This review contains full spoilers for Star Wars: The Acolyte Season 1, episode 4.
The Acolyte’s fourth episode ramps things up, bringing Mae, Osha, and their respective allies back into direct contact and finally revealing Mae’s Master to the Jedi. This is a better installment, giving us some nice character interaction and fun Star Wars action and creature moments, even if there are still some stumbles along the way.
We don’t know all the exact specifics about Osha leaving the Jedi yet, but in this episode we see how she’d now be interested in rejoining the Order. Her disappointment that Sol wanted her to continue working with them, but not as one of them, was clear. This longing is a nice undercurrent to her character and something that adds to Osha feeling like a fleshed-out character, even as Mae’s motivations feel much murkier and vague, sometimes to a frustrating degree.
In last week’s flashback episode, we saw that Mae outright attempted to kill Osha when they were kids, furious that her sister was going to leave the coven on Brendok. And we know that, believing the Jedi killed her coven, she has been hunting down those she thinks are responsible. Yet now, she’s willing to give it all up and turn herself in to the Jedi to be reunited with Osha? Yes, there’s a lot of specifics we don’t know, and regrets she might feel, but what we do see of Mae so far just feels like a jumble when it comes to her characterization.
If Mae turns back to the Light Side, it’ll feel pretty predictable.
Also, if she turns back to the Light Side, it’ll feel pretty predictable. It seems like almost anytime a Star Wars movie or TV show gives us a Dark Side user with any inner conflict – think Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Ben Solo/Kylo Ren, Reva, Asajj Ventress, or Barriss Offee – they’re on the path to redemption. It would be more interesting for Mae to have some inner turmoil and regrets, but ultimately not be redeemable, so that’s what I’m hoping for.
We’ve so rarely seen a large group of Jedi team up together in live-action – even the prequels really only did this at the end of Attack of the Clones – so it’s exciting to see Sol lead Yord, Jecki, and several others in an attempt to stop Mae. And it seems that when The Acolyte creator Leslye Headland said the series would be free of major cameos from characters like Yoda, she didn’t mean other, less beloved, pointier-headed future members of the Jedi Council, as prequel character Ki-Adi-Mandi pops up here as well.
The Jedi’s encounter with some creepy creatures on Khofar makes for a very fun and oh-so Star Wars moment: What first appear to be large growths on the local trees turn out to be huge, bug-looking critters. It’s a bit surprising that it’s not those same creatures who attack our crew, but the protective Umbramoth (that’s how it’s spelled in the captions) that swoops in is effective as well. But it’s the aftermath that matters most, as Osha discusses the creature with Jecki and says she feels responsible for its death. It’s a strong scene that adds more layers to how the Jedi perceive death not as an ending but as something intrinsic to the connection all living beings have to the Force. Or, as Jecki puts it, “It’s always an honor to get to witness anything or anyone transform into the Force.” We know Force Ghosts are eventually a thing, but Jecki and her peers don’t, so I appreciate this insight into the Jedi perspective on the afterlife and how they attempt to be at peace when someone they know passes away.
I appreciate this insight into the Jedi perspective on the afterlife.
There’s a lot of fan theorizing that Qimir might in fact be the very Master he claims to be working for. As the theory goes,he’s pulling a Padme by hiding in plain sight as his own subordinate. Episode 4 certainly has moments that could back that theory up: Qimir claims he’s never seen the Master’s face, indicating he and Mae have never been with the Master at the same time, which is a bit convenient. His clumsiness and awkwardness – dropping things, getting caught in a trap – could all be part of his subterfuge. It would be interesting to see Manny Jacinto playing against type as a Sith Lord (or Sith type, at the least), though I continue to enjoy Qimir as a scoundrel who’s actually a full scoundrel. Either path forward holds promise.
What doesn’t hold any promise is Kelnacca, because he’s dead! This is pretty frustrating, because if you’re gonna have a freaking wookiee Jedi on your show, let him do some cool wookiee Jedi fighting before you kill him off. Are we really not going to see that wookiee swing a lightsaber?! Okay, sure, he’ll likely still appear in more flashbacks to what happened on Brendok, but right now, this feels like a lot of build up to nothing for the character. Mae was already gearing up for an intense fight when she found him!
This feels like a lot of build up to nothing for the wookiee character.
Kelnecca’s sliced-open corpse is an extremely graphic image by Star Wars standards (give or take some Tauntaun guts) – and it sets up the powerful entrance of Mae’s Master. This is a well-done sequence, as Sol is the first to sense the Master’s presence, then all the other Jedi, who turn towards him. Seeing them all ignite their lightsabers, only for him to use the Force to send them all flying, makes for a great cliffhanger.
Star Wars: The Acolyte Cast and Character Guide
Verdict
A better paced episode of The Acolyte brings most of the show’s major players together in a bigger way. That includes the much-discussed and still-secretive Master, who gives Episode 4 a tremendous cliffhanger ending. Mae still feels all over the place as a character, and killing off Kelnacca after so much build up is disappointing in the moment. But there continue to be interesting facets of The Acolyte introduced, like discussion of the Jedi and their dynamic within the Republic’s power structure at this point in the Star Wars timeline.
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