Yippee-ki-yay movie lovers, it's Jan here and it's time to talk about the big reveals
in Solo: A Star Wars Story and what the film's ending means for Star Wars, an Obi-Wan Kenobi
movie and possible Solo sequels.
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all my subscribers.
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your thoughts about the movie.
Spoilers ahead for the Solo movie, so take care if you haven't seen it yet.
Let's start with the surprise reveal of Darth Maul at the end of movie.
If you last saw him get sliced in half by Obi-Wan Kenobi in The Phantom Menace, you
might be wondering how Maul is still alive.
Well, the Sith Lord miraculously survived Obi-Wan's blow and drop into the reactor shaft
using the Force to pull himself into an air vent where he fell into a vat.
Maul ended up being transported to another planet where he was eventually rescued by
his brother.
Fans of The Clone Wars and Rebels animated TV series will have seen him in on the show
where he acquired robotic legs which you can also see in the hologram of him in the Solo
movie.
Maul is a popular prequel villain that some fans have been hoping would return in a live-action
movie, and this brief appearance at the end of Solo could be setting up the Sith Lord
as a series big bad who could span across multiple Solo and other anthology and prequel
movies.
And speaking to Maul was Qi'ra, who he commands to come to him on Dathomir where they will
work together more closely, which means we'll likely see Emilia Clarke returning in any
new movie with Darth Maul.
By the way, notice in this scene that Darth Maul wears the same kind of pendant we saw
Qi'ra wear when she saw Han in the Cantina scene, it's a Crimson Dawn half-logo necklace.
We get to see a darker side of Qi'ra in her scene with Darth Maul where she seems to have
no trouble in lying to him claiming it was Beckett who killed Dryden Vos when of course
she did.
And there are numerous hints earlier in the movie too about unspeakable things that Qi'ra's
done.
As Beckett told Han at the end of the film, 'she's a survivor.'
Qi'ra's part in Solo ends with her piloting Dryden's Space Yacht off to meet with Maul,
but as she leaves you can see she is a little conflicted looking out at Han on the cliff
top below.
The filmmakers have said "Qi'ra is probably the most complex character in the film" and
there are still things we need to learn about her.
For example, we don't know what Qi'ra had to do to get off Corellia or what happened
during the three years that she and Han were separated or how she rose up the ranks of
the Crimson Dawn so quickly.
It's possible that's she's compromised in some way to Darth Maul and maybe she thinks
she could put Han's life in danger if she goes with him.
Qi'ra does also seem resigned to her fate saying to Han earlier in the movie that it's
not about winning but how long you can stay in the game.
And because she's a prequel character who never appears or is mentioned in the original
trilogy, it's safe to say that Qi'ra probably won't live beyond future sequels.
By the way, there's a very cool musical easter egg in the Maul and Qi'ra scene with some
of John Williams' "Duel of the Fates" playing in the background.
"Duel of the Fates" is a musical theme that Williams composed for the prequel trilogy
and first played in The Phantom Menace during the lightsaber battle between Darth Maul,
Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan.
So, what could we see happen with Darth Maul in a future movie?
Well, previously in The Clone Wars, Maul set up a criminal organisation called the Shadow
Collective.
In its heyday, the Collective totalled five major criminal groups under its alliance,
one of which was the Hutt Clan which had been forced to join.
The Hutts later abandoned the group and there was a very big hint at the end of Solo that
the "big-shot gangster" they're heading off to meet on Tatooine is Jabba the Hutt, meaning
that a sequel could have Han and Chewie forced to go up against Maul, perhaps on behalf of
Jabba.
Another member of Maul's Shadow Collective was the Pyke Syndicate, and one of that gang's
members also made a brief appearance in Solo during the Kessel scenes.
I also thought the placement of Mandalorian armour in Dryden Vos's study is a nod to the
upcoming Boba Fett anthology movie that Logan director James Mangold is working on for Lucasfilm.
