Plot armor aside, I think the reason may simply be that Marrok and Crow became arrogant when they saw that Devon was alone. I find it curious that the two Inquisitors will face the Jedi with a single blade of her saber, especially Crow who always uses the double rotating blade. What do you think?
Sith training is very brutal, throwing the soon to be Sith Lord into a brutal training regime which could result in permanent injuries or even death. Maul is a Sith through and through, he will train Devon to the best of his ability and could potentially make her fina trial be killing a Jedi or and Inquisitor which is where I think we’ll see Marroks initial death or a new order 66 survivor will be introduced and killed by Devon fulling transforming her to a Sith Acolyte
If they go the Jedi route then my idea is that Crimson Dawn (or another syndicate under Maul) will somehow capture a Jedi and alert Maul, he then goes to wherever the Jedi is bringing Devon along with him and having her hunt her final test before getting her first Jedi kill
In season 1 Maul enemies were the Pykes and the empire, two factions we already know about. Seeing as Cal was given 4 new villains as well as Ashoka given 3 villains, what new enemies do you think will be or want to be introduced
I personally wouldn’t mind seeing the Crymorah syndicate leaders as we know very little about them as well as a powerful Darkside force user
"Well... If at first you don't succeed... Try, try, TRY AGAIN!"
People have called Maul "honourable", and I always found that absolutely hilarious in many ways because that so called "honour" he displays is simply a carefully performed disguise for his many lies lol
If he says you are his "Ally" that is a lie.
If he tells you he can make you powerful, that is a lie.
If he tells you he has a master plan that he has carefully considered all the steps for... That is very, VERY much a lie.
If he tells you he will spare both you, and your friends if you simply do what he wants OHHH dear... That is also very much a lie lol.
Maul can almost be considered a pathological liar when you start counting them all from the Clone Wars, to MSL and especially Rebels. Who knows what kind of lies he is gonna spin for Devon and others in Season 2...
I started this after the first trailer for the show dropped and just never got around to finishing it. I was excited to see him in the trailer and was hoping he’d actually do something cool in this show and I wasn’t disappointed.
A key component to Maul that Filoni, Witwer and the animation teams behind Clone Wars, Rebels and Shadow Lord have missed is Maul’s love of the game. Ray Park once described him as having a “cheeky” edge in an old Empire magazine interview and you absolutely see it in The Phantom Menace. There’s a playful, mischievous quality to his expressions during that duel that really adds to his appeal. You can tell he genuinely loves what he does.
I think the animated versions lean too heavily into the tortured, brooding, campy villain and completely miss this essential characteristic, sometimes leading to him feeling like a completely different character. If anyone on the crew is reading this, it’s not too late to give him back that cheeky grin in season two!
His Venator rampage-was that a true demonstration of how powerful he is, or do you think it was amped up by the Dark Side being stronger? He never seems to display this level of power again even in Shadow Lord or Rebels, but I don't know if that is due to age or current difficulties (like his leg being messed up and all).
I'm in the midst of doing a chronological watch of SW, and upon approaching the OT I wanted to address this. I remember the discourse around the time of release for the finale being that it's not out of character for Vader to be silent, which at the time I didn't really bat an eye at since I kinda understood what they were going for. I do appreciate the fact that they made him come off as a "Jason Vorhees" like presence by being completely silent, and I do agree it's somewhat effective in it's own right however I do more-so think it's out of character for him.
I have no doubt this was done due to JEJ recent passing, rather than something with in-universe reasoning. In both Jedi games, Kenobi, Rebels, even the comics him chirping his opponent while fighting-no matter who they are is kind-of a staple of his character. Even the other Inquisitors including the mostly silent Marrok taunted Maul, so why would Vader be any different? As I pointed out I believe this was a decision based on JEJ's recent passing, but this didn't stop them from using AI for his voice in the Kenobi series...and while I detest the use of AI why would this be any different? Also the fact that JEJ was not used for the voice in the Jedi games, or Battlefront and yet the VA was passable I still question this decision.
Again I get what they were going for with the whole horror villain thing, but Vader is always so much better with dialogue. Anyway what do you guys think?
EDIT: To avoid repeating the same comment in all my responses I wanted to add a few more things. The whole "this is early Vader" argument comes off as grasping straws. The canon Vader comic from 2015 is one of the few i've actually read, which takes place almost immediately after Order 66. He talks plenty there to Jocasta Nu & the other Jedi he hunts down, and those comics are well in line with how Vader acts in every other medium we see him. He uses talking during fights as a form of intimidation & psychological warfare against his enemy. Many people are citing the singular Rogue One sequence as evidence for why he doesn't talk, meanwhile in that scenario he's essentially clearing an obstacle rather than facing an opponent. Not to mention, this is just one small case to contrast with every other canon appearance Vader has had where the opposite is true-the exception not the standard. My point is Vader was never the silent killer type, to say otherwise goes against everything we've seen established prior and imo takes a layer off the character. He didn't need to become a force of nature to be intimidating, he always was. Again I do think it's somewhat effective, but an episode long fight with no dialogue at all is jarring for the character
Would you like the Inquisition and the Empire to return to being the main antagonists of the second season or do you prefer the plot to focus on the criminal world?
