As Star Wars: Maul — Shadow Lord kicks off, fans may be wondering why more Darth Maul stories are being told at all. Well, it’s because the character effortlessly oozes cool. George Lucas killed him off in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. But since then, Disney and LucasFilm brought Maul back for the Clone Wars, to mentor other villains during the sequel trilogy era, and as an enemy for ol’ Ben Kenobi to slay again on Tatooine.
Clearly, Disney recognized fans have an affinity for the character Ray Park brought to life. Now, Disney+ is mapping out more of Maul’s past, providing further insight into how the former Palpatine apprentice sought revenge on the Sith. In the process, the first two episodes of the new animated series fix a major error made with Sith Lords, while illustrating how Maul fared in his early days as a teacher.
Star Wars’ Sith Lords Manufactured Hatred In Unnatural Ways
Across many mediums, from comics to the animated series to video games to movies, Star Wars’ Sith Lords manufactured hatred via manipulation. That’s not to say seeds of anger or rage weren’t innate in their targets. But these selfish teachers needed to use deceit as a focal point. Palpatine deployed this method with Anakin Skywalker when he was a politician.
As seen in Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine used the death of Anakin’s mother and the lie that the Dark Side could grant immortality to turn the future villain. Palpatine duped Anakin into thinking they could make Padme Amidala immortal, which led to the ex-Jedi becoming Darth Vader once she perished. Such a fragile lie can always be undone, which is what occurred when Luke brought Vader back to the Light to kill Palpatine in Return of the Jedi.
Palpatine, prior to Anakin, worked on Count Dooku’s lust for power and enslaved him mentally in Attack of the Clones. Going back before that, Palpatine did the same to Maul, coaxing the Dathomiri warrior with the idea of ruling the galaxy once the Sith could turn the Senate into a Galactic Republic.
This plan wasn’t stable, at all, ergo why the Rule of Two usually saw a protégé betray their Sith Master. Later on, Marvel Comics would add backstory on Vader and how he tricked assets the same way. Part of this led to guilt and built the foundation for his Anakin persona to return years later.
Clearly, the key to permanently creating a powerful apprentice comes from tapping into their true character. Anakin, for example, harnessed Ahsoka Tano’s identity and ambition, allowing her to be her true self. Qui Gon Jinn did the same for Obi-Wan, who, in turn, did the same for Anakin. Admittedly, the Jedi may have gotten a lot wrong with their arrogance and cult-like ways, but they fostered more loyalty by understanding conscription works best when free will is at play.
Sure, projects like Anakin failed. But he was also seen as a foot soldier without personality. Had Qui Gon left Anakin to grow older and organically choose a career, the young Jedi may have not taken the wrong road later on.
The Acolyte TV show touched on this, too. Qimir and Sol may have been on the Dark and Light Sides, respectively, but they treated Osha and Mae as pupils without minds. They bent them to their will. Such predictable mentorship had fans curious to see how Darth Plagueis teaching Qimir and Osha would have unfolded… And what Plagueis did to spur Palpatine on to backstab him and become Sidious.
Nonetheless, it’s apparent how apprentices are perceived. They are pawns. To get it right, teachers must understand responsibility when assessing the formative identities of successors. Star Wars: Maul — Shadow Lord’s premiere, “Chapter 1: The Dark Revenge,” sets the stage for this course-correction by introducing Devon Izara (Gideon Adlon).
Who Is Star Wars’ Devon Izara?
Izara is a Padawan who escaped Order 66. She is first seen surviving on Janix with Master Eeko-Dio Daki (Dennis Haysbert). Here, she is contemplating stealing from a fruit vendor… They are hungry, but they need to lay low. Daki remonstrates that this isn’t the Jedi way. He prefers to depend on the kindness of strangers. But Izara grows forlorn and hot-tempered seeing people ignore and insult them.
She tries to steal behind Daki’s back, only to get caught by police droids. Izara thinks about fighting back using the Force but Daki calms her down. He reminds her they can’t draw unwanted attention so she complies. With Palpatine’s Imperial troops roving, too, a jail cell is the best bet to survive.
When Wagner Moura’s Captain Lawson presses Izara about her history, she plays coy. Her consternation lands her in a jail cell. As fate would have it, Maul stages a breakout to capture a rival, Looti Vario. Maul’s troops take Izara with them due to a bombshell revelation that has been plaguing Maul for some time.
Maul admits he had visions that indicate Izara is meant to be alongside him. Maul’s voice actor, Sam Witwer, delivers cerebral lines, pouring intimidation and fear onto the screen. A scared Izara recalls his legend from her time training at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Little did she know, this fabled enemy will become her salvation.
How Does Darth Maul Train Izara?
“Chapter 2: Sinister Schemes,” finds Maul expanding his Shadow Collective vision. He wants to eliminate gangsters like Vario and the Pyke Syndicate to consolidate power. This is leading towards him fully owning the Crimson Dawn and amassing resources to kill Palpatine for betraying him. Maul has to adapt, however.
