Why Palpatine Is The Greatest Movie Villain Ever

#StarWars #GeorgeLucas #RevengeoftheSith
Some people think Palpatine isn't the greatest villain of all time. They're wrong.
The Hollywood Reporter piece:
www.hollywoodreporter.com/lis...
Dave Filoni Explains Qui-Gon:
• Video
Camille Paglia On the Finale of Revenge of the Sith:
• Is "Revenge of the Sit...
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[@myfamiliar795]

"The prequels are the story of an arrogant religion who get a hold of the messiah and accidentally hand him over to the devil." Damn. That's brilliant.

[@MonkeyGoatLicker]

So trueee. Why did the Jedi not trust him!

[@mememan9061]

kinda resembles warhammer

[@wiseforcommonsense]

@@MonkeyGoatLicker because they feared him. They feared his power, they feared what he represented, they feared their lack of control over him. And fear, as they say, leads to the darkside.

[@MonkeyGoatLicker]

@@wiseforcommonsense I thought about that last sentence while reading this before I read the last sentence. Very true.

[@jakobrenner2230]

@@MonkeyGoatLicker Because, after centuries of not fighting a single powerful enemy (the Sith) they lost their original purpose. Also, they didn't like the fact that Anakin had unstable emotions, like many fallen Jedi before him. They were wary of him, because he was unpredictable. But this only contributed to Darth Sidious' plan; After centuries of deterioration, a war that hardened them (driving some, like Sora Bulq, away from the Jedi way), and an unstable (and easy to manipulate) messiah, the Jedi were never in a position to win against the evolved Order of the Sith Lords. Their enemy this time was not another dark-sided empire emerging from Korriban, it was a subtle venom corrupting the heart of the Republic itself, something they never truly fought against.

[@clashcomeback539]

Palpatine is playing a game of chess.. but he is controlling both sides, he wins either way.

[@Sekir80]

And this is presented very well in the Clone Wars series.

[@Sekir80]

@3 I was thinking the 3D animated and I watched it recently and it was a first. Didin't watch it when it came out. Aside from some cringy episodes I liked it. Waaay better than the "new trilogy".

[@dw4867]

A game of chess with only two pieces, and he's both pieces. He's also the board, the scorer, and the crowd, while everyone else are the hobos sleeping in the alley behind the building.

[@topcoppelion6626]

"What is this game, I win."

[@waltuh2.3bviews3secondsago3]

Yes i get it after seeing this 500 times

[@this_guy00]

“The prequels are a story of an arrogant religion who get a hold of the messiah and accidentally hand him over to the devil” is one of the coolest descriptions I’ve heard

[@sergiocortes125]

The problem is that it isn't true. It's Sidius and himself who did it. You can point mistakes of the Jedi, but the blame is on Sidius and Anakin himself.

[@roronoalaw7772]

@@sergiocortes125If you actually delve deep into it, you’ll realise the Jedi did much more work turning Anakin to the dark side and Palpatine only had to nudge him a little. So no, it is an accurate description.

[@sergiocortes125]

@@roronoalaw7772 If you pay actual attention you'll learn is Anakin's wrong choices choices who lead him to his ruin. And you'll also learn his main flaw the inability to let go. By the way, the Jedi tried to help him fix the problem that led him to ruin while Sidius fed it for his own greed. I'm worried if having to repeat this much that a grown adult is responsible of his actions. I don't know if Tiktok and Insta are swallowing people's braincells are what the hell is happening here, but I'm terrified. Dude, it's a simple maniqueist story that even the author has explained, wake up.

[@Alias_Anybody]

@@roronoalaw7772 Honestly, with the Jedi being ignorant and short sided, Palpatine being a brilliant manipulator and Anakin simply having personal flaws which were never adressed (due to lack of a father figure and the contrast between hypercritical Jedi while the rest of the galaxy worshipped the ground he walked on) the whole thing was arguably a group effort.

[@roronoalaw7772]

@@sergiocortes125 The author has also admitted the Jedi were arrogant and short sighted. So your condescension is unwarranted, yes obviously an adult is responsible for their choices, however to deny outside influences had an impact on his is just plain ridiculous. They told him to be a robot and not give a shit about his family which is awful advice and something Luke took into account for the NJO in the EU.

[@LeeEverett1]

One crucial thing about Palpatine that I love is that he isn't a sympathetic villain. Too many villains these days get written in a way where the audience feels sorry for them and that their actions are somewhat justified or understandable. But not Palpatine, he's straight evil and he loves it. Gotta respect that.

[@tomnorton4277]

That's one of the things that make Palpatine the best of the best. In terms of pure evil, nobody short of Satan himself tops him. Aaravos in The Dragon Prince comes very close because he's another Satanic figure but I'm worried that Aaron Ehasz might fall into the trap of trying to make him sympathetic and relatable. We don't need that in all our villains. Complexity is wonderful but if we're looking purely in terms of who represents the Devil the most efficiently, without literally BEING the Devil, Palpatine is at the top of the list. The simplicity is what makes him so iconic, on top of Ian McDiarmid killing it in the role. No other actor could handle this character as well as him. Ian Abercrombie, may he rest in peace, was great but he was only doing the voice. Ian McDiarmid is a Shakespearean actor which perfectly suits Star Wars' tone and style and enabled him to bring the physicality and expressiveness that voice acting simply can't convey.

[@TheDoctorOfMDMA]

I hate to be that guy but it boils down to the fact that the people in charge of the media now don’t believe in traditional evil, they believe that tradition is evil. They attribute their beliefs to villains but dial it up to 1000 & just use the excuse that they were ridiculed or exiled & became vengeful & radicalized. It’s very rare that we get a flat out evil villain. Look at the MCU for example, they built up Thanos for 10 years just for the payoff to be shit. He was basically a big purple Leo DiCaprio eco-nut gone mad who we’re made to sympathize for. Then look at Guardians 3 as a good example, The High Evolutionary had a goal but reveled in his cruelty. He wasn’t relatable to anyone & they used a cheap gimmick like animal cruelty to show that, but still, the point is the same. It all went down the drain when people started trying to relate to their villains rather than their heroes.

[@jamestolbert1856]

Villains can be allegories without being boring but very interesting and fun and threatening

[@myPhDinAwesomeness]

Thanos is practically the hero in the Avengers movie

[@orangemafia9128]

That's because people want it both ways. They call villains that are evil just because, poorly written, cartoonish and boring. Then people like yourself say differently.

[@cyberclawterror950]

The Prequals are just Palpatine playing 5d chess with himself

[@KudiGamer]

nice one

[@guac47]

Damn you stole my comment

[@mrmastaofdesasta6994]

He played chess when the others played checkers

[@indyliv3328]

Thrawn > Creamy Sheeve.

[@JV-NY987]

Prequel

[@tyw2675]

"He dragged the most promising Jedi down to the fires of hell, returning him to the state of slavery he was born in, as a machine with a skull where his face used to be." That got me.

[@christiana_mandalynn]

That literally made my eyes brim with tears ... and with the music and images... 🥺

[@Comkill117]

That’s the most Metal description of the birth of Darth Vader ever.

[@techpriest4347]

That and the line before, that the last person in the galaxy that believes there is still good in him, dies.

[@topdog5252]

@@Comkill117 metal?

[@darkenna]

That's not even the worst of it. Because 25 years later, Palpatine tried to replace that skull-faced slave... WITH HIS OWN SON. The sheer evil of the man was... palpable. Teehee. ;)

[@redjirachi1]

Palpatine is proof that a villain can be pure evil without falling into the flat character trap. He's charismatic, is similar enough to real life villains while also having an element of fantasy and has a personal dynamic with the protagonist...while not having an ounce of actual humanity

[@jackstrawful]

Sure, can be, but it's very much the exception. Only thanks to a career-defining, singularly charismatic, once in a lifetime performance. Doesn't mean it's something writers should emulate, or that 98% of the time a more nuanced character with motivations beyond pure evil won't be more interesting and engaging.

[@tuluppampam]

That's because he doesn't do evil stuff for the sake of it, but he has a clear goal in mind and thus does things He has a personality, unlike so many other poorly written characters

[@tomnorton4277]

@@jackstrawful That just exemplifies how talented George Lucas actually is at writing. The idiots who claim he didn't know what he was doing suffer from the Dunning Kruger effect. It takes a VERY good writer to make a fairly simplistic character into such an iconic villain. It would have been so easy to turn Palpatine into a Saturday morning cartoon villain - that's what Disney's trainwreck did - but because Star Wars is for all ages, George Lucas knew that there needed to be mature themes underneath the silliness in order for both children and adults to appreciate the story. It helped that he's knowledgeable about history, religion, politics and psychology so he knew how to to develop the story whilst keeping Satan as its core antagonist. Ian McDiarmid's performance elevated an already solid foundation.

