Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord: Chapter 7: Call of Oblivion
What is it ? : In the train tunnels, Maul leads Devon and Rylee, Rylee questions Devon as to who Maul is, and although she doesn't trust him she thinks he's their best option for the moment. Maul tells them that he'll get them safely to his gang, and from then it's their choice as to where they go.
Elsewhere, Daki and Brander Lawson are in the streets, and Lawson says that the Empire is searching in a particular area so that is likely where Devon and Rylee have gone. Lawson attempts to contact Two Boots, but Two Boots cuts the communication when Imperial officers pass him.
Maul, Devon and Rylee arrive at Mauls base, where Maul orders them to begin packing up, offering Devon space on his transport off planet. However Rook Kast orders her people to only take essentials leaving their money behind, which they aren't happy about as they're mercenaries working for money.
Devon and Rylee attempt to sneak away, but Maul threatens them leading to a lightsaber fight, which is spotted by an Imperial Probe Droid.
As Stormtroopers arrive on LAAT/i's, a battle breaks out, but Mauls forces have to retreat. And in the skirmish Rylee is captured by the Empire, even though Devon leaps onto the side of the LAAT/i to try to stop it, falling to the ground as it leaves.
Mauls forces are pursued, but some of the Mandalorians take the transport ship and leave without them, but the ship is destroyed by more arriving LAAT/i's.
Rylee is taken to the police station, where Two Boots is surprised to see him, and equally surprised that he recognises him without his signature boots.
Maul is confronted by the Inquisitor, plus another bird skull masked Inquisitor and is nearly matched by them, only escaping by pulling down the roof with the Force. . . .
High Points : Some spectacular lightsaber fights in here, with Maul against the Inquistors looking absolutely amazing. And it's really satisfying to see Mauls leadership style of bullying everyone fail to work as a bunch of the Mandalorians abandon him, and he loses his ship and way off the planet.
Low Points : But here we are in episode 7 out of 10, and the story just seems to be set up, how Maul meets Devon, how the others are chasing after him. I suppose the final three episodes can turn it all around, and give us some satisfying story building. But for the moment, it's focusing on Maul, when we know the Inquisitors don't catch him, we know he doesn't train Devon into a Palpatine killing assassin, we know where this story ends which makes Maul boring as a protagonist, and they're not focusing on the characters which could have satisfying stories enough.
So what do you really think ? : While it's flashy and eye catching, there's a lack of any substance to the Maul series. We get lightsaber fights, and chases, and cool looking Inquisitors. But we know nothing about them to make them interesting, and the characters we do know something about aren't really doing anything.
Final Words : Unless they turn around and make the new Inquisitor Maul's father (or Savage Opress back from the dead), this series feels like it's going to be a failure. It's just too deep into the "none of this matters" problem you get by telling stories and wedging them into an existing and set timeline. The Vader comics suffered badly from this as well, but at least redeemed themselves from time to time by delving into what was going on in Vader's head, something we don't get in this series in any way.
Score : 8/10
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