSacrifice none of his underlings will]].

* Speaking of Pellaeon, his superior, Grand Admiral Thrawn, has the officer manning the tractor beam station executed after the heroes escape it, but only after he quizzes said officer about his performance and his answers confirm the Admiral's initial hunch that the operator is incompetent and insubordinate enough to have no hope of salvaging. Notably, when it happens again, Thrawn grills the replacement officer in the same way, but decides the officer acted to the best of his abilities and not only doesn't kill him, but ''promotes'' him. Thrawn's entry at the Star Wars Wiki says he was ''appalled'' at the "Vader style" of command. A large part of this is that Thrawn, unlike many Imperial officers and leaders, was able to admit defeat. After a loss in one of Zahn's novels, Thrawn outright says (not in so many words), "Ok, we've been beaten this time. Let's shake it off and have another go."

** Not explicitly shown in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', but Vader heavily implies that if the officer and the crew working on the second Death Star doesn't make sure that the station is fully operational by the time of the Emperor's arrival, the crew will end up suffering a punishment issued by the Emperor that is so horrific for their failure that Vader's use of the trope seems like a sympathy-induced pat on the back in comparison. "The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am."

** First, a terrified officer reports to Kylo Ren on how BB-8 and Finn have escaped aboard [[spoiler: the ''Milennium Falcon'']], the man fully expecting to be killed. Instead, Ren ignites his lightsaber and slashes a computer wall to pieces. When he's finished, he quite calmly asks "anything else?" as if nothing had happened. He does Force-choke the man when he starts to explain that BB-8 and Finn had the help of a girl (Rey), but said man is seen later, shaken but still alive.

* Speaking of Pellaeon, his superior, Grand Admiral Thrawn, has the officer manning the tractor beam station executed after the heroes escape it, but only after he quizzes said officer about his performance and his answers confirm the Admiral's initial hunch that the operator is incompetent. Notably, when it happens again, Thrawn grills the replacement officer in the same way, but decides the officer acted to the best of his abilities and not only doesn't kill him, but ''promotes'' him.