– Spoiler Review –
While Maul: Shadow Lord slows down to give viewers the chilling proliferation of the Empire’s grip over Janix in the opening chapter of this set of episodes, things escalate in thrilling, gorgeously animated ways that more than make it worth it in the following chapter. Head below for our reviews of “Chapter 5 – Inquisition” & “Chapter 6 – Night of the Hunted”!
Chapter 5 – Inquisition
When the Empire arrives, they don’t waste much time, do they? From shutting down shuttles out of the city to flights off the planet, stopping and asking everyone for their identification, and taking over the police force, their special brand of ‘order’ through fear spreads like a persistent disease, one masquerading as the cure for the very things it says it’s trying to rid the galaxy of. It’s only one city on Janix, but it’s eerily efficient and pervasive how they clamp down on it, tightening their grip until nothing can slip through its fingers. It’s interesting how Maul: Shadow Lord then tries to show the different points of view on this takeover, which covers some of the concerns I had over the show leaning more and more towards copaganda. On one side, we have Chief Kylce (Keiko Agena) and Captain Lawson, resistant and afraid of what the Empire’s presence means for them, their city, and their job. These are good cops and we’re meant to be worried about how it’ll effect them, how it’ll make the police force ineffective and neutered. In this regard, Shadow Lord still leans towards a too rosy view of an authority like the police, as Kylce’s likely killed off-screen (or at least they heavily imply she’s killed) and Lawson’s locked away, which leaves his son worried for him, and therefore it’s the Empire who is our true, clear villain and the police force remains a bastion of good and light without anything wrong inside. Yet through Two Boots, and later Lawson’s ex-wife, Drea Lawson (Tamlyn Tomita), Shadow Lord offers some cracks on this viewpoint. On Two Boots’ side of things, he’s all too pleased about the back up, rosily seeing the Empire for what they project, not what they are, his programming limiting him to viewing this only as a good thing. He tries to assuage Rylee, Lawson’s son, when he sneaks into the station to look for his dad, espousing the point-of-view of blindly believing everything should be okay, but it only serves to make the kid more worried. Rylee gets stuck hearing much the same viewpoint when he returns home and his mother returns his concerned calls. She works for the Empire and, much like Two Boots but without programming forcing it, tells him the Empire is only here to help them, but also his father. Such compliance, blindly going along with the party line without facing the facts from those around you, shows not only the insidious nature of fascism’s claims of bringing control and order, but also what can happen to institutions when they give up their autonomy as well. No matter how good the show paints the police force here, the fact they go along so easily with the Empire’s arrival and become one of their tools does add a little nuance to their section of the story.
Devon and Daki watch as the Empire closes in, looking for a way out of the city to avoid being captured. Yet this choice, and Maul’s promise of helping Devon become what she’s wanted, offers another chance for a wedge to form between Master and Apprentice. As Daki’s eager to flee the city, Devon hesitates, feeling like they are giving up and wasting their abilities by hiding. Like I said in my review of the previous chapters, Devon still believes in her Master and the Jedi ways and ideals, and like Daki points out, what she’s saying now is just Maul’s words in her voice. She doesn’t believe in them fully yet, but the more she says them, the more they spin around in her head and the more she can’t but hear them and say them. I love the way Gideon Adlon and the animation play this up, from how Adlon really lays into Devon’s uncertainty to her nervously spinning her thumbs, it adds a whole other dimension to her dilemma and makes it even more compelling. Maul not being what she was told and expected is messing with her the most, as why would someone more powerful than them combined and reportedly someone so evil stop from killing them and still offer to be allies? Daki points out he’d never be their ally, he’s only out for himself. Or is that confusing only because the recent defeat against him and watching her Master want to shrink away as the Empire arrives has ate away at her hope? Daki might believe as much, as he reassures her over the course of his longer life, he’s always seen tyranny defeated in the end, therefore hope is something one should always cling to. It’s a small sentiment against larger, seemingly insurmountable problems, like the many facing truth and freedom in our own world, but it’s always a refreshing thing to hear the Saga return to, time and time again no matter what’s going on in-universe or out. Either way, Devon sort of gets what she wants, as Daki’s mind trick out to get out of the increasing Imperial patrols works, but a fellow stormtrooper watching from afar brings the choice crumbling down, forcing the two to fight their way out of a train station and back into the cover of the city. Which of course leads them to Captain Lawson’s doorstep, a terrible time for him as the Empire is watching over even him.
