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"He is as clumsy as he is stupid."

- Darth Vader

Kendal Ozzel was an officer who first served in the Republic Navy during the Clone Wars, and later the Imperial Navy during the Galactic Civil War. He came from a wealthy family owning land on Carida, and his last name would aid him in his quest to gain power.

At the end of his life, he was both the commander of Darth Vader's flagship, the Star Dreadnaught Executor, and the admiral of Death Squadron, having served in those positions for approximately three years. He saw command of the Executor as a path to more power, and he believed that he would be able to control the universe with the Super Star Destroyer.

However, he was considered inept, clumsy, and stupid by Imperial personnel, including Lord Vader. His overconfidence ultimately led to his death before the Battle of Hoth, when he had Death Squadron emerge from hyperspace too close to Hoth, alerting the Rebels to the Imperials' presence. Darth Vader telekinetically executed him for the blunder shortly thereafter, promoting Captain Firmus Piett to Ozzel's position.

Early Life
Kendal Ozzel was born on the planet Carida, and he was a descendant of trading mastermind Mann Ozzel who made the Ozzel family wealthy a long time before Kendal was born. The second-born son, Kendal could not inherit his family's business, so he used his family's name to rise through the social, political, and military ranks of the Galactic Empire.

For a short time, Captain Ozzel served as an instructor at the Coruscant Naval Academy. He was the presiding officer at Han Solo's court-martial for saving Chewbacca. Han took a fairly low view of his intelligence.

Solo later sighted Ozzel aboard the Super Star Destroyer Executor in the Black Widow Nebula before the vessel was officially launched.

Ascent
"With the Executor under my command, I will be the ultimate power in the universe!"

- Admiral Ozzel

In 0.5 ABY, he was captain of the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Reprisal, the largest capital ship in Shelsha sector. He oversaw the brutal massacre of "Rebel sympathizers" on the planet Teardrop, after which the Reprisal was assigned a full tactical unit of the Imperial Security Bureau under the command of Colonel Vak Somoril, to further prosecute the suppression of resistance in the sector.

When a group of stormtroopers killed ISB Major Drelfin and fled the Reprisal, Ozzel and Colonel Somoril mistakenly believed that the subsequent arrival of Mara Jade in Shelsha sector was part of a high-level investigation into the incident, and they conspired in an unsanctioned scheme to kill her. Mara was ultimately unable to prove their complicity, but suggested to Darth Vader that he should keep a close eye on Ozzel, a suggestion that evidently appealed to the newly-appointed Supreme Commander's dark sense of humor.

Ozzel unexpectedly achieved his aim of being promoted to Fleet Admiral as a result of Mara Jade's suggestion. He was assigned as the commander of Vader's flagship, the Executor, with Firmus Piett as his senior subordinate. Perhaps simultaneously, he was also promoted to overall commander of Death Squadron, a promotion assisted in part by the loss of the cadre of able officers whom Willhuf Tarkin had assembled aboard the Death Star.

Speculation abounded as to the exact nature by which Ozzel achieved his prestigious command position. Many believed older ties between Imperial military command and Ozzel's bloodline were chiefly responsible for his sudden and inexplicable rise. Another theory explained his achievement as Ozzel acting as a figure-head of command in Vader's fleet, aside from Vader himself, to appease the high-ranking members of the general staff. Regardless of the nature of these rumors, Ozzel was in command of hunting down the Alliance High Command headquarters using whatever devices he deemed necessary. To this end, he took a very personal approach to his mission, preferring to follow up substantial leads himself. This often meant diverting the fleet on less than productive forays, which soon earned the ire of Vader, who grew tired of these indulgences. As a result Ozzel was relegated to the true position of figure-head that he occupied, serving merely as a go-between for issuing Vader's orders to the Executor's rank and file. It was Ozzel who gave Captain Needa command of the Avenger, and as a result, Vader regarded Needa with suspicion along with Ozzel's close advisors.

According to rumors that had reached Alliance Intelligence, Ozzel and Vader rarely saw eye-to-eye. In 1 ABY the Rebels managed to plant seeds of discord between Vader's fleet commanders. Ozzel took the bait and believed the rumors that said that Vader wanted to replace him with a junior officer.

Shortly before the Battle of Hoth, Piett and his staff received a transmission from a probe droid launched from the Star Destroyer Stalker. The transmission displayed the Rebel shield generator, suggesting there was life in a supposedly uninhabitable system of Hoth. Despite his tendancy to indulge in unsubstantial leads, Ozzel dismissed the lead, stating that the shield generator most likely belonged to smugglers. Darth Vader, however, was certain that they had found the Rebel base, and ordered his fleet to the Hoth system.



Death
"You have failed me for the last time, Admiral."

- Darth Vader to Admiral Ozzel

Believing that he could best defeat the Rebels by surprising them, Ozzel brought the fleet out of hyperspace very close to the sixth planet of the Hoth system, alerting the Rebels to their prescence and allowing them to activate an energy field, rendering an orbital bombardment useless. Upon realizing Ozzel's failure, Darth Vader Force choked Ozzel to death and made his subordinate officer, Piett, commander of the Executor.

Personality and traits
"Captain Ozzel likes simple, comfortable routines. The man is excruciatingly predictable."

- Caaldra

Kendal Ozzel was considered inept, which wondered many on how Ozzel attained the rank of admiral. Mara Jade couldn't tell if Ozzel was disloyal, easily manipulated, or stupid, but she saw the need for him to be kept under close watch. Darth Vader considered Ozzel to be a clumsy and stupid man for bringing Death Squadron out of hyperspace too close to Hoth, a move with which Ozzel had hoped would surprise the Alliance. As a result of his action, the Alliance was able to detect the fleet of approaching Star Destroyers, active Echo Base's shield, and evacuate a large majority of the base.

Despite these flaws, Ozzel was an ambition man. He viewed the elimination of Rebels as the fastest path to success within the Imperial Navy, and he hoped that would eventually grant him the rank of admiral.

Behind the scenes
Kendal Ozzel was played by Michael Sheard in The Empire Strikes Back, who also portrayed Adolf Hitler in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, the third installment of George Lucas' other successful trilogy. In the audio drama version of The Empire Strikes Back, Ozzel was voiced by Peter Michael Goetz.

The name "Kendal" may be a reference to the character Danny Kendall from the British TV series Grange Hill, with whom Sheard's character, Mr. Bronson, had a long-standing enmity. The name first appeared in The Official Star Wars Fact File in the UK (the reference was put in with Sheard's blessing) and later made its way to the official website.

There are inconsistencies between the various sources describing Ozzel's path to becoming Vader's senior subordinate in Death Squadron. Most notably, he appears as an admiral aboard the Executor under Vader's command in Scoundrel's Luck, which apparently takes place while Vader is still in a healing trance in his TIE Advanced x1 after the Battle of Yavin. However, the depiction of Vader's recovery here contradicts that shown in Star Wars Empire 14: The Savage Heart.

Appearances

 * The Hutt Gambit
 * Doom Mission
 * Allegiance
 * Star Wars Rebellion: My Brother, My Enemy
 * Star Wars Galaxies
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back novel
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * Star Wars 39: The Empire Strikes Back: Beginning
 * Star Wars 40: The Empire Strikes Back: Battleground: Hoth
 * The Longest Fall

Non-canon appearances

 * Star Wars: Rebellion
 * LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga