I just want to flex what limited comprehension skills i retained from high school to gush a little about how much i love the sound design for Maul Shadow Lord. I know i am not the first person to talk about this specifcally but I want to fangirl all the same!! i cut it cause long post:
In the end scene of MSL ep3 where Devon fights her way through Maul's lair, she force-pushes Maul and starts to run out the exit - the subtitles say: "Maul's lightsaber speaks alien language". Implying that Maul learns Devon's name through a force connection with his saber. I don't know much about sabers and kyber crystals but I know they are force-attuned so I suppose a man with so much suffering and hatred to bleed and corrupt his crystals will form a strong bond with them.
HOWEVER Whilst writing this I was researching and found an article sighting Executive producer Brad Rau who has said that the subtitles on disney+ are misleading, that the words heard are not the lightsaber literally speaking to Maul, but rather just simply playing the motif was meant to add gravity to the situation. So ok, no talking lightsaber….It may even be the case that Maul learnt Devon's name prior to this battle - we'll never know. And that's another thing I like about it. but back to my point:
[taking the above into account] Considering the subtitles say "lightsaber speaks" - and at the exact same time you hear a voice whisper "RAHTAHMAH" my brain just kicked into gear.
'Rahtahmah' is one of the lyrics used in Duel of the Fates, and obviously the track has become synonymous with Maul - it's his motif after all. You can hear whispers of "Rahtahmah" used throughout the Phantom Menace - like when Maul walks out of his Scimitar onto Tatooine, and when he's listening to his probe droid. (argh im fangirling too hard) I haven't seen much of clone wars yet so I'm excited to get to Mauls arc and see if DotF is used there too.
So anyway then i went googling to try to find translations for these lyrics, and John Williams apparently went on a translating spree and bastardised sanskrit to make this "alien" language we hear in the song. I found a translation here that discusses this but I don't know how accurate a translation it is. But the original intention is it's supposed to be an alien language, designed to sound "evil" i suppose, like a Sith language, something beyond our understanding.
And then i went and listened to the Original Soundtrack for this scene in MSL, it's track #9: "Devon FIghts Maul" and there are no vocals in the original score. So they added 'Rahtahmah' ontop of the score in the show. Which made my brain go burr because it gave me CHILLS BRO i love this character so much - and for the things that annoy me about the show, i still really really enjoy it and I appreciate the dedication behind the creative team and how they weave lore into the universe as they expand on Lucas's universe.
So this information regarding the lightsaber not literally saying rahtahmah hasn't really disappointed me because what I am focussed on is just how they use sound to convey emotion and meaning. I'm drooling over and diving into the theme music and it's motifs and how MSL used the original soundtrack from TPM to imply the depths of Mauls understanding, connection, and power within the force as he attempts to corrupt Devon.
let me know what themes or easter eggs or simply anything u guys noticed/loved in the show too cause i'd love to discuss it all