[@ericleal157]

@@tomnorton4277 He was a good creator of storys and a good editor, not a good writer, and certainly a terrible director, the star wars dialogues are are terribly written artocities

[@tomnorton4277]

@@ericleal157 George Lucas saved The Empire Strikes Back. If he was a bad writer or director, Star Wars wouldn't have lasted for so long. If you want to see the work of terrible writers and directors, just watch the Disney Trilogy. Rian Johnson and JJ Abrams' dialogue is far worse than George Lucas' and on top of that, they have no clue how to write a logical and consistent narrative. George Lucas actually understands storytelling. Only idiots who suffer from the Dunning Kruger effect would call him a bad writer or director. And unfortunately, there are a lot of idiots in the world.

[@nolsee1176]

One thing I like about Darth Sidious is that he LOVES being evil. Many villains believe they’re doing the right thing, the greater good, and so on. Even Dooku falls under that. But Palpatine is pure evil, is well aware of it, and relishes every last ounce of it.

[@HalNordmann]

While at the same time, knowing how to hide this until the time is right

[@DARTHDANSAN]

Exactly he’s the perfect scopayh

[@vittoriacolona]

Does he though? Palpatine's a psychopath and the don't feel anything at all. If anything I think he loves power and has no qualms in doing whatever he can to get it. And if that includes the power to turn people into puppets.

[@dender96]

​​@@vittoriacolonaI'd say that Palpatine does feel strong emotions, that's why he's so powerful in the use of the dark side. In one of the canon comics Palpatine tells Vader that he loves making and having enemies, because he loves always having someone to kill. He also says that the hate and rage that fuel his powers come from the fact that he sees almost everyone as below him, and everyone below him enrages him to the point that he thinks they don't deserve to live. I think he's truly a wretched evil fuck that enjoys doing harm as much as he does power.

[@Melody_Raventress]

That's why he's so compelling. He just does not care. He murdered two people to embarrass his dad.

[@mev186]

That moment when you realize that Vader isn't Palpatine's apprentice, He's his trophy.

[@yawgmoth6568]

A magnificent jewel box created both to display and preserve the greatest treasure of the Sith.

[@JeanBaptisteEmanuelZorg]

That was known in 80s already, you know?

[@inadequis6132]

Yeah, Palpatine didn't like him after he got dismembered and lost so much power because he was no longer a worthy successor

[@BenaldinhoOG]

@@inadequis6132 he only lost power because palpatine had his suit created to inflict pain upon him consistently so he never had full control. He would have been stronger than palpatine and he knew this

[@johnnythunder4911]

F**k that’s great!! I never thought of that! Damn..

[@inarencommander4663]

"Palpatine wouldn't drop out of the sky and just announce his plan." Yeah Disney. He wouldn't...

[@cadeshanley218]

Unless it is his plan. The Sith feed off fear and what's more terrifying than a powerful Emperor thought to have been dead to somehow come back? I actually enjoyed Disney's sequels. And the fan theories that were made before and after the release of each film.

[@VibingMeike]

@@cadeshanley218 Hmm, interesting point of view, the only problem I have with that is this: nobody really feared him, let me explain: in TLJ the other people from different planets didn't want to help the resistance against the First Order, but they show up for some reason when the First Order is combined with the Last Order, which is an even bigger threat

[@inarencommander4663]

@@VibingMeike Very true.

[@inarencommander4663]

@@cadeshanley218 He's not stupid. Or not supposed to be anyway. If the excuse you want to make for the Sequels is that he's stupid, that's fine.

[@cadeshanley218]

@@inarencommander4663 *Shrugs* Was trying to figure out things from their point of view.

[@ORLY911]

I feel like people who said the prequels were just "boring politics" are the exact sort of people Palpatine was tricking. The poltics are supposed to be overly beurocratic and under systemic rot, it's being taken advantage of by a supervillain who managed to infiltrate it to the top seat thanks to the systems complacency. The jedi too, of course, the more I look back on it the more I realize you were never really supposed to like the jedi council, they are as much of a reason the Empire happened as Palpatine.

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

The politics in the prequels are not complex, can be understood by children easily and take a small amount of screen time. I've no idea why ''boring politics'' was ever seen as a valid criticism by some.

[@I_dcd]

​@@legrandliseurtri7495it made perfect sense to me at 10. Most kids of this generation thou... not so sure

[@walidbentaher]

@@I_dcd I mean I understand the politics perfectly and im only 16!

[@I_dcd]

@@walidbentaher Keep that intuition strong man. You really never know what you can believe

[@walidbentaher]

@@I_dcd Yeah its sad when I try to explain stuff like that to other kids my age they would say something like: "What is bro babbiling about? 💀

[@the_bee_is_me]

Ian McDiarmid did a phenomenal job portraying him on screen.

[@LeeEverett1]

He's still killing it in the spin off shows. He's been reprising his role lately

[@Ethan_Alexandur]

I saw episode 3 in theaters when I was like 8 years old. One of the happiest memories of my life. I love Star Wars. Or at least I used to. Until Disney.

[@wladdaimpala88]

@@funtimeflorian1643 Far from the first time he did.

[@mirceazaharia2094]

@@Ethan_Alexandur Same here, friend. Same here.

[@mattosso7676]

Seriously, the most underrated acting performance of my lifetime. Just the way he delivers his lines is nothing short of a masterclass in acting. Most of the Emperor's memorable dialogue is simple due to the acting choices that McDiarmid made. Simply brilliant.

[@wooferwastaken387]

Obi wan: "Sith lords are our speciality" Literally 3 sith lords in the same room

[@thelordshrek2938]

Obi wan is the only one who isn’t one lol

[@Mr.Heller]

@@thelordshrek2938 Ehh, he's the greatest master of Dun Moch in the movies, so who knows...

[@gaymare6236]

Yeah, but all sith will fail against the high ground

[@AnthonyDoesYouTube]

Speciality*

[@river.m2010]

Yep

[@halodude7239]

"Wait... he's not even on the list?" *Impossible, perhaps the archives are incomplete.*

[@KudiGamer]

nice

[@wasifiqbal9984]

No! No! No! He is The List!

[@orlandovazquez9662]

Whoever made that list is as short sighted as the Jedi once was!

[@andyyl6942]

Deleted maybe they were.

[@blingwraith6951]

Forget the list. He goes to the block.

[@quoniam426]

Many people overlook the shot of Palpatine's shuttle passing over Anakin on Mustafar, an iconic shot where the shuttle appears like a bird of prey going for its food.

[@ovaetwoandrewc9126]

pov: the bishop heard there were children in hell

[@brenobassocenci6571]

the entire saga can be summarized as Palpatine playing chess with himself, and winning.

[@infinitedonuts]

And when he finally lost, it was because love was the one thing that he couldn’t account for because he was I incapable of it himself... It was the love that Anakin had for his son that defeated him.

[@dabalma]

​@@infinitedonutsI love the fact you see that scene as the moment when Palpatine was truly defeated. sequels are not canon. they can't be

[@illosovic]

​@@infinitedonutsI think it was more so being chucked down 1000 feet that defeated him but you've got the spirit and I'm here for it 😂

[@thatsmallcessna8300]

I appreciate how unapologetic Palpatine is. No sob story, no revenge, he is literally just evil.

[@KoopaMedia64]

It’s not like the Jedi were that great either. They were dangerous. What palpatine did was cold, sure, but it can be justified. The execution of the Jedi is nothing like if they were civilians, the Jedi had lightsabers and extreme force powers making them ridiculously overpowered.

[@morgen3369]

@@KoopaMedia64 Hum, yeah. The jedi still valued life of others over their own. Palpatine created a dictatorship and did multiple genocides, the revenge against the jedi was just a step in his great evil plan. I don't understand why people are so keen on painting the jedi as evil characters. They weren't perfect but were mostly a good force for the galaxy, not some evil dictatorship that takes control of as many worlds as they can to exploit every living being to death. Like, you know, the empire.

[@fruitoftruth1723]

I think that is one of the things missing in storytelling of the past twenty years - people want to write villains who are evil but who we understand and can think of as people, because they believe that this is somehow more real. But this is massively unsatisfying and also, I think, actually unconvincing. We want our villains to be devils, not people, and we want our heroes to be a little bit more than people.

[@mikkitoro8933]

@@morgen3369 They were a religious cult, taking three year olds to be trained as warriors. If you look at the empire from an unbiased perspective and listen to what people say in the mandalorian the empire isn't all that bad.

