Curate, connect, and discover
Reflection / Reflecting
Completed request for this
Requested by @blackat-t7t - palette #5 - Savage & Maul - Nature Settings to Rouse the Spirit
Thank you for the request, @blackat-t7t ! When you put in Maul as an option for this palette I got so excited, this was such an interesting one. Enjoy!
Taking my time with these, still planning to finish them all.
I love the original comic panel and wanted to try a re-draw.
You are big, thirsty, the bar tabs on your brother and you are completely unfamiliar with the drinks menu👍
idk man i just really enjoy the upside down heart on maul's tits like that's it i got nothing else
“Iᴛ ʜᴀs ʙᴇᴇɴ sᴏ ʟᴏɴɢ… ᴀɴᴅ ᴍʏ ᴘᴀᴛʜ ʜᴀs ʙᴇᴇɴ sᴏ ᴅᴀʀᴋ…” “Aɴᴅ ʏᴇᴛ ʏᴏᴜ sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇᴅ.”
“Oғ ᴄᴏᴜʀsᴇ I sᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇᴅ.”
Darth Maul, for @sith-maul
Is this your doing? Choose your words carefully.
The trailer for the new Maul show looks fantastic with beautiful animation and some great voice acting. And of course, there's our usual Maul-isms such as he need for revenge and his never ending quest for an apprentice. I do love that Rook points out that he had another vision, which I think is pretty cool for Maul. I love the small details such as the sound of his legs against the metal ramp to the ship. I also love that we're getting an encounter with an inquisitor since in Rebels, his lightsaber is made out of a broken inquisitor blade.
With that said, the one thing I truly hope for are quiet moments where we really get a chance to delve into his inner thoughts. Underneath his quest for vengeance, who is he truly?
Maul is a complex person; while there is no doubt that he's not very moral, he is still very vulnerable, lonely, angry, and has a longing for a companion. The unfortunate reality is that Maul's upbringing has essentially tarnished his interpersonal skills and mind to a point where he struggles to have even the most basic meaningful connection. Savage sure tried the brotherly route and was met with an apprentice-master dynamic. Maul, of course, did care in his own way but has zero concept of healthy relationships other than what was taught to him.
Ezra was a similar situation where there was an offering for companionship (naïveté aside), but Maul still had to go down that master-apprentice route (and try and take out the real master for good measure). When Maul is at his most desperate to hold on to his connection with Ezra, he pleads that they could be like friends, even brothers. Of course, he's still not above using Ezra to get to Obi-Wan.
The point is, Maul continues to be one of Star Wars' most tragic figures: a lonely man who will never find peace with himself or anything in his life even when others try and offer it to him. It's his internal battle that makes him so compelling to me. Maul has to continue a quest that will never satisfy him. He's been offered chances for a better life, but never takes it. And with this new series, I truly hope they will give us more insight into his inner world. Does he still think about Savage? Has he ever considered the self-destructive nature of his quest (tbf, in Rebels he definitely knows imo).
We know that he will be getting a new apprentice, which could be a great opportunity to explore Maul's more tragic and sympathetic side.
It's pretty well known that Maul tends to seek companionship in people he not only sees potential in, but also sees a part of himself. Savage being his brother aside, with Ahsoka, Maul saw someone who had been cast aside, and with Ezra, Maul saw someone who shared his desire to defeat the Sith and avenge those he lost. Maul yearns for that connection and I'm curious so see if this relationship will be different from Ezra or Savage. It will still be master-apprentice, but will the girl be more hesitant to learn like Ezra, open like Savage, or eventually embrace the teachings and kick Maul to the curb? Maybe, just maybe, Maul will have a somewhat positive relationship that isn't just him dominating someone else the whole time. I'm getting off track here, but I really would be curious as to how another apprentice route is going to impact Maul (especially considering how every storyline he's in always includes some sort of master-apprentice dynamic).