There’s not a ton of Maul in “Chapter 5 – Inquisition,” and while this slow down after the exciting and worrying arrival of the Empire at the end of “Chapter 4” threw me off initially, it’s a good scene setter for what this all means for Shadow Lord‘s many characters. That includes even Maul, as we see some cracks in his limited forces on Janix. Rook Kast doesn’t think Devon is worth the risk of the Empire’s tightening grip, but she’s still loyal to him. But her fellow Mandalorians aren’t so much, as dissent fosters in their ranks. She stamps it down, but it’s a thread I hope Shadow Lord takes the time to revisit. Maul’s presence is threatening, but a lack of credits in one’s wallet is even more so, and if he can’t deliver due to the Empire’s arrival, what’s the point of following him if they don’t have that blind loyalty like Kast does? I was surprised Maul decides to let Vario live, basically letting him go, but it’s a sign of this different era for Maul, someone who isn’t trying to solve every problem with violence, not just being the deadly tool Sidious was using him as.
Bonus thoughts:
- When one of the biggest Maul fans out their speaks, one should listen! Jordan Maison’s latest at Cinelinx dives into what makes “Chapter 3 – Whispers of the Unknown” such a fantastic episode of the show, as I called it my favorite (and it still is!), by diving into what it shows us is so different at Maul at this time that makes this a story worth sharing.
- Daki being a long-lived species makes one wonder HOW old he is. Old enough to have been around for The Acolyte era, the tail end of the High Republic? The High Republic itself? Nothing they need to answer now, but a neat thing that could be visited in the future.
- 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 6 – Night of the Hunted
As “Chapter 6 – Night of the Hunted” begins, it’s sort of gradually dealing with the closing fist of the Empire. Maul, practicing his lightsaber forms, is informed about Marrok, the First Brother Inquisitor, being on Janix. And for Captain Lawson, Daki, Devon, and Rylee, they’re trying to deal with the situation in front of them. It’s the episode’s last moment of peace, with the ‘adults’ talking about their desire to protect their charges, while the charges discuss how different their lives were. With the ‘adults,’ it was interesting to have Lawson lack compassion for the Jedi, as his reasoning, looking after his kid, is not only a sound reason to avoid getting involved, but it’s nice change of pace for the character who, up until now, was prioritizing work. Daki’s understands Lawson’s decision, as he’s only trying to look after Devon, not really himself. And for the teens, well, Rylee’s all nervous about having Devon in his room, cleaning up and fidgeting as she sits next to him, and it was kind of fun to see such normal behavior amongst all the Jedi and Empire and criminal organization stuff. The way Gideon Adlon delivers Devon’s lines in these scenes, from her sarcastic response to being ushered away with Rylee to the questioning “What? Like sports?”, was nothing short of excellent, driving a line further between the lives of these two teens even though she said far less than he. These quiet moments don’t last long, as Lawson and Daki realize, before it’s far too late, the Captain was let go and then monitored. This means Marrok arrives, getting to make a dramatic entrance and the episode doesn’t really slow down afterwards.
It’ll happen again at the end of the episode, but these tight quarter lightsaber battles, where their blades sear through and destroy the room or area around them, are delectable. The animation team is delivering like never before here, with close up shots mimicking the claustrophobic nature of the battle, while the destruction the blades cause is what I felt like I was imagining when swinging my toy blades around my house. These up close fights have a lot of heft to them as well, making the clashing, grunts, and stumbles feel all the more warranted and grounded, like a live-action lightsaber fight, though there are still plenty of fantastical moves and moments as well. Heck, the way both Daki and Marrok are stumbling back as the gunship fires on them at separate moments is such a small, yet wonderfully done detail, showing the difficulty and fortitude it takes to survive something like that. Also, the fire and smoke is bewitchingly gorgeous, the wispy, painterly nature of it making me not want to look away, like a literal moth to the flame. This first action sequence is a thrilling ride overall, from the fight in the Lawsons’ apartment, onto the rooftops, to the chase through the skies in the gunships and I enjoyed the progression and how our heroes’ luck had to run out at some point. Also throughout, I liked these characters getting to interact, with Lawson seeing Devon’s capability and Rylee slowly waking up to the truth of the galaxy and how maybe sports isn’t all that’s important anymore.
