The latest episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars has finally revealed Darth Maul’s intentions for occupying Mandalore and setting a trap for Obi-Wan and Anakin.
Last week, the hit animated show launched into the highly anticipated Siege of Mandalore story arc, all the while teasing a duel between Ahsoka and Darth Maul. In “Old Friends Not Forgotten,” Anakin and Obi-Wan get word that General Grievous has attacked Coruscant, the seat of the Republic, and captured the Supreme Chancellor. The two rush to save Palpatine, leaving Ahsoka with a fraction of the 501st to deal with Maul on Mandalore, and this essentially meant the last four episodes would take place concurrently with Revenge of the Sith.
“The Phantom Apprentice” quickly picked up the story by having Darth Maul and Ahsoka share a brief chat until the former escaped. The former Sith Lord mentions the name of Darth Sidious and Ahsoka relays the information to Obi-Wan. At this point, Obi-Wan is preparing to surprise Grievous on Utapau, and Anakin is on his own mission to spy on Palpatine. Regrettably for the Jedi Council, Anakin destroyed the only link they had to Sidious by killing Count Dooku. As such, Obi-Wan instructs Ahsoka to capture Maul and turn him in for questioning.
When the two finally confront each other, Maul talks about the looming destruction that awaits the Jedi and the Republic and offers Ahsoka a chance to destroy Darth Sidious and stop his grand design from coming into fruition. Maul also reveals that he wasn’t looking to take his revenge on Obi-Wan, but wanted to lure Anakin to Mandalore to kill him, believing that he’s integral to Palpatine’s plans.
As we saw in the trailers, Ahsoka proceeds to engage Maul in a lightsaber duel and even mocks his skills, noting that he wouldn’t stand a chance against Anakin. By the end of the episode, Ahsoka and the clones incarcerate Maul, which means that the Jedi Council can now question him.
Alas, Sidious’ plans are already in motion. We expect that by the time we get into the next episode, Anakin has already learned the truth about Palpatine, and Obi-Wan has killed Grievous on Utapau. This means that even if Snips learns the truth, she won’t be able to save the Order or the Republic in time, making the ordeal all the more tragic.
What’s more, we may even get to see Ahsoka against the clones when Order 66 is executed, but will Rex be able to resist the programming chip in his brain? And how will they depart? I guess we’ll have to wait until the last two episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars premiere on May 1st and May 4th, respectively, to find out.
Published: Apr 24, 2020 10:31 am