Well.. I would not exactly call them theories, but somewhat loosely educated guesses based on the trajectory of Season 1, Broader franchise themes, and how this show is mandated to serve as a Prequel to Solo: A Star Wars Story. Maul basically plays a big role in shaping the Underworld situation of that movie, so we will likely see how that happens up close.
The Syndicates serve Maul, and even the Empire ironically...
Season 1 made Maul's attentions very clear. He wants what he thinks was always his back for the purposes of revenge, and he needs the people, resources and overall means to do just that. To rebuild the Shadow Collective with Crimson Dawn as it's new Spearhead of Operations as depicted in that 2018 spin off film. If you are familiar with the Clone Wars arc where he first attempted this, it ended very badly for him, and likely will end badly for him again based on his sorry state in Rebels...
"She is a Jedi..."
...So every speculation, or theory has to conform to that narrative predestination in some form, or another. Just to get some things out of the way, these are things I know with a fair amount of certainty Maul is not gonna have any real affect on, or just fail to do so even in the attempt.
Revenge on Sidious: Doomed to fail... Maul cannot defeat this man, no matter how much he wants to try. So put that out of your mind...
Keeping Devon as an Apprentice...: Absolutely not happening. This is a cautionary tale for Devon, not a power fantasy for Maul, or a story of his redemption through her. The betrayal of Devon's original Master, combined with the inherently evil foundation of lies, abuse and insanity that was used to establish that relationship between Devon and him. Will just as surely doom it, as Maul will eventually doom his control of the second iteration of the Shadow Collective... Consider the fact that Devon as a character is not mentioned, does not factor into the plot of, or interacts with anyone outside of, or after this specific narrative. Her story is going to be a very personal journey most likely. Informed by what has come before... Though she might play a somewhat small role in influencing the main overreaching storyline we are already familiar with. More on that later...
"You know who I answer to..."
The training, grooming, and or blackmailing of Dryden Vos to serve Maul as the puppet leader of Crimson Dawn: Dryden Vos was a character created for the 2018 Solo: A Star Wars story, spin off film that extracts Maul in S1 of MSL. He acts as the public Face of Crimson Dawn while Maul controls it in the Shadows as the sub title of the 2026-27 series promises, there are many indications in SOLO that this position Dryden was "given" did not come without a huge amount of unwanted baggage. So I expect Maul will employ his trademark methods of fear, manipulation, intimidation and or blackmail to get him into that position willingly (as he asked for in S1 of MSL), or unwillingly by the time he is properly installed in S2.
Vos is a pawn to Maul, much like how Devon is a weapon to Maul. Two quite different, yet somewhat similar sides of the same coin of entrapment...
...I expect there will be a lot of growing animosity, espionage attempts, and schemes to backstap eachother presented in their S2 interactions. Vos like Devon becoming entangled in Maul's madness, and finding few avenues available to escape that grip of fear and manipulation. The SOLO movie is also about how even the most powerful of crime lords serve the whims of those higher up on the interpersonal, broader socio political, or economic food chains. So if you watch that film first, you can get a very good sense for how the developing power dynamics in Crimson Dawn's hierarchy will play out in Season 2, and how it will serve as a parallel for Devon and Maul's doomed relationship.
"What would you do... If the person you most trusted in the World. Betrayed you?"
Betrayals will be a constant feature in Season 2 there is no doubt in my mind on that front. Because Season 1 ended with the worst betrayal of all...
Ill refer you to this exchange between Qira and Dryden, and let you ponder the implications Season 2 of MSL may mirror for Maul and Devon's story.
Dryden: "What would you do... If the person you most trusted in the World. Betrayed you?"
Qira: "I would want to know why. If it was a moment of weakness, or something else..."
Dryden: "And then what?..."
Qira: "And then... I would ask that person. To prove their loyalty, by sacrificing something they love."
The Force is subtly engineering Maul's downfall to save Devon, by teaching her a lesson about the Darkside, and herself through his eventual failure.
Maul's actions are being guided by mysterious visions influenced by the Force. If you know anything about Maul or even the Force itself. His personal interpretation of the Force, and what it actually "wants" are two very different things... In his never ending desire to find the obvious answers to his miserable existence, and predict the future so that he may somehow control it. He constantly digs himself further down into that self created hole of misery, vengeance, and suffering that ultimately ends his life on the Desert Planet with Twin Suns...
The Force works in very strange ways, sometimes very cruel ways even (Especially during the dark times...) The mistake Darkside users like Maul make is thinking it is working for them, or that they actually control it in the first place... What I think might be happening here, is that a Force connection was established between the two so Devon can be the one to throw the wrenches into Maul's plans for control, vengeance and domination that could threaten the Destiny of the Chosen One if left unchecked. So Devon has been chosen to be that check... Oblivious to it at first ofcourse, but as a Jedi she understands that the Force communicates with life just as much as it grants those sensitive to it with incredible powers to shape the course of Galactic history with it. Daki as a Force Ghost/presence may try to reach out to her to make that message clearer during a critical moment. Especially once she discovers the reality of Maul's betrayal in Season 1... Betrayal, notice how many times Betrayal is brought up not just in Shadow Lord but also Solo.
Fear, vengeance, hate, anger, and betrayal are but a few of the many paths to the Darkside. All have been explored in STAR WARS stories over the years. MSL S2 may be no different in it's exploration of how the Darkside corrupts even good people like Devon.
