Star Wars: The Acolyte remains the franchise’s weakest link, but it goes far beyond the creators’ controversial comments and virtue-signaling accusations. Although the series had a decent start, Disney+ subscribers are growing even more dissatisfied as the show consistently loses momentum and support.
Brought to viewers by Russian Doll showrunner Leslye Headland, The Acolyte is a murder mystery set during the High Republic Era of the Star Wars timeline. As twins Osha and Mae (Amandla Stenberg) become entwined in a plot that resurrects the Sith, Jedi Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae) must take up his lightsaber to address this new threat to the galaxy.
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That all sounds like a brilliant piece of the saga, but the fanbase continues raking the series across the coals due to content and offensive commentary made by Lucasfilm producers. After last night’s episodes, the show’s storytelling and continuous cut-to-black endings reveal the showrunners’ lack of effort, and fans are calling them out.
Putting an End to The Acolyte
Episodes “Night” and “Teach/Corrupt” had interesting concepts and plot points, but their delivery and abrupt endings are getting in the way of the creative storytelling Lucasfilm is often known for. A post on the r/StarWars subreddit pointed out a very telling feature, and the audience isn’t as blind as the studio seems to think.
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Fans have noticed a blatant decrease in episode length, some reaching just over 30 minutes, with The Acolyte. In their post (seen here), u/No-Fig-8614 makes the following observation:
“I don’t know why the showrunners would think about limiting the show so much that you are left with terrible cliffhangers and half-baked episodes. I want to say that a higher-up said, ‘We want a half-hour show (now minus commercials).’ There seems to be no reason why they can’t make the season of ‘The Acolyte’ on the budget; they have to be more in-depth and build to a proper episode. Instead, every episode we get is cut off when you could spend another 30 minutes extending certain interactions and making you invest time into the character more.”
Other viewers have also noted the choppy feeling, as many other Star Wars fans have pointed out in the comments. The episodic format might be the culprit for the producer’s lackluster editing and lazy storytelling.
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The phrase “beating a dead horse” certainly comes to mind, primarily when u/JSK23 writes,
“This very clearly feels like a longer movie chopped up into episodes, and it’s an issue. It does not flow well in this format. Andor, even Mando captured the episodic aspect much better and [told] actual stories largely within the episode while also connecting to the overall story too.”
Many other users agree with the movie theory, furthering how much good editing matters. Knowing that might have saved Kathleen Kennedy and Leslye Headland a lot of controversy in the long run.
Ending an Era
We can’t say for certain that The Acolyte was originally a full-length feature film, but we can say that the fanbase is far from happy with how things are handled right now. The Star Wars fanbase might have been capable of some seriously toxic behavior in the past, but more than a few problems arise when a drop in quality is this noticeable.
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The core problem isn’t that the showrunners are using an entire franchise to promote some sort of message but that they are ignoring the fanbase that lines the pockets of the production company. As the show currently sits as the lowest-rated project in the franchise, Lucasfilm needs more than a wake-up call.
There has been a great disturbance in the Force, and it seems like the studio continues to cast a deaf ear to its dedicated fanbase. Although two episodes remain, it will take nothing short of a miracle to earn the fans’ good graces again.
Is Lucasfilm ignoring its consumer base? Let us know what you think in the comments down below!