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What Has Star Wars Canon Done To Darth Tenebrous, Darth Plagueis’ Sith Master?

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This article contains spoilers for The Acolyte finale.


Summary

  • The Acolyte finale features Darth Plagueis, raising questions about his own master, Darth Tenebrous.
  • Darth Tenebrous is an established character in Star Wars canon known for his scientific prowess and ship designs.
  • The Acolyte leaves the Rule of Two in question, perhaps hinting that the Stranger may be Darth Tenebrous’ apprentice, Darth Venamis.


The Acolyte finale featured an unexpected cameo from Darth Plagueis, raising the question of what’s happened to his own Sith Master in Star Wars canon – Darth Tenebrous. For a thousand years, the Jedi believed the Sith had been rendered extinct. In reality, they were reformed under Darth Bane, who established the Rule of Two as a way to keep their numbers and in-fighting in check. Working in the galaxy’s shadows, the Sith began manipulating events to their benefit, encouraging the ultimate downfall of the Jedi and the Republic.

The Acolyte is set a century before the culmination of the Sith plan, and it has seen the first shadows of the Sith encroaching across the galaxy. The end of The Acolyte featured a tantalizing glimpse of what was identifiable as Darth Plagueis, the being who would ultimately become the mentor of Palpatine himself. But what does that mean for Darth Plagueis’ own master, Darth Tenebrous, in Star Wars canon?



Darth Tenebrous Is An Established Character In Star Wars Canon

Darth Tenebrous wielding red Force lighting in Star Wars

Created in Star Wars Legends, Darth Tenebrous was a male Bith who served as Sith Lord for more than a century. A scientific mastermind, he was celebrated across the galaxy as the starship designer Rugess Nome, and he was personally responsible for designing many ships the Sith and the Empire would go on to use. Tenebrous was trained by an unnamed Twi’lek Sith Lord, who he eventually killed in accordance with the Rule of Two.


In Legends, Darth Tenebrous toyed with multiple apprentices: Darth Plagueis and Darth Venamis, who became rivals seeking to claim the line of succession in the Sith. Tenebrous himself was ultimately killed by Plagueis, although he attempted to preserve his consciousness as a retrovirus in Plagueis’ own bloodstream – a form of the Force power known as essence transfer, given a scientific twist. His attempt was unsuccessful, and he found himself trapped forever experiencing the moment of his own death.

Little is known of Darth Tenebrous in Star Wars canon, although he has been name-dropped in a handful of obscure sources. The most intriguing detail was in a fact-file in Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon #44, which revealed that in canon he was responsible for designing Darth Maul’s Sith Interceptor. This implies Darth Tenebrous’ canon and Legends stories are markedly similar.

Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae) and Mae Aniseya (Amandla Stenberg) in The Acolyte

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Has The Acolyte Changed Darth Tenebrous’ Sith Lord Backstory?

The Acolyte has left things very much up in the air as regards the Rule of Two. It’s unclear where the Sith Lord known only as the Stranger fits in to the Baneite line, but he’s clearly a contemporary of Darth Plagueis, given the unexpected Plagueis cameo. It’s possible the Stranger is the canon version of Darth Venamis, and that he and Plagueis are rivals who were both trained by Tenebrous. Alternatively, the Stranger may not be of the line of Bane at all, but rather could have drawn the attention of Plagueis due to his actions.


It’s important to note that not all alien races in Star Wars have the same lifespans as humans, and that canonically neither Bith like Tenebrous or Muun like Plagueis have an established lifespan. Meanwhile, some dark siders are able to use the Force to unnaturally extend their lifespans, an ability that Plagueis is mentioned as possessing in James Luceno’s novel Catalyst. Even in Legends, Tenebrous was supposed to be killed sometime between 167 BBY and 124 BBY – which fits perfectly with Plagueis’ appearance in The Acolyte. Remarkably, The Acolyte may well have perfectly preserved Tenebrous’ timeline.

The timeline really does make it seem highly likely that the Stranger is in fact Darth Tenebrous’ other apprentice, Darth Venamis. If this is the case, The Acolyte season 2 will presumably show Darth Tenebrous and Darth Plagueis going head-to-head in the end, and Osha will be the prize; her creation is clearly linked to the power Plagueis sought, to coax the midi-chlorians into creating life, and The Acolyte showrunner Leslye Headland has confirmed she’s figured out how all this ties together. It remains to be seen whether The Acolyte will be renewed, giving us a chance to see this story play out.




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