The Acolyte: Episode 3 (Spoiler Thread)

[DarthSkywalker]

Last week,

Good moves,

bad detectives,

ugly beards.

​

Now time for episode 3 of Darth Bortles...

 

[Sithborg]

Let the destruction of Star Wars be complete!!!!!

 

[Snow Queen]

Lee Jung-jae is fantastic. I never would have guessed he learned English for the part. One of the best things about the show, he's wonderfully expressive. There's definitely some missing puzzle pieces here, and I'm guessing Sol killed mom because of the drama that would bring on them, but I liked this a lot more. The biggest problem I had with the first two episodes is that it felt like they were needlessly obfuscating basic facts in a way that made it difficult to invest. But this was definitely stronger and benefited from just telling a story.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

Rather enjoyed that. Much better then last week. All the adult actors were in fine form, especially Lee and things flow much better when you don't have to right your characters as idiots to keep them from doing the obvious thing. Curious how big of a misunderstanding this is going to all end up being.

 

[Ninjablade]

Can't say I cared for this episode. The dialogue and acting is pretty rough, and I still think the show has some major issues with its storytelling. This whole mystery aspect of everything is incredibly lame and not being told in a particularly compelling fashion. I do like learning more about other force religions in this world, though. So, it has that going for it.

I will say, I'm not a fan of the lore breaking going on in this episode. Sol using proper deduction not once, but twice in the same episode? What the hell is this? The Jedi aren't supposed to be smart

 

[flickchick85]

Definitely found this one more interesting than the first two. Getting introduced to another faction of force users is always a treat. The acting was rough, but I suppose that's kinda to be expected when you have to find not just child actors, but the added caveat of twin child actors.

Lee Jung-jae remains the acting standout, imo. If Sol turns out to be the bad guy, I'll be sad. Jodie Turner-Smith is stunning.

Seems pretty obvious they omitted something by design, and we'll get another flashback episode at some point. The writing on this show is still clunky as hell, but I really like the ideas in play. Definition of a mixed bag so far imo.

 

[KaijuDude1992]

I didn't care for the first two episodes at all and while I still can't say I'm fully invested in this show I definitely thought this episode was a step up from the first two, especially in terms of the direction and pacing.

The dialogue still isn't great, and the acting is pretty weak at times but for some reason I still felt way more engaged with the stuff going on in this episode like the dynamic between The Coven and The Jedi.

That stuff was actually pretty interesting, and I wish they would have explored it more.

Also, Jodi Turner-Smith has terrific screen presence IMO.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

How does everyone feel now that Star Wars is dead?

 

[Sithborg]

Star Wars is dead. All hail Star Wars.

Definitely a better constructed episode. So I can understand the critic reception a bit better. So, here's hoping the remainder of the episode continue on that upward trend, even if I did enjoy the first two episodes.

Yeah, something wonky happened after Mae set the fire. Understandable that Mae is clearly the one the Sith tries to recruit first. Though, I am definitely feeling that is not exactly how things will play out. There has been a LOT of talk about Jedi messing with minds to think that all of that was just as happened. I highly suspect some missing limbs and long, straight burn marks may have been wiped.

 

[Kane52630]

A much better episode than the last two and it's probably because this was more character-based than plot or dumb action. It also helps that it had Kogonada directing it who made one of my favorite movies Columbus. The child actors who were playing young Osha and Mae weren't great but it didn't bother me that much. Also, they kinda rushed the ending, it needed 20 more minutes for that turn to feel believable.

 

[Kane52630]

*reads that Forbes article that was written like a 12-year-old who got mad that his favorite toy got taken away from him*

‘The Acolyte’ Episode 3 Review: One Of The Worst ‘Star Wars’ Episodes Ever Made

The latest episode of 'The Acolyte' is a mess.

www.forbes.com

 

[Sithborg]

Oh yeah, the outrage grifters are having a field day.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

*reads that Forbes article that was written like a 12-year-old who got mad that his favorite toy got taken away from him*

‘The Acolyte’ Episode 3 Review: One Of The Worst ‘Star Wars’ Episodes Ever Made

The latest episode of 'The Acolyte' is a mess.

www.forbes.com

Opinions are whatever. But that "review" reads like a second grade book report. Seriously, just read this:

Osha and Mae fight with one another constantly and are very, very irritating throughout the episode. Osha wants to leave her people and Mae wants to stay. When the Jedi show up and ask to test the girls for their Force powers, they agree to fake not having any, but Jedi Master Sol convinces Osha not to lie, and she says she wants to be a Jedi and leave with them, against her mothers’ wishes.

How are they a senior contributor?

 

[Deck Rickard]

This episode was solid but I feel like their need to leave key plot points out of the final scenes made the end feel choppy and disjointed. Somehow, the entire coven died before the fire even spread and that’s totally glossed over. And while I understand why that happened, I still feel like they could have stretched the scene out a bit so it didn’t feel like such an abrupt ending.

I also think it would have benefited the show to have Osha spying on the Jedi camp at the beginning and maybe even interacting with Sol a bit. That way, her sudden decision that she wants to be a Jedi and leave her family forever wouldn’t have felt like it almost came out of nowhere. Like, they did a good job of establishing that she feels inferior to her sister for being weaker in the force and that she wants to follow a different path. But she meets these weirdos in robes, one of which hands her a weapon that could KILL her if she’s not careful, and she’s just like, “Peace out! I’m going with them!” As far as we can tell, she knows nothing about the Jedi and even if her mothers told her anything about them, I’m guessing it wasn’t good.

That aside, the world building here was cool and I definitely liked this witch coven a lot better than that necromancy bull**** that we got in Ahsoka. Jodie Turner-Smith was especially great.

