Darth Vader doesn’t have the best reputation as a dad, but “Darth Vader and Son,” a new book by cartoonist Jeffrey Brown, sets out to change that.

In it, dad Darth Vader trains little Luke Skywalker in lightsaber baseball, gives him a timeout and bandages a tiny scrape on his son’s arm. He is visibly disturbed when Luke pretends to be a Jedi and wants C-3P0 cereal, not eggs, for breakfast.

An amusing 18-piece show featuring illustrations from the book is on view at the Cartoon Art Museum through Aug. 5. Chicago-based Brown will be in town Thursday to sign copies.

In graphic novels and other works — including his popular debut “Clumsy,” “AEIOU,” the “Sulk” series and more — Brown mixes awkward moments with tenderness. In “Darth Vader and Son,” published by Chronicle Books, the prototypical evil character is humanized, even charming.

The concept goes back to 2010, when Google art directors asked Brown to come up with a “Darth Vader as dad”-themed Father’s Day homepage.

THE force will be with thousands of sci-fi fans this weekend as a battle of epic proportions takes place at Steam.

The Great Lightsaber Battle next Saturday is part of a whole weekend of sci-fi events in the town and aims to be the biggest ever recorded.

Superheroes and sci-fi characters – from Spiderman to Darth Vader and the great Jedi Knights, plus many actors from the Star Wars movies, will be walking around the Steam Museum and the separate sci-fi exhibition throughout the weekend.

The original R2-D2 robot will also be keeping an eye on visitors over the two days.

The Lightsaber Battle is scheduled to be the highlight of the Sci-Fi Superheroes weekend that marks the end of the popular Sci-Fi at Steam exhibition.

Councillor Garry Perkins , Swindon Council’s cabinet member for culture, said: “Meeting the sci-fi characters and superheroes has proved to be very popular at Steam’s earlier events and next weekend is the grand finale.