There’s a touch more respite when the group sneaks away from their crashed gunship and to Rheena Sul’s casino. Between Lawson openly fighting back against the Empire and some of the background we learn thanks to his history with Sul, Lawson has more of an edge than ever before in the show. We learn briefly about Sul and Lawson’s history, as a bounty hunting job went awry and they saved one another’s life, with Rylee sort of maybe implying there was something between them (maybe what helped lead to his parent’s divorce?). Before Sul really gets a chance to be helpful, to prove his trust in her to the group, stormtroopers arrive and barely register her until she’s fighting them, which is when all hell breaks loose once again, forcing the group to flee. I hope we’ll get to see more of Sul in the future, as it seems like there’s lot of potential for a complex, layered character, but her limited screentime in Shadow Lord so far only hint at those mysteries. I guess I’m just glad Lawson’s less lawful past made its way onto the screen more so than ever before, as the prequel comic was doing a better job so far of providing more of the detective’s layers.
As the stormtroopers invade Sul’s establishment, the group is forced to split up, with Devon protecting Rylee and Daki sticking with Lawson. They get further apart as things escalate, leading to Marrok attacking Devon. Their fight on the train takes what made the opening battle so visceral and amps it up, as while there are multiple storage train cars, open to the air, for them to hop over to, each one is a puzzle of its own, different configurations of boxes and items to avoid or else one will fall off and come to a painful end. The camera stays tight on the combatants too, once again helping us feel the struggle between Devon and Marrok on a whole different level than what we’re used to. I also really enjoyed the consistency with Devon’s injury, as she rotates her wrist a few times during the fight, showing she’s not fully healed from before and also fighting through the pain. While she holds her own, Marrok seems to be a better fighter, yet she’s soon not alone. Maul’s arrival, hinted at in his parse sections through “Chapter 6 – Night of the Hunted,” is an exciting development. The two on one battle which follows, where Maul’s on the ‘two’ side and not alone, says a lot about how he’s trying to change and is a nice inverse of his famous “Duel of the Fates” from The Phantom Menace. Together, they are able to drive Marrok back, cutting off the connector to a train car and Marrok fades into the distance, but Maul still remains. Devon gets ready to fight Maul again, but his patient and more devious tactics surface, as he doesn’t raise his blade against the Padawan. By becoming the ally despite what Daki claimed in “Chapter 5,” it’s just another hammer to the the nail building the cracks between Devon and Daki. What will Daki think when he catches up? Will Maul part ways for now or stick around, see if he can keep chipping away at Devon and get the apprentice he wants? Things are really heating up as we move into the final four episodes of the season!
As for who Marrok calls in the final scene, the constantly updating trivia page reveals it’s NOT the Grand Inquisitor, so remove that option from your theories. Before I saw that, my first bet was Darth Vader, as he does eventually become the lead of their program, even over the Grand Inquisitor, but given when this takes place, it could be Emperor Palpatine, who then calls in Vader as you know he’s not going to bother coming after Maul again again. Might as well see and test his newly minted apprentice again by sending him after Maul, right?! We’ll see, but maybe we’ll finally get a Maul/Vader battle before the series is done!?
Bonus Thoughts:
- Marrok was first introduced in Ahsoka season 1, making a fume-filled end at end of Ahsoka Tano’s blades, but we’ve seen him most recently in Barriss Offee’s Tales of the Empire episodes. And he is considered the First Brother, despite a little encyclopedia mix up.
- I hope both real-life mother and daughter got to be in the recording room at the same time for the scene when Devon and the others show up at Rheena’s casino!
Maul: Shadow Lord‘s “Chapter 5 – Inquisition” & “Chapter 6 – Night of the Hunted” do a great job showing the insidious way the Empire throws its version of Order over a city and population and then absolutely amps up the tension and action as no place really looks to be safe again for our main characters. How much tighter will the Empire’s grip get and who will manage to make it out? We’ll see as we head into the final four episodes of the season!
+ Tense, hefty, closer quarters lightsaber battles
+ Devon navigating her feelings, and pain
+ Scary watching the Empire’s proliferation
– Will get enough layers from characters like Brander Lawson and Rheena Sul?
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”