[@Tiberon674]

Palpatine knew his purpose so he didn't need any apologies. That's why I like Darkseid for the same reason.

[@jimmmypage114]

"the prequels are the story of an arrogant religion who get a hold of the messiah and then accidentally hand him over to the devil" - this, this is good.

[@tommyl.dayandtherunaways820]

@tanio12 No I think Alexander got it pretty well spot on. The Jedi absolutely deserved to be wiped out after the way they treated Anakin. They were backwards and dogmatically stubborn in their thinking, refused to concede even the possibility that emotions might not lead to pure evil, and basically pushed Anakin to the dark side every step of the way. Miracle he didn’t turn sooner with some of the geniuses on the council constantly pushing his buttons. Especially Mace and Yoda, never seen two guys more full of themselves.

[@wasifiqbal9984]

@tanio12 It's about a man who was forced to show his ugly side to a religion which was a shadow of it's past.

[@MC-yg1mq]

@@tommyl.dayandtherunaways820 the Jedi weren't great but anakin is down right a moron in ROTS, dude literally enslave the galaxy under someone who is clearly a psychopath because he had some dreams of his wife dying by CHILDBIRTH, in a universe like star wars with the kind of technology they have he really believes that she is going to die by childbirth, death by childbirth isn't even a problem in 3rd world countries in our world(and don't tell me it doesn't matter that much because it's the whole reason anakin sided with palp), and even if she was actually going to die, he is EXTREMELY egoistic, he goes to murder his comrades and literall children just so he can save his wife. Let's not talk about his best demonstration of intelligence, he know palpatine is a sith lord and he sees that palpatine is clearly not a good person nor mentally sane but he actually believes that the jedi order attacked palpatine because they wanted to overthrow the government. P.S The Jedi never deserved to be wiped away, the Jedi needed to be reformed

[@Nadie47]

@@MC-yg1mq you fucking drongo, did you forget that force visions are a thing and are directly addressed in the movie?

[@wasifiqbal9984]

@@MC-yg1mq Anakin's my second favourite character in Stars Wars but I have to agree with you.

[@gabethebabe3337]

You know what makes Vader's mask even more tragic? It has elements of a Tusken Raider mask. He's wearing the face of the people who killed his mother, while also blaming himself for being responsible for not being able to save her. It may be coincidental since both designs were made 40 years ago, but the event is referenced by Palpatine himself after Anakin kills Dooku. He knows what that moment meant for Anakin, and he put a permanent reminder on his face.

[@saricubra2867]

Nah. Vader's mask is a skull, a shell from his true self (which he killed).

[@gabethebabe3337]

@@saricubra2867 I get that, but it also is eerily similar in shape to the Tusken Raider masks. It even has the same mouth shape.

[@DarthAwesome117]

Holy shit. I mean, the video pointed out the skull thing but crap, that adds another layer to how fucked up Vader's situation is.

[@arrete9276]

Good point. Could be that design was a reminder chosen to help channel his hatred more, since using the dark side relies on it.

[@simonk4174]

This is kind of a stretch

[@philv2529]

Palpatine is so underrated. Not only did he fight Yoda to a standstill, but he, through manipulation and intrigue, CONQURED THE GALAXY

[@rundur4805]

Star Wars is basically 'Palpatine: The Documentary'

[@God_abandoned_us_all]

Have you ever heard The tragedy of Anakin Skywalker

[@seeing1111]

This actually makes sense right

[@themalcahtwinz4743]

Nice heavy pfp

[@josephdavis1704]

nah more like edgy boy anakin who was supposed to save the galaxy ends up fucking it up because of love and power yada yada yada

[@DiamondLotus210]

*Anakin: The Documentary

[@MikeHawk-bg5ss]

Lol imagine if they brought him back out if nowhere saying "oooh he actually survived the fall!!" Now that would be so silly!

[@ovencake523]

oh wait...

[@freekjobse7051]

It's truly a shame there are no new SW movies after episode 6. (Excluding Rogue one)

[@user-pg3iy3re1d]

@@freekjobse7051 I see that you also don't count the sequals as Canon. Lol at least I won't be alone

[@waltuh2.3bviews3secondsago3]

Surviving being blown up twice XD *ONE OF WHICH WAS THE DEATH STAR BLOWING UP* Don't be so silly

[@TasteTheRambo]

The dark side is a pathway to many abilities that some consider to be unnatural.

[@Redpoppy80]

The way I understood the plot of TPM was, Palpatine was the Naboo senator for the Galactic Senate and wanted to become Chanceller, so by manufacturing a crisis that he would negotiate Naboo out of, he would gain a following that he could use to take Valorum's seat from him by calling him out on his corruption in a couple of years but when Queen Amidala successfully reached Coruscant he simply changed his plan to use her to declare the vote of no confidence that accomplished the same thing, and he does this pivot so seamlessly that you would think that was his plan from the start. It is like a late chess game where the master sees mate in 9 moves but a seemingly good move to fight back just gave the master mate in 2 moves instead.

[@I_dcd]

Palpatine is truly a master of manipulation. I'd love to shake the hand of the man that planned this

[@averagejoe9186]

Well Palpatine was the one who clouded the vision of the jedi with the dark side, so that they could not foresee what Palpatine could every step of the way. This foresight is emphasised by Palpatine himself in Episode VI, he said he had foreseen everything that had led him up to that point, everything. I can only interpret that this sentiment applied since early on. He literally played a game that he couldn't possibly lose. Even if he made an error here or a misstep there, it would always turn out in his masterplan's favor in the end.

[@Bubblegob]

@@averagejoe9186 I find this... Kinda weird, I remember the jedi commenting about something clouding their ability to sense the dark side or their vision relative to the darkside situation... But I never got the sense that they were deprived from "the power to see the future", if it were the case I think they would make a bigger deal out of this. Obviously Palpatine is able to foresee a lot of things but I always attributed this to dark side abilities.

[@Redpoppy80]

@@BubblegobThey did make a bigger deal about their failing sight in AotC but concealed that info so they would not be seen as weak. The Force pulls at and decides your destiny, but it also will obey your commands if you are of strong enough mind. For Palpatine who is so attuned to the Force and is always manipulating it to his designs, there was not a single Jedi who could see Palpatine for what he was. It is also important to remember that almost all of the Jedi were not only too dependent on the Force for their insights but their sense in the force was severely dulled from their rigid dogmas and belief that the Sith were extinct.

[@Bubblegob]

@@Redpoppy80 When you describe it like this it sounds more like the Jedi being duped or barely realizing their power in the force is being impaired seldom for the masters worried but cautious as the force is sometime mysterious. Which is much more in line with the impression I got.

[@DFACisaan]

Best thing about Palpatine is that you can clearly see how much fun Ian McDiarmid had playing the part

[@SnazzySazerac98]

“In many ways, the prequels are the story of an arrogant religion, who get ahold of the Messiah, and then accidentally hand him over to the devil” Perfect summary. Amazing quote.

[@terrychaney6050]

I agree!! 👏👏👏

[@hellbilly69101]

That's perhaps the most beautiful thing to explain the Prequels.

[@pinkanderson835]

Amazing statement!!!

[@bluepearl_22]

And then the devil accidentally hands over the Messiah's children to that same religion. lol

[@divergenttardis7378]

One of the reasons why I'm not actually that bothered by Order 66, at least not when it comes to the Jedi Council. Complacent idiots the lot of them.

[@19Ledor]

Palpatine is not on the List. “It’s treason then.”

[@freddy6837]

Underrated comment

[@sihilius]

He's not on the list, cause there is only a place 1 and that's not good enough.

[@plumeater1]

Palpatine is not on the list. He is the list.

[@Chad_Milk]

@@plumeater1 not yet

[@plumeater1]

@@Chad_Milk It is treason, then.

[@megasean3000]

Sideous is just that villain you love to hate. He’s so wicked and evil but in a charming and subtle way. Ian McDiarmid kills it as the galaxy’s evil politician and he deserves all the praise.

[@Jiu-JitsuJourney257]

The music that plays during the Jedi slaughter will forever invoke goosebumps every single time I hear it. People hated the prequels, but revenge of the Sith stands out sooo much.

[@erikstrickland96]

That hate has definitely decreased a ton in recent years after the Disney fiasco at least lol

[@Ash-Winchester]

@@erikstrickland96 I think it's sad that learning to love something you once hated requires hating something that never got a chance.

