Star Wars boasts some of the most dynamic, interesting, and beloved sci-fi characters of all time.
Fans of the series will be hard pressed to forget any of the fantastic moments in the original movie trilogy, and, though things may have gotten a little out of hand in Lucas’ prequels, it’s still fair to say that the property’s lovable characters are a huge part of what makes this at times outlandish space opera so great.
That said, Star Wars has also put forth some of the most commanding and compelling villains in cinematic history.
Darth Vader and Darth Sidious have are ranked among the most famous domineering forces in all of pop culture, and their vicious mugs have adorned many a poster, lunchbox, and desktop screen since their introduction in 1977.
As cool as the Sith may at times be, however, there is a fair bit of lore surrounding them that doesn’t make much sense.
Viewers and readers eager to suspend their disbelief may not take issue with such trivial quirks, but the likes of Emperor Palpatine, Darth Vader, Darth Maul, and many other so-called Dark Lords have fouled in some pretty ridiculous ways.
They claim to be an all-powerful force capable of taking total control of the galaxy, but their actions often don’t make much sense.
The Force may work in mysterious ways, which non-s can’t quite comprehend, but that doesn’t mean that the weird actions of the Sith should be totally excused as mystic manipulation.
With that said, here are the 20 Things About The Sith In Star Wars That Make No Sense.
Darth Maul Is Denied by the Emperor
Darth Sidious took many apprentices before settling on an edgy teen with parental issues turned cyborg, the most interesting and formidable of which was a tattooed Dathomirian known as Darth Maul.
Though he was easily the best thing about The Phantom Menace, his time was, quite literally, cut short.
However, as was revealed to the general viewing populace in Solo: A Star Wars Story, Maul survived his encounter with Qui Gon and Obi Wan and was compensated with a pair of cool robotic legs.
Instead of reitting him, though, Sidious was disgusted by Maul’s failures and pushed him aside.
Because of this, Sidious disowned him in favor of Count Dooku, who was much less intimidating.
They Can Train Much Later Than The Jedi
The Jedi Order was very picky about those it allowed to enter its ranks, and it seemed to be even pickier about the age at which children should be trained.
Qui Gon’s interest in the young Anakin Skywalker was scrutinized relentlessly by the council, and, at the apparently ancient age of nine, he was deemed to be too old to train.
On the opposite end of the Force spectrum, fans learned from the excellent Darth Plagueis novel that Sheev Palpatine only entered Sith tutelage at the age of 17.
It would stand to reason that, despite the philosophical separation, it would still be best to train Force-sensitive beings early, and it makes no sense that Darth Sidious, one of the most powerful Force-wielders to ever live, started training so late in life.
They Nearly Hunted Themselves To Extinction
The ultimate goal of the Sith seems to have constantly been to gain absolute control over the galaxy.
Though nearly accomplished by Darth Sidious centuries after the fall of the Sith order, it’s odd to think that it ever happened at all.
Before the Rule of Two — a decision instated by Sith Lord Darth Bane in an effort to curtail Sith infighting — legions of Sith raught civil strife on their order in an effort to gain personal control.
In fact, things were so bad at one point that the Sith nearly hunted themselves to extinction.
It makes little sense that the Sith would be propped up as such an intimidating force, yet, before Darth Bane came along, they could hardly hold their order together at all.
Darth Sidious' Battle Scars
Darth Sidious was undoubtedly one of the most skilled sentient entities to ever manipulate the Force, and fans have theorized that he used his mastery of all things metaphysical to mask himself from the omniscient senses of the Jedi.
Some believe that part of his deception involved the concealment of his true face, which we see irreversibly revealed during his encounter with Mace Windu in Revenge of the Sith.
However, others speculate that his grizzly mug was the result of his own Force powers having been reflected back at him during that battle.
The true nature of Sidious’ physical form may have been left mysterious on purpose, but most fans would like a little clarity.
Their Names Have Other Meanings... Except Darth Vader's
In keeping with the intimidating, dark nature of the Sith, most of the names of anointed dark side practitioners are menacing and diabolical.
For instance, Darth Sidious is likely meant to be a riff on the word "insidious," Darth Plagueis is a take on the word "plague," and Darth Bane was… well, the "bane" of the Jedi.
However, there is one major exception to this rule: that being Anakin Skywalker’s given title.
Darth Vader doesn’t seem to translate into any particular word, and, though still fearsome in its own right, it apparently doesn’t have any real meaning.
Some fans have pointed out that the world "vader" roughly translates to the word "father’" in some Germanic languages, though that hardly holds as much weight as some other Sith names.
The Rule Of Two Isn't Always Followed
Darth Bane seems to have made it pretty clear that, if the Sith order were to survive, they would have to keep their circle very, very small.
Darth Sidious, for all of his brilliant machinations, seems to have had a hard time sticking to this principle.
He went through a good number of apprentices before finally settling on Vader, whom he eventually tried to replace with the Sith Lord’s own son.
While most believe Darth Maul to have been Sidious’ first apprentice, he actually first mentored Maul’s mother.
However, upon first meeting Maul, Sidious recognized his potential and abandoned Talzin, Maul’s mother, in favor of Maul himself — and we all know what came of that decision.
Kylo Ren Wants To Be Like Darth Vader, But He Isn't A Sith
Despite his ancestry and obvious dark side allegiances, Kylo Ren is not considered to be a Sith.
While not all strong dark side s, strictly speaking, need to be indoctrinated into the cult of the Sith, it makes little sense that Ren would be such a Vader fanboy, and yet not consider himself a Sith.
The reasoning for this deviation likely stems from Snoke’s mysterious past, as, for some reason, he considers himself to be part of a movement entirely separate from the Sith, though he seems happy to command the remnants of the Sith-led Empire.
These antagonists are Sith in all but name, and it begs a further explanation which many hope to see in Episode IX.
Peace is a Lie... Except When It Comes To The Empire
One of the pillars of Sith thought stems from the idea that peace is an impossibility, and dark side devotion and ion are the only true means of life.
However, nobody appears to have told that to the Empire, which frequently claims to be restoring peace and order to the galaxy.
The Sith Code seems to imply that war and turmoil are the natural state of the universe, and it makes no sense that the Sith-directed Empire would strive for total peace and order.
Perhaps this was just a marketing gimmick, though we do have to wonder what Palpatine’s plans were once his enemies had all been vanquished. Perhaps he was going to take up golf.
Only Darth Sidious Can Use Force Lightning
While many of Darth Sidious’ tactics with a lightsaber were a bit questionable (case in point being his downright horrendous twist and shout in Revenge of the Sith), he was quite capable in other, more sinister Sith battle strategies.
Chief among his mastery of the Force was his ability to use Force lightning, which he used to defeat Mace Windu, Yoda, and even Luke Skywalker (though Vader later saved the day in that instance).
If Sidious is so skilled with this technique, why is it that his apprentice, Darth Vader, can’t use it?
None of the movies explain why he isn’t able to shoot lightning from his fingertips like his master, and we can only assume it to be a lingering defect of his life-sustaining armor.
Midichlorians
The Phantom Menace was packed with awful plot points that detracted from the greatness of the original trilogy, but the worst addiction may have been the de-mystifying nature of midichlorians.
As extra cell organelles that allow Jedi to commune with the Force, they provided an answer to questions that no Star Wars fan wanted to be solved.
Worse, Shmi Skywalker, Anakin’s mother, insisted that he was conceived of no father, and Qui Gon Jin took that to mean that he was created by these midichlorians.
This makes no sense at all and begs a better explanation.
There is evidence to suggest that Darth Plagueis conjured Anakin through his powers, though we still aren’t totally sure.
