I’m not saying I’m obsessed or anything, but when it comes to Star Wars, I definitely need every single little detail from the galaxy to have a clearly defined answer or I will freak out. So, Dave Filoni’s lackluster explanation of the Darksaber’s power is a surprise, to be sure, and a very unwelcome one.
The lore of Star Wars is as important as it is vast. You simply cannot watch the Star Wars movies in order without having some understanding of the general structure of the incredible world that has been built, and knowing one or two of the best Star Wars characters certainly helps, too. But let’s be honest, we’re all most intrigued by the weapons, right?
From the mighty lightsaber, to the modest blaster, the Star Wars cast are lucky enough to wield some impressive armory. But, only a select few are entrusted with the Darksaber. While I know enough about the legendary weapon to write a whole guide on it, it seems Dave Filoni can’t even answer one question on the topic.
Anyone who has watched the more recent installments of The Mandalorian, will know that the Star Wars series features the Darksaber fairly prominently. Throughout the course of the show, Moff Gideon, one of the best Star Wars villains, steals the weapon, uses it for his evil plans, and eventually destroys it.
Filoni is one of the key figures behind The Mandalorian, and is also in charge of one of the new Star Wars movies, so you’d think he knows a thing or two about the Darksaber, right? Well, in an interview with StarWars.com a few years back, Filoni showed a distinct lack of knowledge on the matter.
When asked why Darth Maul doesn’t use the Darksaber in Star Wars Rebels, Filoni replied: “I don’t know. He’s not against it, but it is a different kind of sword. It’s not that it’s necessarily more powerful than any other lightsaber — in fact, you can make a strong argument that it’s not. It’s an old, old, old lightsaber. For all I know, it has limitations. It’s obviously not a style that’s been replicated, and you can imagine that’s because Tar Vizsla understood something and added a Mandalorian twist to it that no one’s been able to replicate since.
“It’s a flat blade of energy, which is bizarre. Maul, I think, in his training, is more comfortable fighting with two. So he went back to a double-bladed lightsaber, probably just as a style preference more than anything. I think he sees it more as a trophy and a symbol than anything else. A fond memory of when he almost had ultimate power, which is something he’s always been after.”
While his interpretation of Maul’s reluctance to use the weapon sounds plausible on the surface, it actually smells like a bit of guesswork to me. In fact, if you scour the annals of Star Wars canon (and non-canon), you’ll find that Maul does wield the Darksaber multiple times, against the likes of General Grievous and even Emperor Palpatine. The problem is, he rarely seems to taste victory when using the weapon.
This, twinned with the fact the Darksaber’s effectiveness relies heavily on the connection it shares with its user (it can actually become heavier to those who don’t forge a symbiotic relationship with it), is the more likely reason Maul didn’t feel the Darksaber was the right weapon for him. Filoni really should have known about Maul’s history with the Darksaber, and the way the weapon works, but hopefully he’s done his homework in the years since that interview.
For more on the franchise which has produced the best science fiction movies around, check out our guides to the Andor season 2 release date, The Acolyte release date, or find out what we learned when we visited Star Wars Celebration 2023. Or, move away from this galaxy and get excited about new movies like Avatar 3 instead.