Darth Maul was the most promising villain and, frankly, aspect of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. Unfortunately he left as quickly as he came leaving fans feeling shafted and split in their anticipation of what would come next in the prequel trilogy.
In the conclusion of the Savage Opress storyline in last season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, it was revealed that Opress was the broker of Maul and that Maul, shown briefly in a hazy crystal ball, was possibly still alive. How someone who gets sliced in two at the waist and falls down a shaft at minimum hundreds of feet in the air is implausible to say the least. In science fiction and fantasy, anything is possible.
Today LucasFilm revealed that Darth Maul is, in fact, alive and well, and he’s ready to kick up a rivalry with Obi-Wan beginning next spring on Star Wars: The Clone Wars. It was George Lucas who directed The Clone Wars showrunner Dave Filoni to come up with a way for Maul to return, perhaps hearing the cries of fans upset at the character’s quick demise in the live-action films.
“He’s more than ten years older than he was in The Phantom Menace,” says Filoni of Maul’s return. “That’s immensely satisfying, because now nobody knows what’s going to happen to him. I know, but nobody else does.”
Filoni also admits that Opress will be a key player in the return of Maul which should fill your heads with imagery of the two fighting Jedi side-by-side. What that does to the “only two Sith” rule remains to be seen, but Maul’s coming back, likely with robotic legs if early concept art from the films is any indications. And he’s going to be out for blood.
