The 15 spookiest moments in the Skywalker Saga

10. Unlimited power, but you can’t save your face?

Revenge of the Sith is the end of the prequel trilogy and finishes the story of how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader and the Republic became an empire led by a Sith Lord. Throughout the prequel trilogy, Palpatine has been a public figure subtly manipulating the galaxy behind the scenes to set the Jedi up for destruction. In Revenge of the Sith, the Jedi finally discover the truth about Palpatine, but by then, it’s too late. Mace Windu and several other Jedi go to confront Palpatine, but Palpatine executes all of them but Mace in mere minutes.

A battle between Mace and Palpatine ensues, and Palpatine is disarmed, but this is only an opportunity to reveal his true power. Using Force lightning, Palpatine forces Mace back, but he soon becomes exhausted by this use of sheer dark Force power. Palpatine’s face is disfigured. His eyes are now yellow. He’s a demonic sight to behold. Mace comes to the conclusion that Palpatine is too powerful and too dangerous to be kept alive, and betraying his Jedi commitment, decides his only choice is to execute the Sith Lord himself. But Anakin shows up just in time, convinced that although the Chancellor is evil, he holds a power that will help him to save Padme from the death he’s been foreseeing in his nightmares. Just as Mace is about to strike Palpatine down, Anakin jumps in and slices off Mace’s hands. Palpatine takes the opportunity to strike Mace with Force lightning, sending the Jedi Master to his death as he falls from the window to the ground far below. Palpatine screams in delight at the unlimited power now under his command. The battle has left its mark, however, and Palpatine will forever look as evil as he truly is inside.