Episode 5+6 of the Acolyte
After half of the season, the Acolyte is finally delivering what it promised, a show that’s in the perspective of the the Sith. The fifth episode, Night, is hard to beat as the best episode of the series so far. Not only is it a carefully crafted action extravaganza, where the mysterious hooded figure is seen literally skewering jedis on his lightsaber blade, but it dares to do what most modern Star Wars movies haven’t, and that’s kill some of the characters we have grown to be fond of. Rest in peace Yord and Jecki Lon, you will be missed.
The ultimate reveal that Qimir was the mysterious Sith master of Mae was expected. However, the reveal was still excellent. Murdering Jecki Lon, staging the camera so that the reveal of Qimir is made when her dead body slumps away from his face is excellent directing and staging. The internet went wild with the starch contrast Manny Jecinto showed between playing the bumbling buffoon of Qimir, to the deadly Stranger. Highlighting his signature emo looking haircut, and the muscles he’s built for the role, Leslye Headland is leaning into what is so seductive about joining the dark side. It's all about manipulation, and an attractive man is a good place to start.
The continued storyline over episode 6 of the Stranger and Osha is still incredibly compelling. The Stranger is a master manipulator, literally stripping his clothes in front of her, letting her hold a lightsaber for the first time since she left the order, to eventually leaving his helmet for her to try on. This is exactly what fans both wanted and were expecting out of the show. A highlight on how the hubris of the Jedi will lead to their ultimate downfall, and an insight to what it means to be a Sith and be turned to the dark side in a way that we haven’t seen yet.
Sadly, hot Sith lord (and potential original Knight of Ren according to some fun fan theories) is not the focus of both of these episodes. There is also the Sol and Mae of it all. Personally, I find Sol a little more interesting at least on an acting point. Between episodes five and six he’s obviously processing and dealing with a lot, probably whatever he’s buried away that happened on Brendok all those years ago. Lee Jung-Jae’s acting work is exceptional. In episode five as he fights the Stranger, he is quite literally shaking. Is he willing to kill this man? Is it taking all of his energy to hold back his rage after seeing his friends and padawan slain in front of him? And Jecinto’s character is dangling the knowledge of Sol’s own personal darkness in front of him. What does the Stranger know about Sol that we don’t?
In episode six, Sol is on the ship with Mae, believing she is Osha, and the eventual flip and turn at the end of the episode where he realizes what has happened with the twins we see another acting highlight from Jung-Jae where it appears he’s going to finally be straight with us and let us see what happened on Brendok. However, this whole Mae storyline is so confusing and muddled. She wants to turn on her master because her sister is still alive, but when reconnected with her an argument causes her to swap clothes and ditch her on the planet to save herself. Her entire time with Sol is confusing, maybe she’s going to kill him? Maybe she’s going to take over the ship? I don’t know what her characters motivation is. She wants revenge on the four jedi that were on Brendok, Sol is right there. She hasn’t done anything to him yet, and she’s making minimal effort to get any information out of him to reveal his secrets.
These two episodes are the strongest of the season, fulfilling what was told to fans. However, they’re not perfect, and they’re stuck in a confusing story. It’s becoming more apparent that either the story telling structure of the season needed to be changed, or the season should’ve been extended to ten episodes. There will surely be another flashback episode, most likely episode seven. That leaves all the wrap up, learning how the Stranger connects to the jedi and the twins, and the ultimate resolution of at least season one to the final episode. Not all questions may be answered. If the show is aiming for a season two leaving some threads dangling would entice viewers to come back, but it seems like it’s moved at too fast a pace for itself to tackle some of these concepts and ideas in a more meaningful way.