Warning! Spoilers ahead for Marvel's Star Wars: Crimson Reign and Darth Vader2022 was a major year for both Darth Maul and Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars galaxy, as both characters were redefined without the need for resurrections. As seen in Star Wars' ongoing Crimson Dawn trilogy taking place between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, the crime syndicate formerly led by Maul during the reign of the Empire has revealed dark new secrets about the ex-Sith lord and what he left behind for those who succeeded him. Likewise, Padmé's legacy is being darkly redefined thanks to her husband Anakin Skywalker, now the corrupted Sith Lord Darth Vader.
In 2022, the legacy of Darth Maul has played a major part in Crimson Reign, the second part of Charles Soule's ongoing Crimson Dawn trilogy. Featuring Solo: A Star Wars Story's Lady Qi'ra who took over the crime syndicate following Maul's ultimate demise ahead of A New Hope, the former love of Han Solo is using secret plans Maul had prepared in a bid to eradicate the Sith from the galaxy. This narrative is still ongoing with the current Hidden Empire series, and Palpatine is well aware that Qi'ra was trained by Maul and is using the tactics of his former apprentice. Likewise, Darth Vader was very busy in 2022 with the corruption of Padmé's legacy, having recruited the Queen's Shadow known as Sabé into his service. Agreeing to help Vader maintain order in the galaxy, Sabé is now surrounded by darkness and her fellow handmaidens aren't far off as seen in the most recent issue of Darth Vader.
Star Wars Revealed The True Legacies Of Maul and Padmé
The memory of Maul being referenced so much during the original trilogy is quite entertaining, such as the moment when Darth Vader and Palpatine realize the ex-Sith was responsible for training Qi'ra. Maul is effectively using her from beyond the grave as the final instrument of his revenge. However, Darth Maul's legacy is largely defined by failure, and that will continue as Qi'ra won't be one to canonically bring about the Sith Lords' demise. However, the very fact that Maul's followers were able to strike legitimate fear and make Palpatine scared is quite the posthumous achievement.
Similarly, Darth Vader has come to the conclusion that Padmé would have joined him in an alternate future where she has lived beyond the events of Revenge of the Sith. As such, he's managed to sway Sabé and her fellow sisters to his cause by invoking the memory of his late wife. Not only does that tarnish the legacy of goodness Padmé left behind, it's also corrupted and darkened those she trusted most (especially Sabé).
There were multiple Star Wars series ands stories published by Marvel Comics last year. However, the new changes to Maul and Padmé's legacies are arguably the biggest and most meaningful additions to the established canon overall. While neither character was brought back from the grave (thankfully), Maul and Padmé rank fairly high as two of the most impacted Star Wars characters in 2022 thanks to the comics.