Lastly, this show is really determined to give poor Tommen the worst hairstyles ever. While the curly look isn’t too bad, I definitely wouldn’t mind if the Jedi of old weren’t into the whole “keep one long braid” tradition. It always reminds me of this girl I knew in high school who made a bet with someone that she would grow her hair all the way down to her butt, and she did it… but only with one thin braid.

 

[blackdragon6]

A lot of interesting set up, that's all I can say for now. I also didn't mind the child actors at all personally. The tensions between the coven and Jedi was also intriguing. But so far I feel this is the type of story that's going to HAVE to nail the landing.

 

[Snow Queen]

*reads that Forbes article that was written like a 12-year-old who got mad that his favorite toy got taken away from him*

‘The Acolyte’ Episode 3 Review: One Of The Worst ‘Star Wars’ Episodes Ever Made

The latest episode of 'The Acolyte' is a mess.

www.forbes.com

I do have a theory, however. Imposters have taken over Star Wars (and lots of other popular genre properties, from The Witcher to True Detective). Maybe they’re fans, maybe they’re not but they’re certainly masquerading as good storytellers. And they think they know best, making whatever changes they see fit to “make it their own”.

Agree with it or disagree with it, the George R.R. Martin quote doesn't even make sense here. This isn't an adaptation! It's just another story in an expansive universe. Please. Please make it your own. Please have some kind of artistic voice to offer. I'm begging for it.

 

[Deck Rickard]

Is Forbes hiring writers straight off of Reddit these days? Good Lord.

 

[CB Fan]

So I thought the first two eps were alright though the pacing wasn’t great. I really liked this episode tho. This is definitely a story where they have to nail the ending.

 

[Sithborg]

Is Forbes hiring writers straight off of Reddit these days? Good Lord.

Its a glorified blog site now. Given he plugged his youtube video, going to put him with the rest of the outrage grifters.

 

[Weather Witch]

The story was solid overall, but the dialogue was a bit wooden IMO. Relying on child actors so heavily is always a challenge too.

It seems pretty clear that there's some odd stuff going on with the Jedi and we didn't get the full picture. None of the people on the ground are even remotely burned for one. How they resolve these threads is going to have a huge impact on how this series turns out. The shares of grey there are very interesting.

I did think the Witches singing, panting, and being in ecstasy was very oddly done. Probably would've helped if they weren't singing in English tbh. Overall, I probably enjoyed the first two episodes more.

 

[Deck Rickard]

I kinda liked the singing; it was weird but I think that’s why I liked it. Actually, all the music in this episode was really good IMO. The combo of the beautiful wilderness scene at the beginning with the score was particularly great.

I do agree that some of the dialogue was off though. Trinity-Wan had one line in particular that was a bit of a head scratcher: “You cannot deny that Jedi have the right to test potential padawans. With your permission, of course.” So like… it’s their choice whether they allow their children to be tested, but if they say no, the Jedi will just do it anyway? It’s the illusion of free will, I guess.

On that note, I certainly hope we get a lot more of Carrie-Ann Moss in the next flashback because right now, I’m puzzled as to why they hired her for such a minuscule role.

 

[Closerframe]

A lot better than the first two episodes, but the dialogue and delivery was bad, and the child actor playing Osha didn’t do a very good job. Also confused why they couldn’t get identical twins. But similar to The Last Jedi, I love that they’re diving deeper into other elements of the force and showing the grayer sides of the Jedi.

It seems pretty obvious we’ll be revisiting this flashback again. Probably from Mae’s perspective to show although she started a fire, she didn’t kill the witches nor did she make the entire place blow up. Wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the Sith master or apprentice trying to make the Jedi look bad and bring Mae to his side since she was the only one imprinted with the teachings.

 

[Sithborg]

I will give the twins this. They may have struggled a bit with Star Wars dialogue (who wouldn't), but they got the sibling bickering down pat.

 

[Weather Witch]

I kinda liked the singing; it was weird but I think that’s why I liked it. Actually, all the music in this episode was really, good IMO. The combo of the beautiful wilderness scene at the beginning with the score was particularly great.

I do agree that some of the dialogue was off though. Trinity-Wan had one line in particular that was a bit of a head scratcher: “You cannot deny that Jedi have the right to test potential padawans. With your permission, of course.” So like… it’s their choice whether they allow their children to be tested, but if they say no, the Jedi will just do it anyway? It’s the illusion of free will, I guess.

On that note, I certainly hope we get a lot more of Carrie-Ann Moss in the next flashback because right now, in puzzled as to why they hired her for such a minuscule role.

I got a laugh out of Trinity-Wan.
Well-played.

 

[Deck Rickard]

I got a laugh out of Trinity-Wan.
Well-played.

I aim to please! Haha

Okay, new (wrong) theory. Mae isn’t actually real. She’s a force projection that the coven created to push Osha to become stronger in the force (this is the purpose of the “I make you you” rhyme). Unfortunately though, the plan backfired because it just made Osha detach from them even more. And the coven tapped into and unnatural element of the Dark Side of Force that manifested in Mae actually becoming a real, sentient being. The coven tried to reverse this but it ended up killing them all and somehow caused the reactor to blow up. And all of this was orchestrated from afar by a Sith Lord because every convoluted plan that only half works is always orchestrated by a brilllllliant Sith Lord. It’s like poetry; it rhymes.

And who is the Sith Lord, you may ask? It’s Trinity-Wan! But how could that be? We saw her die in the first scene! Or did we? Maybe we just saw her force projection appear to die. Or her clone. Or her stunt double. How do we know that Star Wars isn’t taking a page out of Elden Ring’s playbook and now force projections can actually fight back and appear to die?