Emperor Palpatine returned to canon in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, but years earlier, he was resurrected in the Star Wars Legends timeline. The original Star Wars Expanded Universe of books, comics, video games, etc. was declared non-canon and rebranded as “Legends,” giving Disney and Lucasfilm freedom to tell new stories set after Return of the Jedi. This made it surprising when the sequel trilogy revealed that Palpatine survived his apparent death and was the true mastermind of the First Order, told through a story that was undeniably similar to his return in Legends.
Despite the same basic premise in each continuity, Palpatine’s return in The Rise of Skywalker was not exactly the same as the original Expanded Universe. Some differences added depth to the Star Wars timeline or were interesting changes, while others hurt the sequel trilogy and Palpatine’s character. However, this provides an opportunity to compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of each tale, analyzing how the writers tackled the same goal. Reviewing the approach of canon and Legends proves which version of Palpatine’s return was a better addition to the Star Wars saga.
Emperor Palpatine was initially resurrected in the six-issue comic series Star Wars: Dark Empire by Tom Veitch and Cam Kennedy, set six years after Return of the Jedi. As the New Republic crumbles under attacks from the Imperial Remnant, Luke Skywalker travels to the world of Byss in the galaxy’s Deep Core to discover who is leading this Dark Empire. He is shocked to learn that Palpatine survived his apparent death by transferring his spirit into a clone body, something he had done many times before as the dark side consumed his physical form.
Knowing that killing Palpatine is impossible, Luke decides to join the dark side and become Palpatine’s apprentice, believing he can stop the dark side from within. However, Luke comes dangerously close to being lost, and Palpatine’s World Devastators lay waste to planets across the galaxy. Luke is confronted by Leia Organa, leading to a lightsaber duel between the Skywalker twins, and Luke breaks free of Palpatine’s grip. Although the Emperor is seemingly killed, Palpatine returns in Star Wars: Dark Empire II and Star Wars: Empire’s End before finally being defeated for good.
Dark Empire’s bold storytelling choices, unique watercolor artwork, and impact on the franchise give it a mixed legacy. Alongside Timothy Zahn’s Star Wars: Heir to the Empire, Dark Empire helped launch the modern Expanded Universe in 1991, keeping the Star Wars saga alive and thriving. However, the decision to resurrect Palpatine was highly controversial among fans, especially after the prequel trilogy established that Anakin Skywalker was prophesized to destroy the Sith. Dark Empire was declared non-canon with the rest of the EU in 2014 to make way for the sequel trilogy, only for one entry to tell a similar story.
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While Palpatine’s resurrection in canon was handled differently than Legends, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has several similarities to Dark Empire. Kylo Ren travels to Exegol in the Unknown Regions to find Palpatine, just as Luke did in Legends, where he finds a fortress with a similar design to the World Devastators in Dark Empire. Despite intending to kill Palpatine, Kylo Ren reluctantly joins him after realizing the extent of his power, although The Rise of Skywalker only hints at Palpatine cheating death through cloning. Like Dark Empire‘s World Devastators, the Final Order fleet can annihilate planets.
Aside from similar plotlines and visuals, Palpatine’s primary goal in The Rise of Skywalker is the same as in Dark Empire: to find a suitable host. In the Dark Empire trilogy, Palpatine seeks to transfer his spirit into young Anakin Solo, the third child of Han Solo and Leia Organa, and he wants to transfer his spirit into his granddaughter, Rey, in The Rise of Skywalker. Both attempts lead to Palpatine’s final demise, goading the heroes into killing him so he can transfer his spirit, only for the spirits of past Jedi to help defeat him.
Of course, The Rise of Skywalker diverges from Dark Empire in many ways, especially in its timeline. Palpatine returned after a few years in Legends, while he played the long game in canon, controlling the First Order from the shadows as he prepared the Final Order on Exegol. He drove Luke, Han, and Leia apart by seducing Ben Solo to the dark side through Snoke, destroying Luke’s Jedi Order. Palpatine also has less screen time in The Rise of Skywalker compared to his role in Dark Empire and isn’t restored to full power until his confrontation with Rey and Ben.
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Dark Empire and The Rise of Skywalker have their respective strengths and weaknesses in how the writers handle Palpatine’s resurrection. Dark Empire was daring in its execution, with heavily saturated colors and outlandish visuals like nothing seen before, and it was willing to have Luke Skywalker turn to the dark side. However, this meant that it didn’t always feel like it fit into the Star Wars universe, and how the characters were written sometimes reflected that. The Rise of Skywalker aimed to be a more traditional Star Wars adventure, though its lack of originality often had it repeating well-worn plotlines.
Ultimately, Palpatine’s resurrection was better in Dark Empire than in The Rise of Skywalker because it was a fully fleshed-out story. The sequel trilogy waited until the last movie to reveal Palpatine was alive, meaning the explanation for his return and his relationship with Rey had to be rushed. The scavenger hunt to find Palpatine took valuable time from giving the character proper screen time to make up for his last-minute resurrection. Had Palpatine returned in Star Wars: The Force Awakens or Star Wars: The Last Jedi, there would have been time for his story to be told properly.
Dark Empire, meanwhile, knew that Palpatine would be the main villain from the beginning and structured its narrative accordingly. The first issue is able to hint at the Dark Empire’s mysterious leader before revealing Palpatine’s identity in the second issue, which has time to explain how the Emperor survived. Dark Empire also has the advantage of being a comic book trilogy, with 14 total issues providing more time than a trilogy of films. Palpatine’s return may be similar in Star Wars canon and Legends, but Dark Empire remains superior.