[@Jay-fk1uk]

“Revenge of the Sith is like a renaissance painting of Judgement Day” I’m gonna remember this one for a long time

[@erikfrommeyer2606]

“The prequels are a story of an arrogant religion who get a hold of the messiah, and then accidentally hand him over to the devil”

[@berkaltuglu8140]

Satan: "I like to say I am a huge fan" *Proceeds to send him to the final movie*

[@Spongebrain97]

Ehh that movie is overrated. It is the good one but still had the same problems as the other two prequels

[@kalleenstoddard357]

@@Spongebrain97 So if by problems, do you mean flawlessness I agree.

[@Spongebrain97]

@@kalleenstoddard357 no problems that are in the screenplay and others like wooden acting and thinly developed characters. For example Maul and Dooku are just cool boss battles but they hardly do anything and the audience barely knows anything about them. If you want more info you gotta go look up EU content 😑. Thats the problem with George's writing. He clearly needed help but surrounded himself with yes men

[@carbodude5414]

You can't force the masses to give up their freedom but they _can_ be convinced into surrendering their freedom bit-by-bit if you exploit their fear of foreign threats That's why Palpatine's rise to power and later, maintaining that power for so long is so believable

[@I_dcd]

Sounds a lot like these days

[@Alexvondark]

Ye I agree

[@username.exenotfound2943]

look at hitlers rise to power, because of the destruction from WW1 and its aftereffects it allowed him amongst other fascists to rise to power

[@user-mm7mo4eh2q]

6:15 I think this is especially clever. Palpatine used the Separatists as his proxy “bad-guys” to force planets unwilling to join the republic to join for fear of getting wiped out. The defoliator tank and siege of Onderon episodes are great examples of that in the Clone Wars. Episodes with people who were neutral in the war between the Republic and Separatists. And both get attacked by the Separatists, forcing them into the Republic.

[@tinyguy1015]

Which inevitably led to a larger empire in the long run.

[@figeon]

It's so fitting that the greatest villain of all time is a politician.

[@Diego-zz1df]

A COMPETENT politician.

[@silveredenwonvi9829]

long live the empire

[@silveredenwonvi9829]

@@Diego-zz1df A SEXY politician

[@Yoriichi_Tsugikuni___]

Lmao

[@maxalain9948]

Too true

[@Red__Law]

The prequels, especially Revenge of the Sith, have aged like a fine wine.

[@tam2237]

Well... I’d say just Revenge of the Sith and maybe kinda The Phantom Menace

[@normanm11]

@@tam2237 All three of them. Stop being a toxic fanatic.

[@forcecalibration924]

Ima watch them the rest of my life and show my grand children

[@InterMyVan]

Not really ROTS is fine but the others are dog shit no one can say otherwise

[@dspserpico]

The first half hour of Revenge of the Sith is the best Star Wars. Period.

[@danielclawson2099]

20 years later, and my appreciation of the film grows. It took becoming a father to an abandoned son, and witnessing the thinly-veiled selfishness of real-life political machinations, to realize that all the themes and turning points are actually frighteningly plausible.

[@I_dcd]

The damnn people that hated on the prequels and caused Lucas to sell Star Wars away and Disney ummm.... doing what Disney does in the past 15 years

[@I_dcd]

Also sorry to hear about your struggles man. These themes are unbelievably relive in today's age.

[@ButchersNailsEnjoyer]

Bad Batch shows just how prepared and how much of a genius Palpatine is. Like when the destruction of kamino is shown to the senate, he finds a way to use that to his advantage by showing why the empire needs stormtroopers instead of clones while simultaneously actually getting rid of the clones

[@Howiedewitt123]

When palpantine isn’t on the greatest movie list : I AM THE LIST

[@habibmilan79]

thats true on so many levels

[@devenpapineau6261]

*underrated.*

[@axelord4ever]

THE LIIIST! Wait shit wrong movie.

[@ronaldtrunk7944]

that's how great Palpatine is, he fooled everyone to make a list and not suspect him

[@joedwyer3297]

Yeah this is the best comment😂

[@caok1010]

One of the reasons makes him so great was that he actually succeeded

[@VibingMeike]

True, at the end of most movies the villain is defeated, but in ROTS he actually succeeded

[@Excalibur2112]

For a time, until the end of ROTJ and {cough, cough} ROS.

[@captainfordo3969]

Palpatine and Thanos are favorite villains for that reason. They actually won.

[@williamzhu9160]

@@captainfordo3969 yea thanos is a good villain but he lacks many things that palpatine has: manipulation, pure badass moments, and an epic theme song. this is all just "my opinion" btw so don't take it personally. they're really just differently great villains. thanos, the man who just wanted to execute a huge plan mostly by himself. he has a somber theme song that reflects his somber life and somber persona. on the other hand, palpatine manipulates, plans, and backstabs, while still being capable to destroy his most powerful opponents in direct combat, should the need arise. but yea, the "they won" argument still stands for both these cases.

[@powerofthecard8674]

And not only succeed but flourished ruling an empire spanning half of the galaxy for 20 years and all the while making himself appear as a frail old man with honor in the core worlds and inner rim systems

[@alfalldoot6715]

I always liked how despite being the emperor of the entire universe, Palpatine never dresses regally (Hell, his clothes as the chancellor are fancier). It really goes to show how he's in it for the power alone and not any of the luxuries.

[@tomnorton4277]

The man's too badass for something as superficial and meaningless as fashion.

[@I_dcd]

​@@tomnorton4277damn straight

[@jDiddyi]

I say that every time he appears in episode six. The most powerful man in the universe and yet he only wears black robes and a chain to hold it together

[@patrickhuber8630]

"ROTS is like a Renaissance Painting of Judgement Day".. couldn't have said it better.

[@joshgaston7839]

Sidious is so villainous, that even the villains of the movies are used, abused, and even come to hate Sidious as well. (Maul and Dooku)

[@saricubra2867]

Maul also fears Sidious as well.

[@baswenmakers6846]

Isn't that a great description of the devil. The ultimate deceiver.

[@elmaz46]

Dooku didn’t care about Sidious or the Jedi. he just wanted to create his own Organisation with using the dark side, if he would succeeded he would kill Sidious that was his plan, sadly he was the one who got killed first.

[@saricubra2867]

@@elmaz46 Initially i tought Dooku was more of an antagonist than a villain, he had good intentions. Maul meanwhile is such a mess with his mind twisted and a lot of missery. He has Sith eyes all the time.

[@ryanbriggs8070]

And Vader and Kylo!

[@bluelightstudios6191]

the best part about Palpatine was that he actually won, there was no last minute "Good triumphs over evil" situation, literally the entire Jedi order was annihilated, the republic was reformed into a new rule under the iron boot of the galactic empire and the hero of the story became the worlds number one most remembered villain.

[@Santisima_Trinidad]

And what's funny is, palpatine dies not because of any massive oversight on his end, but by two things he could never have suspected. The first being the Luke Skywalker, a random moisture farmer with seemingly no concrete reasons to stay as a Jedi, when shown that his friends were being massacred and promised that joining palpatine would spare there lives, refused to turn to the dark side. The second being the Darth Vader, the man who killed his wife because of the dark side, who massacred children for palpatine, who struck down his master and dear friend in cold blood, was turned to the light side purely because his son had unwavering faith that he still had good in him. Dieing not because you Lost, not because your plan had a gaping holes in it, not because of masterful counterplan, but because of something nobody could have expected, is something very very few villans manage to come close too. Only one I can think of is Sauron, who was taken down because two hobbits walked across the world, went through a series of caverns guarded by the spawn of the gigantic spider which tied up and tortured Saurons Boss, then walked through the single most inhospitable environment on the planet, scaling a volcano, and managed to destroy a ring which was known for corrupting some of the greatest of men in the time it took them to scale a volcano. Sauron didn't even know hobbits existed until he found out that they were the things which held the ring.

[@smartlinus2592]

@@Santisima_Trinidad And Grand admiral thrawn He had all the rebels, where he wanted them, he tricked them so many times. There was just one moment: He ignored Leia Organa, and helped her convincing the Noghri, people, who swore eternal respect, to turn against him. But his whole puzzle was just misding one tiny peace

[@kraigisboss]

@@smartlinus2592 A very small wrench can break a very large machine.

[@smartlinus2592]

@@kraigisboss that's right

[@thelordshrek2938]

Everyone in the comments on this video: you know im something of a philosopher myself

[@gnc623]

If you look at Palpatine's apprentices (Maul, Dooku, Anakin), the dark side, while giving them certain abilities through their anger, also seems to bring them a form of suffering in one way or another. But with Palpatine, there's no sense of that. He completely revels in the dark side, and it brings him nothing but pleasure. He IS pure evil.

