I re-read the prologue from the Journal of the Whills at the beginning of the Star Wars novelization the other day for the first time in eons. It is interesting how it talks about the emperor's rise to power, and how he shielded and isolated himself once he was there. But it didn't talk about his dark abilities as we've come to know them. While the story doesn't seem contradictory to how the saga has played out, it doesn't exactly come across as fleshed out, now does it? ;-)