We Ranked Every Star Wars TV Show — See Where Maul – Shadow Lord Lands

Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord slammed the door with a two-episode May 4 finale—and with season 2 already locked, the franchise’s newest series is already reshaping the rankings of Star Wars TV.

'Star Wars: Maul - Shadow Lord ' just wrapped with a two-episode finale on May 4, and yep, season 2 is already locked. So this list might shift once we see where they take it next. But even with just one season, the show has already shaken up the franchise pecking order in a big way. That alone is notable, because animation in this universe still gets less attention than live-action, and 'Maul' is messing with characters and arcs we already know. Despite that, it landed hard enough that Lucasfilm has more on the way.

With that in mind, here’s where every 'Star Wars' TV show stands for me right now, worst to best, with 'Maul - Shadow Lord' in the mix. If something you love is low, I promise I’m not trying to ruin your childhood. If it’s high, same deal.

The ranking (for now)

1. The Book of Boba Fett — This should have been a layup: an iconic character, Temuera Morrison in the armor, and a crime- world playground. Instead, the pacing sagged, the plot felt thin, and the legend of a top-tier bounty hunter somehow translated into surprisingly little momentum. Biggest disappointment in the bunch.
2. Star Wars Resistance — An animated series set around the sequel era was always going to inherit some of that trilogy’s baggage. It did. The show struggled to find an audience at all, which is a shame, but it also makes sense given how cold many fans still are on that timeline and those characters.
3. The Acolyte — One of the most divisive projects in the franchise, right up there with 'The Rise of Skywalker'. It took a beating from targeted review-bombing, but there were real problems too. Manny Jacinto was great as Qimir/The Stranger, and the Darth Plagueis cameo was electric in the moment… but the season leaned hard on payoffs a second season never delivered, so a lot of that hype fizzled into loose ends.
4. Young Jedi Adventures — Made for little kids (which, yes, 'Star Wars' has always welcomed), and it works on that level. The bonus is that it plays in the High Republic era, a corner of the timeline we’ve barely seen on screen outside 'The Acolyte'. It’s not meant to rock the canon; it’s a breezy, charming entry for its target age group.
5. Star Wars: Visions — Non-canon and proudly weird in the best way. The anthology’s different animation styles open the door to ideas canon can’t always risk: deeper Sith explorations, unorthodox Force riffs, and yes, a lightsaber parasol. It deserves more credit than it gets.
6. Tales of the Underworld — There are three 'Tales of' shows so far ('Underworld', 'Empire', 'Jedi), all solid. 'Underworld' is the weakest of the trio, even with strong anchors in Asajj Ventress and Cad Bane. Ventress’s arc, including the long-murky details around her resurrection, has juice. Bane’s half just never hits as hard as it should, and the whole thing feels like it could have pushed further.
7. Tales of the Empire — A sharper pair of character spotlights: fallen Jedi Barriss Offee and Dathomiri Nightsister Morgan Elsbeth. We finally see what happened to Barriss after 'The Clone Wars ' temple bombing confession, and we witness General Grievous’s slaughter of the Nightsisters. Bleak, tangled, and compelling.
8. Skeleton Crew — Arrived to relatively quiet buzz compared to 'Andor ' or 'The Acolyte', but it’s good. Set in the New Republic era, it adds new faces and planets without losing the familiar pulse of the galaxy. It’s more about pirates than Jedi vs. Sith, which is a welcome angle, and characters like Jod Na Nawood give the Force/Jedi mythos a slightly skewed, interesting perspective.
9. Tales of the Jedi — The best of the 'Tales' run so far. It splits its focus between Ahsoka Tano and Count Dooku and makes both stories count. Dooku’s drift into the dark side plays with fresh nuance, and Ahsoka’s path fills in early gaps while underlining that Anakin basically trained her to survive Order 66.
10. Ahsoka — Polarizing for a few reasons, from how the Rebels crew translated in live action to the title character sometimes feeling like a co-lead in her own show. But the emotional core works: real closure between Ahsoka and Anakin, with Hayden Christensen back in the mix. If season 2 does hit this year, there’s room to climb.
11. Obi-Wan Kenobi — Took heat for giving a lot of space to Reva and a young Leia, which pushed Obi-Wan off-center more than some expected. But when it locks in, it really locks in: a bruising Kenobi/Vader showdown and our first time seeing 10-year-old Luke and Leia in motion. Worth it for those high points alone.
12. Star Wars: The Bad Batch — Perennially underrated, probably because animated shows still get sidelined by parts of the fandom. It spins out of 'The Clone Wars' but stands on its own by deeply humanizing the clones and giving us a ground-level view of the early Imperial 'Dark Times' we don’t usually get.
13. Maul - Shadow Lord — The surprise animated heavyweight of the moment. It actually knows what to do with Maul: vicious, cunning, tragic, and dangerous. The season packs in crisp lightsaber fights and even drops a Darth Vader cameo without feeling like a gimmick. And before season 1 fully finished, Disney had already greenlit season 2. If they stick the landing next time, this could jump higher.
14. Star Wars Rebels — Took its lumps at launch and still catches strays, but it gave us a lot: Ahsoka vs. Vader in an unforgettable collision, the full Ghost Crew, and Ezra Bridger, who now looks increasingly important to where all of this is heading. Another vivid window into the 'Dark Times'.
15. The Mandalorian — The pop-culture juggernaut that re-energized the brand on TV and is now heading to theaters as 'The Mandalorian and Grogu', the first 'Star Wars' movie in nearly seven years. Season 3 sagged, no doubt, but across the run this show carved out its own lane and made it feel essential.
16. Star Wars: The Clone Wars — The crown jewel of 'Star Wars' animation. It does heavy lifting for the prequels: clarifying Anakin’s fall, fleshing out the actual war the films mostly skip over, and turning Ahsoka into a franchise pillar. It makes the whole era richer.
17. Andor — Still the one to beat. A grounded, unflinching look at life under the Empire and the spark of rebellion, built on character work and writing that wouldn’t be out of place in prestige drama. Two tight seasons, no fluff, and not a wasted beat.

That’s where it all sits today. If 'Maul - Shadow Lord' keeps this pace in season 2, expect more shuffling.