TV Review: Episode Four Of ‘The Acolyte’ Teases But Doesn’t Deliver
by Frank Martin
In just four episodes, The Acolyte is proving to be the most emblematic of Star Wars TV shows. First off, it has the most adventurous storyline of the bunch. Ahsoka and Andor are hyper-focused on its characters and plot. They don’t feel like big, sweeping adventures made to encompass an entire galaxy and deal with larger ramifications of the Republic. The Acolyte, meanwhile, visits many worlds and sees a bloated Jedi Order trying to exhibit their control, which is exactly what the films are like. But it’s also emblematic in quality, as there are some bits that are great, some bits that are bad, and a whole bunch that’s simply mediocre.
After the origins of the conflict were revealed last episode, The Acolyte returns to the present as Mae (Amandla Stenberg) continues to search for the Wookie Jedi Kelnacca (Joonas Suotamo). Understanding now who her targets are, Sol (Lee Jung-jae) and the other Jedi try to intercept her. Both parties journey through the jungle and come across challenges as well as conflicted motivations surrounding Mae’s mysterious master. The episode ends when Mae discovers that her master arrived on the scene first and liked Kelnacca himself. The dark Force user then attacks the Jedi, ending the episode on a tumultuous cliffhanger.
Ninety percent of this episode felt as if it could have been cut. It was merely discussion and conjecture about the situation without really much happening in terms of moving the story forward. Kelnacca had been built up as a Jedi to be reckoned with, so the fact that he died off screen without any sort of battle was a humongous let down and missed opportunity. To make matters worse, the episode was also extremely short compared to the others. The only saving grace came in the last few moments as the program’s main villain appeared. So far, this villain has only been teased and built up to be a major threat. This episode only gave a taste of that, but if the show is to be redeemed as a whole, it must deliver a lot more.
The Acolyte streams Tuesdays on Disney+.
