Spoiler Alert for Star Wars: The Acolyte

The final episode of The Acolyte was released last week and was the definite high point of the series. My previous critiques of the show do, I think, still stand. It still has some creaky dialogue and awkward plotting. Erasing Mae’s memory, for instance, so that she can’t reveal their location when captured, seems convoluted. (Why not leave together and then go your separate ways later? Maybe the ship only had two seats or something.) That said, the episode had some great moments as well. This is fairly in keeping with the show at large. There are a lot of great ideas, great moments and great performances throughout the series, but they are often embedded within awkward and convoluted plots and structures. I still enjoyed it, though.

The standout best part of the episode (and the entire series) was Jedi Master Sol. He might be my favourite Disney-era character and (in a moment of potential sacrilege) is perhaps one of the most complex characters that Star Wars has ever had. A kind and brilliant Jedi who never fell to the dark side – who was never even tempted by it – but, who, in mistaking his emotions for the guidance of the force, accidentally did a really terrible thing (which he was made to cover up) and spent the rest of his life trying to justify it to himself. Then, when he died as a consequence, he was brutally framed in a Jedi cover-up (to preserve their autonomy from the Senate). An incredible character whose death, at Osha’s hand, was gut-wrenching and a great performance by Lee Jung-jae. I also really enjoyed his fight choreography.

The force choke that Osha used to kill him, meanwhile, served as the narrative conclusion to the “kill without a weapon” test that Qimir insists upon. In retrospect, it does seem a fairly obvious resolution to that plot point, and maybe other people saw it coming, but I was surprised (and happy to be so). I did totally call it that Osha would turn out to be the Acolyte, but maybe that wasn’t a particularly out-there prediction. There had been so much talk, this episode and last, about how Osha and Mae were two halves of the same person that I was beginning to think they would, instead, merge into one. This did not happen (although maybe that’s what the witches had been planning). Regardless, I did like how they pulled a 180 on the twins’ respective moral roles. In the end, it was Osha who wanted revenge and Mae who wanted a trial.

There were some cool details and references in the episode that need to be mentioned as well. I’ve previously said that I love the show’s devolved prequel-era technology. That continued in the finale with what appeared to be a proto-Jedi Starfighter, which, lacking a hyperdrive, had to be launched from the Jedi frigate (which also lacked a built-in hyperdrive and used a detachable one instead). We also got to see the corruption of a Kyber crystal (when a Lightsaber turns red, due to the dark side making the crystal “bleed”). This has been a part of the canon for a while (there’s a comic in which Darth Sidious instructs Vader to capture and corrupt one). But it’s never been previously seen happening on screen. There was also a Senator who predicted the rise and fall of Anakin Skywalker (I liked how his comments about emotions being uncontrollable).

As is standard for a modern (Disney) show, the finale also included a couple of cameos. The back of Yoda’s head makes an appearance in the final shot, which could be seen coming a million miles away. It would have been more surprising if Yoda didn’t have a cameo. More excitingly, and very unexpectedly, however, was the brief inclusion of Darth Plagueis – the Sith Lord who trained Sidious. And there are so many questions. What was he doing on the Qimir’s island? How does he relate to Qimir? I’ve seen it suggested that he learned how to manipulate the force to create life (discussed in Revenge of the Sith) by studying the force creation of Osha and Mae. Which seems quit plausible.

It’s not yet been confirmed if the show will get a second season (although I gather that a large budget has made it unlikely). To my mind, it always felt like a single-season show, especially since they killed off nearly all their characters (I’ve got a lot of respect for that). But it’s evident from the finale that they wanted a second season, and it’ll be a shame if they don’t get one. I want them to be able to finish telling the story they want to tell. And, if nothing else, I want to know what their plans for Darth Plagueis are (that cameo worked just as intended).

-Dexter