Maul ranks among the most intriguing characters in the Star Wars galaxy. For fans who only follow the films, he’s the Zabrak warrior bisected in The Phantom Menace who later made an appearance in… But for viewers of The Clone Wars and Rebels, he’s at the center of one of the… in Star Wars canon, spanning from the start of the prequel trilogy all the way to the conclusion of Rebels.
Now, over two decades later, he’s finally getting a…, and it’s adhering to the same formula…—which suggests it might be the next major Star Wars success.
Star Wars: Maul — Shadow Lord tells the tale of a secondary, heavily costumed villain from the franchise’s blockbuster first film who sets out to build a criminal empire from the ground up. Does that ring a bell? That exact premise applies to The Penguin, HBO’s live-action spinoff of Matt Reeves’ The Batman, where Colin Farrell plays The Penguin (also known as Oz Cobb).
The parallels don’t end there. The Penguin also introduced Sofia Gigante (formerly Falcone), a fresh character with whom Oz develops a fragile bond. Details about Maul — Shadow Lord are scarce, but it appears a new character named Devon Izara— a Force-sensitive Twi’lek who meets Maul—will be part of the series, and she’s clearly the Sofia Gigante counterpart to Maul’s Oz Cobb.
Maul, much like Oz, is undeniably villainous in the films, but he boasts a rich backstory and plenty of emotional depth as an individual character. When that aspect of Oz’s persona was emphasized in The Penguin, it became one of DC Studios’ biggest triumphs, earning numerous Emmy nominations and a win for Cristin Milioti for her portrayal of Sofia. As an animated series on Disney+, Maul — Shadow Lord probably won’t hit those same peaks, but it could accomplish for Star Wars’ new phase what The Penguin did for DC Studios’ new chapter: demonstrate that even with major blockbuster films on the way, TV shows can still achieve excellence by focusing on characters who are otherwise just supporting players in larger ensembles.
While Star Wars TV might be shifting focus to films like The Mandalorian and Grogu and Star Wars: Starfighter, don’t write off the TV division just yet—this series shows the franchise is sticking to a winning formula.