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A long time ago, in an office far, far away, a man sat down to write a prequel to the greatest science fiction trilogy ever made.
That man was George Lucas (and it wasn’t that long ago, it was only 1999) and the film was Star Wars: Episode One – The Phantom Menace.
An ambitious flick, the film followed Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi and his master Qui-Gon Jinn, who, while trying to solve a trade dispute, accidentally discovered the prophesied chosen one, Anakin Skywalker.
It sounds awesome, but the film split the fandom. Some found it overly complicated and boring, while others enjoyed the characters and action.
What almost every Star Wars fan agrees on, however, is that the main villain might just be the coolest-looking character in the entire Star Wars series.
I’m talking, of course, about the Sith Lord Darth Maul. Sadly, Maul got short shrift in the film, only getting one line before he’s bisected by Obi-Wan in the climactic battle.
However, you can’t keep a good Sith Lord down, and he’s now got his own Disney Plus spin-off show: Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord.
Set after the events of the Clone Wars animated series (which revived Maul after his aforementioned bisection) the show follows the former Sith as he builds a criminal empire under the nose of Imperial officers.
The first two episodes dropped today (April 7 in the UK), and the reception has already been out of this world.
So far, the series has 100% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 25 critic reviews.
Jamie Parker gave the show 10/10 and called it ‘[Star Wars] best TV series of all time’.
Molly Edwards gave it four out of five and called ita ‘visually stunning entry in the Lucasfilm Animation canon that explores the wrath and surprising vulnerability of one of Star Wars’s most intriguing characters.’
It’s not just the critics who are loving it; the show also has a 95% Audience Score as well.
On Reddit, Trzcinek wrote: ‘Amazing premiere. Love the cyberpunk-ish mood. Can’t wait for next episodes.’
Meanwhile, on X, Rajhkeem Bec said: ‘Maul Shadow Lord is everything I want from a show with a bad guy lead. I might watch those first two episodes again.’
Of course, like the Force itslef the Internet exists in elicate balance and for everyone who loves the show, we managed to find someone who was less than impressed.
‘There were some nice shots of Coruscant (still don’t like the animation), but I don’t get what the point of the show is,’ wrote Western_Agent5917 on Reddit.
‘Maul is tiresome, and one more Order 66 Survivor is not needed. Those who enjoy Filoni animated stuff are going to like it, I guess’
Commercial-Bit-1749 was similarly unimpressed cirticsing the show and Disney’s lack of ambition.
‘That’s the issue with Disney. They’re almost solely relying on nostalgia bait,’ they argued.’Either they are too afraid to want to dip their toes into the old republic or mishandle new era material as they did with The Scolyte. They need to push the story forward.’
The first two episodes of Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord are available to watch now on Disney Plus.
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