Every Star Wars Inquisitor Ranked Worst To Best
Major spoilers for "Obi-Wan Kenobi" follow.
First things first: The members of Inquisitorius are not Sith. Darth Sidious and Darth Vader cannot have the Inquisitors violating the Sith's sacred Rule of Two. However, that doesn't make them any less of a threat. Although they are not Sith, the Inquisitors are loyal black-clad disciples of the dark side — "Slaves to the light side once, now awake," Sidious says in "Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith" #6. Their quirks include remaining apathetic or expressing joy towards the galaxy's pain, gleefully kidnapping Force-sensitive children, seething contempt for their Jedi prey, and spinning double-bladed red lightsabers.
Every Inquisitor is referred to as "Brother" or "Sister." As this indicates, the Inquisitors are spiritual siblings who bicker and quarrel in hopes of getting their indifferent Sith masters' attention. But there's no love lost between them; they often stab each other in the back in order to accomplish their mission.
While a few Inquisitors debuted in "Star Wars Rebels," the order made the jump to Marvel's canonical comics, and later wound up in novels and video games, too. "Obi-Wan Kenobi" features the first live-action appearances of several famous Inquisitors, and introduces a few new ones. This is our ranking of these compelling "Star Wars" villains, listed here from worst to best.
11. Fourth Sister
So far, this character, played on "Obi-Wan Kenobi" by Rya Kihlstedt, is a blank slate. Fourth Sister really does not do much other than stand near Fifth Brother and Third Sister and act as another adversary to chase Obi-Wan Kenobi and Princess Leia. She has less personality than the hissy and fitful Fifth Brother, and she doesn't create any new dynamics in her interactions with Third Sister, the series' most prominent Inquisitor. No memorable quips come out of Fourth Sister's mouth.
Arguably, however, the fact that Fourth Sister removes herself from the bickering between Third Sister and Fifth Brother probably saves her a lot of mental energy, allowing her to focus on the task at hand. Maybe she hopes that the two will fight each other to the death, allowing her to emerge as the default victor. But this is generous speculation. In the end, the most compelling thing about Fourth Sister is that she shows up to work.
Speaking of showing up, Fourth Sister's armor does appear in IDW Publishing's "Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader's Castle" comic. It's not the actual Inquisitor in the suit, however, but Rebel Lina Grafshe, who is impersonating her in order to infiltrate an Imperial base; that the armor landed in the hands of a Rebel doesn't bode well for Fourth Sister's future prospects.
10. Eighth Brother
We don't get to spend much time with Eighth Brother, voiced by Robbie Daymond, in either "Rebels" or the "Darth Vader" comics. Unlike Fifth Brother and Seventh Sister, he never reveals his face to the audience, although his laugh is full of evil self-confidence. When this dark-armored villain is introduced on Malachor, we learn that he's the hunter assigned to slay "The Shadow," i.e., Maul. He's pretty shrewd. During his introduction, he poses as a statue, hiding in plain sight before hurling diversionary explosives at his adversary.
But Eighth Brother's cleverness can only take him so far. Alongside Fifth Brother and Seventh Sister, he is beaten very badly when the Jedi Kanan Jarrus damages his lightsaber. Following that, Eighth Brother bungles his escape attempt by using his broken double-blades to helicopter off a Malachor temple ledge, only to tumble to his apparent death.
Being chosen to pursue Maul sounds like an honor. However, Eighth Brother is not competent enough to defeat the Zabrak, and he's probably just there to keep Maul as busy as possible before the Empire sends in the next Inquisitor. It's telling that the Eighth Brother's official Star Wars profile highlights the "unwise" move that led to his presumed death. It seems like that's how he'll be remembered: just a screaming voice plunging down into the abyss.
9. Tenth Brother
In the Marvel comic "Star Wars: Jedi of the Republic — Mace Windu," a Clone Wars-era tale, the Miraluka Jedi known as Prosset Dibs joins Mace Windu's strike team during a mission to Hissirch. Dibs hopes to be a good peacekeeper, and to reduce the mission's casualty count. However, Dibs openly disagrees with Mace Windu and the Jedi's involvement in the Clone Wars, and expresses his opinions by ambushing Windu. Perhaps his concerns are valid, but if he'd only chosen to dissent verbally instead of physically, he may have gotten his point across more effectively.
As a result of his actions, the Jedi Masters sentence Prosset to work in the Jedi Archives. Apparently, that isn't enough to reform him. Skip ahead to the fall of the Republic and the Jedi Order, and, as shown in 2018's "Darth Vader" #14, Dibs accepts the Inquisitor mantle to become Tenth Brother.
We know even less about Dibs' life as an Inquisitor. This feels like a waste of an intriguing character, and he could use more breathing space. Tenth Brother's adroitness with dual blades and Force-sensitivity did not save him from being shot down by his own overzealous clone troopers, who, in an ironic twist, killed him in "Darth Vader" #17 because he was a former Jedi, thereby violating Order 66 (to be fair to the clones, they were under the influence of a Jedi mind trick at the time).
