Disney's live-action Star Wars interquels have had mixed receptions, but the animated installments go from strength to strength. Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord was released on Disney+ yesterday, and it's quickly won over fans.
The new series arrives over 17 years after the first season of The Clone Wars came out, and it shows how Lucasfilm Animation has refined its style to create something that really stands out as a TV series. It's more mature but packed with action, and it turns out that the new direction had a surprising inspiration.
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord takes place after the events of The Clone Wars but before the former Darth Maul meets his end in the Rebels animated series. While we already know how Maul’s tale ends, this series builds on his story, developing the character more fully.
Voiced by Sam Witwer, who also provided animation references, Maul attempts to rebuild his criminal empire on the neutral planet of Janix. He recruits the disillusioned Jedi Padawan, Devon Izara, as a potential apprentice to aid his revenge against Darth Sidious.
The series has a pulpy grown-up crime-thriller feel, and Lucasfilm hasn't sat back in complacency when it comes to the animation style.
We can see the influence of the modern hybrid styles of the likes of Arcane and the Spider-Verse movies in the blend of CG animation with more painterly hand-crafted textures. But Lucasfilm has gone beyond The Clone Wars style, using noir-inspired visuals and physically painted touches that match the series' darker crime-thriller theme. It moves away from the cleaner slightly plasticky look towards a more gritty and tactile aesthetic.
Matt Michnovetz, who developed the series with Dave Filoni, noted on starwars.com that the city on Janix was partly inspired by Gotham City in Batman. But the series also has a more surprising influence from beyond fantasy, sci-fi and super hero worlds.
Matt told CinemaBlend that the mood was partly inspired by Michael Mann's iconic 1995 crime drama Heat, which starred Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. "There's a pulpy noir feel to all this, where we're going to show some of the underbelly of the galaxy and the crime syndicates," he noted.
While Heat was a live-action movie, and Matt appears to be referring more to the theme than the look of Maul – Shadow Lord, I can see an influence in the animation too. Colour helped shaped Heat's mood, with cold blues, greys and muted tones reflecting urban alienation, and occasional warmer hues for emotional intensity.
Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord also uses heavy shadows, muted blues, greys and blacks, with reds and oranges in moments of violence and neon add an almost cyberpunk feel. It shows how an animation can be dark and mature but still vibrant.
Variations in timing heighten the intensity of action sequences, and there's stunning detail. The textures on Maul's skin make it look like he has tattoo scars, and the detail in clothing and other materials gives them an almost tactile weight.
Lucasfilm's Star Wars animation has come a long way since 2008, and Maul – Shadow Lord is the most refined example yet. Will this be remembered as the peak of Star Wars animation, or could the quality continue to evolve?
