A still from ‘The Acolyte’
In the finale of The Acolyte, Senator Rayencourt (David Harewood) tells Jedi master Vernestra Rwoh (Rebecca Henderson), “The Jedi are a massive system of unchecked power posing as a religion, a delusional cult that claims to control the uncontrollable.” Very ouch! As if Vernestra does not have enough troubles. Jedi masters are being picked off by Mae (Amandla Stenberg), a dangerous psychopathic girl with the coolest moves, an operation goes wrong with dreadful repercussions in the present, and she also has to tackle sundry issues including a team being wiped out, a colleague and friend Sol (Lee Jung-jae) possibly going rogue, and a sinister puppet master pulling strings to unravel the Force.
We learn in episode three, that 16 years ago, Jedi masters Sol, Kelnacca (Joonas Suotamo), Indara (Carrie-Anne Moss) and her padwan Torbin (Dean-Charles Chapman) were on the planet of Brendok where they encountered a coven of Force witches led by Mother Aniseya (a regal Jodie Turner-Smith). Her twin daughters, Mae and Osha (Stenberg), were Force sensitive. Things went badly wrong at Brendok with Osha ending up a meknek carrying out dangerous repairs on spaceships and Mae courting the dark side with training from a sinister Stranger.
The Acolyte
Creator: Leslye Headland
Cast: Amandla Stenberg, Lee Jung-jae, Manny Jacinto, Dafne Keen, Charlie Barnett, Jodie Turner-Smith, Rebecca Henderson, Dean-Charles Chapman, Joonas Suotamo, Carrie-Anne Moss
Episodes: 8
Duration: 30 to 40 minutes
Storyline: Storyline: As powerful Jedi masters are being murdered, it takes one Jedi and his former padawan to uncover the truth
Set a 100 years before the events of Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, the years of peace have made the Jedi in The Acolyte administrators butting heads with senators over the division of power. The Acolyte looks at the rise of the Sith who were obviously doing their dirty business in the shadows much before Senator Palpatine decide to dump the Republic and set himself up as emperor.
As an aside, so much of Star Wars is reminiscent of the Roman empire, from the senators in their robes to the pod race in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. The Acolyte is a handsome-looking show, and the action sequences are eye-wateringly good, especially Indara’s Force-Fu moves, the lightsaber duels with attendant bleeding crystals, and some of the Stranger’s face-offs.
There are some inconsistencies and illogical choices by characters, for sure, but the show moves smoothly enough to help you ignore some of the more glaring ones, like a fortress of rock going up in flames — probably it is the Star Wars acolyte in me talking!
Creatures like the little elephant beaked birds on the unknown planet and the giant fluttering umbramoths are lovely while Bazil is vaguely annoying. Twins are recurring motif in Star Wars, and Mae and Osha, while not as exalted as Luke and Leia, are interesting opposites vaguely reminiscent of Seeta Aur Geeta and the lost-and-found formula of ‘70s Hindi films — they even have a family song/poem!
Mae incidentally uses her lightsaber to give herself a haircut, which surely would be an interesting trick at the hairdressers. The truth of their birth (miracle births are the other running theme in Star Wars), when finally revealed does not come as a surprise to anyone on screen except Sol, who seems completely shattered by the knowledge.
On the plus side is the pace, the mystery, the sets, the action and the chases, which outweighs the negatives. Yes, we would have liked to see Indara do more than dispense fortune-cookie wisdom including, “Do not centre yourself around your anxieties,” and more of Kelnacca fighting, but maybe there would be course correction in season 2, which Vernestra’s meeting with her famous master in the finale seems to indicate. Wait we shall in hope.
The Acolyte is currently streaming on Disney+ Hotstar