Shades of Reason " Shades of Reason " is the fifteenth episode of the . It first aired on January 26 , 2013 . Official description . " " Backed by the criminal underworld , the Sith and Death Watch launch an attack on Mandalore . " " Plot Summary . The Shadow Collective convenes on Zanbar to discuss Death Watch ' s planned takeover of Mandalore . Maul instructs their criminal allies to assault several locations in the city of Sundari , creating civil unrest that would weaken the Duchess Satine Kryze ' s political standing . Death Watch would then swoop in an " stop " them , winning the support of the people . As the meeting adjourns , Maul warns Opress to be ready for an obvious betrayal from Pre Vizsla . The Shadow Collective journeys to Mandalore and begins their attack . The various criminal syndicates capture the docks , assault a bank and open fire in the streets . As the Duchess attempts to encourage her people to remain calm , Vizsla and his men arrive and " arrest " the criminals . Satine is then deposed and imprisoned next to former Prime Minister Almec . As Vizsla consolidates his power and prepares the Mandalorian people for their return to their warrior roots , Maul suggests moving in on the Council of Neutral Systems and the 2000 systems they control , but the Death Watch leader reveals he has no interest in expansion . Death Watch turns on Maul and Opress , though Vizsla promises to deliver Obi - Wan Kenobi to them . As the Zabrak brothers are imprisoned , Maul states that they need a puppet to rule Mandalore and figures that the prison must hold political prisoners suitable for their ends . They then break out and search the prison for a worthy candidate . Due to an indirect comment from Satine , Maul chooses Almec . He then returns to the throne room and challenges Vizsla to a duel for Death Watch ' s leadership , which Vizsla is honor - bound to accept . They engage in an intense duel with Vizsla gaining the upper hand before Maul destroys his jetpack . Vizsla then shoots Maul ' s lightsaber of his hand and charges towards him for the kill . However , Maul overpowers Vizsla with his martial skills and claim his Darksaber after beating him into submission . Stating that only the strong will rule , a defeated Vizsla offers no resistance as Maul decapitates him . Despite his victory , a number of Death Watch dissidents , led by Bo - Katan Kryze , refuse to swear fealty to an outsider and flee . Almec is reinstated as prime minister . As he addresses the Mandalorian people , he tells them that Satine murdered Vizsla . He then reports to Maul his plans to set up his new administration , the Sith warning that he ' d be responsible for their failures . Almec then asks Maul if he has any other plans . Maul only tells him to go and rule Mandalore . Continuity . " Shades of Reason " was adapted in the young reader ' s book " " . The episode was originally reported by " Star Wars Insider " 137 as the fourteenth episode of Season Five , but the reported order was revised following the magazine ' s publication . Behind the scenes . According to a post for the official " Star Wars : The Clone Wars " Facebook page as well as the Trivia gallery for the episode on StarWars . com , a mural that appeared on the royal platform of the Sundari Royal Palace , depicting a battle between Mandalorians and ancient Jedi , had a similar artwork style to the cubist artwork " " by painter . In addition to official statements , the mural ' s composition ( characters positioned on the left and right sides of the image ) and theme ( soldiers on the right aiming guns and a sword ) are similar to that of another painting by Picasso , " " . StarWars . com confirmed that the Royal Palace mural was a different painting from the one in Governor Vizsla ' s residence in " The Mandalore Plot " . In the early stages of the episode , the makers had planned for a scene where after Vizsla was defeated , his severed head would roll down the stairs . This was cut later because it was deemed too graphic . Unlike a similar edit in " Eminence " , this was cut very early in the episode ' s development , although it was eventually restored in the DVD / Blu ray release . The trivia gallery for the episode confirmed that the place that Ziton Moj attacked in the episode was Peace Park from " The Mandalore Plot , " which also retained the scars from the Death Watch bombing from the same episode . The tour droid that got blasted in this episode bore the same body design as the droid that gave Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala a lift at Mos Espa in " Attack of the Clones " . The Mandalore Banking Center was likewise a redesign of the Mandalorian Hospital in Season 3 . The episode ' s Director ' s Cut was included in the DVD .