8. Fifth Brother
After the Grand Inquisitor dies in the "Rebels" season 1 finale, Fifth Brother (voiced by a growly Philip Anthony-Rodriguez) is introduced as the Ghost crew's next big threat. A large, hulking humanoid, Fifth Brother does not have much in the way of brains. He's slightly less interesting and guile than the shrewd Seventh Sister, who has a better aptitude for strategy. Despite his imposing size, Fifth Brother lacks the intense presence of the Grand Inquisitor.
Chronologically, Fifth Brother appears in "Obi-Wan Kenobi" before making his "Rebels" debut, and the live-action iteration of the character has a slightly more intriguing personality. In "Obi-Wan Kenobi," he is seen actually working with the Grand Inquisitor on screen. In that series, Fifth Brother shows a more cautious side, with actor Sung Kang seething at his foes and speaking in an intimidating rattlesnake-like whisper.
That said, Fifth Brother's most important role in "Obi-Wan Kenobi" is to serve as Third Sister's foil, acting like a pestering sibling who insults and threatens his rival in order to derail her ambitions. Perhaps he sees himself in the reckless Reva and wants to quash her faults, as if he's eliminating both his competition and also his own weakness. However, Fifth Brother, his scheming, and his innoble aspirations are ultimately swept aside, and he fades into the background as "Obi-Wan Kenobi" goes on. That's probably for the best; the strategic Seventh Sister would make a better Grand Inquisitor anyway.
7. Seventh Sister
Voiced with oozing slyness by Sarah Michelle Gellar in "Star Wars Rebels," Seventh Sister is a smug Mirialan who appreciates a formidable opponent and loves a productive interrogation. Preferring restraint over a rushed job, she's the brains to Fifth Brother's reckless brawn. Seventh Sister would rather use her victims as hostages than immediately execute them, and she's rarely seen without her precious league of ID9 seeker droids.
Like many Inquisitors, Ninth Sister wants to snag Ahsoka Tano in order to elevate her status in the Empire and bolster her pride. She's no match for Ahsoka, of course, even with Fifth Brother at her side, but she welcomes the challenge. It's too bad that Maul is way beyond her capabilities, and she meets a gruesome fate courtesy of his lightsabers during a battle on Malachor. That said, Seventh Sister and Fifth Brother do have one thing in common: They had a tough act to follow after the Grand Inquisitor died. It's really hard for Seventh Sister to stand on her own as a compelling villain, maybe because she doesn't get a lot of room to grow in either "Rebels" or other Star Wars media.
6. Sixth Brother
E.K. Johnson's young adult novel "Ahsoka" takes us into the calculating mind of Sixth Brother. It's one of the first times that fans are allowed into an Inquisitor's headspace, and offers a glimpse at their practices on both the hunting field and in the Imperial bureaucracy. Unlike his conniving siblings, he'll officially commend fellow Imperials, observing that the Inquisitors' jobs will be easier with sympathetic commanders running the Empire. He is also an astute strategist. His thoughts are like those of a horror movie villain as he stalks a family of children, trying to decide which one to kidnap. Like Seventh Sister, he also welcomes the thrill of hunting older Jedi.
Sixth Brother ends up becoming a formidable opponent of the exiled Ahsoka Tano, but is ultimately defeated by a combo of Ahsoka's Force powers and his explosive red lightsabers. Ahsoka ends up purifying the red kyber crystals that power his blades and transforms them into her own twin white lightsabers, symbolizing her spiritual resurrection as a Force-sensitive warrior. In "Rebels," it's these same weapons that clash with the red blades of Sixth Brother's Inquisitor siblings. Considering that he'd hoped to make things easier for his order, Sixth Brother probably wouldn't take kindly to that legacy.
5. Unidentified pair of Inquisitors
Even the die-hard fans who edit Wookieepedia can only identify this pair of Inquisitors from 2017's "Darth Vader" series as "Unidentified Twi'lek Inquisitor" and "Unidentified red-skinned Inquisitor." It's a long story, but their joint execution at Darth Vader's hands is the reason why Darth Sidious transfers the Inquisitor's base from Coruscant to the moon Nur. Let's just say that Vader going after them publicly in the Imperial capitol was not a good look.
Why does Darth Vader loathe these Inquisitors so much? They are a rarity among their kind. Where many Inquisitors bicker and backstab, these two are mutually fond of each other, and would fight for (not against) one another. In fact, their bond is so strong that they have a tradition of sharing a drink on every planet on which they slaughter a Jedi ("To one less Jedi in the galaxy," they toast). As long we've known them, they've lacked the "Brother" or "Sister" titles; they're less like siblings, and more like lovers. As seen in "Darth Vader" #20, they would defend each other to the death; they'd even kill Darth Vader to save their relationship.
No wonder Vader, who was driven to the dark side in an attempt to save his beloved, is enraged by them. When Vader slaughters the pair, they have already accepted that they won't die in a bed, and take solace in dying together. Skywalker lost his adored Padme, but those unnamed dark-siders had each other until the very end.