[@ericthetuber]

He took a galaxy spanning order of force users, spread them out in a war he fabricated and played both sides of and arranged to have said order all unceremoniously shot in the back simultaneously. Meanwhile, he was insanely powerful himself. GOAT villian and no one even comes close imo

[@Heeroyui752]

Its no contest

[@Hans-hy5jp]

Correction: Why The Senate Is The Greatest Movie Villain Ever

[@eliaspeter7689]

It's treason then.

[@BlazingRoman]

@@eliaspeter7689 *autistic screeching*

[@gameral4235]

*kills 3 jedi in a matter of 1 minute*

[@raven..........]

@@gameral4235 in a matter of 1 second

[@TheIcup24]

Dew it

[@adil9772]

Some people complain about the politics and Palpatine’s schemes in the prequels, but I think it’s the one component that makes them more compelling as you grow up.

[@houndsmaster34]

As someone who grew up during the prequels, I was pretty young when episode 3 came out, 7 to be exact (I'm 22). At the time I loved the action but never really understood the gravity of the situation. Now that I dig deeper into the lore and watched the clone wars, I come to truly appreciate the absolute genius and pure evil of darth sidious. Not to mention how much raw force power he had, to the point where he worked among the most powerful jedi ever completely undetected. Could you imagine living in a society where you have prospered for literally 1000 years, for all of it to suddenly topple over night by ONE MAN. People tend to overlook just how cunning and powerful sidious really was. I truly believe he was the most powerful being ever in the star wars universe, even more so than Darth Vitiate and Darth Bane. He was so talented in the force and the arts of lightsaber dueling that he mastered all 7 forms, but yet he thought using a lightsaber was weaker than just using the force itself. Palpatine will always be one of my favorite characters ever just because of how calculated he was, yet at the same time had just raw power. I think its fucking awesome that he commonly stands among the most powerful jedi yet they are oblivious to the fact that they are literally right next to the most powerful being in existence, a man who is thought to be a selfless honorable politician that is for the people.

[@whirlwind872]

@@houndsmaster34 plus the fact he (along with plagueis) literally bent the force to his will so strongly that Anakin was spontaneously brought into existence by it. (Hence Anakin having no father) I never appreciated as a kid how absolutely ludicrous it is to create life with the force. Here we have Yoda and Luke barely lifting x-wings, meanwhile Sidious and plagueis are bending the force into the form of a living person. It's exactly like E=MC² 9 x 10^16 units of energy = 1 unit of mass Enough concentrated energy in one place will spontaneously bend into an actual tangible particle, e.g. an electron Sidious manipulated the force so strongly that it didn't just create a few particles, or atoms, or molecules, or proteins, it created a fucking human embryo in the womb of Anakin's mother That is such an absurdly massive amount of energy to collect into one spot, let alone to collect AND manipulate perfectly into a highly ordered and genetically viable embryo He had to shape the DNA The chromosomes The endoplasmic reticulum The mitochondria The phospholipid bilayer Every receptor and chemical compound that makes the cell capable of replicating into an actual baby Like literally wtf. You can't even say he just waved his hand and life just randomly appeared. Sidious even said specifically that it was accomplished through extraordinary knowledge. The dark side is fucking legit honestly

[@matti.8465]

The prequels had to explain how Palpatine took over and stablished a galaxy wide dictatorship, there had to be politics involved.

[@cooperwilliams3220]

I was very little when revenge of the sixth came out wasn’t alive for phantom menace but grew up with these lol

[@vassilyvodka2638]

@@houndsmaster34 also Lucas based off Palpatines coup from Julius Ceasar and Augustus. Lucas always put some political elements during his reign making Star Wars

[@OnyxLee]

When Yoda said the future is clouded, I realized that it's palp who used his sith mind trick to cloud the Jedi council's judgment the whole time.

[@cpob2013]

Its not an active thing like the jedi mind trick. Palpatine has a special trait of Presence, he is a living shadow in the force, the stronger he is the wider and darker it becomes. When he becomes a senator he basically covers all of coruscant. When he becomes chancellor, and sith master having killed Plagueis on election night, he reaches through the galaxy.

[@OnyxLee]

@@cpob2013 sounds very intriguing. Where can I read more about this?

[@draculinalilith396]

If you think about it, all the star wars movies were about him. He masterminded so much of what happened on so many levels in the movies that he undeniably had a huge role in atleast the lore machinations. He had a hand in most everything that happened to some degree atleast in the first 6 movies and the clone wars.

[@I_dcd]

The title isn't certainly wrong. He truly is the greatest villian in media

[@RangerJackWalker]

Palpating is overlooked as a villain because people are genuinely too smooth brained to understand him as a character.

[@nra3zehuti781]

I think the real reason is because the most popular and iconic film he was in is "return of the jedi" and there he was just a plot device for Vader to turn into a good guy

[@gnc623]

Exactly! I'm always floored how Darth Vader always makes the top, if not THE top, of best cinema villains of all time list, and Palpatine almost never even makes the list. IMO, Palpatine is cinema's greatest villain.

[@nickifill1772]

I hated this palpatine at first but he grow on me later

[@parallax9281]

Amen

[@paulk1773]

@@nra3zehuti781 and in the pt Vader is a plot device. poetry.

[@LucavlogsandgamingOFFICIAL]

Anakin's story is honestly a shakespearian level of tragedy

[@rockyseverino9230]

or biblical even

[@raimiallpowerful2020]

No

[@rhymenoceros3303]

@@raimiallpowerful2020 yes

[@lucasholmberg5708]

@@rockyseverino9230 Anakins story is way better than some biblical stories

[@kevynlevi9894]

Someone never read Shakespeare...

[@mikeprice7124]

This was beautiful! An excellent tribute to the brilliance of Palps. The man dominated the entire franchise. The only reason ROS made it to theaters was because Palps came back

[@TFZ.]

😆 And then as soon as he was gone people walked out disgusted...

[@saricubra2867]

@@TFZ. For me that wasn't the case, it was the moment when Rey was suddently a Palpatine.

[@TFZ.]

@@saricubra2867 🤦‍♂️ I couldn't believe they did that... Ug...

[@Ddarth_sidious]

"Palpatine's final victory is almost unmatched in it's scope. Revenge of the Sith is like a Renaissance panting of a judgment day, where the Republic's political and spiritual power crumbles into nothing and it's hero tries to murder his pregnant wife, before crossing swords with his sworn brother and being consumed by wrath (I HATE YOU!) And when it's all over Palpatine descents into hell like the angel of death and Darth Vader is born, as the last person in the galaxy who still believes he has any good in him dies. He dragged the most promising Jedi down to the fires of hell, returning him the the state of slavery he was born in, AS A MACHINE WITH A SKULL WHERE HIS FACE USED TO BE" This... is brilliant, thank you @So Uncivilized for one of the best summary of Star Wars Episode 3 greatness.

[@shonenbag6478]

Oh shoot, I never realized the poetry of Anakin starting and ending life as a slave. Downright beautiful.

[@themoshpit8341]

Well he didn't end his life a slave because he killed palpatine. Just that he ended his Jedi saga a slave

[@shonenbag6478]

@@themoshpit8341 Fair enough, I should have said "Spent most of his life as a slave"

[@zackarynigbor7821]

Why do you think George said it was like poetry

[@undeadhound3402]

It… really isn’t when you put it like that… That’s actually horrible.

[@blazingbattlehawk9626]

He was also a slave to the Jedi order. He only truly became free when he at last killed Palpatine. The savior of the galaxy, a slave his entire life. Only knowing freedom in his final minutes which he chose to spend looking at his son

[@thatguynamedbenjamin]

Palpatine lost in the same way the Jedi lost, overconfidence.

[@nerd_5615]

Well to be fair, his confidence was kinda warranted, no?

[@MazdaRX7007]

@@nerd_5615 Somewhat

[@Revan384]

"Your overconfidence is your weakness" - Luke Skywalker.

[@Atomic866]

@@nerd_5615 He did miss out on one thing. Vader's loyalty and conflict. That's what caused his defeat. As for the battle on Endor and the space battle, he had the right to be confident/overconfident. His fleet was going to win according to his plan.

[@IAMOCKWORD]

A friend of mine and I had a realization watching Game of Thrones, and it very much applies to Star Wars. What's the #1 cause of death in Westeros? The same as in the Star Wars galaxy: winning too much

[@mynameisjonboy]

I completely agree with your observations about Palpatine as the G.O.A.T., to which I would add that he always looks like he's enjoying himself to the fullest. The only time I can recall him acting any differently is right at the moment of his death in Episode VI. Having Ian McDiarmid play Palpatine in both of Lucas' trilogies was a boon for Star Wars fans as well as the entire movie-loving world. In my opinion he's not just another villain; he's the f-ing template!

