– Spoiler Review –
A weekly release schedule certainly would’ve still worked, but having to wait another week for the final episode after the cliffhanger in “Chapter 9” would’ve been excruciating. Thankfully, the double-batch release of Maul: Shadow Lord saved us the wait and gave us a memorable, intense, and emotional finale to the show’s first season, even if it exposed some of its issues. Time to unpack “Chapter 9 – Strange Allies” & “Chapter 10 – The Dark Lord”!
Chapter 9 – Strange Allies
After Solo: A Star Wars Story, one could imagine the guts on Dryden Vos to be as deadly and nefarious a boss as he was and still just be the underling, but man, he always really had the stones, didn’t he? Vos calls Maul with a proposal: he’ll extract the Shadow Lord from the Imperial’s grip of Janix as long as he takes out Vos’ boss, which means he can become Crimson Dawn’s new boss. My guy…did you not deal with Maul’s particular brand of calm insanity during the Clone Wars?! Did you…forget? For such a shrewd individual, I’m a little surprise Vos could even imagine this offer would go exactly as planned, that Maul wouldn’t simply sidestep him after Rintero is gone and take over for himself. It’s fun for us to know he will. It’s fun to see Vos think this’ll work out. And I’ll be interested where a season two will end up, if we’ll get that story or if we’ll take a time jump and Maul will already be in his comfortable seat, shadow lording over Crimson Dawn. I hope, either way, it ends up with us having more Qi’ra in our lives, as I was sort of hoping might be alluded to or mentioned in either of the final two Shadow Lord episodes, but alas, it was not meant to be. Either way, I like how Vos’ offer kickstarts these final two episodes, as all exits seemed cut off until now, and it leads to both our groups to not only have hope for fleeing once again, but to see them united and having to fully work together.
With even the brief glimpse of the collaborating in “Chapter 9” and “Chapter 10”, having Maul, the Jedi, the Mandalorians, the detective and his family, and the gangster together was a winning formula I think Shadow Lord could’ve mined just a bit more. But at least we got what we did! What stood out with these unlikely pairings was how everyone adjusted. Two Boots realized he wasn’t better than the criminals he used to chase. Brander understood his focus on work robbed him of more time with his son, not work itself. Rylee stepped up and contributed instead of sticking to the sidelines. Maul relying and helping Jedi, as it best serves his interests. Devon helped bridge the gap between her Master and her wannabe Master. It was fun to see these disparate personalities forced to work with one another. Instead of playing to their type, as tropes would expect, they are forced to adapt. Plus it allows us to see more of who they are or of who they could be/could’ve been. Shadow Lord wasn’t short because it was only 10 episodes, but the half-hour format, even without commercials or broadcast rules to force the choice, means only so much makes it through. I think the time the show had was used as judiciously as possible, the animation team delivers subtle looks and gestures in a way that conveys more than words often could while the Kiner family built another fantastic score, but without a slower, non-plot focused episode, ‘filler’ as people unfortunately have come to call them, some of the characters felt more like their tropes than anything worth remembering. It wasn’t until “Chapter 8” that we finally really got to dig into Maul’s mind, to see him deal with what’s happened and forge ahead, which really took Shadow Lord to new heights, and it wasn’t even the full focus of the episode, yet I’m sure someone might’ve called it filler if it had been. That’s why taking the time to focus more on the character or force them to change a little to survive, bringing out something new in them, felt so fresh and made me wish this had happened sooner, or more often, in the season.
Despite the situation driving these final two episodes, a race against the clock of Dryden’s arrival and swift departure, with or without them, we do get some minor but appreciated moments between the father/youngling dynamics, where one of which sort of planted a seed of concern in my gut. So, let’s start with that one, hey? After choosing to team up with Maul and his people, Brander Lawson helps lead the group to a hidden area of Janix to help them escape the city perimeter, exposing some of the city’s secrets, like illegal dumping, along the way. It forces the group to go slowly across a lake of acid on a rickety old skiff, which is when Brander and Rylee get some alone time, well, besides Spybot Charon-ing their way across. Brander apologies to his son, how his focus on his job not only screwed up their relationship, but brought them to this point. It’s nice to hear him admit it, to understand the truth of his actions. And Rylee, instead of being mad at him, takes these moments for what they are: more time together than ever before. Spybot’s retching brought a little levity to the sappiness of the moment, but it was a much appreciated one even if it felt like too little, too late with covering their dynamic more. And it didn’t help it certainly gave me concern one of them, like Brander, wouldn’t make it past this gauntlet alive. On the Jedi front, once Daki understands it’s Maul who projected a vision of their meeting place into Devon’s mind, he also realizes what she’s omitted. He confronts her about it, how she’s hidden what happened when they got separated at Rheena Sul’s place. She doesn’t hesitate much before spilling the truth, but the way she seems so thankful of Maul’s actions, stepping in against Marrok the Inquisitor, raises more concern in Daki. He leaves her with a compelling question, one that will get something of answer in the finale: did Maul do it for Devon, or for himself?
