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Clone Wars Debriefing: "Brothers"
Mar. 9th, 2012 09:56 pmYears ago, I saw ads on t.v. for a comedy film called "Soapdish," which was about the behind-the-scenes antics of a soap opera. In it, Whoopi Goldberg is ranting about a previously decapitated character who must be brought back from the dead. Thanks to the IMDB, I've found the exact quote here:
"The guy was killed in an auto accident! I looked it up! He was driving in the Yukon, in a pink convertible, to visit his brother who's an ex-con named Frances, when a tractor trailer comes along and decapitates him. You know what that mean, it means he doesn't have a head. How am I suppose to write for a guy who doesn't have a head? He's got no lips, no vocal cords. What do you want me to do?"
Okay, so Darth Maul wasn't decapitated in TPM, but I'd consider bisection by lightsaber followed by a free fall into a bottomless pit to be almost as impossible to survive. Yes, even for a Sith Lord. But death is never final if you're a bad guy with a following.
This episode doesn't explain how Maul survives, much less offer an explanation as to how the hell he got his upper half off of Naboo unnoticed and wound up on that garbage dump planet. But Anakin feels it early on as do Ventress, Dooku, and Yoda. Somehow, Obi-Wan missed the Force Disturbance Memo and must be told at the end that he left the job "half done." *Rimshot.*
Savage Oppress is first seen choking somebody in a restaurant. Then, still possessing Mother Talzin's amulet (she seems to be doing okay, wherever she's hiding), he figures he is getting close. He hijacks a ship that takes him to Lotho Minor, one giant dump of a planet. Naturally, he kills the pilot.
Savage travels through the wreckage, dodging firebreathing walking mechanical beasts, hacking up the Jawa-like junkers, dodging acid rain, and meeting up with a talking snake once the power on his amulet cuts out. The snake tells Savage about something that lives underground and eats whatever falls down there. He betrays Savage, sending him down a trap door in hopes of getting some of the leftovers.
As you probably guessed, the mystery geek below is none other than Maul. He looks terrible. He has eight mechanical legs like a spider, his upper body is emaciated, his horns are long, and he's totally cray. Maul rants and shrieks like that crazed American Airlines flight attendant. Not exactly a happy family reunion.
The animation and overall atmosphere of this episode were fantastic, from the urban restaurant to the creepy world of Lotho Minor. Sam Witwer was hired to be Crazy!Maul and he pulls it off really well. It was a good idea keeping him on the Rolodex. Seeing Maul attached to the monstrous mechanical spider legs was disturbing. He's become monstrous, though it looks like he is retooled with the Sideshow Collectibles two-legged model next week.
I'm not really sure what Ahsoka and Anakin were doing in this episode, coincidentally dropping by the galactic Denny's that Savage terrorized moments beforehand. Yoda felt Maul way across the galaxy. Ahsoka and Anakin didn't really need to be there other than to cash in on free food. It's never explained why Savage was choking the female in the restaurant in the first place. Maybe he was upset there was no vegan menu.
We'll see how Maul's story unfolds next week and in subsequent episodes. Because there hasn't been any explanation yet as to why Maul survived, I'm still out on whether I buy it or not.
Next week: The Season Four Finale!
"The guy was killed in an auto accident! I looked it up! He was driving in the Yukon, in a pink convertible, to visit his brother who's an ex-con named Frances, when a tractor trailer comes along and decapitates him. You know what that mean, it means he doesn't have a head. How am I suppose to write for a guy who doesn't have a head? He's got no lips, no vocal cords. What do you want me to do?"
Okay, so Darth Maul wasn't decapitated in TPM, but I'd consider bisection by lightsaber followed by a free fall into a bottomless pit to be almost as impossible to survive. Yes, even for a Sith Lord. But death is never final if you're a bad guy with a following.
This episode doesn't explain how Maul survives, much less offer an explanation as to how the hell he got his upper half off of Naboo unnoticed and wound up on that garbage dump planet. But Anakin feels it early on as do Ventress, Dooku, and Yoda. Somehow, Obi-Wan missed the Force Disturbance Memo and must be told at the end that he left the job "half done." *Rimshot.*
Savage Oppress is first seen choking somebody in a restaurant. Then, still possessing Mother Talzin's amulet (she seems to be doing okay, wherever she's hiding), he figures he is getting close. He hijacks a ship that takes him to Lotho Minor, one giant dump of a planet. Naturally, he kills the pilot.
Savage travels through the wreckage, dodging firebreathing walking mechanical beasts, hacking up the Jawa-like junkers, dodging acid rain, and meeting up with a talking snake once the power on his amulet cuts out. The snake tells Savage about something that lives underground and eats whatever falls down there. He betrays Savage, sending him down a trap door in hopes of getting some of the leftovers.
As you probably guessed, the mystery geek below is none other than Maul. He looks terrible. He has eight mechanical legs like a spider, his upper body is emaciated, his horns are long, and he's totally cray. Maul rants and shrieks like that crazed American Airlines flight attendant. Not exactly a happy family reunion.
The animation and overall atmosphere of this episode were fantastic, from the urban restaurant to the creepy world of Lotho Minor. Sam Witwer was hired to be Crazy!Maul and he pulls it off really well. It was a good idea keeping him on the Rolodex. Seeing Maul attached to the monstrous mechanical spider legs was disturbing. He's become monstrous, though it looks like he is retooled with the Sideshow Collectibles two-legged model next week.
I'm not really sure what Ahsoka and Anakin were doing in this episode, coincidentally dropping by the galactic Denny's that Savage terrorized moments beforehand. Yoda felt Maul way across the galaxy. Ahsoka and Anakin didn't really need to be there other than to cash in on free food. It's never explained why Savage was choking the female in the restaurant in the first place. Maybe he was upset there was no vegan menu.
We'll see how Maul's story unfolds next week and in subsequent episodes. Because there hasn't been any explanation yet as to why Maul survived, I'm still out on whether I buy it or not.
Next week: The Season Four Finale!