[@aldrin-1475]

A cinematic masterpiece has to have a villain more perfect than anything you've seen before

[@NabilAbdulrashidComedy]

The best thing is that Sidious wasn’t driven by malice or fear.. he was having the time of his life and enjoyed every moment of his villainy, constantly laughing and cackling like a madman

[@ArtofLunatik]

Like the joker

[@dhilipans5412]

Woah never tought about it . He never yelled screeched a monologue. He really is a good experienced villan after all

[@angeltesfayexo6909]

Damn bro

[@thesenate4743]

Finally someone understood

[@jigglefloyd]

I'm not sure why you think that - the Sith revel in fear, anger, and hatred. They draw their power from these emotions and it gives them focus and this is portrayed in all of the movies. He was, however, able to conceal his fear, anger, hatred and motives from the Jedi with perfection. His laughing is cackling was perfect because it showed his perverse joy when finally confronting and destroying his arch nemesis.

[@anxietywave8735]

Palpatine is a rare example of a villain who doesn't need to ''fleshed out'' to be good. He is just pure evil and that's fine

[@pauljk3259]

I agree in this Chase pure evil works because we already have a tragic Villian (Darth Vader)

[@ewanmack6537]

Pure evil can be more fun sometimes as well. Their charisma makes them likeable and it's just as fun to watch them succeed as it is to watch them fail (see 99% of Disney villains or my personal favourite, Frieza from Dragon Ball Z as some good examples).

[@sebastianjost]

Another great pure evil character: Melkor/ Morgoth from the Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien (basically prequels to LotR except that these prequels were written first) Similarly, in the same book, his apprentice Sauron shows his brilliance similar to what palatine does. Befriending your worst enemy, gaining their trust by hiding in plain sight and then overthrow them. Although Sauron is only successful in the destruction part, he doesn't really get to rule anything.

[@ewanmack6537]

@@sebastianjost never read it, but I've been meaning to give it a go for a while, might start ASAP now

[@pcsmproductions337]

I don’t think palpatine is the best

[@albuslee4831]

Somehow, you always make me cry, Master.

[@laron1231]

I love seeing palpatime onscreen being a menace because you just know the actor was having a good time

[@treblazer]

Sidious was literally playing chess with himself. He had all the pieces he had all the pawns and knew exactly where and how to move. edit: thanks for all these likes😭

[@11Survivor]

It's more like he was playing chess with a guy who had previously been super good at it but hadn't played in 50 years, and manipulated him into playing by *his* rules instead.

[@mateoramirez9232]

and the only wild card he didnt see comming, is the love of a father to his son wich is poetic as F or the hope and will to choose the rigth way of his own family(rey) ps: dont really like the sequels ..also dont hate them, but they are cannon so....

[@wolfehd6600]

Palpatine was playing 5-D chess while the Jedi council was playing go fish

[@odette5031]

He was playing chess while everyone else was playing checkers

[@Excalibur2112]

He played Chess with himself, playing both sides, knowing the outcome - That *HE* would win no matter what, no matter the cost... Sheer brilliance.

[@justinmadrid8712]

"Palpatine isn't the type to just announce his plan to destroy civiliazation". Meanwhile, in the Disney spin-offs... Palpatine literally broadcasts his plan to the entire galaxy... before his fleet of mini-deathstars are even ready to launch... And it wasn't a trap either like in ROTJ. Sigh. The Disney sequels are absolute garbage.

[@andyyl6942]

Agreed. I tried to defend the first one assuming they'd get better. I gave up after the second one I couldn't see the galaxy far away bastardized anymore.

[@justinmadrid8712]

@@andyyl6942 Same. Exactly the same here. I defended TFA against the haters, promising the sequel would be worth it.

[@Monsieurlemon2]

yeah disney pretty much eviscerated this series

[@LCSV2]

It’s downright criminal what the new Lucasfilm under KK did to Star Wars… Look at what they did to my boy… :’(

[@fiddleriddlediddlediddle]

If it makes you feel better, the original writer for that decision was fired and the sequel trilogy was de-canonized. I think... Disney's now working on another three wastes of money to replace them. 🙂

[@knequestrian93]

I'm only a recent Star Wars convert, but I watched the OG trilogy first. I always saw a crack in Vader. Like Luke I always knew there had to be some good in him. Palpatine, there was no question. To this day, he is the most terrifying villain. He didn't need a backstory, he doesnt need redemption. He truly is the perfect enemy

[@jmoney_29]

What also makes him such a great villain is the fact that he lost the exact same way Windu did. Just like the dark blinded the Jedi, the light blinded him. They both thought their final battle would go the exact same way it did last time. Unaware that the man standing next to them (the guy prophesized to bring balance to the force) had just become their enemy and the cause of their ultimate demise. It wasn't the power of friendship or the protagonists plot armor, it was exactly what Luke said it was, his overconfidence.

[@ayoutubechannle4411]

anakins life in a sentence. was a slave until his son freed him.

[@ryan1696]

*From life.*

[@causticmain7477]

@Loopy but so ironic and beautiful

[@roymadison5686]

Death bed repentance is shallow and non effective.. check out larry flint publisher of hustler magazine.

[@spicysnowman8886]

@@roymadison5686 it's different when you repent after sacrificing yourself to save your son and kill the man that enslaved you.

[@guillesuperior]

His plan went so perfectly that he only needed to intervene directly 1 time: to kick Darth Maul’s ass

[@procyon6370]

But Maul ended up outlasting him anyway. Makes sense why Palpatine needed to go in person.

[@MrSolus-ls6us]

@@procyon6370 Maul died while Luke was still a kid though...

[@procyon6370]

What are you talking about? Darth Maul was in Episode VII.

[@s1d3k1ckRO]

@@procyon6370 he was in solo, not ep7.

[@procyon6370]

No, he was in Episode VII. He was the Sith master, and Darth Talon was his apprentice.

[@amandawoodley6476]

I am so happy to have found this channel. Your analysis is always fascinating and extremely entertaining to watch. Thank you for sharing your insights!

[@callmecloby8365]

Palpatine is awesome on his own, and the added material other writers put into the character over the course of a series of games and novels really just elevates him more.

[@200_cuentos]

Jedi: "We don't like politics" Palpatine: "Gooooooood...."

[@budakbaongsiah]

This. Them being too passive is actually the trouble.

[@SelectHawk]

@@budakbaongsiah isn't the story basically that them getting involved in the war was their downfall, rather than remaining peacekeepers? I don't see how that is them being too passive.

[@Kelnx]

@@SelectHawk Whether they got involved or not is actually irrelevant (and I don't really see how they could avoid getting involved eventually once the war started). Their big mistake was in allowing the war to begin in the first place. Not only did they not detect the machinations of a Sith Lord who was right under their noses, they couldn't even be bothered to consider it a possibility, believing the Sith were "extinct". It's an incredible level of hubris on their part, knowing full well the lure of the Dark Side of the Force that every Force user has to actively avoid, to assume that there wouldn't eventually be some Dark Side acolyte with enough skill at manipulation and power in the Force to become the same as a Sith Lord of the past. Or considering the long history of the Sith to actually believe they could be made extinct in the first place. Ultimately the Jedi had one responsibility to the Republic; to guard against a return of the Sith or any other dark side force user that threatened it. But 1000 years of the absence of Sith basically turned the Jedi into an insular, feckless order that no longer paid attention to the events happening around it as if they were above such things, even going so far as gatekeeping who can and cannot be trained by them nearly guaranteeing a group of fallen Force users would spring up eventually. Their arrogance and aloofness created the opportunity that Palpatine used. And if you really want someone to blame, it's Yoda. As much as I love Yoda, the movies do a good job of showing him to be a very different person before and after the fall of the Republic. Something happened early in his time as a Jedi to lead the order down the wrong path and having such a long lifespan he alone kept it on that path instead of listening to wiser Jedi like Qui Gon and likely countless other long-dead Jedi during his tenure. By the time Luke meets him in ESB, Yoda has had plenty of time to reflect on his mistakes and has lost much of the arrogance he once had.

[@rickblaine9670]

Jedi: “We don’t care about politics.” Palpatine: “I care!”