The battle in the acid aqueduct has a lot of good layers to it. There’s the acid itself, something everyone’s trying to avoid. The slow and exposed nature of the acid crossing adding stakes even when people start to get away. And it’s not just the lightsaber wielding combatants who matter, as the relentless amount of stormtroopers force everyone to get involved, like how Rylee continues to step up and take out some troopers. With the lightsaber fight, I’m trying to think if it’s the most individual saber blades together, onscreen, battling one another that we’ve ever seen. The creative team even goes out of their way to highlight this, as there’s a brief moment where Daki, Devon, Maul, Marrok, and the Eleventh Brother have their blades locked together, holding still, making a chain of blazing laser sword blades. There’s some great moments in the battle itself. Devon holding her own with and amongst the more seasoned duelists, while Maul splitting his saber into two blades was a nice bit of variety and shows his varied abilities as well. I am surprised Maul didn’t try to taunt the two Inquisitors more, as he tells Marrok they are the same in a way, disposable to Darth Sidious, but I guess we all know he wouldn’t have changed their minds so why waste too much on it. Between Maul doesn’t turn a new leaf, but it was interesting to see him calculating when Daki’s fragility would be best taken advantage of, as he initially tells Rook Daki deserves some respect while he’s useful, but then later letting the older Force user go first when they are running out of time to jump across the gap, the broken skiff helping bridge it.
As Maul’s crew dwindles, I was a little surprised how much further it did before the episode ended, as it starts with the remaining Nightbrother Icarus taking a purposeful acid bath to help take out some stormies and Spybot being split apart before taking his own bath. As the group wanders out into the misty density of Janix’s forest, Rook Kast and the remaining commando with her scout ahead. They find something more dangerous than any animal. In fact, they find whom Marrok called a few episodes ago. The commando gets an off-screen death, but thankfully Kast gets one last moment. It’s a frightening one, her being pulled into the mist and silenced by a lightsaber, serving to ramp up the tension for the inevitable reveal: Darth Vader. Like I said earlier, if we had to wait another week to see how things went down with Vader’s arrival, it would’ve made for a long, excruciating wait.
Bonus thoughts:
- Just fyi, we have a US only giveaway of a copy of Reign of the Empire: The Mask of Fear that runs until 5/8/2026 at 11:59pm CST, so get your entries while you can!
- The earlier action sequence, which ends with Maul taking down an early AT-ST model, was bright, quick, and fun to watch.
- Sad to lose Rook already, but it certainly made it feel like the show wasn’t going to pull punches.
- As a reminder: Richard Ayoade, who voices Two-Boots, Lawson’s droid partner, and has voiced another droid in The Mandalorian, has some concerning anti-trans actions in his history and this Medium post breaks it down really well. Hopefully one day he’ll make his endorsements and statements a little more clear.
Chapter 10 – The Dark Lord
Less is more with Darth Vader, a hard truth I love to stand by, especially during this era and when there’s no emotional stakes on his end, and hot damn does Shadow Lord thread the needle just right with him. Vader actually never says a word, which is great on two fronts. On one, it just makes him all the more intimidating and shows how little he cares about the victims in front of him. He has no qualms with his choices and what he’s doing. This is who is he now and he’ll be damned if he doesn’t succeed at ending this group’s lives. On the other front, regardless of James Earl Jones’ consent, I really do not want to hear AI to bring his iconic voice to life again (like they did with Obi-Wan Kenobi). Matt Sloan and Scott Lawrence have done it enough over the years, just let them do it. There is no ethical use of AI, so let’s give this work to an actor again, as it was an actor that made it famous in the first place. Let the cycle continue. Anyways, not only is Vader’s voicelessness a great choice, his animated design feels bigger and more threatening than ever before. By moving out of Janix City proper and into a vibrant temple and jungle area, Vader’s black suit is a blot on the otherwise beautiful nature, highlighting both his unnatural presence and imposing size. Having him battle three combatants at once lead to some interesting visuals, as his clunkiness in the suit purposefully gets hard to ignore, showing the strength in numbers against him, as he has to keep turning his head further due to the helmet and he’s clearly pushing the limits of how fast he can move in the suit. Once he’s more one-on-one, he uses his shear might and size effectively, bashing into his opponent’s guards relentlessly, forcing them to fail or try something else. Overall Dave Filoni, the now co-President of Lucasfilm, has a great ideology when it comes to Vader, so while he could come back for season two, I suspect they’ll only do it if it really works, which I kind of hope they don’t feel it does.
