Two-Boots pushes his luck and Lawson pushes the off-switch. Maul just pushes.

There’s a fascinating beat in this story where Maul offers to protect Janix from the Empire if Lawson lets him work. It’s a compelling note, and a compelling offer and it speaks to where both men are. Lawson, for all his moral grey areas, is remarkably principled. Maul, a warrior novitiate trained in a discipline built of absolutes, is far more morally flexible. It’s a fun beat, and it’s one that connects with the other highlight of the episode: Lawson deactivating Two-Boots.

I’ve taken a pop at Richard Ayoade’s voice work every episode so far because, for me, it’s the single one-note beat in a show made of complexity. Here, at last, the script and the performance mesh as Two-Boots is revealed to be an order-centric, hyper focused officer who understands nuance even less than Lawson does. From Two-Boots’ point of view it’s easy; they’re outmatched, they need the Empire. He can’t understand what that means outside the case. It’s a moment of unusual complexity and even pathos. A methodical, if fussy, fundamentally good character trapped by their programming and job into believing the best of the worst possible outcome. That’s complex storytelling and the show lands it very well. Lawson literally turns his partner and best friend off. It’s a massive betrayal of trust and reinforcement of the class structure at the core of Star Wars that it just refuses to acknowledge. Droids are equals until they aren’t. Even if, as here, Two-Boots is wrong.

Lawson pays a very heavy price for these choices. His refusal of Maul’s offer gives him the moral high ground but Maul the actual high ground which he proceeds to devastate Lawson’s team from. The fight is enormous, panicked, and no one leaves it unmarked. Both Jedi are hurt, Maul is reminded of his prosthetic legs when one is damaged, and Lawson finds himself looking at the bodies of colleagues who died because of his principles. And he does so, in the shadow of an Imperial Star Destroyer that the reactivated Two-Boots has summoned. The Empire’s boot descending on Janix, Maul, the Jedi, Lawson and all his lofty morals.

Verdict: It’s a brilliantly dark moment and it closes a fantastic episode. 8/10

Alasdair Stuart