[@maharisha594]

It’s treason then

[@alchemy616]

When you think about, the moment Qui-Gon Jinn died was the moment that started off Palpatine's victory. From then on, nothing would stand in his way

[@juresaiyan]

Exactly

[@thatkidkawaii1965]

Except for Darth maul in the clone wars

[@buttwiperindawfulevil2256]

EXACTLY, in both canon and legends, Palaptine ordered Maul to specifically kill Qui-Gon. He knew that he would be a grave threat as he is a rebel unlike the rest of the order and expose him one day as a sith lord. Once he met Anakin in person, he was releaved that he killed Qui Gon so he could forge Ani into the Monster we all know today, he forged the most gifted and loved Jedi knight into the deadliest and Hated sith lord Darth Vader.

[@cooletim7286]

Thats why the duel theme was called 'duel of the fates'

[@thelordshrek2938]

Except for the very son of his apprentice

[@Yoshistar238]

It's amazing how Palpatine is just miles ahead of everyone with his plan. thinking about how all the pieces just fell into place, blows my mind.

[@I_dcd]

If you research psychology it does in fact make perfect sense. Not a degree or anything but the general awareness

[@jtorp6777]

Voldemort was busy taking over his local elementary school

[@MrCoolguy425]

That moment when your plan is so good, practically everyone involved never knew that there was a plan at all.

[@jamesgravil9162]

"practically everyone involved never knew that there was a plan at all." Count Dooku was in on it. The only thing he didn't know was that Anakin was to be his replacement.

[@MrCoolguy425]

@@jamesgravil9162 that’s why I said practically, and to be fair we don’t know the extent he was in on the plan. Like you said he probably didn’t know Anakin’s part, which is arguably one of the more important parts of the plan. The only other one that really knew there was a plan was maul and he didn’t know the extent of it. Only that Anakin was a big player.

[@waltuh2.3bviews3secondsago3]

*i love it when i join a two-man cult that opposes a bigger cult, where we are hidden, and then i betray the other guy by leaving him to die from the hands of the other cult and then having another guy and having a massive droid army and a droid general (yes he is a droid, hehe) with some spinny swords (oh yeah btw both the cults have laser swords) and then trick the majority into leaving yourself emergency powers betraying your other cult member by telling the other cult's most powerful member to " **_DEW IT_** " and then use that to get that powerful member as my new more permanent apprentice, and then use the emergency powers to destroy the other cult with their own clone army and then make myself an emperor of the new empire and then get thrown down a reactor shaft* (imma ignore the sequels, they were a failed abortion)

[@MrCoolguy425]

@@waltuh2.3bviews3secondsago3 thanks for ignoring the failed abortion!

[@v.k.rt.m.6030]

@@MrCoolguy425 what if the Emperor never got thrown down the shaft and actually had a plan, and that's Palpatine sending a loyal secret Sith Lord unbeknownst to Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker to spy on him and at the right time, assassinate him before he could oust the Emperor. This Sith Lord, who had already a contempt of Anakin Skywalker (as well as his former Padawan Ashoka Tano, who the Sith Lord has a eye on as well because of a little thing I like to call "a misconception" that the Sith Lord has, that makes him think Ashoka is unbeatable and un-killable.)

[@justr3play901]

He’s one of the greatest examples of “Show, don’t tell.”

[@dr.stronk9857]

True

[@tikky0982]

That ending quote with talking about how Revenge of the Sith is so artistic, emotional, and beautiful, despite the horrors it presents… chills down my spine and tears in my eyes. Phenomenal video!!

[@bradleymarshall5489]

Very well done, I think people have gotten too caught up in the clunky dialogue to see the true beauty of the prequels that you did an excellent job of exploring

[@starkfels-diespielefestung2680]

That's a great line: "An arrogant religion who get a hold of the messiah and then accidentally hand him over to the devil." Brilliant and totally on point.

[@paxxisticks]

I knew someone in the comments was gonna point it out, I love it

[@neowide4970]

@@paxxisticks Someone pointed it out 1 year ago in the comments.

[@garrettviewegh677]

Well put. Regarding Anakin’s tragic fall from grace, I always view the prequel trilogy, especially Revenge of the Sith, in the same vain of a Shakespearean tragedy. So much pain and betrayal eloquently out of how love can be corrupted into obsession.

[@brixenlang3207]

Brilliant

[@samuelsmiley5940]

Yeah but Jesus had to die in order to save us so I can't blame the jews or anything. Idk if that's what you were getting at

[@FappyNews]

4:58 The prequels are the story of an arrogant religion, who get a hold of the messiah, and then accidentally hand him over to the devil. hahahha that part killed me lol

[@jukaa1012]

Basically a dune ripoff, oh wait, thats star wars

[@RealOberonn13]

@@jukaa1012 😑

[@servant7777]

This could be prophetic in more ways than you know.

[@Gadget-Walkmen]

@@jukaa1012 never read dune so I wouldn't know.

[@Chuked]

@@servant7777 its star wars everything is fucking poetic as shit

[@CorpoExec]

I know this came out three years ago, but I always come back to watch it again. Your editing and video production is one of the best I’ve ever seen, you know how to put visuals and audio together so well.

[@vitsobotka6268]

I am glad the prequels seem to be getting more love and actually being treated as decent films

[@RatSewage]

All it took was a multi-billion dollar corporation to foist literal abominations upon us for people to realize how good they really were.

[@donovan5656]

The full circle of Anakin's slavery was something I hadn't even noticed.

[@ryan1696]

It wasn't just a full circle. Really he had been a slave to everything in his life other than Padme. He was a slave on Tatooine. Freed from his slavery than turned a slave to the Jedi and at the end after paying so much he's back in the clutches of a master manipulator.

[@logicaldude3611]

He has a slave mentality throughout the entire saga until he decides to save Luke in ROTJ. Whether it's Watto or the Jedi or Palpatine, he's blindly loyal and subservient to whoever his master is.

[@dmangelsm1188]

RyanGamingXbox - Gaming and more He was never a slave to the Jedi. They freed him, trained him, gave him a home, presumably clothes & food, & a new family. Just like the Devil, Palpatine works in half truths to make it seem like he was a slave to the Jedi (but he was free to leave at any time). Ironically Anakin left his position of freedom to re-join a position if slavery under Palpatine.

[@wiseforcommonsense]

@@dmangelsm1188 Darkseid. He still had to call someone master, he was still punished if he did something wrong. Maybe it wasn't slavery, but to a child who had not known anything else, would he have known the difference? That is the problem, Anakin doesn't known the difference cause the Jedi didn't try and understand what he has been going through or help him through his problems. So mentally, he is still a slave

[@PseudoNym13]

Slave to watto and the hutts Slave to the jedi and republic Slave to palpatine and the Empire

[@theriderofrohan5639]

"Revenge of the Sith is like a Renaissance painting of judgement day, where the Republic's political and spiritual powers crumple into nothing. And its hero tries to murder his wife before crossing swords with his brother and being consumed by wrath. And when it's all over Palpatine swoops into Hell like the Angel of Death and Darth Vader is born, as the last person in the Galaxy that still believes he has any good in him dies" chills

[@totallyanonymousbish9599]

Yes

[@ecklipz3364]

Sheeeeeeeeeit

[@ecklipz3364]

@Andrew Austin its my all time favorite movie not just favorite star wars movie but of all movies this is my favorite

[@halodude7239]

SAME HERE!!

[@captaintristan1176]

After watching this I finally see that the whole clone wars was just a whole set up for palpatines plan. I mean through out the clone wars you see how much power he gets. He is just perfect. A perfect villian.

[@I_dcd]

I hate how so many people hate on the prequels. This is almost absolute perfect plot and people dislike it because "oh its different from the originals." Yeah so WHAT YOU F***ING GOT WAS A COMPLETE FARCRY SEQUEL SERIES THAT HAS NO RESPECT WHATSOEVER TO THE ACTUAL PLOT

[@captaintristan1176]

@@I_dcd EXACTLY AND THEY ACTUALLY SUPPORT THE NEW ONES LIKE WTF!

[@qumanhero]

This is such a greatly and expertly written, produced and just in general created masterpiece of a KZbin video. And so are all your other Star Wars Videos. I have re-watched them many times!!!!

[@logicaldude3611]

"When Palpatine activates Order 66, the Jedi who scoffed at the idea of the Sith's returning from extinction are annihilated in a matter of minutes. Most of them never knowing how deep their failure truly went." *cuts to scene of Yoda* Brilliant.

[@something7641]

Yoda knew about order 66, watch clone wars season 6

[@fernandorivera4719]

I think Yoda is one of the few who truly understood, too late, the gravity of the situation. He senses the deaths of the Jedi trough the Force, and the shock makes him drop his cane.

[@logicaldude3611]

@@something7641 I'm not sure what you're getting at. The point is that Yoda, being Grandmaster and a survivor of Order 66, is the one who more than anyone else understood "how deep their failure truly went".

