Some rivalries are the result of political differences, a misunderstanding, or conflicting beliefs. The rivalry between Maul and Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star Wars is more one-sided to the point that it can be hard to take it seriously at times.
Maul did not want to defeat Obi-Wan. He wanted him to suffer. He spent decades chasing that goal, sacrificing everything else along the way. And yet, when you take a closer look at Maul’s story, his obsession becomes quite tragic. Obi-Wan was never the cause of Maul’s pain, he was a scapegoat instead.
That Fateful Duel on Naboo
When Maul first met Obi-Wan during the Battle of Naboo in The Phantom Menace, Maul was at the height of his power. He was the Sith apprentice of Darth Sidious (Sheev Palpatine), who was in the process of starting the Separatist movement that would trigger the Clone Wars. Sidious was close to destroying the Jedi, so he could take over the galaxy and Maul was going to rule alongside his master.
On Naboo, Maul killed Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan’s beloved master. And then Obi-Wan, who was a young Padawan, cut Maul in half and sent him falling into a reactor shaft.
In an instant, everything was gone. Half his body, his title as Sith Lord and his place beside his master. Palpatine did not search for him. He simply replaced Maul with Count Dooku and later, Darth Vader (Anakin Skywalker). It was as if Maul had never existed at all.
That abandonment was arguably the deepest wound Palpatine ever gave him. But Maul couldn’t see it that way, not yet. Instead, his fractured mind clung to the fight on Naboo and made Obi-Wan the cause of his suffering.
Hatred as a Lifeline
Maul (barely) survived his bisection through sheer hatred and using the dark side of the Force to sustain him. He spent approximately 12 years living on a junk world until he was found by his brother, Savage Opress. Broken in body and mind, his mother Talzin healed his mind and created new legs from enchanted scrap metal using Nightsister magick. With his sanity restored, one of the first things Maul did was plot his revenge against Obi-Wan.
That fixation became his reason to live. He lured Obi-Wan into traps. He took control of the planet Mandalore. He captured Mandalore’s leader Duchess Satine, the woman Obi-Wan loved and murdered her in front of him. All so he could force Obi-Wan to feel the same grief he felt when Obi-Wan sliced him in half. It was an attempt to push Obi-Wan to the dark side, but he resisted. Maul could not understand that kind of resilience, because the only things he knew were pain and power.
Obi-Wan Was an Easier Target Than Palpatine
It’s not that Maul didn’t hate Palpatine for his abandonment and abuse. He did, but getting even with his former master wasn’t easy.
When Palpatine came to Mandalore to confront Maul in person during the Clone Wars, Maul was terrified. He knew he had provoked someone who outclassed him in every way. Maul barely survived his duel with Palpatine and that’s only because the Sith Lord felt he could be useful in the future.
For Maul, it’s easier to take out all his rage on Obi-Wan because in a way, he’s avenging himself for what happened on Naboo. If Maul can defeat Obi-Wan, then they’re both even. Maul would have redeemed himself and proved he wasn’t a weakling who can be discarded.
This is what makes Maul’s story more than a tale of revenge. His misdirected hatred is a symptom of the abuse Palpatine inflicted on him. Even Maul’s anger served Palpatine’s purposes by pointing it at someone else.
Three Strikes in the Desert
Their final duel in Star Wars Rebels lasts a few seconds. Maul finds Obi-Wan on Tatooine and deduces that Obi-Wan is protecting a child (implied to be Luke Skywalker) and ignites his saber. Obi-Wan assumes the stance of his late master Qui-Gon Jinn, and takes Maul down with three quick strikes of his lightsaber. It is finally over.
As he lies dying in Obi-Wan’s arms, he asks whether the child is the Chosen One. Obi-Wan tells him yes. Maul’s final words are: “Then he will avenge us.”
In his last breath, after decades of hatred, Maul and Obi-Wan share something meaningful. They are two men whose lives were ruined by Palpatine. Both of them hoping that some kind of justice will be served.
Maul’s story is a tragedy because he spent his life chasing the wrong person. Palpatine took everything from him, his childhood, his brother and mother, his future. Maul’s rage was directed at the wrong person and he never had the peace of mind or distance to realize it.
Obi-Wan knew. And in the end, he showed Maul the only thing the former Sith Lord had never been given.
Compassion.