The fight with Vader and the Inquisitors has a story purpose for Maul, Devon, and Daki, beyond more dazzling, and yet somehow maybe almost exhausting lightsaber battles. Like, this whole episode is one long battle, both for lightsabers and the non-Force user, and it can feel a bit exhausting by the end. Maul seems to recognize the intensity of Vader’s hate, understanding he’s not an Inquisitor but still not sure who or what he actually is, and knows combating the strength of their opponent is where he can keep digging into his fissure between Daki and Devon. As I said in my review of “Chapter 9”, Daki’s question on if Maul’s doing these things for himself or for Devon gets its answer throughout the fight. At first it seems like Maul’s truly doing these things for himself, to get an apprentice to help him face the strength of Sidious and now this new helmeted figured and get his revenge. He implores both the Jedi to give into haste, aggression, and rage, relying on those feelings to overwhelm and defeat the black suited tank hounding their every move. Yet Daki still implores caution and patience in the face of fear, steadfast in his ways, views, and moral compass toward the light. There’s such a great visualization of this at one point, as Daki shares his opinion on using patience after Maul shared his opinion and given how the scene is framed, Maul can be seen technically between Devon and Daki, the literal wedge Daki just can’t get past. Devon, Daki, and Maul all take turns saving or helping one another in the fights with the Inquisitors and Vader, and while Maul is a little less altruistic with some of his actions, it was still a wicked delight to see these three mostly all on the same side, united against a common enemy, much like Maul kept saying throughout the season.
Once Daki throws Marrok from the bridge and Devon gets pushed further back into another temple by the Eleventh Brother, it’s Maul and Daki against Vader. Injured from earlier conflicts and aging anyways, Daki’s struggling against their opponent, but he does not let up, like a damn good Jedi would do. Maul, his leg injured even further than before, is struggling as well, yet he’s standing his ground more firmly, his hate spurning him on for its short-term gains, unlike Daki’s slow, but methodical approach which would’ve helped him last longer against Vader. As the Eleventh Brother Inquisitor closes in on Devon and it’s clear she needs help, Maul makes a choice that has dire consequences for everyone. Maul pushes Daki into Vader, sacrificing the old man and abandoning him to help Devon. In a way, I feel like this showed Maul was selfless to some degree, as he legitimately wanted to help Devon in this moment, using the Jedi to slow down Vader so they could get away. But Maul also knew how things would go down after he left, knowing Daki wouldn’t last. So when he gleefully watches as Devon soaks within her rage after witnessing Daki die, we know he’s truly selfish in the end, as he knew it would be the catalyst he needed to help push Devon away from her path to the light…and towards his path to the dark, where he could lead her to help him in his goals.
Brander, Rylee, Vario, and Two Boots slide away into the forest after the Jedi and Maul tell them to run, but they have problems of their own. Once they make it to Dryden Vos’ rendezvous point, they find the Empire already there, likely because it’s a good place to land amongst the forest. Not only does the Empire have a bunch of troops, but they have an early version of the e-web heavy blaster, those gun emplacements they tried using on Hoth against the Falcon before it fled in The Empire Strikes Back. Outnumbered, especially once the shuttle joins and starts shooting from above, the group devises a plan to steal the blaster to take down the shuttle. Vario gets stuck as the distraction, his diminutive size coming in handy, and while he’s not totally down for it, I loved the scene where he hypes himself up, a fun little pep talk that keeps things light besides the dire circumstances. While the shuttle is brought down, more troops and gunships arrive, splitting the group up as they flee. Dryden’s ship gets involved, helping clear out the gunships, but the ground forces are just too much for the group to make the run to the ship. So Brander does the noble thing, saying a final goodbye to the son he made amends with, and he heads out to provide cover, taking multiple shots before he disappears into the mist, drawing continuing trooper fire as the group boards. We don’t actually see Brander Lawson die, and look, we’re watching a show about a character who we did see ‘die’ at one point, so it’s possible he survived, but I sort of hope they don’t go that route. However, it could be an interesting way to lure out Maul and the group, using a captured Brander to get Rylee, or his mom, to do something accidentally stupid and expose themselves. If not though, it’s a shame for both Rylee and Devon to lose their father-figures, though Devon looks to be heading down a much different path than Rylee ever will.
