When I sat down to watchStar Wars: The Acolytefor the first time, I was a little apprehensive. Part of that, I suppose, was a general fear for the quality - modernStar Warsofferings have been extremely inconsistent. But mostly, I was already wondering what my approach to the review would be.
I like Star Wars, enough to have seen all of the movies, most of the TV shows, and even own a few board games. But I don’t love it, not in the way that others do. Would there be a dramatic zoom in on a major character from somewhere else in the franchise that would be completely lost on me? Thankfully,Star Wars: The Acolyte is entirely Glup Shittoless, and that makes it one of the most interesting projects in the franchise since The Last Jedi.
Just saying the name of Rian Johnson’s divisive entry in the canon is enough to summon The Dark Side, and I expect The Acolyte will conjure up similarly strong emotions both in defence and attack. Rather than fixating on a minor part of Star Wars history, rewriting major events, or even giving us a new perspective on the bullet points of Star Wars, The Acolyte is completely fresh. Every character in it, at least so far as I can tell, is completely new to the series, and the story it tells is fairly small in scale. This brings in a human element that must survive without the audience being invested in galaxy-shaping destiny. For some, it will buckle under that weight. For me, it held strong.
The Acolyte deals with two sisters, Mae and Osha, who are sent on different paths when the Jedi visit their village as children. As adults, these paths cross once more as one of the sisters plots murderous revenge on the Jedi who uprooted everything in her life. Both of these sisters are played by Amandla Stenberg, whotold me that they worked with a physical coach to differentiate the sisters' movementand give both of them a unique presence. Those subtleties are evident in their performance, and it’s a descriptor that fits the series as a whole.
Star Wars, without the Glup Shitto
In the same junket where Stenberg explained their performance,I spoke to showrunner Leslye Headlandwho described the show as being “like fanfiction”. At the time, I disagreed - to me, Star Wars fanfiction is all Glup Shittos andde-aged Luke Skywalkersarriving to rescue Baby Yoda. But on reflection, I understood what she meant. This is a story set in the Star Wars universe. It’s not necessarily a Star Wars story. You don’t know any of the characters, and in the four episodes I’ve seen, they don’t tie into any recognisable events.
It’s best to think ofThe Acolyte as being like Andorcrossed withthose episodes of The Mandalorianwhere no one from the movies shows up and he’s just vibing in that helmet.
For some, that may be off-putting. Star Wars has always told new stories in new ways, but it often - especially post-Disney - finds a way to link that back to Vader, Order 66, Obi-Wan, or another key moment in the canon.Especially Skywalkers. The Acolyte does not, and that is its greatest strength. Though the stakes are lower in that no planet is in danger of being blown up, any character could die before the series ends. There’s no plot armour because we know they need to show up a decade later in another movie. The stakes are far more personal and meaningful, and though a couple of changes here or there to copyright names like ‘jedi’ or ‘lightsaber’ could make this legally distinct from Star Wars, the focus on Osha and Mae, particularly through the eyes of Jedi Master Sol, shows a deep understanding for the heart of Star Wars.
A Star Wars series that gives you room to breathe and appreciate the wonder of the universe feels like a long time coming. Episode three, a flashback helmed by After Yang and Columbus director Kogonada typifies this. The Acolyte is a more tender, soulful journey than you might expect. But that is not a polite synonym for dull. The show is packed with action sequences, and a heavy reliance on practical stunts gives them a lot of bite.
The Volume, a CGI/motion capture technique that relies on LED screens rather than green screen, was once heralded as one of the most significant advancements in filmed media ever since someone spun still photographs of a man on a horse very quickly. It’s now so controversial - mostly through being misused as a tool to make filming cheaper, not better - that it’s a selling point that The Acolyte does not use it. That decision hasn’t been taken purely for crowd-pleasing though; it’s to align itself with the history of Star Wars, using practical sets, make-up, and puppetry to make the world feel alive. So many other projects have chased that classic feeling through cameos and winks, but The Acolyte manages it by looking more deeply at what made Star Wars great in the first place.
The slow burn and more personal adventure may put some viewers off if they’re expecting explosions around every corner, but it’s hard to look at a Star Wars show with murder, family drama, Jedi councils, practical make-up, and a Jedi Wookie and think ‘this isn’t Star Wars’. Though the storylines are slower than some Star Wars fans have come to expect, this gives the performances and emotional weight behind them more time to shine. Put simply, The Acolyte is the exact sort of Star Wars show I’ve wanted for years. But I know not all fans will feel the same way.
TheGamer does not score TV reviews without access to the complete series.
Star Wars: The Acolyte
Cast
The Acolyte is a series set in the wider Star Wars universe, in which a Padawan and her former Jedi Master come together to investigate a series of Jedi murders.
