Bringing back the Emperor in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was a controversial decision. Some Star Wars fans hated that Palpatine was back from the dead, while others thought it was in keeping with the general ethos of Star Wars. Whatever the case, the Sith Lord's return has offered Star Wars writers some prime material to play around with as they delve into explaining how the Emperor returned.
Already, we've seen various Star wars books reference the Emperor cloning himself. With the ongoing Darth Vader comics from Marvel, though, we may get some more explanation.
Speaking at Comic-Con 2020, Greg Pak – who serves as writer of the ongoing Darth Vader comic – teased that the new series, which takes place between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, will tie into The Rise of Skywalker "in a huge way."
"I'll just say that at the end of our first arc, Vader claims to have settled all of his previous business," he said. "But the Emperor knows better. Vader is going to suffer a terrible punishment and undertake a new journey/quest and there are key elements that will tie into Episode 9 in a huge way."
The first two issues of the new Darth Vader run have seen Vader deal with meeting Sabé, Padme's former handmaiden, and coming to terms with his own loss. How exactly this will end up playing into Episode 9 is unknown – perhaps a trip to Exegol? We'll have to wait and see. The third part in this six-issue arc of Marvel's ongoing Darth Vader comic book series on sale July 29.
For more SDCC news, check out our summary of everything announced at Comic-Con right here.
