The last episode of the Clone Wars,
"Shades of Reason", ended with a striking image of Darth Maul seated on the throne of Mandalore. Maul's posture was indolent and indulgent, a ruler assured of his position and enjoying it. Yet, like Luke Skywalker on Dagobah, something seemed vaguely "familiar" about the scene. Indeed, there is an eerie resemblance between Maul and Emperor Commodus from the movie
Gladiator. While it's not clear if Dave Filoni and the Clone Wars crew intended to pay homage to Gladiator, the imagery reveals much about Maul as a political leader.