Based on the trailer, it appears that Maul has a vision about the Twi'lek girl and offers to train her. It appears that his line about an unfilled destiny is directed at her and he can help her reach that potential. I'd love to see what this vision entails since it has to be pretty significant for Maul to go out of his way to seek her. Perhaps, Maul seeks to help the girl fulfill her "destiny" as a way to soothe his own aching soul considering he feels robbed of destiny.
Thinking back to Clone Wars, I wouldn't be surprised if Maul was haunted by what happened on Mandalore and with Order 66. In Rebels, he does have a portrait of Satine that he destroyed. We know Sidious is the man he fears more than anything. I can imagine he is plagued by nightmares and anger. He lost everything and getting a chance to "restart" with a new apprentice might just be the opportunity he jumps at to find some sense of purpose.
Purpose is another core Maul-ism. This guy literally tunnel visions on like one or two things (destroy Obi-Wan and Sidious) and then makes it everyone else's problem. In fact, part of Maul's tragedy is that he can't see another path for himself other than revenge. It is a result of his upbringing, but what's tragic is that he can't let it go, ever. So much of his pain comes from the fact that he will never be satisfied in life; everything around him fails and he can't even beat one specific Jedi. And for all the pain it's caused him, Maul can't. let. go. Enter a potential apprentice with an "unfulfilled destiny." No doubt Maul will use this to channel his own sense of purpose. I am really interested to see how this theme plays out with the Twi'lek girl and I wonder how much of this "unfulfilled destiny" is coming from her or from Maul.
Remember Ezra? He wanted to defeat the Sith, but it wasn't his number one priority. Maul was the one who influenced that side of him because that's what Maul wanted. He took advantage of a young, naive boy and it led to disaster. I'm curious of the Twi'lek girl's motivation and why she is in Maul's visions. Maybe this girl will give us more insight into Maul's inner world. Will she be someone he truly bonds with (to the extent that he can)? Or is it going to be more closed off as it has always been with Maul? Maul does open up, but the narrative usually is either very skewed or he's just venting.
All and all, I'm just excited to see Maul again. I realize this whole post just went into a ramble about Maul's character but he truly is such a fascinating person. His story is defined by the anger and pain he experiences, he is merciless on his quest for revenge, and yet, we the audience are still asked to feel sympathy for him. We see his vulnerabilities, his pain, his grief, his longing for connection, and over and over again, we see his failure. Maul is a cautionary tale of what happens when you allow revenge and anger to rule your life; it leads to nothingness, something that Obi-Wan echoes to him in Rebels.
It is heartbreaking that Maul only found peace when he died and while he finally realized that Obi-Wan was never his true enemy, that drive for vengeance never left him. Even writing this just makes me want to bundle him up in a blanket and hold him tight. Maul carries so much pain, both with what he has caused and what he has endured.
I hope this new show doesn't disappoint and gives us a new perspective on our favorite Zabrak. If you made it this far, thank you for sticking with this long-winded rant. I was just literally pouring all my Maul feels into this unintentionally. I love Maul so, so much; his story pulls at my heartstrings and his relationship with Obi-Wan is genuinely one of my favorite Star Wars dynamics of all time. I can't wait to see this new, unexplored chapter of Maul's life! (Until then I'm in my Andor brainrot, specifically over the pathetic cereal man).
New Maul show and hes the main character wtf
I hope they make him a bitch. I hope they make him mean and his anger has layers. I hope they make him yearn and poetic. I hope they make him guilty and resentful for feeling that way. I hope they entrench him in his past. I hope they throw it in his face. I hope he isn't lonely even for just a little while. I hope they give him a chance to escape but he can't take it because he doesn't know anything else. I hope it's a tragedy that moves like a slow motion car crash.
The fact that obimaul isn't a more popular ship makes me crazy. How do more people not see it.
