Disney+'s The Acolyte dives into the past of Star Wars mythos to show the way forward for the franchise (plus, lots of Jedi!)

Despite seeing the first murder as the opening scene of the series, The Acolyte remains a murder mystery — one that, across the first two episodes of the series, revealed itself to be not so much a whodunnit as a whydunnit… with an answer both rooted in the mythos of the franchise, and offering a new way in for fans and newcomers to the galaxy far, far away alike.

For all the many easter eggs for longtime Star Wars fans present in the opening two episodes of the show — we even had a character complain about having a bad feeling about this, in a moment as fun as it was shameless — The Acolyte’s biggest strength in its premiere on Disney+ was that it was utterly accessible for audiences that had absolutely no grounding in the franchise whatsoever; by both placing the series in an era so far untouched by live-action on-screen projects and centering the show around what is, essentially, a police procedural format (albeit one that includes soap opera touches like siblings that aren’t as dead as believed, and science-fiction touches like lightsabers, robots and aliens), the series is almost immediately decipherable by anyone with a basic understanding of pop culture… something that, fascinatingly enough, made much of the Star Wars tropes used seem fresher as a result. Although the show is unmistakably a Star Wars story — the Jedi-centric elements make that inescapable — it also feels like something more that Star Wars at the same time; a Star Wars that exists beyond what most people’s understanding of the franchise has become over the past few years.

It helps that the basic story is something that allows viewers to so easily plug themselves into it. We have, at the series’ core by the end of these opening two episodes, three main characters: Osha and Mae, two twin sisters separated by tragedy almost two decades ago, each of whom believed their entire family dead, and each struggling to deal with their grief and anger over that in different ways. Mae wants revenge, Osha wants… family, perhaps…? Belonging, at least; she seems at this point in her life almost more sorrowful over being expelled from the Jedi than losing her family. That former loss is, after all, something she feels some ownership over. Alongside the sisters (both played by Amandla Stenberg, and in such a way that you can tell which character she is in each moment), there’s Jedi Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae), who seems more emotional than he perhaps is willing to admit, and a warmer presence because of it. Each one is on an emotional journey than feels intimate and understandable in a way that, bluntly, some of the more traditional Star Wars arcs fail to match up to. For all that some fans worried about the lack of a war in this Star Wars story would make it more boring, the opposite turns out to be true; the key is, unsurprisingly, having characters the audience can see themselves in, and care about.

But back to the mystery as unfolded in these opening episodes: as much as it’s fun to see the Jedi in their prime, and at a point where — in theory — their belief in subsuming emotion to remain calm, kind, and peaceful is steadfast, it’s increasingly clear that something is wrong in the Jedi Order. Mae specifically wants revenge against the Jedi present when her family died, but she also believed that Osha was one of her family to die in the fire she apparently set… but why? And why was Mae’s existence not included in any official records concerning Osha or the fire that led her to be brought to the Jedi in the first place? For that matter, is the Jedi Order’s reluctance to allow Sol and his team to follow Mae simply bureaucracy gone wild, or something more sinister? Something is up — and it’s something bad enough that Jedi Master Torbin was willing to commit suicide in penance, in what might be the most surprising element of the first episodes.

The “why” of everything is, at this stage at least, the central mystery of the series — more so, even, than the identity of the Master who’s training Mae to harness the Force, or the ultimate identity of the Acolyte of the show’s title. (The immediate implication is that it’s Mae, but that’s far from definite… especially given that we’re told that the Acolyte will kill without a weapon, by killing the dream. That could be anyone, at this point in the show.) What happened 16 years ago to set all this in motion? That’s the key that’s going to keep me tuning in weekly for more, and with more excitement for any Star Wars project in a long time. (Yes, even Andor; heresy, I know.)

The Acolyte’s arrival — and its ability to suggest that Star Wars has the potential to not only survive, but thrive, outside of the core stories and characters that were created by George Lucas almost half a century ago — comes at a time when Lucasfilm is prepping a return to the big screen for the franchise, and more shows for Disney+. That this show feels so strong in these opening episodes is heartening; a sign that, after too long, Star Wars has found a way forward that isn’t reliant on nostalgia or goodwill.

New episodes of The Acolyte will debut on Disney+ every Tuesday at 6pm Pacific/9pm Eastern until July 16.

Turn back the clock 100 years before the earliest Star Wars movie and enter the era of the Disney+ series The Acolyte. We have everything you need from guides on the cast, the episodes (and their release dates), it's not-for-kids rating, where it fits in the Star Wars timeline, how the show asks who 'deserves' to use the Force, as well as bigger picture things such as a complete Star Wars watch order, and a comprehensive guide to the Star Wars timeline, and all the upcoming Star Wars movies & TV shows on the horizon.