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Star Wars: Shadow Of Maul (2026) #1
A PULPY, EXCITING PREQUEL SERIES SET BEFORE THE EVENTS OF THE UPCOMING DISNEY+ SHOW! Welcome to Janix, a neon-lit, shadow-soaked maze of a planet that lies beyond the reach of the Empire. Captain Brander Lawson is doing his best to navigate the law in a lawless territory. He's joined by his partner, a droid nicknamed Two Boots, as they face off against scheming crime bosses...and as the looming threat of the shadow lord, Maul, nears.
Kindle Edition
Published March 4, 2026
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11 people want to read
About the author
Benjamin Percy
813 books1,217 followersBenjamin Percy is the author of seven novels -- most recently The Sky Vault (William Morrow) -- three short fiction collections, and a book of essays, Thrill Me, that is widely taught in creative writing classrooms. He writes Wolverine, X-Force, and Ghost Rider for Marvel Comics. His fiction and nonfiction have been published in Esquire (where he is a contributing editor), GQ, Time, Men's Journal, Outside, the Wall Street Journal, Tin House, and the Paris Review. His honors include an NEA fellowship, the Whiting Writer's Award, the Plimpton Prize, two Pushcart Prizes, the iHeart Radio Award for Best Scripted Podcast, and inclusion in Best American Short Stories and Best American Comics.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 4, 2026
At the time of writing, Star Wars News Net's countdown for Maul - Shadow Lord stands at 32 days and 21 hours. I can't. Wait.
But I must. For a whole month!!! So, in the meantime, let's see what Shadow of Maul has to offer.
What little I'd previewed so far had me intrigued as it introduces the planet Janix through the eyes of lawman Brander Lawson. The more I went into Issue #1, the more Lawson reminded me of Andor's Syril Karn. Just like Syril, Lawson refuses to leave well enough alone. They share the knack of investigating something against the explicit orders of superiors whose biggest worry is avoiding the notice of the Empire, they are different; Lawson is uninterested in working as part of a team, to the extent that he keeps his droid partner at comms length (keeping him off page long enough that his introduction was worth the wait) and he is a lot more competent than Syril (hardly putting the bar very high). Lawson could also be described as Mike Harrigan in Predator 2 before he formed his close-knit team. After 'going it alone' almost got him killed breaking up an illegal auction, he is assigned to a new squad to 'help him' (although, reading between the lines, it sounds more like an attempt to keep him out of trouble). And the trouble that started in the bar continues the second he meets the members of his new squad. I loved that, even before he started to suspect them, Lawson was already short and grumpy with his new squadmates, signalling from the first interaction that he was going to make working with him as unpleasant as possible.
Writer Benjamin Percy deserves a lot of credit for this setup as he doesn't immediately make it clear whether or not the Jannix police force is corrupt or not, whether it's more interested in complex political games and turf wars that Lawson (as any good honest investigator) is uninterested in playing, or if it's Lawson himself, with his 'go-it-alone', attitude which is the problem (Lawson's less-than-savoury backstory certainly pointed to that). With all that set up perfectly, Percy has generated enough interest in the personal and professional for me to be interested when he turns his attention to worldbuilding. Complementing what we first saw in the bar, when the Dowutin bartender established that illegalities on Jannix are a form of anarchism, a refusal to be 'told what to do', the next flashback sequence of Lawson and his new squad establishes that the Jannix criminals are as ruthless and entrentched as the Sicilian Mafia was in 20th Century Italy, willing to strike back institutionally (how far is the police in their pocket?) or lethally (an entire wedding party poisoned by one of the syndicates). And it all points back a mysterious boss called Deemis, a Totò Riina figure who seems like she rules over the Jannix underworld and who Lawson chases with the same determination as Giovanni Flacone did Riina.
However, for all the dark tone, Percy also found room for humour: 2B0T, Lawson's droid partner, joins a long list of almost-unintentionally funny droids. From the way he nags Lawson through earpiece to 'let me join', to his one-liners in fights ('Please stay behind the bar' as he kicks the aggressive Dowutin bartender away, or his best K2S0 when he instructs a suspect to 'please do not resist', punctuated by a hilarious 'I asked nicely'as he knees him in the stomach), he is a wonderful contrast to Lawson's seriousness, full of repartee and banter even as he fights, making off the cuff comments about 'calling for backup' and 'being in over [their] heads'. But, as is clearly established, 2B0T is the only one Lawson knows he can trust. I look forward to seeing more from this duo, both in the next few issues and in Shadow Lord.
Speaking of...
I'm sufficiently invested in the cutthroat nature of Jannix and Lawson's own personal crusade to want to keep going, especially as it's clear, without even seeing him yet, how fertile this ground will be for Maul to plant himself in. Almost predictably, that's where #1 leaves us. As compelling as Lawson and 2B0T's introductions were, I was concerned that the formerly Darth wouldn't appear yet but I needed have worried. And Percy nails his few lines of dialogue, which I can hear in my mind with Sam Witwer's dulcet tones. Now, the only question remains whether Maul and Lawson will be foes from the start or temporarily allied as one tries to bring down Deemis and the other might seek to supplant her as Jannix's shadow lord.
