Warning! Spoilers ahead for The Book of Boba Fett episode 1
Star Wars series The Book of Boba Fett episode 1 has released, carrying two major connections to the legacy and history of Darth Maul. While the presence of an antagonist for the legendary bounty hunter-turned-crime lord has been largely a mystery, the premiere makes a few hints as to who it might be. Because Boba Fett is trying to make inroads into the criminal underworld by taking the place of Jabba the Hutt, it's possible he could be in direct competition with Crimson Dawn itself.
Created by Darth Maul during The Clone Wars, Crimson Dawn's purpose in its earliest days was to be no more than a tool for Maul to wield in order to strike back against those who had wronged him: his former master Darth Sidious who rejected him and Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, the source of his undoing after Star Wars: The Phantom Menace when the Jedi cut Maul in half. Beginning as a shadowy collective of united crime syndicates, the fall of the Republic and rise of the Empire saw Crimson Dawn becoming a powerful syndicate in its own right with Maul secretly sitting on the throne of his own personal empire in the galactic underworld.
How Long Was Boba Fett In The Sarlacc After Return Of The Jedi?
Although Maul ultimately died in a final duel with Kenobi on Tatooine in the years preceding A New Hope, Crimson Dawn lived on to operate during the original trilogy of films (and perhaps beyond). Likewise, The Book of Boba Fett carries two significant teases that Crimson Dawn is still in operation after Return of the Jedi. While audiences shouldn't expect to see Fett fighting the former Sith lord himself as he's been dead for years in Book of Boba Fett's timeline, Boba could find himself at odds with Darth Maul's successor Lady Qi'ra, with whom Fett has quite the history.
Boba Fett's Assassins Could Belong To Darth Maul's Crimson Dawn
During The Book of Boba Fett episode 1, Fett is making the rounds in Mos Espa, making his presence known as the newest crime lord taking over from the late Jabba the Hutt. However, he and his right-hand mercenary Fennec Shand are attacked by a collection of assassins wielding energy shields and electric batons. While their identities remain unknown, it's notable that their attire is predominantly red with black hoods. As such, a very easy assumption can be made that they work for Crimson Dawn, wearing the colors of the Dawn's sigil patterned after Maul himself.
Furthermore, the name given to the assassins in the first episode's credits is the "Night Wind" assassins, a name that doesn't carry any direct connection to anything known in the Star Wars canon currently. However, Crimson Dawn did have an assassin in its employ in the days after Empire Strikes Back known as Deathstick. Not only did she wear similar red attire with a half-mask over her face, but she was also the daughter of one of Star Wars' Nightsisters, a brood of witches from the planet of Dathomir, Darth Maul's homeworld. She also led her own assassins known as the Kouhun who could very well be these same assassins attacking Fett and Fennec in The Book of Boba Fett episode 1, being allied with Crimson Dawn.
New Boba Fett Music Theme Features Crimson Dawn Theme From Solo
Another big hint that Crimson Dawn will serve as The Book of Boba Fett's antagonists is in the new music theme for the series composed by Ludwig Göransson, who likewise did the soundtracks for both seasons of The Mandalorian. Having created a new main title theme for the series (which has been released online), the new score carries a very telling theme from a past Star Wars track composed by John Powell for Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Beginning at the 1:49 mark, the Crimson Dawn theme can be heard within the Boba Fett title theme which played playing in the background of Solo when Maul made his call to Emilia Clarke's Qi'ra, making her his new second-in-command after the death of Paul Bettany's Dryden Vos. As a result, it certainly looks as though Crimson Dawn will be making a return in The Book of Boba Fett. It's possible they might see the former bounty hunter as significant competition on par with Jabba the Hutt himself should he succeed in filling the power vacuum on Tatooine.
Boba Fett's Canon History With Crimson Dawn
Should Crimson Dawn return in The Book of Boba Fett, it wouldn't be the first time the bounty hunter has crossed paths with Darth's Maul's organization. Featured in Marvel Comics' very recent (and canonical) War of the Bounty Hunters crossover, Crimson Dawn stole Han Solo while he was still frozen in carbonite from Fett after The Empire Strikes Back while he was en route to deliver the smuggler to Jabba and collect his bounty. While he eventually got Solo back, the threat to his reputation was not something Fett took lightly.
Furthermore, the theft of Han Solo was orchestrated by Qi'ra herself, her having become the new leader of Crimson Dawn after Maul's death. Not only did she restructure and expand the organization, but she used her former love Solo in a bid to pit the Hutt Clans and Empire against one another (the Dawn's largest rival). While Crimson Dawn is currently at odds with the Empire with secret agents all over the galaxy prior to Return of the Jedi, it seems as though they might survive after the Empire's fall.
Why Darth Maul's Successor Would Be Perfect For Book of Boba Fett
It would certainly be exciting if Emilia Clarke's Qi'ra were to return in The Book of Boba Fett. Having taken over for Darth Maul in the comics, she's certainly come into her own with quite a bit of power as she seeks to topple the Empire and its Sith lords. While she will no doubt fail in her attempts before Return of the Jedi, her survival in the aftermath would certainly make her a dynamic foe for Boba Fett, seeing as how they became rivals after she stole Solo. Now that Boba's looking to become a crime lord in his own right, their rivalry could be elevated in some incredibly exciting ways.
Interestingly enough, Clarke already has a relationship with Disney+, seeing as how she's been reported to have a significant role in the MCU's upcoming Secret Invasion series. As such, it does make theories calling for her return to Star Wars even more credible beyond these two big connections to Crimson Dawn in The Book of Boba Fett episode 1. Either way, it's hard to argue even in theory that Darth Maul's criminal empire led by Lady Qi'ra wouldn't make for an exciting rival for Fett as he continues to cement his power as Tatooine's latest crime lord.
The Book of Boba Fett releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.