As Maul joins Devon in fighting the Eleventh Brother, lending her one half of his lightsaber, he sort of hangs back, watching what she does. She yells and shouts, pushing herself and her rage over her Master’s death to keep fighting the Inquisitor, much to Maul’s delight. He easily could step in more, but he clearly wants her to keep going, to go further and further away from the calmness and to not have a chance to stop and think what she’s doing. She continues to chase the Inquisitor after injuring him and then runs into Vader, which is where Maul’s makes another choice that has hints of both selflessness and selfishness. He brings the temple down around Vader, not ready yet to give up his potential apprentice, saving her from a very likely death at the imposing figure’s hands. She wants to kill them all, so angry and upset, but he holds her back and promises he’ll teach her to be strong enough to take them down. In a way, he’s not lying, as I’m sure he sees a bit of himself in her anger and her rage, at wanting revenge, and training her to help him defeat them will serve her to defeat them as well. They make haste to Dryden’s ship and they make it off Janix alive, but their group shattered over the losses. There’s so much good emotion in Devon’s scenes throughout “Chapter 10 – The Dark Lord,” be it her screaming “no!” with more rage than Obi-Wan Kenobi did losing Qui-Gon Jinn to Maul, the tears dripping down her face, the frustration of being held back by Maul, but the final moments of the show, cradling Maul’s saber, pondering her future, there’s still a bit of conflict inside her anger, it felt like. And while she makes the choice to join Maul, to let him train her, I imagine she’s keeping hold of herself, what she can at least, and it won’t be a totally done deal until she gets into the thick of Maul’s training. Which I can’t wait to see in season two! As for when and what that might entail….
There’s a big article about Vader’s appearance, what they felt it meant for Maul and Devon’s stories, and how they designed and produced everything, but tucked in the article at the end are some teases of what’s to come in season two: first, they hint Devon has a secret to learn and it involves Maul betraying her Master, while secondly we’ll see how Maul gets his claws into Crimson Dawn. I imagine this means not much of a time jump at all!
Bonus Thoughts:
- There’s a lovely interview with Gideon Adlon, who voices Devon, discussing what it’s like to play the character, how she feels about her big choice, and it even mentions she’s already working on season two. Seems like we might not have to wait too long for the next season!
- Wow, Rheena’s ship was actually a practical model they built and filmed?! How cool is that!
- The final update to the trivia page includes some interesting factoids on how they tried to convey a sense of history for Janix, as well as Vanessa Marshall’s gruesome request for Rook’s death!
- Loved hearing about the Kiner family’s process for the score, from how they arrived to the synth heavy sound to how the kids provide a nice contrast to their dad’s way of doing things, while it’s interesting to hear who actually decided the usage of the “Duel of the Fates” with Maul’s first scene.
- Speaking of Vader…I played the three main Fortnite Star Wars modes introduced on May 1, including “Escape Vader.” Prior to this, I hadn’t played Fortnite in years. After playing these modes, it’ll probably be a few more years. The “Escape Vader” mode was nothing short of meh, as while he can be scary when he appears and his breathing is all encompassing in your ears, the level itself is a little janky, the weird barely sprint is frustrating, and overall he sorts of just wanders and gets randomly stuck on boxes and whatnot. Might’ve been neater if someone got to play as Vader every round! The other modes, like “Galactic Conquest” was a pale version of Battlefront, while “Droid Tycoon,” while the most relaxing of the group, is too overwhelming in its gacha components and felt underwhelming in its usage of the droids overall. Just not for me, I guess. Nice try, Lucasfilm/Fortnite, but I’ll take a dedicated game any day of the week over modes in Fortnite.
- Devon’s brief moment with two sabers, where Daki throws his to her and she breaks the dual attack of the Inquisitors, was such a grand, short moment.
Maul: Shadow Lord‘s season one finale batch of episodes “Chapter 9 – Strange Allies” & “Chapter 10 – The Dark Lord” make for excellent viewing together, as characters learn to change and overcome their differences to survive against the evil Empire. Plenty of characters don’t make it out, while those that do are forever changed, with the new and exciting and intriguing path for Devon something that will have me eager for season two.
+ Devon’s emotionally packed decision and where it can go from here
+ Forcing characters to change and confront their new situations
+ Imposing and memorable way to use Vader
+ Lightsaber battles with gorgeous choreography, the lush new visual of the forest, and some depth to emotional moments make this an animation delight
– Shadow Lord escaped Janix, but didn’t escape feeling rushed with its characters
– Dare I say…too much lightsabering?
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him and the website on Bluesky and Instagram @mynockmanor.
MAUL: SHADOW LORD REVIEWS
Season One: Series Premiere “Chapter 1 – The Dark Revenge” & “Chapter 2 – Sinister Schemes” | “Chapter 3 – Whispers in the Unknown” & “Chapter 4 – Pride and Vengeance” | “Chapter 5 – Inquisition” & “Chapter 6 – Night of the Hunted”