But I must. For a whole month!!! So, in the meantime, let's see what Shadow of Maul has to offer.
What little I'd previewed so far had me intrigued as it introduces the planet Janix through the eyes of lawman Brander Lawson. The more I went into Issue #1, the more Lawson reminded me of Andor's Syril Karn. Just like Syril, Lawson refuses to leave well enough alone. They share the knack of investigating something against the explicit orders of superiors whose biggest worry is avoiding the notice of the Empire, they are different; Lawson is uninterested in working as part of a team, to the extent that he keeps his droid partner at comms length (keeping him off page long enough that his introduction was worth the wait) and he is a lot more competent than Syril (hardly putting the bar very high). Lawson could also be described as Mike Harrigan in Predator 2 before he formed his close-knit team. After 'going it alone' almost got him killed breaking up an illegal auction, he is assigned to a new squad to 'help him' (although, reading between the lines, it sounds more like an attempt to keep him out of trouble). And the trouble that started in the bar continues the second he meets the members of his new squad. I loved that, even before he started to suspect them, Lawson was already short and grumpy with his new squadmates, signalling from the first interaction that he was going to make working with him as unpleasant as possible.
Writer Benjamin Percy deserves a lot of credit for this setup as he doesn't immediately make it clear whether or not the Jannix police force is corrupt or not, whether it's more interested in complex political games and turf wars that Lawson (as any good honest investigator) is uninterested in playing, or if it's Lawson himself, with his 'go-it-alone', attitude which is the problem (Lawson's less-than-savoury backstory certainly pointed to that). With all that set up perfectly, Percy has generated enough interest in the personal and professional for me to be interested when he turns his attention to worldbuilding. Complementing what we first saw in the bar, when the Dowutin bartender established that illegalities on Jannix are a form of anarchism, a refusal to be 'told what to do', the next flashback sequence of Lawson and his new squad establishes that the Jannix criminals are as ruthless and entrentched as the Sicilian Mafia was in 20th Century Italy, willing to strike back institutionally (how far is the police in their pocket?) or lethally (an entire wedding party poisoned by one of the syndicates). And it all points back a mysterious boss called Deemis, a Totò Riina figure who seems like she rules over the Jannix underworld and who Lawson chases with the same determination as Giovanni Flacone did Riina.
However, for all the dark tone, Percy also found room for humour: 2B0T, Lawson's droid partner, joins a long list of almost-unintentionally funny droids. From the way he nags Lawson through earpiece to 'let me join', to his one-liners in fights ('Please stay behind the bar' as he kicks the aggressive Dowutin bartender away, or his best K2S0 when he instructs a suspect to 'please do not resist', punctuated by a hilarious 'I asked nicely'as he knees him in the stomach), he is a wonderful contrast to Lawson's seriousness, full of repartee and banter even as he fights, making off the cuff comments about 'calling for backup' and 'being in over [their] heads'. But, as is clearly established, 2B0T is the only one Lawson knows he can trust. I look forward to seeing more from this duo, both in the next few issues and in Shadow Lord.
Speaking of...
I'm sufficiently invested in the cutthroat nature of Jannix and Lawson's own personal crusade to want to keep going, especially as it's clear, without even seeing him yet, how fertile this ground will be for Maul to plant himself in. Almost predictably, that's where #1 leaves us. As compelling as Lawson and 2B0T's introductions were, I was concerned that the formerly Darth wouldn't appear yet but I needed have worried. And Percy nails his few lines of dialogue, which I can hear in my mind with Sam Witwer's dulcet tones. Now, the only question remains whether Maul and Lawson will be foes from the start or temporarily allied as one tries to bring down Deemis and the other might seek to supplant her as Jannix's shadow lord.
March 21, 2026
This whole limited comic series is about setting up the Maul: Shadow Lord Disney+ series, so I can’t be too critical since issue one does a fine job introducing us to Brander Lawson and the (cyberpunk) world of Janix. Sure, Maul’s appearance is brief, but there are still four more issues. For what this comic is meant to do, and certainly this being just the first issue, it does quite well.
March 5, 2026
I don't know. Maul was hardly in it. 3/5
March 22, 2026
Two-Boots my beloved please never die. Reminds me of Treasure Planet
March 23, 2026
4.99 what!
Okay and well drawn merits having mostly Lawson and a panel of Maul. Not worth 4.99. Regerts i full effect.
Okay and well drawn merits having mostly Lawson and a panel of Maul. Not worth 4.99. Regerts i full effect.
March 27, 2026
Prequel for the upcoming Disney + show: it creates a good vibe, set the place (Janis) and prepare us for a big investigation into a traitor.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews