The prequel trilogy ended in 2005 with the release of 2005’s Revenge of the Sith, which finally showed the fanbase how Darth Vader came to be, and how the Republic turned into the Empire. Though the trilogy itself had mixed reception from fans at best, they all agree that Revenge of the Sith is one of the best Star Wars movies made, and, by default, the best one of the prequels. It still holds the title of one of the best entries in the series today, and that is saying something, considering how many Star Wars movies we have now, and how long ago it was released. One of the many questions that came from the movie (raised by fans) is whether Mace Windu defeated Palpatine when they faced off against each other in Revenge of the Sith, after the Jedi discovered who Palpatine really was and set out to arrest him. This article will look into the fight and the story in order to shed some light on whether the defeat was genuine or not.
After spending a lot more time with the Chancellor of the Republic, Anakin came to find out the horrible truth behind the man who was governing the Republic: he was the one who orchestrated everything from the start and was leading both sides of the galaxy-spanning war! He reported this discovery to Mace Windu, a high ranking member of the Jedi High Council, and proposed to be part of the team that would go to arrest the Chancellor. Mace told Anakin to stay at the Temple and wait for him to return, as Anakin had a raging storm of emotions within him. Anakin stayed behind as he was told, but could not contain himself much longer because the fear of losing possibly the only person who could have saved his wife from death was about to be put away. It was made worse because apparently (this is up for debate) Palpatine communicated to him through the Force and told him that if they arrest him, there would be no way to save her. Anakin, having the severe attachment issues he was known for, would not let that stand, and whether it was just his imagination or really Palpatine speaking to him in his mind, it got the better of him and he decided to run off to see just what would happen. He got to the office and saw Mace standing over Palpatine, with the window destroyed and Jedi corpses.
But what happened? How did it get to that point? Mace showed up with three other Jedi: Saessee Tiin, Kit Fisto and Agen Kolar, and they were ready to take Palpatine in with minimal resistance at worse. They were all caught by surprise and three of them were killed in ten seconds, leaving only Windu to fight for his life. Although the Sith Lord displayed a lot of skill in lightsaber arts, managing to kill three masters in seconds, he was dominated by the Jedi master and his swordsmanship. They fought all over the office until Mace disarmed Palpatine and left him crawling away, just in time for Anakin to see them. Palpatine then attempted to blast Windu with Force lightning but Windu deflected it back at Palpatine, deforming him. He then insisted on having to kill Palpatine, and Anakin refused. In the confusion, Anakin made his choice and defended by severing Windu’s hand. Palpatine then proceeded to kill Windu with Force lightning. Mace Windu definitely died from that.
So, did Mace Windu win that fight? George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars himself, said that Mace won that fight fair and square. But, for the sake of argument, let us look at the things the fanbase, says against that.
Palpatine is a Master Manipulator
Palpatine is the architect of the war between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. He ruled the CIS from the shadows and the Republic in his disguise as the benevolent Chancellor Sheev Palpatine. Through his machinations, he managed to plunge the Republic into a war that consumed it for more than 20 years, starting off with the Clone War, which then became something of a cold war, which was prepping up the Civil War which would be between the Rebellion and the Empire. He had planned so many of the events out in his rise to power that it is unthinkable that he would not account for a fight between himself and Mace Windu, who was keeping a close eye on the Senate, even during the war. Fans do not believe that he would lose, given all the careful planning he had made that managed to get him that far. It would make Anakin’s betrayal seem more like a lucky coincidence rather than something he had laid out.
Palpatine is a Master Duelist
According to lore enthusiasts, there are seven forms of lightsaber combat. All forms have different strengths and weaknesses, and often reflect the user’s personality. Anakin’s lightsaber form was an aggressive form, used to overwhelm enemies with a flurry of attacks that will weaken their defenses over time. It helped that he was extremely powerful already, so him tiring would not be something his enemies could count on. Obi-Wan’s form was defensive, and often worked to tire out his opponent’s, showing the calm, defensive position he holds in his life. Windu had a particularly special fighting style, as he was the only one in the Jedi Order who used it. His style was one that channeled the dark side but did not consume the user. It was called vapaad. Palpatine apparently knew all seven forms of combat, which is an impressive feat, since the Jedi mostly only learned one, but learned the basics of all the others from the combat instructor Cin Drallig. Having mastered all seven forms, fans do not believe that it was possible that Windu could defeat him, seeing as he only knew one, and Palpatine was levels above him in terms of raw force power.
The Fighting Space
This is a bizarre one, but fans often use this when arguing, stating that the space in the office is too small for Palpatine to truly showcase his power, so there is no way that he lost to Windu…at least conclusively. Palpatine has been shown to have unbelievable power that could level the entire building, but could not use it if his plan were to work, and so fans say that due to his limitations, he could not fight to his full potential, and so, lost to Windu, which cannot count as a true defeat.
Counterarguments
Palpatine may be a master manipulator, and managed to get things to the point that he did, but he was still dependent on luck and on Anakin. Anakin was the key to everything. He was the one who would decide the fate of the galaxy, as a child of prophecy, whether Palpatine saw it that way or not. No matter how much manipulation Palpatine concocted, had Anakin not intervened when he did, Palpatine would have been killed. There was no way out of the situation he was in if Anakin did not act, meaning that Windu did, in fact, beat him.
Palpatine’s mastery over all the lightsaber combat forms may have helped him kill three Jedi Masters in seconds, but it was not enough to content with Mace Windu. They fought throughout the office, and one could clearly see that Palpatine was struggling against Windu. The struggle increased as the fight went on, and Palpatine was constantly being driven back by Windu’s continuous attacks until he was finally disarmed. If it was Palpatine pulling the strings and maintaining control over the situation, it would have been made clearer to the audience than something that just happened to take place with a lot of good timing and coincidence, like Anakin walking in right as he was disarmed. He would not have had to kill the three other council members who came with Windu if he wanted to show himself as truly helpless in front of Anakin. By all means, he showed just how menacing he was, and had to depend on luck, not skill to survive the encounter. He could not beat Windu through combat so he chose another method.
The argument about the fighting space is flawed as well, in the sense that it does not hold any ground when talking about the ability to defeat somebody in a fight. Fans argue that with Yoda, Palpatine had all the space he needed in order to defeat him, which he did. That is something they say, but it is false. Yoda was not defeated by Sidious. Yoda simply realized that there was no winning, and so, decided to retreat. Remember, Yoda was the one on solid ground while Palpatine was struggling to hold on to the Senate pod. Yoda could have ended it right there and then, but chose not to. The confined space in the Senate room was enough for both Palpatine and Windu to showcase their prowess in the Force and their lightsaber skills. They did not need a vast open space in order to do so.
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