They're narrative foils. Maul survives a killing blow because the thought of Kenobi kept him alive, and what is obsession but a mirror of devotion? Obi-Wan is the master of defense and Maul is the master of offense. Obi-Wan's first and last kill of his life is Maul. The trajectory of their lives is extraordinary similar until the Same Duel sends them shooting off into opposite directions and defines them both for decades. A duel that teaches Obi-Wan the feeling of revenge that will haunt Maul the rest of his life. Obi-Wan was the apprentice who was never wanted. Maul was wanted too much. Obi-Wan overcame his trauma, but Maul never could. Both rebellious by nature, forced into the mold of the Perfect Example of their respective orders, and yet they have the same failing - Maul, desperate for companionship from ANYBODY, and Obi-Wan who struggles with his attachment to the people he loves. Both forced into exile by the same man who destroyed their lives and orders. They've hurt each other in unimaginable ways and yet understand each other like no one else can.
"The only one allowed to kill you is me" but isnt that just another way of asking live for me? Who is your rival but your purpose? Is there not a tenderness in the eyes of your worst enemy who has seen you at your absolute lowest and still needs you to get back up? Because without you, what are they?
Everything about Maul makes a lot more sense when you realize that despite being an extraordinarily powerful and deeply talented force user, he is still extremely insecure + fear motivated.
Not only is he from a culture that inherently devalues him, but he grew up being told he was good for very little. Maul, at his core, is unchanged from the little boy who was given away by his mother. How would that not inform a core aspect of your thought process? That you are worth less than ehat you were traded for even by your own mother? He spends a great deal of the series still trying to prove himself, to Sidious, to Talzin, even to Obi-Wan, that he is worth something (not that he believes that himself).
He expresses the fawn trauma response when Sidious comes to collect, saying that he did this for him, he built this empire for Sidious, and when that doesn't work, he finally gives in and defends himself. Crucially, this is not true. He built that empire to defend himself because Sidious frightens him so much. He uses the defensive Soresu. I know people say that his fight against Sidious is one of thr biggest beatdowns in the show and he spends the runtime getting mollywopped, but I disagree. He puts up (in my opinion) a damn good fight against Sidious. I don't think he loses because Sidious is necessarily the better duellist, I think he loses because ensured that Maul specifically would never be able to surpass him. Maul couldn't have won that fight, because he was terrified.
When he's captured by Ahsoka, him begging to die is one of his most enlightening scenes. Death is preferable to being handed over to his master - maybe because he knows nobody will be coming for him this time.
He is desperate for People, but the only metric by which he knows to have a relationship is through that of master and apprentice. Everything else is out of the question because he was repeatedly punished for having friendships. He doesn't know how to be anything else. Not a brother, not a son. Maybe an ally.
I don't actually think power is his biggest motivator. He already is powerful. From the moment he's introduced in TCW, he displays a masterful grasp of the Force. His manipulation and control of physic matter is probably among the most impressive out of all the characters. He builds his body and uses the Force to ambulate, he throws starships around without breaking a sweat, all that preeminent duelling talent comes out in full force even without a lightsaber, and he holds the record for the strongest Force push in the show. He's one of his generations premier duelists (even if his arrogance costs him). And what does he do with all that skill? Fucks off to work from the shadows. Lets Dryden Vos take most of the credit.
He's already learned what being too open about power will cost him, and he already knows that nothing he can throw at Sidious will stop him, but amassing power is literally all he knows. It's what he's been taught since he was a child, despite the fact that that philosophy is actually damaging to his needs and desires. He's just using power as security. He has bodies to throw at his problems. If he needs to make a quick getaway, he can send some goons out to take care of it and leave, biding his time until he gets lucky enough to die.
At his heart, Maul is still the scared boy being handed over to Sidious.
I think the biggest tragedy about Maul is that he didn't die with his tits out.
CREATORHUB SUMMER EVENT 2021 ★ DAY 4: ALTERNATIVE “We were both tools for greater powers. […] There is no justice, no law, no order, except for the one that will replace it.” — MAUL vs. AHSOKA TANO The Clone Wars | 7.10 “Phantom Apprentice”
i’m not rooting for you