A major question that many have is why did Emperor Palpatine explode at the end of Star Wars VI: Return of the Jedi? None of the other Sith lords did such a thing when they died. This goes to show that the emperor was at a level of evil beyond any other. He was so given over to the Dark Side that there was nothing left to redeem. He was such a horrible entity, that even Darth Vader could see how terrible and rotten he was.
Emperor Palpatine Got Tossed Down the Shaft
The emperor was really a ticking time bomb. Ever since he came to the throne, he began to amass large amounts of Dark Side energy. This was part of his quest for ultimate power. Darth Vader was fully aware of this, and he knew that if the emperor ever died, he was set to explode. He knew that no one should mess with the emperor. After all, he spent the last twenty-three years taking orders from this guy, much to his regret. Darth Vader was a prisoner, and he sought freedom from his slavery. His solution was to bring in his son Luke to help him overthrow the emperor. With their powers combined, they could be strong enough to overcome him.
The emperor wanted to turn Luke to the Dark Side by making him angry. However Darth Vader blocked Luke's light saber when he tried to strike the emperor with it. He knew that the only way his son would make it out of the throne room alive was if the emperor went down the shaft. Meanwhile Darth Vader maintained the appearance of being the emperor’s guardian and protector, while he sought to protect the life of his son.
Clashing Lightsabers
Darth Vader’s plan all along was to use Luke to force the emperor down the shaft and then to crown himself emperor. However the emperor used the old trick of baiting his apprentice and his replacement into fighting each other. Palpatine felt entitled to have the most powerful apprentice. He did not care who won, but he would see the winner of the duel as the strongest and thus the most worthy of being a Sith. At the end of the duel, Luke beat his father by cutting off his mechanical hand, and once again the emperor got the upper hand. He instructed Luke to strike down his father and take his father's place at his side. Then Luke informed the emperor that he would never join the Dark Side and that he was a Jedi like his father before him. This really touched Darth Vader. However the emperor flew into a narcissistic rage and sought to destroy Luke.
When he saw Luke being electrocuted at the hand of the emperor, Darth Vader said, "Screw it. I lost my mother and I lost Padme, but I am not losing you."
The Palpy Toss
Then Darth Vader picked the emperor up and made sure he threw the emperor down the shaft, where he fell to the reactor below. Then all the Dark Energy rose up from the reactor in full force. Darth Vader sacrificed himself in the process, and he gave his life for his son. He also found redemption in the process, and his soul became one with the Force. This just shows Darth Vader is the greatest dad ever.
Way to go DAD!