Emperor Palpatine put the fear in fans of the Star Wars franchise for decades, ever since he appeared as a giant hooded hologram giving orders to who we thought was the scariest villain in the universe (no offence, Lord Vader). And yet, there's something about Ian McDiarmid's cackling, lightning bolt-firing monster that just works. Somehow, Emperor Palpatine still does the job, and a recent discussion on Reddit has led fans to break down why.
The starting argument from a fan was that "The best thing about Palpatine is that he’s a testament that a villain doesn’t need a tragic backstory to be fantastic." Another argued that, "Palpatine is your textbook 'Disney villain.' You don't understand him or sympathize with him. He's not even a fully fleshed-out character, not really. He's just evil. And, it is damn entertaining."
