Star Wars: 5 Things That Still Make No Sense About Palpatine & the Sith

For better or worse (and, at different times, it has been both), Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious has now been the primary villain of Star Wars for decades. In fact, while Darth Vader was the face of the Empire in A New Hope, it quickly was revealed that Palpatine was the real evil mastermind behind the Imperial regime, and Darth Vader was little more than his incredibly powerful, also very evil lackey. Since then, Palpatine’s role in Star Wars movies and TV shows has grown exponentially; in fact, he has been the main villain of all three trilogies.

That prominence hasn’t meant that everything about the Sith Lord makes sense, though—far from it. Palpatine began as a mysterious emperor in the original trilogy, was given significant backstory in the prequel trilogy, and then shockingly and controversially returned in the sequel trilogy, and those myriad appearances have left a number of questions on the table. And, in addition to those questions about Palpatine, many mysteries and questions remain when it comes to the Sith more broadly in Star Wars.

Palpatine Was Wise, But He Wasn’t The Most Powerful Sith

One of the most interesting aspects of Palpatine’s extensive role in Star Wars movies and shows, though especially in the Skywalker Saga, is the way that he’s often depicted as one of the most powerful Sith overall, but that’s not really the case. Even in terms of raw power, in fact, it can easily be argued that Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, as the Chosen One, possessed more raw power than Palpatine. Of course, his severe injuries in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith and restrictions due to his suit changed that to a degree.

Yet, many Sith Lords, dating back well before the prequel trilogy and Palpatine’s rise to power, would also have absolutely outmatched Palpatine in terms of power; that may very well be why he knew he had to kill his own Sith master, Darth Plagueis, in his sleep. This makes it odd that the Skywalker Saga and even some Star Wars shows consistently position Palpatine as this immensely powerful being. In actuality, Palpatine’s greatest strength, and why he accomplished all that he did, had more to do with his intelligence and his ability to manipulate others.

Darth Plagueis’ Acolyte Cameo Raises Several Questions

The Acolyte quickly became one of Star Wars’ most divisive, controversial projects to date, rivaling even Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and The Book of Boba Fett when it came to criticism and backlash. Because of that, The Acolyte season 2 never came, and that seems unlikely to ever change, despite some in the fanbase petitioning for exactly that. Among other things, this sadly means that audiences may never know what would have come of Darth Plagueis’ story, following his shocking cameo in the final episode of season 1.

That cameo had confirmed that Plagueis was watching Qimir—a Sith—and Osha (who seemed primed to become a Sith apprentice) from the shadows, setting up some possible interactions between them in the future. Yet, that now remains a major mystery, which includes questions about what happens to Qimir and Osha and how that may or may not play a role in Plagueis eventually taking on Palpatine as his actual Sith apprentice. Presumably, that requires the death of Qimir and Osha, but that hasn’t actually been confirmed, and it may never be.

Palpatine Couldn’t Let The Death Star Concept Go

In A New Hope, the Death Star is introduced as a terrifying, planet-destroying weapon that felt truly new on screen. When it was destroyed at the end of that movie, it seemed like the Empire was going to have to come up with a new strategy to take out the Rebellion and retain their control. Somewhat oddly, they instead decided to double down and rebuild a second Death Star.

There are actually multiple things that are odd about this, not the least of which is how long the first Death Star took compared to how quickly the second one was worked on. More confusingly, though, is why Palpatine, who, as mentioned, is known for being very wise, would jump right back into a plan that already failed so miserably. Worse still, the First Order then tries effectively the very same thing with Starkiller Base—a name that is also a play on Death Star.

The Sith Rule Of Two Clearly Didn’t Work

When the Sith Rule of Two was introduced by Darth Bane, it made sense. The Sith had nearly gone extinct from so much in-fighting, and the Rule of Two was a way to preserve them despite their violent, traitorous natures. However, in the long run, it clearly didn’t actually work. Palpatine’s rule alone is proof of that. While he did manage to cycle through multiple apprentices before he was finally brought down, in the end, he was taken down by his own apprentice, just as many other Sith masters were before him.

Interestingly, this Rule of Two may also have had the opposite effect, based on the state of the Sith as of now. That is, with Palpatine (really, this time) dying in The Rise of Skywalker and leaving behind no apprentice, the future of the Sith is uncertain. Had there been many at once, Palpatine’s death may not have meant their potential downfall, but with just one master and one apprentice at any given time, this could be enough to mean the end of the Sith.

How Exactly Did Palpatine Return?

Of course, the most notorious Palpatine plot point in Star Wars has been his mysterious return in The Rise of Skywalker. In the movie, comments are made about cloning technology, although famously, the line “Somehow, Palpatine returned” is the real extent of the explanation. Since then, shows like Star Wars: The Bad Batch and The Mandalorian have offered more insight into what this return involved.

Yet, even with those shows, the precise details of his resurrection remain elusive. Star Wars may understandably be unwilling to fully revisit this story, but that means Palpatine’s return remains the biggest mystery about him.

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