Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith ending explained

The saga is complete! After close to three decades of non-linear episodic entries, George Lucas had finally brought the epic Star Wars saga full circle with Revenge of the Sith and answered all our questions… Well, maybe not quite.

As you can see, our comprehension of the Star Wars universe is no longer what it was back in 2005. Fans had been looking forward to the back-to-front completion of the beloved story for over a generation and Episode III was the film that ended it all. For a time at least.

Taking place three years after Attack of the Clones and near the end of the galactic conflict that was the Clone Wars, Revenge of the Sith showed Anakin Skywalker is no longer the awkward adolescent who struggled with his place in the galaxy. Now we see a fully formed Jedi Knight in his prime.

Skywalker and his old master Obi-Wan Kenobi are now equal partners and are a force to be reckoned with. The knowledge of what comes after makes for some serious drama as well as consequences that would define all life in the galaxy.

Revenge of the Sith was the film that changed it all

The film was highly anticipated as long-time fans knew that Episode III would be bridging the gap of secret history between the era of the Republic and that of the Empire. Moments that had been teased since A New Hope all the way back in 1977 would finally be witnessed.

Perhaps the most significant events in question are the rise of the Galactic Empire and the fall of the ancient Jedi Order. We learn that the mysterious Darth Sidious and Supreme Chancellor Palpatine are in fact one in the same. Palpatine has been playing both sides and has cemented himself at the center of galactic events.

The master plan of the Sith Lords finally comes to fruition in this film. The clone army, the twisting of Skywalker into the perfect warrior of darkness, the unquestionable authority of the Chancellor. All the pieces were in place as Palpatine uses the Jedi Order as a scapegoat to pin all of the galaxy’s frustrations on. Using the clone army to eradicate the ancient enemy of the Sith, there is now nothing stopping the chancellor from achieving ultimate power and installing himself as Emperor of a new Galactic Empire who promises peace, justice and security for his galaxy.

We now understand the world we are introduced to in the original Star Wars film. The clone army becomes the ruthless stormtrooper corps. The virtual extinction of the Jedi Order leaves them a scattered tribe of hermits, biding their time. But most of all we see the one-time hero of the galaxy fall so far that he becomes utterly unrecognizable.

Yet he is all too familiar. The strapping young hero, now burnt and broken, becomes the mechanical soldier in black who is perhaps the most iconic villain in cinema history. Revenge of the Sith is above all things, the terrible birth of Darth Vader.

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