"Like my father before me...”

Episodes three and four of the new Star Wars series Maul Shadow Lord are now available on Disney+, and after watching, I am fully convinced Sam Witwer could read a McDonald's menu and make it sound like poetry. Like the grip of a force choke, every thread this show is weaving locks you in and refuses to let go. Whether it’s Maul striving to once again rule the crime ridden underworld of the galaxy, his desire to mold Devon into an apprentice through hatred and fear, or hoping that Lawson just for once actually makes it to watch one of his son’s space lacrosse games, this show continues to give us some of the most intriguingly grounded vignettes of life at this point in the galaxy since Andor.

It’s no secret that this series is leading towards Maul and Devon eventually working together, but for me, the most exciting aspect of episodes three and four was watching Maul cosplay the role of a master. In Star Wars Rebels, Maul was (so entertainingly) this twisted Yoda figure, oscillating between insightful nuggets of evil force wisdom and babbling nonsense much like the Yoda we see in the original trilogy, however if we keep this comparison going, the Maul we see here is reminiscent of the Yoda of The Clone Wars. As a Star Wars fan, we know never to trust someone who wields a red lightsaber, but much like Devon, it’s hard not to see where Maul is coming from… from a certain point of view. Both the Jedi and Maul were cast aside by Darth Sidious’ galactic empire and both are reeling with the hard truth that maybe they truly are relics of a bygone era. Watching Maul attempt to twist Devon’s perspective to fuel her seemingly inevitable fall to the dark side had me on the edge of my seat because I felt like Maul actually believed what he was saying. As Star Wars fans, we’ve been taught to sound the Admiral Ackbar alarm in our heads whenever a bad guy sounds earnest because almost always, “It’s a trap!” However, what makes Maul’s story so entertainingly depressing is the fact that you can't help but feel sorry for him. Maul is that angry dog on the other side of the fence, you know, that will bite you, but maybe this time, when you reach your hand out to pet him, he won’t. You feel sorry for Maul, you know the losses he’s been dealt, his mother, his brother, his legs…

And the fact that the closest thing he ever had to a father is the most evil man the galaxy has ever known. The meiloorun does not fall far from the tree as Maul’s drive to rule the underworld, and all that is below the surface is illuminated by Palpatine’s takeover of the galaxy above. Both Palpatine and Maul have an insatiable lust for power, but I can’t help but wonder how much of Maul’s lust is driven by wanting to prove himself to his Darth daddy. In episodes three and four, the speed at which the viewer is riding this roller coaster of a story is at full speed, and we have not even reached the first corkscrew.

These two episodes also gave us more of Gideon Adlon’s Devon Izara, and much like Maul’s Yoda similarities, there were multiple times while watching Devon on screen, I said, “close enough, welcome back Anakin Skywalker.” At this point in the timeline, the galaxy has given up on striving to be better, given up on hope, and as someone who was raised a Jedi, this is a tough pill to swallow. Seeing Devon deal with the realization that maybe what she’s been taught is not the only way to achieve what she’s been told is tragically captivating. Without giving too much away, there is a scene in the third episode that was eerily reminiscent of the events on Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back that put Maul in the place of Vader and Devon in the place of Luke in such a way that any Star Wars fan watching will be smiling from space bun to space bun.

Witwer has said in interviews regarding the series that this is his favorite version of Maul he’s ever done, and after four episodes, I am starting to think this will be the best version of the character we have ever seen. This is a spoiler-free review, so I can’t get into too much detail; however, I don’t think it is giving much away to say lightsabers do clash in these two episodes. Regarding that lightsaber choreography…

AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH… if that makes sense.

Not surprisingly, this show continues to deliver some of the best not only animated content we’ve seen from Star Wars, but some of the best storytelling the galaxy has to offer. Maul Shadow Lord is on track to become the new standard for quality in this modern age of Star Wars.

- Will Diamond III