After Darth Sidious defeated Maul on Mandalore, it looked like Maul’s war against the Sith was over.
He had lost Savage Opress, lost control of Mandalore, and ended up as Sidious’s prisoner. But in Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir, Maul does not stay broken for long.
Once his Mandalorian forces free him, Maul returns to the Shadow Collective and starts moving against Sidious again. And this time, he does something most people would not expect.
He captures both Count Dooku and General Grievous.
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Maul Turned Sidious’s Trap Against Dooku and Grievous
This story picks up after Maul’s defeat in The Clone Wars.
In the season 5 episode “The Lawless,” Sidious comes to Mandalore himself after Maul and Savage Opress become too powerful. He kills Savage, defeats Maul, and instead of killing him, keeps him alive. Sidious even tells him, “I have other uses for you.”
That is where Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir comes in. The comic continues that thread and shows what Sidious wanted to use Maul for.
Sidious knows Maul is connected to Mother Talzin, and Talzin is the real target. She has been hiding in spirit form, and Maul is the bait that can draw her back out. But Maul and Talzin are not just waiting for the Sith to make the next move.
After Maul is freed by his Mandalorian loyalists, he returns to the Shadow Collective. In Son of Dathomir, Mother Talzin sends Nightbrother warriors led by Brother Viscus to help him at Ord Mantell, where Maul prepares for Dooku and Grievous.
That is where Maul flips the situation.
Sidious wanted to use Maul to reach Talzin, but Maul uses the hunt to pull Dooku and Grievous into his own battlefield. With the Shadow Collective and Nightbrothers backing him, Maul turns the trap back on the Sith and Separatists chasing him.
Maul Captured Both Dooku and Grievous on Ord Mantell
In Son of Dathomir #2, Maul sets the trap on Ord Mantell.
The Separatists arrive with Dooku, Grievous, and the droid army, but Maul is ready for them. He has the Shadow Collective with him, including his Mandalorian forces, and Mother Talzin has sent Nightbrothers under Brother Viscus to reinforce him.
The battle splits across Ord Mantell and orbit. On the ground, Maul’s forces clash with the droid army while the Nightbrothers go after Dooku. In space, Maul boards Grievous’s command ship and confronts him directly.
Grievous is dangerous, but Maul does not need to win a long duel against him. He uses the battle around them to put Grievous in a corner, then forces him to shut down the droid army or die. Once Grievous gives the order, Maul has him taken prisoner.
Dooku has a different fight on the surface. The Nightbrothers attack him first, and Dooku cuts through them, even defeating Brother Viscus. But while Dooku is occupied, Maul’s forces close the trap around him too.
By the end of the battle, both Separatist leaders are captured. Dooku is taken by the Shadow Collective, and Grievous is taken aboard Maul’s ship
Maul Used Dooku to Draw Sidious to Dathomir
He takes him to Dathomir, where Mother Talzin is waiting. Dooku is important because he is Sidious’s apprentice, which makes him the best way to force Sidious into the open.
On Dathomir, Talzin reveals more of her history with Sidious. She tells Dooku that Sidious once promised to make her his right hand, but betrayed her and stole Maul from her. She also warns Dooku that Sidious will betray him too.
Then Talzin uses Dooku directly.
Still trapped in spirit form, she possesses Dooku’s body and turns him against his own master. Through Dooku, Talzin finally gets the chance to strike at Sidious again.
Sidious follows Maul and Dooku to Dathomir, just as Talzin expected. But once the fight begins, Talzin cannot hold Dooku forever. She releases him and takes physical form herself, facing Sidious directly.
The fight turns against Talzin once Dooku is free again.
Sidious attacks her with the dark side, and Dooku joins in with his own Force lightning. Talzin tries to hold them back with her magick, but against both Sith at once, she starts losing ground.
Maul wants to keep fighting, but Talzin chooses to save him instead. She uses the last of her strength to push him away from the battle, giving him a chance to escape while she stays behind.
Then Grievous moves in.
With Talzin weakened by Sidious and Dooku, Grievous strikes her down with his lightsabers. Maul is forced to leave Dathomir with his followers while his mother dies behind him.