WHAT IS THE EMPIRE’S GREATEST MOMENT?

One of the great things about Star Wars is that it inspires endless debates and opinions on a wide array of topics. Best bounty hunter? Most powerful Jedi? Does Salacious Crumb have the best haircut in the saga? In that spirit, StarWars.com presents From a Certain Point of View: a series of point-counterpoints on some of the biggest — and most fun — Star Wars issues. In this installment, two StarWars.com writers discuss which single moment was the Empire’s finest.  SWTOR CREDITS


The destruction of Jedha City is the Empire’s greatest moment, says Justin.

“Power! Unlimited power!” It’s not pride. It’s a promise. Palpatine’s declaration to Mace Windu as he pummels the Jedi Master with Force lightning is a preview to his former “colleague” of the galaxy that is to come under his enlightened rule. A galaxy in which no challenge is too great, no decision is questioned, and no force opposes his will.

And make no mistake, the Empire is Palpatine’s will. Its capabilities are the personification of his power, power the Sith worked one thousand years in secret to finally acquire. And there is nothing more powerful in the Empire’s arsenal than the Death Star.

The ability to destroy a planet… Think about that for a minute. No, really think about it. A government with the power to erase an entire people, their history, everything they’ve ever been or hope to be, all in the blink of an eye. It’s terrifying. And for an Empire ruled through fear, it’s perfect.   SWTOR CREDITS

Which is why the successful test of the Death Star as seen in Rogue One is the Empire’s greatest moment.  

It represents the Empire’s attainment of the unlimited power Palpatine promised. A destroyer of worlds awaiting his command to decimate any and all he deems deserving of destruction.

It represents the Empire’s final victory over the Jedi. Destroying a possible birthplace of the Order with the ultimate symbol of the Sith’s revenge posthumously rubs the noses of every dead Jedi in their defeat. The fact that kyber crystals that were stolen from them and pillaged from their holy sites to fuel the Death Star only adds further insult to injury.

It represents the end of the Republic and the beginning of an era of absolute, unquestioned Imperial rule. Because of the Death Star’s success at Jedha, Palpatine was emboldened to dissolve the Galactic Senate and give the power to run the galaxy to men and women answerable only to him. In the face of such awesome power, who will dare oppose the Emperor?  SWTOR CREDITS

There’s a reason Leia calls this time in the galaxy’s history the Rebellion’s most desperate hour. In the face of a completed, fully armed and operational Death Star, they have no hope of victory without the strategic insight those stolen plans give them. And you know what? They learned that lesson from the destruction of Jedha City.

There is no greater moment for the Empire than this one, when victory was achieved in a horrifying and beautiful (Krennic’s words) display of power.

Unlimited power, indeed.

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