Star Wars: Shadow of Maul (2026) #4
Blood Gamble
After discovering a mole among his team, Brander Lawson continued to investigate criminal activity on Janix alongside his partner, Two-Boots. He was soon confronted by Fraxmoor, the only remaining member of the corrupt task force.
When Fraxmoor summarily met his demise, Lawson was blamed for his death. Before internal investigations officer Ruhl could bring Lawson in, the captain was kidnapped by Vario, who revealed that it was not him behind the setup but that there may be a much darker force after the troubled law officer….
Writer: Benjamin Percy
Artist: Madibek Musabekov
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Colorist: Luis Guerrero
Cover artist: Derrick Chew
Editor: Mark Pannicia
Publication date: June 10 2026
“Now this is podracing.”
The famous words of young Anakin Skywalker fit perfectly to launch issue #3 of Star Wars: Shadow of Maul – Blood Gamble, as the streets of Janix are turned into a cityscape podrace course—complete with horrific crashes and grizzly deaths. And with podracing comes high-stakes gambling.
Some jokes between Lawson and Two-Boots help establish their history and interactions on the Disney Plus Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord animated series. There is also background on the established relationship between Lawson and Rheena, the owner of the Mark and Claim Casino, especially when she asks, “Are you asking as a cop or a gambler?” to his request for information, before revealing an interesting shared past when they worked together.
There is a podracer, Tor Braxis, who is dominating and destroying along the way. But somehow his race ties back to both Deemis and Vario, the two rival syndicate heads we met earlier in the comic series, and who also play roles in the animated series.
Having gathered his intel, Lawson springs into action—showing his willingness to use sometimes nefarious ways to protect the innocent people of Janix. Tor Braxis didn’t care about the people of Janix, Deemis, or Vario—because there was a bigger fish involved in the game, working from the shadows.
Lawson figures out what the biggest score of the evening is, with the orchestral leader using a podrace and a massive podrace crash as a distraction for the silent finale.