More often than not in Star Wars, the heroes triumph over the villains in the long run, using heart and hope to the best of their ability to save the Galaxy. The heroes do not win every single time, though, and a big reason for this is the intelligence of some of Star Wars' villains, many of which frequently outsmart the heroes who are no slouches themselves.
From improvised moments of brilliance to long-term plans that lead to domination over the Galaxy, there have been multiple times when Star Wars villains outsmarted the heroes.
Cad Bane Evades The Republic
One of Star Wars' best bounty hunters and a real pain to the Jedi and the Republic during the time of the Clone Wars, Cad Bane may have gotten arrested a couple of times, but he outsmarted the good guys more often than not.
He broke out Ziro the Hutt, stole a Jedi Holocron, and survived various battles with the likes of Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Ahsoka through skill and straight up genius in his craft. It is a testament to not only his talents as a bounty hunter, but how smart he is that he survived into the New Republic era.
The Grand Inquisitor Lures Kanan & Ezra
Star Wars: Rebels did a fantastic job with its main antagonists - even if some of its more minor villains were completely incompetent - and one such example is the Grand Inquisitor, one of the highlights of the show's first season.
He proved himself an intelligent individual in a short time. The best example of him outsmarting the heroes is when he lures Ezra and Kanan into a trap with the use of Luminara Unduli, who had already died. He played on the Jedi need to help and find other survivors and very nearly killed them both as a result.
Maul Lures Obi-Wan To Mandalore
The rivalry between Obi-Wan and Maul made for some of the greatest and most gutwrenching moments in Star Wars history, not least of all the murder of one Duchess Satine Kryze - in front of Obi-Wan no less.
In one of his most personal and sickening plans, Maul counts on Satine calling on the Jedi for help, subsequently luring him to Mandalore for capture and torture. While Obi-Wan escaped in the end, Maul still caused Obi-Wan immense emotional and mental anguish by murdering his love in front of him.
Hyperspace Tracking
There is a lot of one-upsmanship in The Last Jedi, with various individuals making power plays or trying to defeat the enemy however they can. The First Order starts off on the front foot in the film through the use of hyperspace tracking.
The Resistance ship uses most of its fuel jumping through hyperspace, and the First Order simply track them through it and wear them down. Had it not been for some mistakes from the likes of newly appointed Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, the Resistance would have been wiped from the Galaxy thanks to this newfound tech.
Thrawn Figures Out That Kallus Is Fulcrum
Grand Admiral Thrawn is widely regarded as one of the best and smartest villains in Star Wars, and he lives up to that reputation in Rebels. One of his most genius moments is his deducing that it is Kallus who is, in fact, Fulcrum.
What makes this an even better example of outsmarting the heroes out with just figuring out Kallus is Fulcrum, is how Thrawn uses it to his advantage. He keeps Kallus around, in the dark, and uses him to get close to the rebels and figure out their base of operations.
Count Dooku's Role In The Clone Wars
Dooku may well be Star Wars' most underrated villain, and even though he was a pawn of Palpatine, his role in the Clone Wars cannot be ignored. At so many crucial turns he outsmarted the heroes.
Whether it be his role in the creation of the clone army and murder of Syfo Dias or in how he convinced millions he was a diplomatic leader and not a Sith Lord, Dooku had so many fooled. It even took the Jedi a long time to figure out it was he who was the one known as Darth Tyrannus.
Darth Vader In The Empire Strikes Back
One of the many aspects of The Empire Strikes Back that gets continuously praised is how dark it is, and how the villains get the better of the heroes. This is mostly down to Vader, who outsmarts everyone in the end.
Not only does he intercept the rebels at Bespin thanks to his hiring of Boba Fett, but he uses them to lure Luke to the planet, cutting his training short. He never killed Luke or brought him to the dark side, but he did reveal the iconic truth and deal huge blows to the rebellion with his often underrated genius.
Maul Gets Ezra To Lead Him To Obi-Wan
Maul continued to make his case for being the best Star Wars TV villain in Rebels where he ruthlessly and obsessively hunts Obi-Wan, using Ezra Bridger to do so.
Maul basically used the desperation and naivety of the young Jedi to get what he wanted, promising Ezra would find equal value in the secrets of the Holocrons. In reality, Maul got what Maul wanted and found himself face to face with Obi-Wan once more, continuing his long-standing personal vendetta against the Jedi.
Darth Sidious Returns
The return of Palpatine in The Rise of Skywalker has become one of the most criticized and memed moments in Star Wars history, but looking at it from a purely in-world point of view, it further solidifies the genius of Palpatine.
By using various means and contingencies, Palpatine worked from the shadows unbeknownst to the New Republic, and came back, returning from the dead to nearly take over the Galaxy again. It may not have been good writing, but it was fantastic from Sidious.
Palpatine Orchestrates The Clone Wars
Without a doubt the most sweeping and terrifying instance of genius in Star Wars comes when Darth Sidious lays out and puppeteers the Clone Wars, subsequently becoming Emperor of the Galactic Empire and wiping out most of the Jedi.
It is hard not to be utterly impressed at Palpatine. He had everyone fooled, not just the heroes, but his own allies too. From the inhibitor chips to improvising when a small plan fails to hiding in plain sight from the Jedi, everything Sidious does to orchestrate this war is painful to watch, but perhaps the smartest thing any character has done in the canon.
Source:gamerant.com