This show is set right after the end of the Clone Wars. Diehards will remember Maul trained his brother, Savage Opress, so they could assassinate Palpatine. Maul honed in on Opress’ rage and how Asajj Ventress turned the sibling into a weapon of vengeance to kill the likes of Dooku. Maul was merely doing what Palpatine taught him: warriors are blades to sharpen. It resulted in the brother’s death and Maul carrying that bereavement with him.
As a result, he now appears to be focused on compassion and empathy. He doesn’t threaten Izara or bully her in his new assembly scheme. He’s gentle, understanding and listens. He does produce a scary trial, though. She must use the Force to escape a tank or she’ll die. He offers her knowledge of the Dark Side, but she refuses. By the time the episode ends, Izara uses her guile and some of Maul’s presence as fuel to break out. Hints are there she is tapping into the Dark Side using her derision to the outside world.
Maul has clearly sensed this, but rather than goad her, he wants to let her choose her own path. Even if it dictates that she return to the Jedi way with Daki. That doesn’t mean he isn’t subtly tempting her by showing her his army that is due to fight the Empire’s oppression soon. Maul has the belief she will see the capitalist galaxy the way he does and want to use the Force to cleanse it. It’s all about freedom of choice in a cruel world post-Order 66.
It’s not just about politicians. Citizens are selfish and uncouth. They won’t even help the poor. This could have her thinking Maul’s recruitment plan isn’t to just overthrow governments. He can use it to lay laws down and rule under the banner of order. They can create generosity via force. The fact that Daki let her get arrested says it all: she can’t trust her “father,” so why not replace him?
From the evidence so far, we can infer that Maul appears to be playing the long game. He is setting Izara loose, gambling she will come back to him out of desperation, and the need for family. That’s the best way to create dedication and ensure devotion lasts forever.
Star Wars’s Izara Could Explain Darth Maul’s Future Methods
With Izara not mentioned in modern canon, it’s easy to interpret her as being dead. Chances are, Disney won’t have her hidden somewhere for decades the way it did with Ahsoka. Right? Ahem, anyway, if Izara dies at Maul’s hands or at the hands of Lawson or Daki, Maul could end up reverting to what he knows best: Palpatine’s tactics.
Maul does end up training Dryden Vos and Qi’ra years later in the same manner Palpatine did with him. He baited them with the concept of smuggling and running a criminal ring that could usurp the Empire. They were nothing more than cogs and drones. Witnessing why he “regressed” into this mindset could be what this series is about. Maul may not end up viewing innovation, inventiveness and liberty as the best tools in the aftermath of Izara. Theory is one thing, but practicality is another. Losing Izara could well be a tipping point. Maul has two members of his Zabrak species, Scorn and Icarus, as lackeys, so we could see his culture rise again.
Izara can learn about the Nightbrothers, Nightsisters, the ways of the witch, and what Mother Talzin prophesied for Maul’s lineage. If the series wants to create this visceral story about a family tree, having Maul grow attached to the concept of a successor, only to lose them, would really break him in the wake of his brother’s death. That’s the kind of sentimental narrative that would set Maul apart, while creating a bit of revisionist history along the way.
Could Izara Be Darth Talon?
Given all this evidence, is Izara actually the character known as Darth Talon? She was also a Twi’lek. Ironically, Talon was being retconned from the Legends era, where she was trained by Darth Ruyn, only to kill him for her new lord, Darth Krayt. Her mission was to help the Sith conquer the galaxy again and defeat opposition like Luke’s descendant, Cade. It failed, though.
Lucas, in time, wanted to repurpose Talon as Maul’s apprentice and use her post-Return of the Jedi. Disney’s creative hub decided to change trajectory. Her Jedi-killing character went from being a foil for Ben Solo to influencing the development of Kylo Ren. Well, speculation is that the streaming service might be retconning things, again. Lucas loved Talon’s look and vibe, and so did fans. Thus, a realignment would feel somewhat fitting.
This series could well be a second lease on life for Talon, albeit with a new adventure planned. Izara as Talon could continue in future seasons, spinoffs, or maybe even have her pop up later for Rey, Finn and Co. to battle. Hey, somehow Palpatine returned, and as Ahsoka revealed, there are secret dimensions heroes and villains can hide out in outside of space and time. Maul and Talon has a nice ring to it for the present, while Talon’s revenge sounds cool for Rey’s journey. Imagine these diminutive individuals, viewed as rogues by their traditional Orders, becoming nemeses down the line. And doing things differently thanks to outlier, unconventional tutelage that redefine what the High Republic era and other periods entailed.
Going forward, Maul can perfect having a junior employee and grow bitter when he loses this “daughter.” Or this understudy can become so talented, she remains hidden and becomes a new phantom menace in the shadows. The direction in the latter example is more enticing. The birth of a demented apprentice here would keep Maul’s talismanic flame and overall spirit burning at a time the franchise needs intriguing, engaging and fresh Sith stalwarts. Not to mention, it’d give the series more gravitas as connectors to the movies in the way Andor did to Rogue One.
Ultimately, Disney+ has two solid, nuanced options that work because they humanize the Sith — rather than adopting the cold, mundane military regimen of old.
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