Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord Gave Us The Best Droid In Years (And I'm Not Okay)
by Rafael Motamayor · /FilmSpoilers ahead for the "Maul — Shadow Lord" Season 1 finale.
"Star Wars" has a complicated history with droids Since the earliest days of the sci-fi franchise, droids have been everything from pets to companions, soldiers, workers, comic relief, terrifying murder machines, and much more. In the Disney era of "Star Wars," we've also seen plenty of incredible (and highly merchandise-friendly) droids, including BB-8, K-2SO, and the unapologetic war criminal that is C1-10P, aka. Chopper. Now, the animated series "Star Wars: Maul — Shadow Lord" has given us a brand new addition to the ranks of the all-time best droids in "Star Wars."
Meet Spybot (David W. Collins), a member of Maul's criminal crew and a droid who's both similar yet very different from any we've seen before. He's a companion to Maul (Sam Witwer) with a penchant for violence, but not in a (kind of) innocent way like K-2SO. What's more, Spybot is sassy like Chopper (albeit less scary) and an expert at espionage, surveillance, and sabotage alike, having a variety of weapons at his disposal.
In a way, Spybot is essentially the white Persian cat to Maul's Ernst Stavro Blofeld, if said cat kept cackling in a twisted manner. Indeed, from the moment he floats his way on screen, Spybot becomes a highlight of "Maul — Shadow Lord." He's funny, he's very good at his job, and he is deeply evil. "Maul — Shadow Lord" isn't the first time that Witwer and Collins have worked together, either, as Collins played a different robot companion to Witwer's dark side warrior Starkiller in the Star Wars Legends video game "The Force Unleashed."
Unfortunately, the good always die young, and we're forced to bid farewell to Spybot in the final two episodes of "Maul – Shadow Lord" Season 1.
Spybot is one of the highlights of Maul - Shadow Lord Season 1
Maul has a rough time in "Maul — Shadow Lord" Season 1. His plan to get revenge on the crime bosses that betrayed him quickly goes wrong, forcing him and his allies to flee the planet Janix while being chased by an entire army of Imperials and even some Inquisitors. When the final two episodes begin, Maul has already lost most of his crew, partly due to his attempts to seduce the Jedi Padawan Devon Izara (Gideon Adlon) to the dark side.
Then it happens. As Maul and Co. try to evade said Inquisitors in an underground sewer filled with toxic waste, it falls to Spybot to physically push a damaged hovering platform that only moves two individuals at a time. This is when one of the Inquisitors chucks their lightsaber at Spybot, slicing him in half. As he dies, Spybot simply shouts "Master!" before falling into the aforementioned toxic waste.
Thanks to both the meticulous work of the show's animators and David W. Collins' voice acting as Spybot, you really feel the droid's desperation and sadness as he perishes. He knows he failed his master, and he's afraid. Maul responds in kind, too, almost shedding a tear before embracing his rage and fury. As though losing his birth family wasn't enough, Maul has now been largely robbed of the found family he's amassed over time (whether it was fear and awe or a sense of kinship that drew them to him). The loss of Spybot, a droid who owed him nothing, hits even harder after Maul's recent visions of his brother Savage Opress (Clancy Brown).
Goodnight, sweet prince Spybot. You'll be part of "Star Wars" history forever.
"Star Wars: Maul — Shadow Lord" is streaming on Disney+.