The newest Star Wars collection, The Acolyte, has lastly premiered its first two episodes on Disney+, nevertheless it’s slightly bit completely different from the opposite Star Wars reveals in some main methods. Let’s begin with the most important: It is set a century or so earlier than any of the films, so there are not any acquainted characters right here, nor are there any direct story connections to the remainder of the franchise–so far, anyway. And so whereas many of the earlier collection have tripped throughout themselves to make references to the movies, The Acolyte does not function that means. There’s simply not a lot that can be referenced, and the present is healthier for not being filled with compelled and pointless plot connections.
That mentioned, it is not as if The Acolyte is completely devoid of Easter eggs or different clues for a way this story matches within the franchise’s huge image. And we did get one fairly huge clue–something that would carry us into the main-franchise thread. Let’s dive into what we noticed within the first two episodes of The Acolyte.
Warning: The remainder of this text will talk about some main spoilers from the primary two episodes of Star Wars: The Acolyte.
1. Sensible units and movie grain
Among the aesthetic points which have popped up with the live-action Star Wars collection come from the truth that they’re all shot digitally, and most have been shot on CGI soundstages. The end result has been a bunch of Star Wars reveals that do not actually match the aesthetic of the movies a lot in any respect. However The Acolyte is ready to keep away from that situation to some extent through the use of extra conventional units, like Andor did, and by cranking up the film-grain filter to ape the look of one thing shot on movie and assist masks using background CGI. It does not fairly get us all the best way to that $250 million film look, however we’ll enable it since The Acolyte seemingly did not value wherever close to $250 million to make–and it appears to be like extra like Star Wars than most of those reveals have.
2. Commerce Federation
After we first meet Osha, she’s working freelance as a zero-g technician on a Commerce Federation capital ship, full with a bridge crew of Nemoidians. The Commerce Federation was a key entity within the prequel motion pictures and the Clone Wars present, however they’re included right here for a extra pointed parallel: Jedi arrive and go to the ship, and the Nemoidians react a lot the identical means they do when Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon present up firstly of The Phantom Menace: with annoyance and frustration.
3. The droid buddy
Ever since Luke Skywalker flew across the galaxy with R2-D2 in The Empire Strikes Again, Star Wars tales have been filled with protagonist characters who’ve a droid BFF that speaks in beeps and boops. It is simply a part of the material of the franchise at this level. Osha’s phone-sized pal Pip serves in that position right here, as principally a sentient multi-tool with an perspective. Which reminds us slightly little bit of a sure online game…
4. Jedi: Fallen Order echoes
Osha’s introductory scenes, the place she works a blue collar job for slightly bit earlier than some Drive customers present up on the lookout for her, is similar to the story of Cal Kestis, the player-character in Jedi: Fallen Order and its sequel. In that sport, although, Cal works in a shipyard till some Imperial Inquisitors pop up looking for former Jedi, and all all through the sport he is bought slightly droid pal named BD-1, who’s principally a sentient multi-tool with an perspective. And each Cal and Osha skilled beneath the Jedi after they have been younger–they’re like funhouse mirror photographs of one another, kinda.
5. Mae’s grasp is a Sith
Throughout this time period, the Jedi are the one main faction of Drive-users within the galaxy–aside from them, there’s solely varied small, clandestine teams round, just like the Nightsisters of Dathomir and, after all, the Sith, who’re of their “rule of two” interval. So it was theoretically potential that Mae’s secret sinister grasp was one other unaligned particular person, however we all know that is not the case due to one little alternate between Mae and her pal Qimir, who’s serving to her on her mission.
Qimir: “The Jedi justify their galactic dominance within the title of peace, and peace…”
Mae: “…is a lie, I do know.”
It is a huge deal, as a result of “peace is a lie” is the opening line of the Sith Code. So plainly Mae is without doubt one of the Two.
The shot seen above, by the best way, can be a visible reference to when Rey visits Luke on the finish of The Drive Awakens.
6. Floating meditation
One of many Jedi that Mae is looking is named Torbin, and he is been frozen in floating meditation for a decade, impervious to exterior bodily affect. We have seen Jedi levitate themselves whereas in a trance like this in latest movies–Luke does it in The Final Jedi, as does Rey in The Rise of Skywalker. However this little bit of Star Wars iconography originated within the Nineteen Nineties within the outdated Expanded Universe of books and comics. The primary occasion when it was described was within the novel The Courtship of Princess Leia in 1994, and it was first seen in a difficulty of the Darkish Empire comics in 1995.
7. Joonas Suotamo
The Wookie Jedi Kelnacca is performed by a well-known actor: Joonas Suotamo, who took over the position of Chewbacce from Peter Mayhew within the trendy period of the franchise.
8. Scroobius Pip
On the very finish of the second episode, we see a pair scavengers messing round close to the place Kelnacca has been hanging out on Khofar. Considered one of them is the English spoken-word poet and hip hop artist Scroobius Pip (actual title David Meads) making a cameo look.
