Half wuxia epic and half pulp thriller novel, The Acolyte demonstrates what’s attainable when Star Wars embraces new characters and genres whereas abandoning the Darkish Facet of nostalgia. There is not a Skywalker to be seen (a minimum of within the 4 episodes I’ve watched), or any characters you have met earlier than. It is not making an attempt to fill gaps in pre-existing lore. It is merely a kickass Star Wars story, with completely executed motion choreography, a bevy of proficient actors and a narrative that feels genuinely recent. And, better of all, you do not have to be caught up on The Ebook of Boba Fett or 208 episodes of animated exhibits to get pleasure from it.
A serious purpose why The Acolyte feels so distinctive is that it comes from Leslye Headland, a author and director with no prior affiliation to Star Wars. Because the co-creator of Russian Doll, she proved that she might juggle a fantastical premise with wealthy, multi-layered characters. Her outsider perspective is precisely what Star Wars must keep away from feeling stale. It is the counterpoint to the obsessive world-building from Dave Filoni, the George Lucas disciple behind The Clone Wars and lots of the franchise’s TV exhibits.
The Acolyte begins with a scene proper out of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: A lone warrior enters a bar, presents themself to probably the most highly effective individual there, and calls for a battle. What follows is an expertly choreographed array of kicks, flips and Power-thrown knives, because the Jedi Grasp Indara (Carrie-Anne Moss), deflects her younger attacker with easy grace. “Who educated you?” She asks, echoing Michelle Yeoh’s first confrontation with Zhang Ziyi in Ang Lee’s movie. (Sure, I acquired chills upon listening to that.)
I will not say an excessive amount of concerning the plot of The Acolyte, however briefly it entails a former Jedi trainee, Mae (Amandla Stenberg), who’s suspected of committing a sequence of crimes. Her former Jedi Grasp, Sol (performed by Squid Sport star Lee Jung-jae), is tasked with monitoring her down and determining what’s actually occurring. They’re additionally joined by his new padwan trainee, performed by Dafne Eager (Logan), and the over-eager, by-the-book Jedi Grasp Yord (Charlie Barnett).
What makes The Acolyte really intriguing is the best way it explores the function of the Jedi and their chokehold (heh) on Power powers within the Star Wars universe. Are they really the keepers of the peace, or a bunch of fanatical monks aligned with whoever occurs to be in energy? Is there a legit path past the Jedi for somebody Power-capable like Mae, with out turning to the Darkish Facet? I do not know the way the sequence will reply these questions, however their existence alone is fascinating, because the broader franchise has appeared incapable of interrogating itself in recent times.
After The Rise of Skywalker introduced the sequel trilogy to a disappointing shut, Star Wars has largely been mining nostalgia on Disney+ with various ranges of success. The Mandalorian began sturdy, however grew to become slowed down with repetitive storytelling. The Ebook of Boba Fett was largely forgettable, aside from when it served as a bridge between season’s two and three of The Mandalorian. No person wanted the Obi-Wan sequence, however it was good to see Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen again in motion.
Ahsoka and Andor had been probably the most uniformly profitable of the Star Wars TV initiatives, however they each additionally needed to wrestle with pre-existing storylines. To actually perceive Ahsoka, you wanted to have watched over 200 episodes of The Clone Wars and Rebels, in addition to a number of shorts and episodes from different Star Wars exhibits. Andor was probably the most mature imaginative and prescient of the franchise we have ever seen, due to creator Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton, The Bourne Id), however it was additionally a sluggish burn narratively. (And it was nonetheless a few character we briefly met in Rogue One, itself a prequel story about discovering the Loss of life Star’s blueprints.)
The one baggage The Acolyte has to cope with is the path of middling Star Wars exhibits behind it. That alone might flip off some audiences. However I am hoping individuals acknowledge it as a recent begin, a world past Skywalkers and nostalgia bait. The Acolyte is a reminder of what makes Star Wars nice: thrilling and pulpy storytelling on a cosmic scale.
