Star Wars is a popular Sci-fi franchise that has spanned the past four decades (and has an exciting 2023 ahead, per IGN). With more than a dozen films and TV shows, Star Wars is arguably the most popular franchise on the planet. From the unique and numerous characters to the complex world-building, the stories set in a galaxy far, far away has something for everyone. With regular releases by Disney, we are being blessed with a plethora of new content to keep the franchise fresh and alive for a new generation of Star Wars fans.

One of the most popular aspects of the franchise is the presence of lightsabers: a Jedi weapon that features a laser sword powered by a Force-charged kyber crystal (per CBR). Between the dozens of lightsaber fight scenes seen within the franchise, plenty of battles have resulted in tragic losses. That being said, not everything is what it seems, and a number of wounds that should have been fatal ended up not being so. Here are four lightsaber wounds that Star Wars characters should have died from.

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4 Darth Maul: Sliced in Half

     20th Century Studios / Lucasfilm Ltd.

One of the most unbelievable wounds to ever be survived was the seemingly fatal wound survived by Darth Maul. In Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Maul comes out as Darth Sidious’ apprentice and takes on both Qui-Gon Jinn and a young Obi-Wan Kenobi simultaneously in one of the greatest lightsaber battles of all time. After Maul defeats Qui-Gon, an emotionally charged Obi-Wan manages to take him down by gruesomely slicing the Sith Lord in half and watching his body fall to his death. This is assumed to be the death of Darth Maul until it was dramatically revealed in The Clone Wars that he miraculously survived and is on a mission to get revenge on Obi-Wan.

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3 Anakin Skywalker: Loss of Limbs

     Lucasfilm

In Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, Anakin receives one of the worst injuries in Star Wars history that should’ve been fatal. When Obi-Wan confronts him about his actions in aiding Palpatine, he makes the difficult decision to cut Anakin down by slicing off his remaining limbs and leaving him for dead on Mustafar. The trauma of losing a total of three limbs in one night should have been enough to kill Anakin alone as he was unable to move — and he caught on fire. While Anakin did in fact survive the attack by Obi-Wan, he was subsequently confined to his Vader suit in order to stay alive.

2 The Grand Inquisitor: Stabbed by the Third Sister

     Disney

One of the most anticipated characters to reach the live-action Star Wars universe was the Grand Inquisitor, who made his first live-action appearance in Obi-Wan Kenobi. In the second episode of the Disney+ series, the Grand Inquisitor’s tyranny was brought to an abrupt end when he was stabbed by the Third Sister in the stomach so that she could continue her pursuit of Kenobi without any more interruptions. This came as a shock to fans of the show as the Grand Inquisitor was first introduced in the animated series Rebels, which is canonically set after Obi-Wan Kenobi. In episode five, it is revealed that the Inquisitor did not die from his stab wound, and while fans were happy about this, some were also annoyed that the show made the audience believe that the Inquisitor was dead in the first place.

1 Reva: Stabbed by Darth Vader

     Lucasfilm/Disney+

Reva, AKA the Third Sister, is a complex character in Obi-Wan Kenobi, who somehow managed to become a fan favorite despite her personal vendetta against the beloved titular Jedi. After many episodes of searching for Obi-Wan and working to become Grand Inquisitor herself, Reva winds up being ruthlessly stabbed by Darth Vader. This injury appears to be fatal as Reva struggles to get herself to safety after being left for dead. Similarly to the Grand Inquisitor, it is revealed in the fifth episode that Reva survived her wound, just as she did when she was attacked by Anakin as a youngling during Order 66. If you count her attack as a child, then Reva has survived two attacks that should have been fatal.