History ComicBook / DarkEmpire

A series of ''StarWarsExpandedUniverse'' comic books (''Dark Empire'', ''Dark Empire II'' and ''Empire's End'' -- collectively called [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Dark_Empire Dark Empire]]) released between 1991 and 1997. It was also made into an [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Dark_Empire:_The_Collector%27s_Edition audio drama,]] which had a somewhat modified script. A sample can be heard [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_ARzFT6P9I here.]]

* EvilIsNotAToy: The Jedi hologram warns Luke against his idea of joining the Dark Side to defeat it, saying Jedi had tried that in the past but all perished. Luke doesn't listen, though he does manage to survive.

* AttackItsWeakPoint: Averted; the Galaxy Gun has no real weaknesses whatsoever, and the heroes have to resort to ramming it with Palpatine's hijacked Star Destroyer in order to disable it.

* SanitySlippage: Palpatine was first shown to have some degree of self restraint after his first death. Upon his third return, however, he immediately uses the Galaxy Gun to wipe out various worlds rather than fortify his gains. The Essential Atlas released years later even lampshades it by having Crix Q5 stating that his madness deepened due to having to return from the dead a third time.

* TakingTheBullet: Variation: [[spoiler:After Palpatine was shot by Han Solo, his spirit did a last ditch effort to possess Anakin Solo. However, Empatajayos Brand intercepted the spirit and had it possess him so Anakin was spared, and then died from the injuries Palpatine earlier unleashed on him, taking Palpatine with him.]]

* CloneDegeneration: Palpatine's clones have progressively shorter lifespans due to them being less and less natural, and thus not as resistant to the corrosive effects of his Dark Side powers.
* CloningBlues: During his time as the Emperor's apprentice, Luke lets himself get cloned twice. Instead of another [[EvilKnockoff Luuke]], he's given a pair of immensely strong mutated bodyguards, who are left behind to die when Leia rescues him. At least Luuke got a ''name''.
* CloningGambit: Sort of. It's the same Emperor {{Body Surf}}ing from one clone body to the next, and the same Emperor who died on the second Death Star.

* EvilRedhead: At least one of Palpatine's clones sported red hair.

* FromASingleCell: See CloningGambit

* HighCollarOfDoom: Palpatine 3.0

** Though in the EU, it's well established that the Empire [[PropagandaMachine blamed Alderaan's destruction on the Rebels]] ...

* TheMole: Luke. Oddly, TheEmpire sees nothing strange about taking orders from Lord Skywalker, who is, essentially, a [[JustForPun Darth Mole]].

* PowerCreepPowerSeep: The battlefleet-destroying Force Storms that Palpatine never had before. Palpatine is so absurdly powerful in this series that many fans call him [[FanNickname "Wankatine".]]
** It's hinted that this power was actually the result of his returning from the dead, so its more of a case of "MyDeathIsOnlyTheBeginning". The fact that he was also extremely powerful even before his death and revival, which was implied in ''Literature/DarthPlagueis'' to be due to his being literally conceived by the Dark Side of the Force might also have been a contributing factor as well.

* TitleDrop: The name of Palpatine's faction is the exact same as the title of the overall series as well as the first two parts of the three part series. Unlike most examples, though, the Empire in question was never given a specific name until several years later, when the events of the series were covered in the Essential Atlas. Something similar would exist with the sequel series, Crimson Empire (not to be confused with the [[CrimsonEmpire unrelated video game]] of the same name).

Six years after the Battle of Endor -- that's one year after [[TheThrawnTrilogy Grand Admiral Thrawn's return]], retaking of much of the Empire, and death -- Luke hears rumors of a new Emperor taking the reins. Enter Palpatine, having drifted his way to a clone body in a hidden place at the center of the galaxy. And boy, does he have a revenge plan. It involves turning Luke Skywalker to the Dark Side, {{Body Surf}}ing from clone to clone in order to be immortal, using a planet-destroying gun, sending out machines called World Devastators to chew up the Mon Calamari homeworld, and [[TakeOverTheWorld enslaving the universe]]. He's been plotting to enslave the universe since he was smacking other babies with his rattle, so of course he's not finding new goals now.

