The latest Star Wars TV series released its first two episodes this week, and its first reviews continue the Fresh streak for the franchise on the small screen. Titled The Acolyte, this show is even more prequel than the prequels, as it is set around 100 years before the events of Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace, in the time of the High Republic era. Starring Amandla Stenberg in dual roles, the plot follows twin sisters representing both sides of the Force, allowing for a portrayal of dark and light that’s not exactly black and white. Most reviews point out how different the series is while still Star Wars enough for the fans, but it’s far from perfect.
Here’s what critics are saying about The Acolyte:
Does it take Star Wars in a new direction?
This is a newly marked territory… creating a new refreshing path and mythos for Star Wars.
— Laura Sirikul, Nerds of Color
It has a willingness to put its own spin on hallowed lore.
— Alison Herman, Variety
In its willingness to challenge our assumptions, The Acolyte finds its own place.
— Angie Han, Hollywood Reporter
It’s a really well-wrought detective story that is unlike anything I’ve seen in Star Wars before.
— Bryan Young, Slashfilm
(Photo by ©Lucasfilm)
Is this a good thing?
It’s an exciting breath of fresh air I didn’t know I needed, and offers us something at once familiar but also genuinely unexpected.
— Bryan Young, Slashfilm
You don’t need to recycle elements from the master narrative to make its offshoots compelling. In fact, the opposite approach is often more rewarding.
— Alison Herman, Variety
Will fans still find enough familiar territory?
While the glossiness of this barely used universe (its aesthetic falling somewhere between the Original Trilogy’s grime and the Prequels’ pristine sheen) takes a little getting used to, the livery remains distinctly Star Wars.
— James Dyer, Empire Magazine
The Acolyte does not throw out the Star Wars playbook entirely. It’s faithful to the charms that have carried this series for so many decades: strange planets, weird creatures, lightsaber battles with a fresh wuxia flair.
— Angie Han, Hollywood Reporter
The Acolyte combines the classical elements that give Star Wars an evergreen appeal with new additions to the canon.
— Alison Herman, Variety
Acolyte hits all the right Star Wars motifs, from hooded evil Jedis, twins broken apart (a la Luke and Leia), puppeteers in the shadows, and past crimes that continue to have ramifications in the future. While that’s great comfort food for any Star Wars fan, it’s also old hat.
— Anthony D’Alessandro, Deadline Hollywood Daily
Will fans of the Star Wars prequels especially love it?
[Showrunner] Leslye Headland brought her love of the prequel trilogy to The Acolyte. It feels like it exists in that same universe and feels like the Jedi are finally on the edge of the precipice that will lead them to a path of destruction thanks to the Sith’s grand plan.
— Bryan Young, Slashfilm
Headland has professed a love for the once-unfashionable Star Wars prequel trilogy released from 1999-2005, and her show often plays specifically like a remix of The Phantom Menace.
— Jesse Hassenger, The Wrap
You’d think the whole show was set months before Phantom Menace.
— Anthony D’Alessandro, Deadline Hollywood Daily
(Photo by ©Lucasfilm)
Is this one of the best Star Wars shows?
The Acolyte is the best Star Wars streaming television event since The Mandalorian.
— M.N. Miller, FandomWire
[Here] Star Wars feels a bit more vibrant than it typically has on television. In place of the quasi-western spareness of The Mandalorian or the seemingly stretched-thin budget of Obi-Wan Kenobi is a colorful sort-of mystery series that takes off like a rocket.
— Jesse Hassenger, The Wrap
It’s practically the inverse of [Andor]; where [that show] eschews the supernatural in favor of foot soldiers, The Acolyte goes all-in on the Jedi order and its Force-wielding space wizards.
— Alison Herman, Variety
The Acolyte can’t help but feel slight and unambitious by comparison [to Andor].
— James Dyer, Empire Magazine
Does it overcome prequelitis?
I wanted to learn what happened next, even if we already know where the Republic is heading.
— Alison Herman, Variety
Returns and callbacks can be plenty of fun for the initiated; it’s even more exciting, though, not having much of an idea as to where The Acolyte is headed.
— Jesse Hassenger, The Wrap
(Photo by ©Lucasfilm)
Are there any standout performances?
The performance of Amandla Stenberg playing a dual role of both Osha and Mae respectively is flawless.
— Jamie Broadnax, Black Girl Nerds
Lee Jung-jae also contributes by bringing a raw vulnerability that balances the series.
— M.N. Miller, FandomWire
How is the action?
The fight scenes are just unbelievable.
— Danielle Solzman, Solzy at the Movies
It has the flavor of Hong Kong action cinema but with a distinctly Star Wars twist — punches and parries augmented with Jedi abilities that block and throw with unseen power.
— James Dyer, Empire Magazine
The fight sequences look like they could fit right at home in Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon or Zhang Yimou’s Hero.
— Bryan Young, Slashfilm
The Acolyte is propelled by plentiful action… but the action itself is rooted in conflict with stakes both large and small for characters we quickly come to care about.
— Alison Herman, Variety
It’s a refreshing departure from the typical lasers and lightsaber battles.
— Laura Sirikul, Nerds of Color
Older and more jaded fans will probably still grumble that the fights aren’t intense or violent enough.
— Jesse Hassenger, The Wrap
(Photo by ©Lucasfilm)
Does it have any glaring issues?
The Acolyte suffers from a near absence of compelling characters and some dramatic lapses of subtlety.
— Keith Phipps, TV Guide
The series doesn’t quite seem to know what to do with more marginal members of its ensemble.
— Angie Han, Hollywood Reporter
The characters here are thinly drawn, often weighed down by overly functional dialogue.
— James Dyer, Empire Magazine
Could this be a positive sign of the future of Star Wars?
The Acolyte in many ways will be one of the few series that will lay the groundwork for storytelling and from graphic novel to TV adaptation under the Star Wars umbrella and I’m here for it.
— Jamie Broadnax, Black Girl Nerds
Thumbnail image by ©Lucasfilm
