Star Wars 7x7: A Daily Bite-Sized Dose of Star Wars Joy

From movies to live action, animation to comics, novels to reference books and much more, here's what's happening in the galaxy far, far away for May 2020. Punch it!

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As far as television goes, "The Lawless" is the final appearance of Maul in the Clone Wars - it's episode 16 from season 5, and the final episode in this story arc as well. We've seen how Maul assembled his criminal syndicate, and we've seen how he took over Mandalore and installed a puppet government. Now, in this final installment, we'll see his attempt to revenge himself upon Obi-Wan Kenobi! He'll also get a surprise visit from his old master, Darth Sidious - and man, that doesn't go well at all for him and Savage Opress. Punch it!

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With Maul and Mandalore being the focus of the final story arc of the Clone Wars, we're taking some time to look back at how Maul came to power. Today, that means we're doing a Clone Wars Briefing on "Shades of Reason," episode 15 from season 5 of the Clone Wars and the second of a three-part story arc.

In the first episode, Maul and Savage Opress were rescued by Death Watch, and proceeded to use their surprise Mandalorian saviors to strong-arm the Pykes, Black Sun, and the Hutts to help them. Now, with an army and ample supplies, they hatch the plot - make it look like criminals are overrunning the now-peaceful Mandalore, and then have Death Watch arrive to "save the day."

Well, the Duchess Satine sees right through this, accusing Pre Vizsla immediately upon his arrival of being behind the criminal attacks. For all the good it did her. We'll talk about all of that, plus the race to see who can double-cross whom first, and how it all shakes out. Punch it!

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Season 7, episode 10 of the Clone Wars, "The Phantom Apprentice," has seen the capture of Maul and the end of his reign on Mandalore - or has it? Well, while we wait for episode 11 to see how that shakes out, we're going back in time to look at just how Maul came to power.

The last time we saw him, he and Savage Opress were much the worse for wear - the events of "Revival" (episode 1 from season 5) had him without a leg, Savage without an arm, and floating adrift in space. Well, they didn't show up again in the series until episode 14, "Eminence." Lucky for them, too, as they were on the edge of death when the Mandalorian Pre Viszla and members of Death Watch stumbled upon them. And it seemed lucky for Death Watch as well. They made a deal with Maul and Savage, to overthrow the Duchess Satine and destroy Obi-Wan Kenobi in the process.

Well, if there's one thing we know about making deals with Sith lords, it's that the deals get worse all the time. And we'll talk about that, as well as the beginnings of Maul's "Shadow Collective" crime syndicate, as we discuss "Eminence," which is the first of a three-part story arc. Punch it!

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For this week's Sunday conversation, it's a new edition of Star Wars POP! That's "Podcasters on Podcasting," and this time we're featuring Andy and Josh from Holochronicles. Here's the official deal about their show:

"The Holochronicles Podcast is devoted to the collecting of Star Wars memorabilia and toys, old and new. Hosts Josh Most and Andy Lemiere share their 20+ years of experience collecting all things Star Wars, as well as discuss topics ranging from the movies, books, fan theories, and what's next for Disney and Lucasfilm."

I had the pleasure of appearing on their show a while back to talk about my own collecting experience, and I was very happy when they both said yes to joining me on my show to talk about their podcasting experiences... Punch it!

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"The Phantom Apprentice" is the 10th episode from season 7 of the Clone Wars, and is indeed the crowning achievement for the series. The writing is top notch - especially the monologues of Maul, and Sam Witwer does a tremendous job with them. The lightsaber battles are a cut above anything else - and in fact, they are, as the credits list Ray Park as "Maul Performance" and Lauren Mary Kim as "Ahsoka Tano Performance." So this was more than animation - it seems it was closer to motion capture.

There's so much to talk about in this episode, and in all honesty, I'm probably going to do a second one because even now, having recorded it already, there's still so much to tell. But this is a good start, and includes notes about how some of the best Star Wars storytelling rhymes with itself, and this one rhymes with both Original Trilogy and Sequel Trilogy moments... Punch it!

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Did you hear the rumors? On Wednesday, Variety reported that "Russian Doll" co-creator and showrunner Leslye Headland had signed a deal to create a "female-centric" Star Wars series for Disney+. The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline Hollywood reached out to their own sources, and reported that they were hearing the same thing - although Deadline added that it would action focused and with martial arts elements, and happen in an "alternate" timeline (as opposed to the "different" timeline reported by Variety and THR, but likely meaning the same thing - not happening in the time period of the Skywalker Saga movies).

Well, as it turns out, I've had some additional information about this shared with me, and I'll share that with you on today's episode! I've also looked back at the main Star Wars rumor/leak/spoiler sites I trust to see what kind of live-action series possibilities they've posted, to add to the conversation. Punch it!

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So, "Brothers" and "Revenge" ended the fourth season of the Clone Wars, and "Revival" kicked off the fifth season. You could be forgiven for thinking that Maul was going to be a huge antagonist in season 5, but it turned out not to be the case.

He certainly does cause his share of problems in this first episode, though, and not just for the Jedi and Obi-Wan Kenobi. This time, Maul and Savage are starting to reveal their goals, by declaring themselves "lords ... crime lords." And to fulfill this, they start by trying to take over a band of pirates led by none other than Hondo Ohnaka. As Hondo notes, these aren't the first crazy laser sword wielding people he's dealt with, and he's always come out on top.

Chaos ensues, we see how Obi-Wan ignored that business about being overmatched from last episode, and he gets a fellow Jedi (Adi Gallia) killed as a result. Later: more amazing lightsaber battles, two limbs lost, and Hondo again comes out on top. Punch it!

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"Revenge" is the second part of a three-part story arc, and the final episode of the fourth season of the Clone Wars (episode 22, if you're in to such things). Among the lessons Obi-Wan learns: not everything you slice in half is dead; Yoda keeps secrets from you that will be to your later benefit; watch out for kicks from cybernetic legs; and he and Asajj Ventress could star in a buddy cop comedy together with all their bantering.

Meanwhile, Mother Talzin works some pretty impressive magick to strip Maul of his spider legs, assemble new bipedal ones from the pieces of wrecked battle droids on the desolate surface of Dathomir, and clear his mind of the kind of craziness that otherwise keeps him from functioning like a civilized Sith. Now, instead of spouting nursery rhymes, he's thinking clearly as he indulges in his pure, unfettered hatred. We'll talk about it all, and his first shot at revenge on Kenobi, in this episode. Punch it!

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We're about to spend time with Darth Maul again! Somehow that rascal managed to survive getting cut in half at the end of The Phantom Menace, and - overachiever that he is - wound up in control of Mandalore! But how did it happen?

There are three Clone Wars story arcs that deal specifically with Maul between those two points in time, and as we head into the final stretch with the series, I'm going to go back and explore those arcs in between the final episodes. Today, we're looking at "Brothers," which is the 21st episode from season 4 of the series, and the first of a three part story arc.

This is the episode where - spoiler alert - Savage Opress finally finds Maul, after being sent on the hunt for him way back in the middle of season 3. And Maul has been losing his mind, not in a good way, but meeting Savage brings a sharp focus to Maul that reverberates throughout the galaxy. Literally. Multiple characters feel something "sinister" happening, and all the foreshadowing finally comes to pass. Punch it!

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