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apart from the force lightning thing, does anybody think palpatine has a weapon that he uses, i know he's got his walking stick in rotj but i don't quite think that would stand up against a lightsabre? Surely someone taught Maul how to fight and weild his lightsabre(s).

I dont think we'll see him weild his lighsaber but doesnt some EU stuff tell us he has a crimson bladed one? not sure tho.

If palpatine is sidious then he must have lightsaber skills in order to teach maul.

Skills probably yes. But I too doubt that we'll see him use it.

It would be nice to see him use more powers like the mind control trick he used to get Amidala to propose the vote against Valorum. Maybe he's powerful enough to completely circumvent an individuals free-will. Maybe the Clones (if their are any) have been created to be mindless enough to be little more than his pawns and he's controlling them all? Or is that too ST Borg/Hive - I guess so...

That was NOT a mind control trick, DY, that was just old fashioned persuasion.

I think that Palpatine is SO powerfull that he doesn't need a lightsabre, he can fight whithout it: lightning, blinding, ...

He's a user, though. He probably could fight but his tactic always seems to be manipulating those around him and using their powers as his own. Doesn't 'insidious' mean a sort of ability to sneak behind or into something? Like Yoda, I think he should stay out of the fight scenes. No matter how skilled they are, it just doesn't suit them.

As for Maul's training....hmmmmm. Perhaps Maul trained himself, using droids etc.

That's not unlikely. I mean, we never saw Yoda wielding a sabre(YET) and Luke did learn how to use it.

I'm NOT sure I agree with Ushgarak on this one - I mean about Palpatine not using some power above persuasion to get Amidala to vote against Valorum. I think it's also possible that Anakin was manipulating events during the meal table scene in his home on Tatooine. For a Jedi on a mission, Qui-Gon didn't take a great deal of persuasion before getting over-interested in the potential of a young slave boy. But maybe Anakin was unaware - maybe Qui-Gon's reaction to him can be put down to a charisma in overdrive due to Midiclorians.
The way I viewed the film, however, was that just about everyone was subject to manipulation and influence by a power they either couldn't see or that was somehow removed from them.
I'm guessing that as Palpatine appeared as a flickery hologram to Amidala and (in the guise of Sideous) to the Neimoidians, he WAS the Phantom Menace of the title - a removed power influencing events and orchestrating a pincer attack on Naboo by controlling both sides of the conflict from a distance.
Then there's Boss Nass releasing the Jedi and Jar Jar at the beginning of the film under the influence of Gui-Gon's mind trick, the Trade Federation's denial of the attack on Naboo to the Senate, the 'chance cube' being rigged by Qui-Gon during the bet over Anakin's future with Watto, the deception over the Queen's true identity and the double-bluff that lures the federation forces from the throne room in Theed, even the Jedi's decision not to train Anakin because his future is hidden, deception, secrecy, plotting - the whole film is riddled with deception and Machiavellian undertakings. In fact, you could argue that pretty much nothing happens without someone, somewhere, being behind it unbeknownst to the people it effects.
Revealing in EpII that Palpatine and Anakin were both influencing events in EpI would fit with this, explain away some of the plot problems that people perceived with PM, and also illustrate that they are both extremely formidable powers in the Universe.
Or am I taking it all too far?

FAR too far. There was no undue influence at work there, and in any case the Mind trick only works on the weak minded.

Otherwise, Shmi would be free and not a slave.

its not just the strong minded it doesn't work with, look at Watto, didn't work with him, "only money". how can an 11 year old boy who knows nothing of greed know a quite complex Jedi trick and with all of those Jedi on Corruscant how can Palpatine start using mind tricks when OB1 could sense something elusive all the way in Naboo.

I think Obi_wan Trained Luke to use a lightsaber early, I mean how could he block the laser bolts of the droid on the Falcon without traing from obi

Certainly that was a strong indication of his amazing instinct. Obviously, blocking lasrer bolts would be impossible even for the fatsest person. Only the near-future prediction of the Force can give you taht ability, and Luke's powerful talent was showing even without training, just as Anakin's had.

But that is a long way from employing powers such as the Mind Trick.

I mean using the lightsabre right, like holding it and how to use it correctly, I think he trained him a little bit.

He may well have done; I doubt if the very basisc would have taken long.

Depends how long the trip to Alderan was, I guess.

He couldn't have been on the Falcon that long, the order to terminate the princess is given and then the Falcon arrives. I've always had a problem with the way in which you saw Luke using a lightsabre in a basic way in ANH and then by the end of esb he was fighting Vader, but just like the time thing on the Falcon, how long was he with Yoda and what did Yoda teach him that we didn't see and what and who taught him between ep4 and ep5. i assume the ob1 ghost trick was a debut in esb.

That was its debut, yeah.

Fuzzy use of time is one the the trademarks of Star Wars. Some people love it, actually.

Well, between ANH and ESB at least one year took place, so I'm sure Luke practiced a ton. He still had the remote so that helped I'm sure.

I think that it would be rather cheesy and out of character to see Palatine using lightsaber nunchucks or flipping around. He is an evil being who is completly consumed by the dark side. Force lightening is good enough to portray how he lets the hate flow through him.

I heard there were 3 or 5 years between ANH and TESB and 1 between TESB and ROTJ

I don't think it would be a good idea to have Darth Sidious actualy physicaly fight as well. But would force lightning be enough to stop a fully trained jedi?

In RotJ as I remember it Luke threw away his light saber and was tired from his battle with vader. Also it took a number of blasts from the emperor to fully demobilise him.

I think that Darth Sidious posses different powers that prehaps have not been seen yet? Prehaps the Dark side of the force allows its followers more power than the good side. This could help to explain how Maul and Sidious are able to prevent themselves from being detected. If Palpatine is Sidious then he must be one of the most powerful force users ever as he is able to prevent himself from being detected during the funeral of QGJ whilst being surrounded by members of the JC. Remember he was with them on the shuutle as well, whilst on the journey to Naboo.

If you see at Sidious his eyes, you could see his ugly eyes. Pure evil, I guess. With that, I think that Sidi doesn't have to do some great stuff to kill anyone, well maybe not Yoda.