Star Wars decision to bring Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious back from the dead in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker turned out to be very controversial, mainly because it was barely explained. THE Star Wars sequel trilogy is still one of the most criticized of Star Wars movies and TV shows, and The Rise of Skywalker in particular, it is widely considered one of the Star Wars worst films. In part, this is because the Palpatine plot twist felt like a last-ditch effort to bring the films together after they changed hands several times.
One of the problems with the Star Wars sequels was the tug-of-war feeling this change of hands caused, and it seems the franchise decided the answer to such a confusing narrative arc was to simply bring back the most prominent version of them all. Star Wars: Emperor Palpatine. Unfortunately, The Rise of Skywalker failed to do so convincingly and this led to extreme reactions. In the following years, Star Wars tried to make Palpatine's return more believable – but how successful were those efforts really??
The Rise of Skywalker Minimally Explained Palpatine's Resurrection
The only Star Wars explanation was “Somehow, Palpatine returned.”
While it was undoubtedly clear to the creative minds behind The Rise of Skywalker that bringing back Palpatine would be a hard sell, the film did very little to provide an explanation for his miraculous resurrection. It was clear that he had a corpse-like appearance and was connected to a life support device, but beyond that, it was unclear how he survived. In the film itself, the only real explanation was Poe's now infamous line, “Somehow, Palpatine has returned.”
In the film itself, the only real explanation was Poe's now infamous line, “Somehow, Palpatine has returned.”
Admittedly, this felt like a slap in the face to viewers. The formulation of this line alone suggested Star Wars knew that this plot didn't really make sense, and the film didn't seem too concerned with whether the audience believed it or not. Although The Rise of Skywalker avoided any real explanation, Star Wars TV shows have made strides in explaining this controversial choice in recent years.
The Mandalorian introduced the “Necromancer Project”
Palpatine's resurrection plans were laid out on screen in The Mandalorian
THE Star Wars fan favorite show The Mandalorian was the first to actually provide further explanation for this resurrection. The Mandalorian season three's retcon of Palpatine's return especially offered audiences at least some explanation by mentioning the name of the Necromancer Project. In The Mandalorian season 3, episode 7, the Imperial Shadow Council, which included Moff Gideon, was introduced.
Brendol Hux, father of Armitage Hux from the sequel trilogy, was also a member of this council, and he was the one working on the Necromancer Project. Although the exact details were still unclear, it was confirmed that this project was linked to Doctor Pershing's cloning efforts, already suggesting a connection to Palpatine's return. What really led to this connection, however, was the additional information provided in Star Wars: The Bad Batch.
The Bad Batch revealed a lot more about Project Necromancer
The third season of The Bad Batch was dedicated to this storyline
The bad lot Overall, it provided additional information about Palpatine's reign and his plans to safeguard his future, even in the event of his death. However, The bad lot season 3 was especially focused on explaining Palpatine's cloning plans. Before this season, the Empire kidnapped Nala Se, the Kaminoan scientist who played an important role in the clones created for the Republic before and during the Clone Wars era.
Omega, the unaltered female clone of Jango Fett, was also taken by the Empire shortly before this season. In Season 3, Omega's time held captive by the Empire revealed that there were efforts underway to make Force-sensitive clones. To achieve this goal, the Empire was testing both clone troopers and the Force-sensitive children they had kidnapped.
The Empire was testing both clone troopers and the Force-sensitive children they had kidnapped.
It seemed like The bad lot was therefore perfectly prepared to finally explain Palpatine's return and make that glaring plot hole of The Rise of Skywalker at least a little better. Disconcertingly, The bad lot The third season finale undid almost all of that work. In the final episode of the program, the cloning facility on Mount Tantiss was blown up, likely destroying most if not all of the research and progress at the facility along with it. This opened the door to ask once again: how exactly did Palpatine return? The Rise of Skywalker?
The exact details of Palpatine's resurrection are still unclear
The Bad Batch Season 3 Left Many Mysteries Unanswered
In light of The bad lot ending, Palpatine's return was questioned once again. Based on everything revealed in The Rise of Skywalker, The Mandalorianand The bad lotIt's clear that cloning and experimentation played a major role in this resurrection, but the precise mechanism by which Palpatine achieved this return has not yet been revealed. This uncertainty makes the answer to whether Star Wars convinced the public that this return 'worked' in a much more complicated way.
Ultimately, even if The bad lot had confirmed exactly how Palpatine returned, it would likely remain an unpopular decision. So it all comes down to the definition of being convinced. Yes, Star Wars could at this point indicate the step-by-step plan that Palpatine executed to return, but it may not do much to improve the disappointment and frustration that many felt and still feel after The Rise of Skywalker big reveal.
Even though The bad lot had confirmed exactly how Palpatine returned, it would likely remain an unpopular decision.
There is also the question of whether Star Wars will continue to explore this storyline. It remains a sore point in the franchise, even if several shows have contributed to an explanation, and it may be time to Star Wars simply move on, knowing that many viewers remain dissatisfied. Based on Star Wars upcoming films, it's possible that this will be the case. Yes, Rey's story must continue in Star Warsbut it's unclear whether his connection to Palpatine will remain relevant. Other than that, the franchise is probably ready to (finally) focus on other characters.
If Star Wars finished exploring this storyline, it wouldn't have been a very successful effort to convince the audience that this resurrection made sense. In fact, this was such a disappointing twist in the sequels that it would have taken a carefully planned explanation to pull it off. Not only did The Rise of Skywalker they can't do that, but also, Star Wars failed to find a legitimate explanation for the next five years. Ultimately, Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious' return Star Wars It remains a huge disappointment – and it still hasn't been resolved.
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Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, released in December 2019, follows the surviving Resistance as they face off against the First Order. The film continues the journey of Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron as they harness the power of past generations to engage in a climactic battle against the forces of tyranny.
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The Mandalorian
The Mandalorian is set after the fall of the Empire and before the rise of the First Order in the growing Star Wars universe. The series follows the struggles of a lone gunman named Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) in the far reaches of the galaxy, far from the authority of the New Republic. Serving as the first live-action Star Wars series, The Mandalorian has become incredibly popular on Disney+, in part due to Mando's relationship with Grogu, who the internet dubbed “Baby Yoda” after his introduction in the first season.
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Star Wars: The Bad Batch is an animated action-adventure series set after the events of The Clone Wars, following Clone Force 99 (also known as Bad Batch). Finding themselves immune to the brainwashing effects of Order 66, the Bad Batch become mercenaries for hire as they flee the empire, now seeing them as fugitives from the law.