* ShoutOut: The Galaxy Gun's stance as a superweapon capable of firing missiles for an exceedingly long distance is basically the sci-fi version of the (never finished) [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-3_cannon Vergeltungswaffe 3 cannon]], a cannon that was under development in Nazi Germany-controlled Poland that was capable of firing intercontinental missiles. It was planned to bombard London from two bunkers in the Pas-de-Calais region in then-Nazi Germany-controlled France during WorldWarII.

* BlondGuysAreEvil: Palpatine's younger clone bears a strong resemblence to ''Blade Runner'''s Roy Batty, and he's about as stable to boot.
** EvilRedhead: At least one of Palpatine's clones sported red hair.

Six years after the Battle of Endor -- that's one year after [[TheThrawnTrilogy Grand Admiral Thrawn's return]], retaking of much of the Empire, and death -- Luke hears rumors of a new Emperor taking the reigns. Enter Palpatine, having drifted his way to a clone body in a hidden place at the center of the galaxy. And boy, does he have a revenge plan. It involves turning Luke Skywalker to the Dark Side, {{Body Surf}}ing from clone to clone in order to be immortal, using a planet-destroying gun, sending out machines called World Devastators to chew up the Mon Calamari homeworld, and [[TakeOverTheWorld enslaving the universe]]. He's been plotting to enslave the universe since he was smacking other babies with his rattle, so of course he's not finding new goals now.

A series of ''StarWarsExpandedUniverse'' comic books (''Dark Empire'', ''Dark Empire II'' and ''Empire's End'' -- collectively called [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Dark_Empire Dark Empire]]) released between 1991 and 1997. It was also made into an [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Dark_Empire:_The_Collector%27s_Edition audio drama]], which had a somewhat modified script. A sample can be heard [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_ARzFT6P9I here]].

Star Wars' EU canon is more internally consistent than most, but this series tends to be [[CanonDiscontinuity ignored fairly often]], mostly due to all the [[ResetButton retrogressive]] things that happened during it. A few things are acknowledged: Han and Leia had a son that they named [[DeadGuyJunior Anakin]], who went on to be pretty important. The first RogueSquadron game, mostly set between the movies, had a final level where the player was Wedge Antilles on Mon Calamari, trying to take down the World Devastators. In the HandOfThrawn duology, the subject of the Emperor's return comes up and Mara Jade - who was his Hand and could hear his instructions from across the galaxy - doubts that this Emperor was really Palpatine. Mara, having gone to the Dark Side herself for a while, also suggests that Luke has been slightly tainted by it ever since. ''LukeSkywalkerAndTheShadowsOfMindor'' has a {{Body Surf}}ing villain think about how Palpatine had a similar plan to his, but involving clones, and since the villain in question was never able-bodied, he's going a [[GrandTheftMe different route]]. Additionally, the E-wing starfighter makes its debut, and in later books and comics would become one of the most common go-to machines when a writer wanted to utilize a fighter other than the four Rebel fighters from the films.

Star Wars' EU canon is more internally consistent than most, but this series tends to be [[CanonDiscontinuity ignored fairly often]], mostly due to all the retrogressive things that happened during it. A few things are acknowledged: Han and Leia had a son that they named [[DeadGuyJunior Anakin]], who went on to be pretty important. The first RogueSquadron game, mostly set between the movies, had a final level where the player was Wedge Antilles on Mon Calamari, trying to take down the World Devastators. In the HandOfThrawn duology, the subject of the Emperor's return comes up and Mara Jade - who was his Hand and could hear his instructions from across the galaxy - doubts that this Emperor was really Palpatine. Mara, having gone to the Dark Side herself for a while, also suggests that Luke has been slightly tainted by it ever since. ''LukeSkywalkerAndTheShadowsOfMindor'' has a {{Body Surf}}ing villain think about how Palpatine had a similar plan to his, but involving clones, and since the villain in question was never able-bodied, he's going a [[GrandTheftMe different route]]. Additionally, the E-wing starfighter makes its debut, and in later books and comics would become one of the most common go-to machines when a writer wanted to utilize a fighter other than the four Rebel fighters from the films.

