The Acolyte attempts to do what no other Star Wars film or series has done so far in either “Legends” or canon: show us what a galaxy far, far away looked like an even longer time ago, well before the Skywalker family stirred it all up with their drama. And, if I can borrow a phrase from the “other” sci-fi franchise, it manages to boldly go where no other on-screen story has done.
Set a hundred years before Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (in the year 132 BBY, for anyone else who’s as obsessed with chronology as I am), The Acolyte shows us a new side of the Jedi. This is not the complacent organization that allowed Emperor Palpatine to supplant them in the Prequels; this is the well-oiled machine that earned a heroic reputation worthy of Luke Skywalker’s childhood daydreams.
Unfortunately, a threat is building that will require them to muster all the strength and control the Force can grant.
The Acolyte focuses on Osha (Amandla Stenberg), a padawan who left the Jedi Order. Her attempts to live a normal, blue-collar life are interrupted when a Jedi is murdered in broad daylight, leading her to team up with her former master, Sol (Lee Jung-jae), his new padawan Jecki Lon (Dafne Keen), and her old friend Yord Fandar (Charlie Barnett)—however, the assassin’s identity turns everyone on its head.
“Despite having definitive bonds to a handful of other tales, The Acolyte is probably the most self-sufficient Star Wars tale on a screen in decades.”
The first four episodes seamlessly hop back in time; despite the fact that this era has not previously been seen in Star Wars TV or movies, the tonal shift came across seamlessly. Many sets and props have a distinctly older feel from other projects, as seen in the tech characters use, the aesthetics of certain spacecrafts, or even the different styles of Jedi robes. It’s certainly Star Wars, but also the equivalent of learning about the 50s from your grandparents’ old family photographs and scoffing at the funny-looking furniture.
Thanks to some careful set design and background lore, The Acolyte feels like a natural extension of both the Prequels’ depiction of the Jedi (especially as seen in The Phantom Menace) and many of the themes and elements present in more recent Disney+ offerings like Ahsoka. Keen gives off padawan Obi-Wan vibes at first, while a more esoteric side of the Force can also be seen, reminiscent of the Nightsisters in The Clone Wars or Morgan Elspeth in The Mandalorian‘s corner of the timeline.
Yet, I don’t intend to suggest that you need to consume fourteen other pieces of Star Wars media to follow this new show, which should hopefully be a relief to many who are feeling franchise fatigue lately, a side effect of so many interconnected properties. Despite having definitive bonds to a handful of other tales, The Acolyte is probably the most self-sufficient Star Wars tale on a screen in decades; Star Wars Visions is the only other entity that can hold a candle in this regard.
The series is considered the culmination of the High Republic publishing initiative, which has seen a host of books and comics exploring the years 382-228 BBY. I’ve been catching up on the books in preparation for this show, and while there were small details in these first episodes that struck me, there is absolutely no need to pick up any of them before enjoying The Acolyte. (But if this era intrigues you, they’re some of the best fiction to hit the franchise to-date.)
The strongest intertextual connection is Rebecca Henderson’s Vernestra Rwoh, who first appeared as a padawan in the High Republic books, but no one should need to pick up any supplementary books to understand her role in the story. Yoda’s also alive during this era as well, but he was apparently off-limits, and for good reason, so don’t expect a finale cameo.
Larger lore contexts aside, I was quickly pulled into The Acolyte‘s web of mystery thanks to its adept cast. Carrie-Ann Moss nails the assignment as Jedi Master Indara, in a way that makes me wonder why I’d never thought of her for this type of role before, and also left me wishing for more screen-time for her in the back half. Jung-jae also shines as the kind of Jedi Master that Qui-Gon Jinn would call a good friend, but it’s Stenberg who holds it all together with her multifaceted role.
What starts out as a relatively simple whodunnit in space quickly turns into something that could potentially recontextualize major aspects of the larger Star Wars philosophy. The pacing is great so far, covering a lot of thematic and narrative ground in each 32-42 minute episode without getting bogged down, and it seems that the stage has been set for the action to truly escalate as the season goes on.
The Force is strong with The Acolyte so far, and it may prove to be the one to restore the balance for many fans who feel overwhelmed with the amount of content in recent years.
(The first two episodes of Star Wars: The Acolyte are live on Disney+ tonight, with the remaining six episodes debuting weekly.)
