Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker has improved Return of the Jedi’s throne room scene by providing additional context for Palpatine’s master plan. The Star Wars sequel trilogy took much inspiration from the original trilogy, utilizing parallels as important storytelling tools while still attempting to take the Skywalker saga in a new direction. Star Wars: The Force Awakens is seen by many as a straightforward retelling of the original Star Wars – now better known as A New Hope. The Rise of Skywalker, however, despite possibly utilizing fan service and nostalgia to the point of overkill, did provide a new perspective for Return of the Jedi’s emotional climax.
When The Rise of Skywalker brought back Palpatine, it was easy to interpret this as an over reliance on the story of the original Star Wars trilogy. The final climactic duels in both Return of The Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker do however share some parallels that provide a more interesting interpretation of Palpatine’s evil plans. While some are obvious, like Rey being the final key to Kylo Ren’s redemption in the same way Luke Skywalker was the catalyst for Darth Vader’s turn, it is Palpatine’s confidence in his adversary’s festering anger in The Rise of Skywalker that provides new depth to his schemes in Return of the Jedi's throne room scene.