* ExecutiveMeddling[=/=]OrwellianRetcon: The series was originally supposed to take place immediately after the events of ''ReturnOfTheJedi'', as that would pick up where the Marvel Comics left off. However, Timothy Zahn, when writing the Thrawn Trilogy, was asked to put in references to Dark Empire since the trilogy was planned to take place afterward, but he refused. Because of this, they had to move it, and even rewrite various panels to omit any references to the original placement as a result.

* FanNickname:
** "Wankatine" for the overpowered Palpatine featured in this series.
** "Bowie-peror" for young clone Palpatine's resemblence to {{David Bowie}}.

* HeyItsThatVoice: The audio dramas have John Cygan, who voices Canderous in KnightsOfTheOldRepublic and [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty Solidus Snake]], voicing [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/File:LukeToNist.ogg Luke]], Wedge, ''and'' random minor villains.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: It was originally intended that, instead of reviving Palpatine as a clone, the storyline would have involved the Empire hiring someone to wear a replica of Vader's suit to keep fear in the galaxy, but Lucas vetoed that option.
** Also, the series was originally intended to take place immediately after the events of ''ReturnOfTheJedi'', but some squabbles changed that. See ExecutiveMeddling[=/=]OrwellianRetcon.

* SanitySlippage: Palpatine was first shown to have some degree of self restraint after his first death. Upon his third return, however, he immediately uses the Galaxy Gun to wipe out various worlds rather than fortify his gains. The Essential Atlas released years later even mentions it by having Crix Q5 stating that his madness deepened due to having to return from the dead a third time.

* SanitySlippage: Palpatine was first shown to have some degree of self restraint after his first death. Upon his third return, however, he immediately uses the Galaxy Gun to wipe out various worlds rather than fortify his gains. The Essential Atlas released years later even lampshades it by having Crix Q5 stating that his madness deepened due to having to return from the dead a third time.

* {{Mordor}}: Byss. In a sick twist, many of its denizens are displaced people from Alderaan.

* PapaWolf: Han.

* TakingTheBullet: Variation: [[spoiler:After Palpatine was shot by Han Solo, his spirit did a last ditch effort to possess Anakin Solo. However, Emphajaros Brand intercepted the spirit and had it possess him so Anakin was spared, and then died from the injuries Palpatine earlier unleashed on him, taking Palpatine with him.]]

* PopularityPolynomial: At the time it came out it was extremely popular, with even Creator/GeorgeLucas himself saying that it was his favorite ''Star Wars'' comic (and apparently remained so for several years). A decade later, it was widely regarded as absolute garbage, and admitting to liking it was seen as pretty much akin to saying that Han shooting first was a great idea. Nowadays, while it hasn't exactly swung back to being universally beloved, it tends to be regarded as, if nothing else, a decently entertaining story that at least doesn't suffer the[[AuthorFilibuster Author Filibustering]] that more recent ''Star Wars'' works tend to suffer from.

However, with the release of the prequel trilogy, Palpatine's resurrection through cloning is made much more in-character to the point that it almost seems like a CallForward. He apparently never discovered the secret of eternal life, but settled for a clones instead.

* PopularityPolynomial: At the time it came out it was extremely popular, with even Creator/GeorgeLucas himself saying that it was his favorite ''Star Wars'' comic (and apparently remained so for several years). A decade later, it was widely regarded as absolute garbage, and admitting to liking it was seen as pretty much akin to saying that Han shooting first was a great idea. Nowadays, while it hasn't exactly swung back to being universally beloved, it tends to be regarded as, if nothing else, a decently entertaining story that at least doesn't suffer the CharacterDerailment and [[AuthorFilibuster Author Filibustering]] that more recent ''Star Wars'' works tend to suffer from.

* PregnantBadass: Leia. Possibly even more than she was during her first pregnancy.

[[quoteright:334:[[DarkEmpire http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/DarthLuke.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:334: Darth Luke and "the Emperor had clones!"]]