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The defining moment for a true hero
Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom Menace
Writer: George Lucas
Director: George Lucas
Queen Amidala was elected to serve her people, not rule them. So, when she finds herself embroiled in a fruitless political battle in the capital of the Republic and running into a brick wall of bureaucracy and corruption, she makes a character-defining decision that no one would expect the fourteen-year-old queen to make. She goes back home to unite two cultures, fight side by side with them, and, for one moment, outsmart the man at the center of it all. Queen Padmé Amidala Naberrie was her own kind of hero.
Make no mistake, Sheev Palpatine, that corrupt son and Senator of Naboo, was great at keeping himself and his plan a few steps ahead of everyone else. Driven by his quest for power and all things dark side, the man who would one day become the Emperor hatched a pretty effective plan to take over the galaxy. Jedi and politicians alike fell for his deceptions. Palpatine was in control and understandably confident.
When speaking of his queen, Palpatine proclaimed, “Queen Amidala is young and naive. You will find controlling her will not be difficult.” Thus far he had not found any real opposition when it came to carrying out his secret plot to take all the power. Whether it was the gullible heads of the Trade Federation, the beleaguered Republic Chancellor Finis Vallorum, or those oh-so-insightful Jedi, Palpatine was pulling all the strings and pulling them easily.
Then Queen Amidala, already revealed to be a free thinker while on Tatooine disguised as the handmaiden Padmé, arrives on Coruscant and becomes the next pawn in Palpatine’s plan. It works. There is no denying that. He fans the flames of her passion for the well-being of her people, whispers in her ear, and she calls for the vote of no confidence in Vallorum. This paves the way for Palpatine’s ascension.
Yet something is not sitting right with the queen. The promise of politics being for the goodwill of the people has been broken right in front of her. An army of droids has taken over her capital city and the Senate wants more proof. She feels frustrated and unheard. Not just from the Republic Senate, but from the Jedi as well. (Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan didn’t exactly heed all of her advice at the beginning of all this.) As Jar Jar Binks talks of the grand Gungan army hidden beneath the sea ready to proudly fight, the Queen of the Naboo, the people who have long helped fuel the segregation of the Gungans and Naboo, realizes that it is time to unite as one planet. She needs to stop following everyone else’s path. Playing the game with their playbook. She’s ready to break from the troubling history of her culture. She’s ready to be heard. She’s ready to fight. The queen is going to go home to stand with her people.
This is the moment in which Queen Padmé Amidala cements herself as a strong leader. This the through line to Princess Leia and her compassion-filled actions during the Rebellion and leadership during the Resistance. This is the gold standard for heroes in Star Wars. Don’t do what is expected, do what is needed for the good of others.
When she calmly tells Palpatine—chuffed because he is now one step closer to becoming chancellor—that his arena is here and her place is back on Naboo with her people, the well-crafted facade of the secret Sith Lord cracks. Yes, it’s just for a moment, but it does crack. One of the strengths of Palpatine is adapting to wrinkles and obstacles to his plan. He does that until the last wrinkle in what he foresaw sends him falling to his death in Return of the Jedi. So, it does serve him well to have Amidala gone and starting a resistance on her own planet. He definitely smiles like this was meant to be, but for one glorious frame, his eyes tell you otherwise. She may be young, and she might have been naive, but you will have a hard time controlling her. This makes Padmé one of Palpatine’s greatest threats.
The Clone Wars animated series helped to expand the character of Padmé and the rivalry with Palpatine. We get to see her practice what she preached in the halls of the Senate and the fields of battle through greet speeches and brave acts. Season three episodes “Heroes on Both Sides” and “Pursuit of Peace” come to mind as Padmé leads the opposition to the war from within by embracing her Separatist mentor Mina Bonteri, pursuing peace, and delivering the best political speech of the franchise. Once again, she’s taking the path of most resistance, the path outside the normal way of thinking. Once again, she’s foiling Palpatine’s greater plan and making him have to change his direction on the fly. This would reach a fever pitch with her connection and influence on the apprentice he coveted and come to its own tragic conclusion later. However, from the moment she made her own decision to return to Naboo and up until her final pleas to Anakin, Padmé was a powerfully (and dangerously) independent character.
For far too long, Padmé Amidala was overlooked and underrated. By fans, her colleagues, and the villains trying to control her. The focus was, sometimes understandably (this is Star Wars after all), on lightsabers, starfighters, and the chosen heroes promised to bring balance to it all. But, at this moment, Padmé took her rightful place next to them and brought her dedication to diplomacy, democracy, and liberty for all with her. She is a queen and a senator. A wife and mother. A leader and a hero. And Padmé Amidala Naberrie did it all on her own terms.