After he broke the Jedi with Order 66, Star Wars’ Emperor Palpatine saw himself as invincible – even when Luke Skywalker joined the Rebellion, Palpatine only saw him as a possible recruit right up until the moment of Darth Vader‘s redemption. Palpatine was so confident in his vision and his ability to turn all darkness to his advantage that he never believed he could be defeated… or so Star Wars had told fans until now. Marvel’s new Inquisitors series has blown away the idea that Palpatine feared no Jedi with two words – Tensu Run.

Marvel’s new series Star Wars: Inquisitors will follow the titular Jedi-hunting team as they attempt to hunt down Tensu Run, a new Order 66 survivor who is working to rebuild the Jedi Order. But Tensu Run isn’t just another doomed hero, with Marvel’s issue summaries asking “why did the Empire so greatly fear his existence?” and “what threat does he pose to the Dark Lord?” A preview of the issue shows the Inquisitors beginning their quest, with orders to hunt down the Jedi who now features at the top of “Darth Vader’s most-wanted list.”

So far, the issue doesn’t give a huge amount of information about Tensu Run, and even the cover art Marvel has released up to issue 3 doesn’t actually show this new “legendary Jedi.” However, the opening narration of the issue makes it clear that Tensu Run represents the ideological continuation of the pre-Order 66 Jedi Order. At the same time, for the Emperor and Vader to fear him, it’s likely he also has something even more concrete for them to worry about – perhaps evidence that the Jedi didn’t actually betray the Republic.

The Empire Genuinely Feared Jedi Tensu Run

Palpatine Saw Other Jedi as Either Inconsequential or Useful, Including Luke Skywalker

During his time as Emperor, Palpatine had many forces arrayed against him. Jedi like Obi-Wan and Yoda were still out in the galaxy, the Rebellion plotted his downfall, and gangsters like the Crimson Dawn undermined his rule. However, Palpatine never actually feared any of them. Palpatine felt contempt for every other being in the galaxy (as he spelled out in Darth Vader Vol. 2 #8 by Charles Soule and Giuseppe Camuncoli), however he also believed that as the supreme Sith, all acts connected to the Dark Side eventually benefited him. As spelled out in the recent Star Wars: Darth Vader #40 (by Greg Pak and Raffaele Ienco), Palpatine grew stronger the more people hated and feared him, claiming, “The more you hate me… the more any of them hate me… the stronger I become.” Indeed, one of Palpatine’s biggest concerns post-Order 66 was that the galaxy contained so few worthy opponents, warning Vader it could be “deadening” to their skill as Sith.

Ultimately, Palpatine was right – each time he was defeated (in the Original Trilogy and Sequels) it was because of an act done out of love and sacrifice. In contrast, violence done in anger towards him always ended up strengthening his hand, explaining why even after Darth Vader’s many personal rebellions against him, Palpatine never actually feared his apprentice – Vader could only hurt Palpatine out of love for Luke, not hatred for his master. Likewise, Palpatine only saw Luke as a resource – someone he would either recruit as Vader’s replacement or kill to crush the Rebellion’s hope.

The fact that the Empire fears Tensu Run so deeply, with Darth Vader and the Inquisitors tasked to hunt him down, is a fascinating look at an individual who seemingly broke the rules of Palpatine’s superiority, being seen as a true threat rather than a rogue element to eliminate from the galaxy as a matter of course. It will be fascinating to see how Star Wars: Inquisitors creates a Jedi worthy of Palpatine and Darth Vader‘s fear, as well as what Tensu Run did (or will do) to earn this rare ‘honor.’

Star Wars: Inquisitors #1 is coming July 3 from Marvel Comics.