Star Wars is well-known for its retcons, but not every retcon in the franchise’s nearly five decades has been a success. Star Wars movies and TV shows have made shocking (and at times sudden) changes from the very beginning. In fact, the original trilogy had some of the biggest retcons in the entire franchise, and Star Wars came to be defined by its shocking twists, particularly those in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
With time, however, retcons have become a sore point in Star Wars. Increasingly, it seems, retcons are being met with intense backlash and criticism, and the notion of what truly constitutes Star Wars canon has become quite contentious. Admittedly, some retcons have been better than others, although few have been as abysmal as they’re framed to be. Of all the retcons throughout the Star Wars timeline, here are the 5 worst and the 5 best, ranked worst to best.
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10 Bringing Palpatine Back To Life Was A Major Misstep
The Sequels Struggled To Identify A Villain
Undoubtedly, the single worst retcon in Star Wars has been the thinly-explained return of Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which continues to be heavily criticized nearly five years after the movie debuted. It’s well-known that the sequels are highly controversial, with many still considering them to be among Star Wars’ worst movies. However, the sequels put forth many fascinating concepts, such as the Force Dyad, and it introduced some truly incredible Star Wars characters.
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Even so, the constant exchange of control over the sequel trilogy movies, changing hands from J.J. Abrams to Rian Johnson to J.J. Abrams once again, left some gaps that needed to be filled, one of them being the trilogy’s main villain. Star Wars: The Last Jedi saw Kylo Ren kill his master, Snoke, and while many believed that would mean Kylo Ren taking up the top spot, The Rise of Skywalker took a sharp left turn and brought back a tried-and-true villain. A major part of the problem, however, was that the explanation was non-existent other than, “Somehow, Palpatine returned.”
9 Rey’s ‘Nobody’ Origins Would Have Been Much Truer To Star Wars
The Last Jedi Gave Rey A Much More Compelling Background
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Coinciding with Palpatine’s shocking return was the reversal of Rey’s origins. In The Last Jedi, Kylo Ren told Rey that her parents had been nothing more than filthy junk traders who had sold her for drinking money. While this was bleak, to say the least, this backstory for Rey reinforced the original message of Star Wars. By making Rey a supposed ‘nobody,’ The Last Jedi reminded audiences that heroes can come from anywhere, and they need not be related to one of Star Wars’ most powerful Jedi to be important.
By making Rey a supposed ‘nobody,’
The Last Jedi
reminded audiences that heroes can come from anywhere.
Unfortunately, though, The Rise of Skywalker completely undid this storyline, instead revealing that Rey was a descendant of Palpatine. Specifically, Rey’s father, Dathan, had been a clone of Palpatine who was cast aside because he didn’t possess the Force. In the end, Rey ended up rejecting the name and the lineage entirely, instead adopting the last name Skywalker (which also proved controversial).
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8 Padmé Died Immediately After Giving Birth…But She Didn’t Have To
Padmé’s Death Was A True Disservice To The Character
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One of the most frustrating retcons in Star Wars is also one of the most frustrating plot points in the franchise in general. Specifically, Padmé Amidala’s death in Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith was not only a major disservice to the character but also a bewildering retcon. In Return of the Jedi, Leia indicated that she remembered aspects of her mother, such as her beauty and her kindness. This suggested that Leia had lived with her mother for a time, which George Lucas had even considered at the end of Revenge of the Sith.
Instead, Padmé’s death was a confusing disappointment, wherein she seemingly just lost the will to live. Given all Padmé had accomplished, and the character she had always been, this was truly a shock and, arguably, a betrayal of the character. Oddly, it was a choice that the prequels didn’t have to make at all. While the movies were constrained in some ways by the original trilogy, Padmé’s death hadn’t been defined. Nevertheless, Star Wars settled on a retcon that robbed Padmé of a better end.
7 Mara Jade Was Removed From Star Wars Canon
One Of Star Wars’ Best Jedi Is No Longer Canon
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When Disney bought Star Wars, many concepts, characters, and stories became part of Legends, meaning they were no longer part of the Star Wars canon. Sadly, this included one of the most brilliant Jedi in the franchise: Mara Jade. In Legends, Mara Jade was one of the Emperor’s Hands, Palpatine’s personal assassins. However, she ultimately met and married Luke Skwyalker, joining the light side of the Force and becoming a Jedi Master in his Temple.
It seems Star Wars decided to take Luke’s story in a very different direction in the era following Return of the Jedi, however, as the sequels revealed that Luke had established a Jedi Temple of his own, but it had fallen along with Ben Solo/Kylo Ren’s fall to the dark side. Indeed, not only had Luke never married (instead upholding the Jedi rule against attachments), but also, he had gone into exile, believing the Jedi to be too flawed to continue. Sadly, it seems unlikely that Mara Jade could ever become canon, given this story arc for Luke.
6 Midi-Chlorians Remain Rather Unpopular (And Confusing)
Many Felt George Lucas Made The Force Too Scientific
Rounding out the list of worst retcons is the introduction of midi-chlorians in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. In truth, the function of midi-chlorians has changed multiple times in Star Wars. In The Phantom Menace, they seemed to be a direct measurement of one’s Force-sensitivity. However, over time, the franchise shifted this definition to instead be a measure of one’s potential in the Force. Most recently, though, The Acolyte seemingly followed the original definition, indicating that midi-chlorian count reflected Force-sensitivity.
