Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord S1, Ep, 9 and 10 Review: The Perfect Finale

Episodes 9 and 10 of Maul – Shadow Lord deliver an intense, emotional, tragic, and epic finale while setting up for the next season.

If you are feeling lost watching this show, or reading our review and not remembering details of events for context, check our complete guide to everything you should watch and read before watching Maul – Shadow Lord. Missed out previews reviews? Catch up:

Dryden Vos’ rise to power

Dryden’s first appearance in Solo: A Star Wars Story made it very evident that Dryden is both ruthless and pragmatic. He will help or betray someone as long as it benefits him. That played out in favor of Maul and everyone else.

I’m sure that Dryden isn’t particularly fond of Maul, but he is the means to becoming the head of Crimson Dawn. For that price, Dryden would team up with anybody. While Dryden is the head of Crimson Dawn in the movie, he still answers to Maul. At least until Qi’ra takes over.

Star Wars Outlaws: Low Red Moon, Star Wars Outlaws, and the comic series War of the Bounty Hunters show how Crimson Dawn manages to become a pain in the butt for everyone. Other criminal syndicates, the Rebel Alliance, and even the Empire.

It’s interesting to see how Dryden saving Maul in this series eventually leads to having Darth Vader and Qi’ra in the same place, while Maul ends up stranded on Malachor V. I can’t wait to see what’s going to happen in Season Two!

The duel fans have wanted for decades

For many years, fans have wondered what would happen in a hypothetical duel between Maul and Vader. Some have long-form videos that discuss the topic, while others have made their own movies to simulate the battle between two of the coolest antagonists of the franchise.

The Clone Wars and Rebels animated shows allowed us to have a better grasp of the difference between the two characters, but it still wasn’t the same as having the two go at each other. Thanks to these episodes, there is no doubt about who would come out on top.

I was expecting Darth Vader to appear in the final episodes, but definitely not in such an active manner. Perhaps in a holocall, his silhouette, or maybe just hearing his iconic breathing in an ominous scene, but what we got is a thousand times better.

I still can’t believe that we actually got to see Darth Vader fight against Maul for several minutes. For better or worse, it went exactly as I expected. The combined effort of Devon, Master Daki, and Maul stood no chance against the unstoppable force that is Darth Vader.

As a Jedi Knight, Anakin Skywalker was already as strong as the most proficient Jedi Masters of the Jedi Order, with the exception of Yoda. Now that he is a full-fledged Sith Lord, there are only two Jedi who can fight him and survive to tell the tale: Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka Tano.

I seriously doubt that either of them appears in Season Two of Maul – Shadow Lord, so there’s a good chance that he won’t be in those episodes. Nonetheless, I’m still incredibly happy that he was on screen fighting against two Jedi and Maul.

The series didn’t use motion capture technology, but they still captured his powerful yet simple strikes accurately. It felt like watching the hallway scene from Rogue One, but with steroids, because he fought against three lightsaber wielders at the same time and won (technically).

This was such a good reminder as to why Darth Vader is absolutely terrifying for Jedi, crime lords, rebels, and even Imperial Forces as well.

What price did Maul have to pay? Everything

Maul’s ultimate goal was to get an apprentice, hoping that this would help him in his revenge against Darth Sidious and the Galactic Empire. The good news for him is that Devon has now agreed to be trained by the former Sith Lord, but the price he had to pay may be too high.

In the span of just a few days, Maul lost Scorn and Icarus, his two Zabrak brothers and the only remnants of what was once his home. All the Mandalorian mercenaries who played a big role in Maul’s operations. Rook Cast, his most loyal follower and arguably the only person who fully believed in him.

And last but not least is the trustworthy Spybot that proved so useful in many different situations. These losses have added to a pile that was already a big burden on Maul’s shoulders.

Now it’s time to see if having Devon as an apprentice will be of actual impact, not just for Maul, but for the Empire and maybe even other Jedi. Losing her Master’s in the blink of an eye after surviving Order 66 isn’t going to heal up anytime soon, with Maul fueling her rage. Her character arc is definitely going to be the most interesting thing about Season 2.

What’s going to happen to Rylee?

Unfortunately, the list of sacrifices doesn’t end with Maul Forces or Master Daki. Captain Lawson made the ultimate sacrifice by giving his own life so Rylee and Two-Boots could escape aboard Dryden’s ship.

This kid has no place to go and is trapped with Maul and Dryden Vos. I don’t believe he can go to his mother without endangering her as well, so it’s likely that he ends up working for Crimson Dawn.

The kid was just a normal teenager with normal problems, and he’s now alongside some of the Empire’s most wanted. However, his grief might turn into anger and make him a valuable asset for Crimson Dawn or maybe even Maul. Whatever happens to him, it’s probably not good.

Final thoughts

This Season Finale was amazing! The best thing was seeing Darth Vader be the unmatched powerhouse that he’s been in the Darth Vader comics, the Jedi games, and Rogue One.

The music by Kiner Music matched the intensity of these episodes and made it such a joy to listen to amid all the epic action.

As it’s usual with Star Wars, the last episodes answered a few questions while creating new ones. What happens with Devon in the second season? How does Maul end up on Malachor V? Will we see Qi’ra as part of Crimson Dawn?

Thankfully, Sam Witwer has teased that we won’t have to wait “too long” before the second season arrives. I estimate that it’ll be released in a year or two tops. It’s still a long time because we want answers now, but with so many Star Wars projects releasing soon, we’ll be more than entertained in the meantime.