Palpatine made his somewhat triumphant return in The Rise of Skywalker.
It looked like he was to prevail, but was thwarted in the end by Rey, Ben, and generations of Jedi.
Would he have succeeded if he had waited to announce his return?
Why didn’t Palpatine wait until after his Final Order Star Destroyers were ready to announce his return and blindside the galaxy?
Was it a lack of intelligence, poor planning, bad luck, or something else? Read on to find out more.
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Why Didn’t Palpatine Wait to Announce His Return?
We can review fan comments to get a good read on why Palpatine announced his return before his Star Destroyers were ready to launch.
Several fans think Palpatine’s decision showed stupidity on his part. Maybe the Emperor, or his cloned version, lacked intelligence after all.
Yet, Palpatine did manage to take over the galaxy with scheming that fooled the Jedi.
Other fans on the same discussion board present valid reasons for his decision, such as gathering support because “only a select few of the First Order were expecting his return.”
If the rest of his would-be supporters thought he was dead, his plans would not go very far.
Another post points out how Palpatine always underestimated his adversaries and was “overconfident,” as Luke Skywalker indicated. His “pridefulness” led him to blunder, again.
And yet, the most appealing reason could be that Palpatine “needed Rey and/or Kylo to come after him so he could drain them and restore his body.” This reason aligns with Palpatine’s grand plans.
As this article delves into, Palpatine’s granddaughter was meant to be lured “to the dark side and continue the Sith lifecycle.”
The book Secrets of the Sith elaborates on Palpatine’s plans and conveys how the Emperor at first wanted Ben Solo to serve as the new host of his “Force presence.” Palpatine thought that Rey could rule alongside Kylo Ren.
Palpatine thus envisioned extending Sith rule through the Rule of Two. When Kylo turned back to Ben and the light side, Palpatine shifted gears and focused on Rey instead.
It was a last-minute adjustment that revealed the Emperor’s contingency plans.
The Rise of Skywalker and Why Palpatine Didn’t Wait
At least that is one way to explain why Palpatine didn’t wait to announce his return. Another one has to do with The Rise of Skywalker as a movie with so much happening that it was hard to keep track of what was revealed and when.
As this video explores, the last sequel “has so much going on” that “viewers only get pieces of the full picture,” including Palpatine’s central story.
For one, we do not know for certain how the Emperor returned after he fell to his death in Return of the Jedi. We know from sources like the novel version of the film. From the film, we get a sense that Palpatine stayed alive through the Force energy of the Sith.
On Exegol, we see Palpatine hooked up to a life support system, and maybe, going along with the above video, Sith magic or rituals were used to revive him. Snoke was then used to draw Ben to the dark side and threaten the New Republic until Palpatine could regain his full power.
All this is to say that much of the plan was formulated on the go and not clearly ironed out.
Palpatine included forging his Final Order Star Destroyers but could not wait for them to be completed because his in-process plans were disrupted.
Or, we might also consider his early announcement as part of his strategy to instill terror in the Resistance.
Palpatine wanted to strike fear and demoralize the galaxy before he waged total warfare on it. Even with the loss of Kylo Ren, the Emperor still turned to Allegiant General Enric Pryde to carry out the now-altered plans.
More likely, though, Palpatine’s plan, like much of the film, went in many directions that were hard to keep track of. Even the Emperor could not keep up.
Palpatine and the Final Order
Palpatine may have been shortsighted or even lacking in intelligence when he announced his return before the Final Order was complete.
Yet, it seems more likely that he adjusted his plans or the plans were still in the making when he decided to announce his presence.
Even with his weakened cloned body and Kylo Ren’s defection, Palpatine still almost succeeded. Ultimately, the film itself, with its tangled directions, may best explain why Palpatine did not wait.
Todd Wahlstrom is a creative and analytical freelance writer and life-long Star Wars fan. He has covered such topics as Darth Vader, the Jedi, Boba Fett, and AT-AT Walkers. Todd has published a non-fiction book, holds a Ph.D. in history, and enjoys hiking, running, and reading about science.