Star Wars fans new and old remember one feeling. The feeling of excitement as Darth Maul took on Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi with his double-bladed lightsaber. They also recall that feeling fading into sadness as Maul was sliced in half, supposedly killed.
Thankfully, years later Maul returned in the Clone Wars animated series and when that show was canceled, Rebels a few years later. While many audiences believe that the Clone Wars Maul revitalized the character, an equal number of fans believe that the Rebels version is superior (like with the series finales) for numerous reasons.
10 Clone Wars: Continuation
What was nice about Clone Wars was how it continued the story established in the first two prequel films. The stories in question allowed the show to dive deeper into that galaxy far, far away and learn more about key characters, like Maul.
When Maul was revealed to be alive in the fourth season, it continued where the Phantom Menace left off, adding to his badass features and saber with rage-filled dialogue, horrifying actions, and a revenge-driven plot that made him a terrifying force for Sith and Jedi alike.
9 Rebels: Full Circle
While Clone Wars focused on connecting the dots between Episodes II and III, Rebels was a little more focused on creating a link between III and IV. Along with that came some Clone Wars connections and brought the story of Darth Maul full circle.
Having Maul continue his journey of revenge and wreaking havoc across the galaxy was shown as more of a bucket list item than pure revenge. Going full circle allowed audiences to see a fan-favorite villain's journey of vengeance and hate reach a satisfying conclusion.
8 Clone Wars: Rage And Intelligence
At his core, Darth Maul is a vicious, psychopathic, killing machine whose nature was just as intimidating as some of his quotes. He took down Qui-Gon Jinn like he was nothing, then, following his return from madness, slaughtered innocents, Jedi and Duchess Satine like they were nothing.
Yet, while everyone knows Maul's rage, they seem to overlook his intelligence, something the series made apparent. Maul basically took over a government, put in place a puppet, lured Obi-Wan into a trap, and hurt him on a mental level. Maul's rage and intellect boosted his character over the course of eleven episodes.
7 Rebels: Desperation And Peace
Even though seeing Maul on a level of rage and intellect was intriguing, the Clone Wars never gave audiences Maul's emotional side. Yes, when viewers first met Maul, he was insane and groveling, but Rebels took that characterization to a whole other level.
Throughout Maul's appearances, he was always in some form of either desperation or reckless behavior, trying his best to survive and find his hated foe. However, when he finally accomplished that goal, he found a form of peace, something not seen before with his character.
6 Clone Wars: Ruler of Mandalore
Truth be told, Maul almost fits in perfectly with the Mandalorians. A race of warriors bound by code, the Mandalorians were divided among one another with one half putting the past behind them while another, Death Watch, honored the old.
That's where Maul came in. Utilizing Death Watch, Maul overthrew the government, claimed the Darksaber, one of Star Wars strangest weapons, gained control of Death Watch by killing Pre Viszla, and became Mandalore's ruler. Despite being a brief change in status quo for the Sith Lord, it was an interesting one, to say the least, one that improved his character and power.
5 Rebels: Outcast
Most fans know though that Maul's reign didn't last very long. He was overthrown by Palpatine, then captured by Ashoka before fleeing for locations unknown. The former Sith Apprentice went from being a Sith to lunatic to king to nobody.
Being a nobody though, an outcast, ended up being one of the best phases of Maul's character. Instead of having immense power and control, he was forced to race across the galaxy as a sort of nomad, hoping to eventually reach his long-coveted goal one day, enhancing his character.
4 Clone Wars: Savage Opress
"Only two, there can be. The Master and the Apprentice." The rule of two for the Sith has, over the years, become somewhat loose, to say the least. As the number of Siths grew from Count Doku to Assaj Ventress (a character who doesn't make much sense) to General Asthmatic Robot and Savage Opress.
Savage Opress, Maul's Brother from Dathomir, became his apprentice after becoming a Sith thanks to Count Dooku. With the vicious Opress at his side, the duo was nearly unstoppable in their rampage across the galaxy, stopped only by that of Darth Sidious himself.
3 Rebels: Ezra Bridger
Of course, no good thing can last forever and unfortunately, Opress met his end at the hand of Sidious. While the bond between the brothers was strong, Maul's next partnership was pretty unconventional, to say the least.
Although Ezra Bridger, one of Rebels' more likable characters, was always Kanan Jarrus's apprentice more so than Maul's, the dark lord had his hooks in the young Jedi. From using Bridger to get closer to his end goal and trying to turn him to the Dark Side, one could say Ezra gave Maul more of an advantage than Savage.
2 Clone Wars: The Ashoka Duel
In the end, a Sith is only as good as their duels. Over the course of the movies and shows, Maul has faced off in some of the most iconic duels of all time. Recently, Clone Wars presented one of it's last and best duels that went hand in hand with the fantastic season/series finale with Darth Maul taking on Ashoka Tano.
As the Siege of Mandalore (one of the shows best storylines) raged on, the former Padawan and Apprentice faced off in a spectacular fight aided by its awesome visuals and behind the scenes effects, serving as a reminder of how vicious Maul is.
1 Rebels: The Obi-Wan Showdown
Now, Maul has had plenty of amazing duels over the years, from the iconic "Duel of Fates" to facing Pre Viszla and on numerous occasions, dueling Obi-Wan. Yet, none exemplify all his attributes more than the final duel between him and Kenobi.
After coming face to Obi-Wan on Tatooine one last time, the pair faced off in a simple duel that served as a callback to samurai and western showdowns of old. While it wasn't as action-packed as others and even though Maul lost, it showcased his fighting techniques and that classic rage that carries him through to the bitter end.
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January 11, 2021 at 04:30AM
