SPOILERS

Regarding the duel itself, since it’s very polarizing, I loved it. I think it worked on so many levels. The duel itself gives us subtle character development, it shows that Ben has grown a lot during his exile, and it shows us that Maul hasn’t. It sheds a new light on Ben’s duel with Vader, making it clear that Ben could’ve put up a very strong fight against Vader were that his intention. I know the “it’s like poetry” thing is a bit of a meme, but I found this comment on Reddit that I thought was very interesting;

The entire meeting is a “it’s like poetry, it rhymes” situation.

Obi-Wan and Maul meet as they did a few times in the Clone Wars. Obi-Wan with his Form III stance, and Maul with a single blade ignited. However, all these battles ended in stalemate.

This leads Maul to revert back to how he first fought Obi-Wan. With a double bladed sword.

In return, Obi-Wan switches to Qui-Gon’s Form IV stance.

The two clash blades a couple times and Maul tried to knock Obi-Wan in the face, breaking his guard for a killing blow like he did for Qui-Gon. But Obi-Wan learned from his fights with Maul. We see this first against Vader, and it comes full circle with Maul again.

Obi-Wan slices Maul’s lightsaber in half (again) and wounds him in the abdomen like Maul did to Qui-Gon.

Following the battle, Obi-Wan takes the dying party in his arms and rests their head on his leg. Together they discuss the Chosen One and how he will destroy the Sith. Bringing balance to force, and avenging all they’ve lost.

Really great scene.

I think everyone that was expecting a long and intense fight is missing the point of lightsaber duels, they’re not supposed to be merely eye-candy. They’re supposed to be emotional, they’re a means of telling the story, and I think this duel did just that.