Star Wars Just Proved Thrawn's Empire Will Be Far More Dangerous Than Palpatine's

Summary Thrawn's return in Tales of the Empire hints at a more dangerous Empire under his leadership than under Palpatine.

Thrawn criticizes Palpatine's power-hungry approach, advocating for a more detail-oriented and sustainable structure for the Empire.

Thrawn's potential success where Palpatine failed could lead to the establishment of a new Empire, setting the stage for a future galactic war in the Star Wars universe.

Star Wars: Tales of the Empire brought back fan-favorite Imperial villain Grand Admiral Thrawn and revealed that his Star Wars Empire will be even more dangerous than Palpatine's. The timeline of Tales of the Empire spans the Clone Wars era to the New Republic Era and focuses on the stories of Nightsister of Dathomir Morgan Elsbeth and ex-Jedi Barriss Offee. Morgan's story specifically saw the return of Thrawn, with Morgan hoping to join the Empire during the Dark Times.

Of the six Tales of the Empire episodes, episode 2, "Path of Anger," in particular focused on Thrawn's sentiments regarding the state of the Empire and Palpatine's handling of it. However, far from loyal or even supportive, Thrawn's attitude toward the current Imperial structure and Palpatine's approach to power was one of sharp criticism. In fact, the very critiques Thrawn had of Palpatine and the Empire reveal that his Empire, presumably impending in upcoming Star Wars TV shows and perhaps even some of Star Wars' upcoming movies will be much more perilous than Palpatine's.

Related Star Wars Brings Back Grand Admiral Thrawn Sooner Than Anyone Expected, Setting Up The Mandalorian Movie The new animated Star Wars series, Tales of the Empire, is bringing back Grand Admiral Thrawn, setting up Dave Filoni's upcoming Mandalorian movie.

Palpatine's Empire Fell Because He Was Too Obsessed With Power

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Palpatine's manipulation of the Republic, the Separatists, and the Jedi and his ability to overthrow all of them to form his Empire are undoubtedly impressive. Moreover, the Empire did survive for nearly two decades under Emperor Palpatine and his Sith apprentice Darth Vader. However, the Empire also had a disastrous end, much of which stemmed from the issues that Palpatine created for himself. In addition to the nature of the Sith making it likely that Vader would eventually attempt to kill Palpatine—as he ultimately did—Palpatine's obsession with more power and total control spelled ruin for the Empire.

Palpatine's obsession with more power and total control spelled ruin for the Empire.

Palpatine made few friends and countless enemies when establishing the Empire and maintaining control and, for unclear reasons, he didn't anticipate the major problems this would create for him and the Empire. Palpatine ruled ruthlessly from the very beginning, kicking off the Galactic Empire with Order 66, a brutal massacre that even killed off the children in the Jedi Order. Planets were then subject to mass oppression, having their resources drained by the Empire and citizens killed for resisting Imperial authority.

Perhaps it was Palpatine's immense power with the dark side and his successes accumulating power thus far that enabled him to enact these brutal policies without concern, but ultimately, it proved to be poor foresight. Interestingly, Thrawn was not unaware of the dangers these choices posed to the longevity of the Empire. Instead, in Tales of the Empire, he called out some of them explicitly, telling Morgan Elsbeth, "Many in the Empire will trade lives for profit. Over time, this will create a weak and disillusioned military. The Empire will slowly crumble."

In the end, Thrawn was right, at least to the extent that the Empire did eventually crumble. While this had plenty to do with Rebel activities outside the ranks of the Empire, there were also clear examples of Imperials who did become disillusioned in that way, such as Agent Kallus in Star Wars Rebels and Tala Durith in Obi-Wan Kenobi. In fact, Imperials willing to help Rebel fighters from the inside were some of the most destructive individuals.

Thrawn's Empire Would Have Been Powerful But Detail-Oriented

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Grand Admiral Thrawn Created By Timothy Zahn Cast Lars Mikkelsen First Appearance Star Wars: Heir to the Empire

Thrawn's opinions of the Empire shared with Morgan Elsbeth reflect that his approach would not have had the same flaws. Instead, he would have been mindful of the issues with creating a structure that prioritized cost-effectiveness and shortsighted gains at the expense of support from people both within and outside the Empire. While this would have required more patience, caution, and balance, it would have helped the Empire become stronger in the long term, thus making it longer lasting.

In fact, Thrawn identified exactly that in the same Tales of the Empire scene. Again speaking to Morgan Elsbeth, he explained, "While many of my colleagues think on a grand scale, they often overlook where problems begin, and they always start small." This was in fact one of the key issues with Palpatine's Empire. Despite growing Rebel sentiments, Palpatine's focus remained on the bigger picture. In fact, he mainly paid attention to efforts such as Project Necromancer, his plan for resurrection, and to his anxieties that Vader may overthrow him. He certainly had none of the patience Thrawn's plan required.

Thrawn Would Have Succeeded Exactly Where Palpatine Failed

Thrawn's commentary on Palpatine's tactics, especially so early on in the Empire's reign, suggests that he could have avoided the many pitfalls that led to the Empire's downfall. This alone would make his Empire all the more dangerous, as it would be more sustainable. In fact, some iteration of that Empire may be impending, as Thrawn re-entered the main Star Wars galaxy in the Ahsoka season 1 finale, intent on breathing new life into the fallen Empire.

While Thrawn's impact on the galaxy will need to be explained, given his absence in the sequel trilogy and there being no mention of his rule, the upcoming Ahsoka season 2 may just see Thrawn establishing an Empire of his own. Perhaps such a move could even exhibit some of these very tactics, which would pose a serious threat to the New Republic. Fascinatingly, this moment between Grand Admiral Thrawn and Morgan Elsbeth in Star Wars: Tales of the Empire may have just laid the groundwork for Star Wars' next galactic war.

Tales of the Empire (2024) Star Wars: Tales of the Empire is an animated follow-up to 2022's Tales of the Jedi. The series focuses on Barriss Offee, a former Jedi, and Morgan Elsbeth as they navigate their separate paths through the Galactic Empire. The series will also see the return of other iconic Star Wars characters such as General Grievous, Ahsoka Tano, Grand Admiral Thrawn, and Darth Vader. Cast Jason Isaacs , Meredith Salenger , Lars Mikkelsen , Rya Kihlstedt , Diana Lee Inosanto , Matthew Wood , Wing T.Chao Release Date May 4, 2024 Seasons 1 Streaming Service(s) Disney+ Franchise(s) Star Wars Writers Dave Filoni Directors Dave Filoni

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