ST Is the Emperor really dead?

Most people when they die in star wars die like any other creature would. There have been three exceptions. Obi-wan Kenobi dissapeared. Yoda dissapeared. And Palpatine exploded into a screaming whirlwind of force energy.

This event is unlike anything else we have seen in the Star Wars cannon. No other death is treated that way... And no other "explosion" behaves like that. (Not to mention people don't explode from falling.) Something very strange, noteworthy, and different happened there.

I believe he is still conscious as an entity, I do not believe this is exactly the same as a "Force Ghost" but it is similar. I believe Palpatine was as obsessed with "cheating death" as Plauegis was, and even though Padme died, I am sure this was still the main research he and Vader pursued as the hunt for the Jedi wore down and before the Rebellion and hunt for Skywalker really picked up.

(I have a theory [full on fanboy speculation on my part, nothing concrete] that the Death Stars were actually designed to be a kind of "Immortality Machine", creating enough Dark Side energy through the unprecedented destruction of life that Palpatine could tap into it and extend his own life unnaturally. I believe that may even be the real reason [even more than to trap the Alliance] that the Emperor decided to go to the Second Death Star in person, much like Kenobi, he definitely felt the destruction of Alderaan, however, unlike Kenobi, he liked the taste of it. He needed to be at the epicenter of all that mass genocide to soak in that pure moment of "a million voices crying out all at once... Then suddenly stopped.")

 

Great post. I also wondered about that "explosion". Most people think that he hit the reactor, but this is not true, since he would have to fall much longer to hit it. I also think he exploded into a cloud of the dark side.

Darth Bane book spoiler ahead:




It reminded me a lot of Darth Bane who disintegrated his body when he tried the Essence transfer at the end of the third book. But alas, I don't think that we will see old Palps again in the ST, but maybe he will return someway in the new canon again...

 

Also, if Palpatine was feeding off the dark side energy of destruction (and assuming his ghost was as well), the hundreds of thousands who died when the Death Star was destroyed would have fed him as well, perhaps not as much as he would have liked... But enough for him to carry on in his weakened state.

Perhaps this is the reason to construct a new, more powerful superweapon. Perhaps someone is trying to ressurect him...

 

Sure. But there's never been a reason to think they can't. It's unexplored territory.

 

IMO the explosion was Darth Sidious death releasing all the extremely evil dark side energy that had been keeping the Force out of balance for the better part of half a century. Guaranteed some of Vader exploded there with him. Good riddance.

 

What if Palps becomes some sort of 'Force Cloud' and unlike Force Ghosts, which Jedi become, he can physically interact with the real world?

Unlikely, but just an idea.

 

You mean like a kind of shapeshifter, which can shift into a "cloud of particles"?

Interesting concept.

 

Yes, just like that. Honestly, I don't want him to return. But if he did, I don't like the idea of a clone or a body jumper or whatever.

 

What if Han's chin scar is a horcrux?

 

Rumor is he has been missing for 30 years, since ROTJ. Oops wrong thread! Or is it???

 

I hope he's dead. But it wouldn't surprise me if he has a clone of himself and sent his consciousness into it at the moment of his death. Or something along those lines.

 

If Sidious returns, I hope it is through a Sith resurrection ceremony and not cloning or transferring. Maybe he knew the secret to immortality and had an inner circle of followers who were tasked with attempting to resurrect him when the need arises. I doubt that happens and I think we will have a new baddie, but that baddie will probably have ties to Sidious.

 

body: dead

ghost: alive

 

Palpatine was actually Plagueis the whole time. Plagueis possessed Palpatine's body to carry out his plan against the Jedi. His spirit was freed once Palpatine was killed hence the "force explosion."

 

Hes dead Jim.uhm..I mean come on what do a guy have to do to have to die in this galaxy?

 

"Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter..."

So in effect no one is REALLY dead

 

As long as he does not look like that space diarheaa from Green Lantern...

 

I'll just leave this here....

http://www.examiner.com/article/emperor-palpatine-could-be-both-star-wars-7-and-star-wars-8

 

It would be best if he was like Sauron in the movie versions of Lord of the Rings, unable to assume a physical form (in the Books, Sauron is never described but he DOES have a physical form as Gollum is actually taken to him and describes Sauron as missing a finger. "'He has only four on the Black Hand, but they are enough.").

 

What if the Emperors sentence in ROTJ had much more impact than we thought?
"Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen."

We think that the Emperor didn't forsee that Vader would betray him, but what if he did? What if this was all part of his plans? Maybe he wanted Vader to throw him down the shaft so that he could leave the confines of his frail body? And he made it look like he was killed, to lull the Rebels into a false sense of security?

Maybe there was even more to the Emperor himself? Maybe he lived for thousands of years, changing bodies. Maybe he is the Dark Side manifested.

 

It was explored in the final TCW arc. Death is inevitable for the Sith and thus they cannot achieve immortality; unlike the Jedi, the Sith lack compassion and this prevents them from becoming one with the Force.

By becoming one with the Force, the Jedi will achieve ultimate victory over the Sith.

 

There was way too much talk in the prequels about the Sith cheating death for there not to be a pay off.

Couple that with Lucas quotes about a possible 'spiritual' focus for the ST and I think there is a good case for Sidious to make a comeback in the ST.

 

It is a small part of RotS to seduce Anakin - Anakin says once in AotC that he wants to stop people from dying.

Sith are about power in this life because they don't see the "beyond" or a way back.

Palpatine is dead. Villain will be someone we don't know.

 

Yeah, if this does end up being true, I could see something like that. If done well, I even think having Palpatine back could be really cool - it would make him the big bad for all 9 movies and more firmly link all three trilogies. And if you think about it, it would make something like the opera scene in RotS very, very important. Though it would seemingly undermine Anakin as the Chosen One.

 

Or Sidious knew there wasn't a way to stop Padme from dying but DID know how to do it himself.

Anyway, no idea how anyone can be so certain about anything in the ST?