In either case, though, the complaint remained largely the same. Many found the notion of midi-chlorians to be too scientific, particularly as it was introduced so soon after the original trilogy, when so much of the Jedi and the Force had seemed so mythical. Perhaps for this reason, midi-chlorians have appeared and disappeared throughout Star Wars movies and TV shows over the years; it seems the franchise may not know quite what to do with them.
5 The Inhibitor Chips Made Order 66 Much Easier To Swallow
Star Wars: The Clone Wars Lessened The Blow Of The Clones’ Betrayal
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Star Wars: The Clone Wars did a considerable amount of work to flesh out the prequel trilogy era, specifically between Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. A major component of this show was the clones themselves, which painfully revealed in even greater detail how close the clone troopers and the Jedi they worked and fought alongside had become. However, The Clone Wars also made Order 66 significantly more tolerable in one key way.
Thankfully, The Clone Wars revealed that the clones had been created with inhibitor chips that forced them to carry out Order 66 against their will. While the massacre was still brutal and bloody, there was something almost relieving about knowing that the clones hadn’t truly wanted to betray the Jedi. In a way, this made Order 66 much more horrific for the clones themselves, but it also made clear that they hadn’t truly betrayed the Jedi after all.
4 Giving Anakin Skywalker A Padawan Was Brilliant
Ahsoka Tano Has Been An Incredible Addition To Star Wars
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Yet another incredible addition from The Clone Wars was Anakin Skywalker’s Jedi Padawan, Ahsoka Tano. Initially, audiences were not all that welcoming to Ahsoka, as there had been no mention of Anakin having a Padawan in the prequel trilogy. Nevertheless, Ahsoka has (rightfully) gained significant popularity in the franchise, and she is now seen as one of Star Wars’ best characters. In fact, Ahsoka has even made the impressive jump from animation to live-action, most recently appearing as the lead in her own show, Ahsoka.
Ahsoka is easily one of the best examples of how brilliantly a retcon can work in
Star Wars
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Ahsoka is easily one of the best examples of how brilliantly a retcon can work in Star Wars. While there was plenty of backlash at the time, Ahsoka’s introduction to Star Wars ended up being absolutely critical. Not only did her story help explain so much more about Anakin and his turn to the dark side, but also, Ahsoka has now become a key character in the New Republic era, the period in the timeline several current and upcoming Star Wars shows and movies are set.
3 Obi-Wan Kenobi And Leia Organa’s Backstory Was Wonderful To See
The Obi-Wan Kenobi Show Perfectly Bridged The Prequels And The Original Trilogy
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Although audiences were divided about the Obi-Wan Kenobi show, the storyline between Obi-Wan Kenobi and young Princess Leia was absolute gold. In fact, this retcon was a very logical way to address a lingering question from A New Hope. Leia famously sent her distress signal to Obi-Wan in the first Star Wars movie, and while her message mentioned that Obi-Wan had fought with Bail Organa in the Clone Wars, this seemed like a major gamble, even after the added context from the Star Wars prequel trilogy.
However, Obi-Wan Kenobi revealed why Leia would really have so much faith in Obi-Wan. Rather than the connection between Obi-Wan and Bail Organa from the Clone Wars (although that was still part of it), Obi-Wan Kenobi showed that Leia and Obi-Wan had gotten to know one another very well around 10 years before A New Hope, when Obi-Wan rescued Leia from being kidnapped. More than that, Obi-Wan Kenobi revealed what a precious bond they really had formed, with Obi-Wan even telling Leia a bit about her biological parents.
2 The Luke And Leia Sibling Twist Was Awkward… But So Worth It
Luke And Leia’s Kiss Complicated Things, But This Retcon Was A Great One
One of the most famous Star Wars retcons took place in Return of the Jedi, when Leia was revealed to be Luke Skywalker’s sister. While this would have been a shocking twist in any case, it was particularly uncomfortable in the context of the original trilogy, as Luke and Leia had previously been framed as a possible romantic couple. In fact, not only had the two kissed in The Empire Strikes Back, but also, Star Wars composer John Williams even admitted he had thought the two were romantically linked when he was creating music for the original trilogy.
Despite the discomfort, though, this retcon massively paid off. Yes, the very awkward twin kiss has become a long-running joke both within the franchise and in popular culture, but the decision to make Luke and Leia siblings affected so much of Star Wars in the best way. In fact, in some ways, this one retcon defined many of the events of the prequels.
1 Darth Vader Being Luke Skywalker’s Father Was The Perfect Retcon
This Empire Strikes Back Moment Defined Star Wars Forever
Of course, the single most famous retcon in all of Star Wars was the shocking and brilliant Empire Strikes Back reveal that Darth Vader was really Luke’s father. In A New Hope, Obi-Wan indicated that Darth Vader had killed Luke’s father, which he later cheekily explained away as being true “from a certain point-of-view.” Nevertheless, the reveal that Vader was really Luke’s father defined the future of Star Wars forever.
In many ways, the prequel trilogy became an exploration of how Darth Vader could have come to be, as someone who was clearly so evil and robotic yet had fathered two very human, compassionate, and extraordinary children. Ultimately, the prequels pulled this off beautifully, solidifying that this retcon was certainly the right choice. In the end, of all the Star Wars retcons, there’s simply none that can top the reveal that Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker’s father.
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