4. Ninth Sister
Disney and Lucasfilm should note that there are many fans of likable buff women (see, for example, the popularity of Luisa from "Encanto"). As such, the hulking Ninth Sister, a wry wisecracker who debuted in Marvel's "Darth Vader" #6, has all the makings of a big star. A brute, she's to be feared on the basis of her strength and size, but her burliness belies her sensitivity, which her official Star Wars profile attributes to her "extraordinary empathic ability to read minds."
"Empathy" is probably the last attribute you'd expect in a dark-sider, so it's both impressive and twisted that she can weaponize it for her job. Ninth Sister claims that her ability to read emotions has helped her get in touch with the dark side. What really makes her stand out on the page, though, is her chill attitude towards her superiors and her own lot in life, as seen in "Darth Vader" #11. She's the most laid-back of the Inquisitors, although her appearance in the video game "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order" insinuates that she is hiding some trauma.
Ninth Sister might actually be a pretty good therapist for Darth Vader, if only he'd heed her. She casually passes Vader — the same figure who stole her eye during an intense training session — insights about his Jedi-hunting obsession. Where the Grand Inquisitor questions Darth Vader's professional competency, Ninth Sister just questions Darth Vader's vibes. You might be afraid of her, but she also seems like she'd be fun to share a beer with.
3. Second Sister
Based on her appearance in the cutscenes from "Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order" and its prequel comic, "Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order — Dark Temple," the Second Sister, formerly known as Trilla Suduri, is one of the more tragic figures in the Inquisitorius. Unlike most of the Inquisitors on this list, she didn't cast away her Jedi principles prior to the rise of the Empire. Instead, she and her master were captured and tortured, which transformed her into the dark-armored Inquisitor who pursues the Jedi fugitive Cal Kestis.
In terms of pathos, Second Sister's backstory may rival Third Sister's. The "Fallen Order" cutscenes catalog the traumas she endured; we see her crying out as her master left her, get hooked up to an electrocution device, watch her master betray her, and don the helmet and with the blood-tinted visor. To top it all off, Darth Vader kills her. In one potential reading, Second Sister welcomes her execution because she thinks she has no future. She can only wait for Vader's blade, and beg the game's main characters to avenge her.
2. The Grand Inquisitor
The Grand Inquisitor is the prim papa of the Inquisitorius. He arrives at an optimal time in "Star Wars Rebels," raising the stakes in season 1. In the series, the Grand Inquisitor uses the mummified corpse of the Jedi Luminara Unduli as bait for an Imperial trap, successfully fooling both Kanan Jarrus and his padawan, Ezra Bridger.
That's just the beginning. Grand Inquisitor has a sprawling story across various forms of Star Wars media that explores his past, his present, and even his afterlife. In season 2 of "Rebels," Kanan Jarrus' Force-aided vision depicts the soon-to-be Grand Inquisitor attired in his honorable Jedi Temple guard uniform. It's an ironic image that acknowledges that the Inquisitor could have followed a righteous path if he'd stayed in the light. In Marvel's "Star Wars" #6, published in 2020, it's revealed that Vader tethered the Grand Inquisitor's spirit to a temple; said spirit loses a duel with Luke Skywalker. This raises an interesting point: Whether he's a Jedi Temple guard or the Grand Inquisitor, he can't escape being a subservient figure.
The Grand Inquisitor feels like a classic Star Wars villain, and Jason Isaacs' chilling voice helped define the character during his initial appearance on "Rebels." In "Obi-Wan Kenobi," he's played by Rupert Friend, who makes for a menacing figure under all that white and black makeup.
1. Third Sister (Reva)
In "Obi-Wan Kenobi," the Grand Inquisitor mocks Third Sister, calling her "the least of us." But Reva is anything but the least of them.
There's a moment in the series when Reva's eyes pass over a Jedi-carved inscription and she nearly tears up before she reverts back to her stony, ruthless, professional mode. Over the course of "Obi-Wan Kenobi," Third Sister blossoms into a compelling antagonist. She's petulant, but very competent. The most reckless of the Inquisitors, she'll do anything to get Kenobi in her grasp and ingratiate herself to Darth Vader. Thanks to Moses Ingram's balance of dignity and fervor, Reva emerges as one of the most formidable Inquisitors, always one step ahead of both her "siblings" and the heroes. Regardless of the Grand Inquisitor's admonishments, she understands that the more brazen her ambitions, the bigger the prize.
As "Obi-Wan Kenobi" progresses, Reva's true motives are revealed, and they're driven by tragedy. She has been plotting to slay Vader for a long time, not out of ambition, but for revenge. Reva turns out to be a former youngling who watched Anakin murder her Jedi family. Deep inside, that youngling remains, and that's what saves her from becoming another Darth Vader. In the midst of a deranged downward spiral, Reva's conscience makes the decision that Anakin Skywalker couldn't: walk away from the evil choice. Unlike the rest of the Inquisitors on this list, she is given a future.