Now, I do also think that there's an alternative or additional movie that Darth Maul and perhaps
Qi'ra could appear in – which is the heavily rumoured Obi-Wan Kenobi movie that a lot of
fans have been hoping for.
Interestingly, Ewan McGregor appeared at the Solo premiere even giving interviews.
Obi-Wan struck the seemingly lethal blow to Darth Maul in Episode 1, so the two have history,
but the potential wrinkle is that much of this has been explored in the canon TV shows,
with the two even facing off for one fateful final duel on Tatooine.
However, not everyone's familiar with the animated series, so we could see a live-action
recreation of that duel in an Obi-Wan movie.
The movie might also change some elements of that story which has already been told
in the TV shows, although that might irk some fans.
But both Darth Maul and Obi-Wan are hugely popular characters in the fandom and if Lucasfilm
sense there's an opportunity to capitalise on that, I suspect they'll take it.
A possible though maybe less likely option is that Darth Maul's reappearance here is
to set up a major role for him in Jon Favreau's new live-action TV series.
I'm really pleased to see that Ray Park returned as Darth Maul.
Park played him in The Phantom Menace, and in Solo, Maul's voice is provided by Sam Witwer
who's voiced the villain in the animated shows.
Park seems like a really nice guy and when I interviewed him before the new trilogy kicked
off, this is what he said about coming back to Star Wars.
"But deep down, I'd really like to come back as Darth Maul."
"That's what I wanna do."
"I would do..
I would go crazy, go mental, lock myself in a cabin, go.. you know."
"Do the whole method and.. for two or three months.
You know."
"Spear fishing and stuff and just to play the character again."
As well as links to the prequels, Solo, of course, connects to the original trilogy and
the reveal of Enfys Nest and her Cloud Rider gang seems to be a nod to the early days of
the Rebel Alliance.
And when Enfys Nest says to Han: "You could come with us; we could use someone like you",
it's an interesting parallel with how Han asked Luke to go with him and abandon the
Rebel Alliance, just before the attack on the Death Star.
"Why don't you come with us?"
"You're pretty good in a fight.
We could use you."
"Come on.
Why don't you take a look around?"
"You know what's about to happen, what they're up against."
Now, Han doesn't go with Enfys Nest, preferring instead to work on a big score for someone
like Jabba the Hutt, but like Qi'ra said to Han "you're the good guy", and the Solo movie
is planting the seed for Han to eventually do the right thing.
Because Han did come back at the last minute during the Death Star battle to save Luke.
Later in Solo, Han tracks down Lando for a final bet to win the Millennium Falcon.
When he meets Lando, they hug just like they do when they see each other in The Empire
Strikes Back.
But Han, who knew that Lando was cheating when he played him earlier in the Solo movie,
uses the hug to steal the card that Lando had hidden up his sleeve.
Which is how Han eventually won the Millennium Falcon and given that both Han and Lando cheated
in their Sabacc games, it brings an extra level of meaning to this line from Empire:
"What have you done to my ship?"
"Your ship?"
"Hey, remember, you lost her to me fair and square."
The other important moment at the end of Solo is Han's final confrontation with Beckett.
Over the course of the movie, we can detect Beckett's cynical influence on Han.
Beckett betrayed him to Dryden Vos, telling Han earlier in the movie "assume everyone
will betray you and you'll never be disappointed", and then, of course, Qi'ra did leave Han at
the end too.
In his stand-off against Beckett, Han doesn't hesitate to shoot first, demonstrating he's
internalised these sceptical views about honour and betrayal and, of course, reminding us
of that scene with Greedo in A New Hope.
So, what did you think of Solo and how does it compare with your other favourite Star
Wars movies?
And do you have any predictions on how Darth Maul, Qi'ra or Han and Chewie could return
in a sequel?
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Thanks for watching and see ya next time.
Yippee-ki-yay, movie lovers.