[@logicaldude3611]

@@fernandorivera4719 Yeah, that's why the cut was brilliant. Yoda survives and ends up being the one who understood his failure probably more than anyone else.

[@fuckalldisneyremakesorigin5560]

A lot of villains are underrated Percival C. Mcleach from Rescuers Down Under is underrated Shan Yu from Mulan is underrated Zira from The Lion King 2 is underrated All For One from Boku No Hero Academia is underrated Morgoth from middle-earth franchise is underrated Randall from Monsters Inc. is underrated

[@stuflames4769]

What makes Palpatine great, to me, is that he *enjoyed* himself. So many villains are really kind of depressing, or actually depressed. They're just focused on winning, without a real goal except domination, or some similar Nazi need... or focused on revenge, where afterwards there's little... or are simply horror villain evil, driven by their very destiny with little joy... or some variation. And, Palpatine is all of that. Except, he's actually happy when he wins. He's a happy, happy man. He's living his best life, and he has no self loathing. He is having more fun, and loving life more, with every win. The Joker is sometimes a figure in this vein, I suppose. Depending on the writer. But the joker is also quite crazy. Palpatine is not really crazy. He's just... he's just happily evil. Like, really happy, and really evil. Call it simplistic, it's also super sinister and from what I can think of super rare.

[@shadmanhasan4205]

This is why I love HISHE (especially the Villain Pub). The Bar keep's Palps while Voltamort, Joker, Loki, even Zod are the regular customers 😆

[@ideeyes4054]

He is the ultimate bad guy. No remorse, no seeking attention, no sad back stories to sympathise with, no mental health issues. Nothing. Just purely cold, calculative, selfish desire to get to the top and rule over all by any means necessary. Just because HE himself wants it all.

[@untipicostormtrooper2098]

I mean when he fighted maul and savage he was laughing and always with a smile

[@JamesEdelson]

It's interesting, and fitting that a sith with the concealed identity of a do-gooder politician is literally just a mastermind pathological power monger, this video added greater depth to a film that has embedded itself in my memory and everytime I watch it the ending is a brutal emotional experience.

[@Bleeds98]

I gush about my love for Palpatine as a villain pretty often and I always bring up just what a huge kick he gets out of being evil. He knows he's won and there's nothing anyone can do about it, so he's cackling his whole way through his fight with Yoda. The man finally gets the let loose after all his quiet scheming. The galaxy is his. It's as if he's walking on air with utter glee at just how diabolical he is.

[@iceman6547]

That woman's speech at the end about the significance of ROTS couldn't have been put more aptly. There's never been a better saga told on screen

[@maxryan9052]

His death is also one of the most satisfying because it also signifies Vaders redemption from the dark side back to the light and redeems the OTHER greatest villain of all time, but somehow….Palpatine returned.

[@Gloocifer]

One of very few villains who never underestimated his enemies, and faced them with awareness and caution.

[@lionfan96]

except in return of the jedi.

[@robertlehnert4148]

@@lionfan96 he didn't consider Vader his enemy. Luke defeating his father was in Palpatine "I got that covered" " Palpatinre having to kill a still defiant Luke, ditto. Vader regaining his humanity back in the very last moments of his life and defending his son, THAT is the only thing Palpatine couldn't.see-- because self sacrifice for love was utterly incomprehensible to the Emperor.

[@ryanm.8720]

If you qualify YTPs, then Palpatine is also one of the few villains that attacks when their opponent is talking, as seen in 'The Tragedy of Darth Sand'. *Yoda:* If so powerful, you- *Palpatine: {blasts Yoda with force lightning}*

[@kfc4056]

@@robertlehnert4148 I don’t think it was incomprehensible for him, but more that he thought Vader’s only loved one had died.

[@tuluppampam]

@@robertlehnert4148 I think that Palpatine knew that Vader was dangerous but what happened was extremely unlikely and as such Palpatine didn't prepare for it

[@crystallxix1493]

I never thought that Malefica screaming "Imbecilles" could be such a great gif

[@javelincheshire6358]

I really need it right now.

[@overlex]

ObiWan: “Chancellor Palpatine.. Sith lords are our speciality! 🙂” Sith Lord in front of him: “IDIOTS 🥲”

[@connorsmith2059]

I’ve come back and rewatched this more than once. This video direction and scale is perfect when delivering the message w excellent referencing

[@thecowboy9698]

Nice play in the video, saying: "A villain is only as good as his plan," and then showing the Joker from The Dark Knight saying: "Do I really look like a guy with a plan?" Clever!

[@LaFaveBros]

The prophecy was that Anakin would *bring balance* to the force. Obi Wan naively thought that meant the same thing as “bring peace”.

[@whydidimakethis111]

Well, balance in the Star Wars sense means the abundance of the light side. As Lucas himself said, the natural state of the Force (and of balance) is the light side. Just that the Jedi weren't in tune with this pure light side, it was their own corrupted version.

[@EaseOfSorrow]

@@whydidimakethis111 It's pretty crazy when you take a step back and realize Dooku was 100% correct about the Jedi and why they had to be destroyed and rebuilt.

[@REDDAWNproject]

The problem was that the Jedi and the Sith were corrupted emulations of the force; and at the end of Episode 6, its what makes Luke's stand against Palpatine so powerful; his father may have brought balance to the force, but he has become the future of that very balance. He's everything his father wished he could be. and its that moment that allows Vader to see how far he has fallen.

[@TeamASGTS]

@@REDDAWNproject and then it’s all throne out the window as he attempts to kill a kid in his sleep.

[@REDDAWNproject]

@@TeamASGTS yeah thats a big reason i thought the st is dumb

[@WantonMyth]

JJ Abrams: Say it Oscar Isaac: I can't Abrams: Say it! Isaac: Somehow Palpatine returned

[@Kanthannic]

*tHeY fLY nOw*

[@jayflavor1]

@@Kanthannic My GOD!! That was stupid! Utterly stupid. "They fly now?" Sigh i hate it so much

[@ImBarryScottCSS]

I honestly feel sorry for Oscar, his face and body language are literally the embodiment of what Palpatine stands for, the hopelessness of it all. Somehow Disney was the real Palpatine all along.

[@thedrunkenpilot]

He isn't the devil. The devil's failed to tempt Christ, and Palpatine turned the one to the dark side masterfully. He is better than the devil.

[@theholygamer969]

Or the Star Wars Messiah just failed to resist that temptation like the real Messiah did. It's New Testament: Bad Future.

[@WeeklySteelchair_Pod]

Genuinely, one of the best videos I've ever watched and i just love how it further envelopes my own POV and understanding of Star Wars and makes it even greater.

[@Definitely_Not_Sheev_Palpatine]

The Greatest Movie Villain Ever? This title is a surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one! You can make the award check out to "The Senate."

[@battletoaster.]

I would like this comment but it's at 66 likes and I can't bring myself to change that

[@Definitely_Not_Sheev_Palpatine]

@@battletoaster. A wise decision. Most wise.

[@D50Music]

My lord *kneels and bows head*

[@eightan9589]

I would like this comment but it’s at 111 and I can’t bring myself to it

[@Definitely_Not_Sheev_Palpatine]

@@eightan9589 Dew it.

[@elijahcaudill334]

Dude, this writing. You gave me chills with, “Returning him to the slavery he was born into.”

[@masterofall4elements820]

honestly same literal chills so fucking poetic

[@tonyfendex2558]

I fell chills too!! Incredible.

[@teacherfromthejungles6671]

well he's not the first who came to this conclusion

[@Cwalk12222]

Fr I never really thought about it like that before 😱

[@ps4games164]

Anakin wasn't born in slavery you mfs

[@josephshepard2962]

Good video. And kudos for including Dr. Paglia at the end. She's brilliant.

[@TheAjaiRaj]

I'd gotten jaded to Star Wars in general, but this essay has got me wanting to re-watch the prequels with fresh eyes. Brilliant writing and analysis. Subbed to the channel.

[@jakewwwjake]

The older I get. The more I appreciate Star Wars. As a kid , I was enthralled with the action, adventure, and special effects. As an adult, I absolutely love the story, and character arcs.

[@jaredtheamerican1776]

Same

[@Doughboy14145]

I definitely resonate with this. 🤟🏽

[@bukayosraka]

Same

[@MetalGuitarTimo]

except for the disney stuff which has no soul. you could never make an analysis video like this about them, because you wont find any hidden or subtle messages in them

[@Kaizerdramon]

This is why Star Wars matters so much, as one evolves so does the interpretation of SW does.