“The Acolyte” is the eighth and last episode of the series. It is packed with answers, shocking scenes, and the live-action debut of a character that was first mentioned almost twenty years ago.
The article contains major spoilers from this episode and references events from previous episodes.
Recap of the story so far
The tragic events of Brendok finally came out to the light. The man behind Aniseya’s death is none other than Master Sol.
Osha was taken by Qimir to a mysterious planet. Osha revealed that the reason why she didn’t become a Jedi is because she failed (arguably, her tests). As a result, she could no longer be a part of the Jedi Order.
Osha is with Qimir while Mae is stuck with Master Sol. The sisters have “changed” masters. How is this going to affect the outcome of this story?
We’ve also got you covered with all the possible background knowledge you need about The High Republic with a reading order guide for when you decide to jump into reading mode. And our Prep Guide for The Acolyte will give you all of the details you need to learn before you start the show.
A different side of Qimir
Villains are often portrayed as one-dimensional characters, completely driven by evil, madness, vengeance, or lust for power. At first, that’s what I believed Qimir would end up being. However, the first scene from this episode changed my mind.
We didn’t get many details about what was happening to Osha. I have two theories. The first one is that her inner darkness was overwhelming her, which is understandable. In the process, it seems like she was getting into Qimir’s mind just like what Aniseya did to Torbin.
But we can’t discard the possibility of the mask having its own will. Like the Darth Vader comics or the Shadow of the Sith novel show, Sith masks can be impregnated with the spirit of a dark lord of the Sith. These powerful artifacts can grant a huge amount of power but not in exchange for nothing.
Since we don’t really know Qimir’s background it’s impossible to know if it belonged to an ancient Sith or if it’s just his creation but hopefully one day we’ll able to learn more about the strange cortosis mask.
Qimir’s reaction when Osha acted strange really caught my attention. He looked genuinely worried about Osha and her well-being. Is it because he cares about his new companion? To me, it’s very hard to interpret what’s his deal with Osha. Does he want her only as a potential powerful ally or is something more behind it?
Blinded by guilt
Master Sol was revered and praised by most of his fellow Jedi. He was calm, patient, and caring for others. The last trait was probably the most notable one, the way you could see the compassion in his eyes is something that’s not particularly common even between Jedi.
Sadly, the Jedi Master’s darkest secret was eating him from the inside. As the series progressed it became more and more evident how Sol’s actions were driven by the guilt. Lying to the council, being hyper-focused on Osha, and denying his own darkness are the most obvious ones.
He reminds me of Qui-Gon, both Masters stubbornly believed a kid with tremendous power would change the fate of others around them. And they were right, just not how they probably intended. Pain and trauma became a key factor in Osha’s most important decisions but Sol refused to acknowledge it.
The Jedi Master convinced himself that his actions were justified despite the obvious flaw in his thought process. Doing some wrong for the greater good is an argument acceptable for soldiers, mercenaries, or politicians but not for a Jedi.
Every Jedi makes mistakes, there’s no question about it. But refusing to acknowledge his mistakes and doubling down on justifying that killing Mother Aniseya was the right thing to do is astounding. Not even in his final moments Sol apologized for any of his actions.
A valid concern
Senator Rayencourt looks like a very unpleasant guy, but that doesn’t make his points any less valid. The Jedi are (one of) the most powerful beings in the galaxy.
Not just because of their powers but because they are very well organized and have the backup of pretty much all governments.
The Jedi have proved many times that they’re fighting for light and life. If it weren’t for them, the Republic would have fallen centuries ago to enemies like the Sith Empire, the Mandalorians, or the Nihil. They are the proven protectors of the Republic and no one can deny how impactful they’ve been.
However, there are many ways in which a Jedi (or multiple of them) can fall to the dark side. It is not unheard of rogue Jedi committing atrocities.
I can’t tell if Rayencourt’s request to have an external review of the Jedi Order is a political statement or an honest concern. Regardless of what it is, he has a very good point.
An unchecked organization with that amount of power could do countless things without anyone intervening.
The Senator might not fully comprehend what it’s to be a Jedi, but he understands how vulnerable everyone would be if for any reason a powerful Jedi decided to turn against their allies. Just a little over a hundred years later the Senator’s concern would become reality…
I assume that this so-called external review will take place not much after these events. In a previous breakdown, I mentioned how a tainted reputation would explain why the Jedi retreated from their multiple outposts and temples across the galaxy to return to the capital of the Republic.
This way, the Senate would be able to watch closely their movements and have a contingency plan if the Jedi went rogue.
We know that the Sith infiltrated the Republic before Palpatine became a Senator. I wonder if this is part of the plan or just a very convenient coincidence.
Changing the future
When Osha wears the Cortosis helmet, she claims to see Mae killing Sol. After Qimir explains that she saw the future Osha remarks that nothing is certain and the future can be changed.
During the second half of the series, we’ve seen Mae and Osha swap places. Mae went from wanting revenge to actually restraining from killing Sol and wishing for the Jedi Council to judge him.
On the other hand, Osha worked very hard to help the Jedi capture her sister. Her efforts were futile and in the end, she was taken to the unnamed planet by Qimir. Who would have thought that a small push was all Osha needed to embrace the dark side of the Force.
Osha was already far from the light when she heard Master Sol admitting that it was he who killed Mother Aniseya. It’s so ironic how she initially tried to save Sol from Mae but it would be her who ends Sol’s life.
It’s funny that many fans (including myself) believed that killing a Jedi without a weapon was something metaphorical. Like ruining the reputation and the confidence of the Republic in them. This isn’t necessarily a mistaken assumption but that’s not what it was about.
A simple, but deadly Force Choke was the answer to the riddle. An iconic dark side move that appeared in the first minutes of A New Hope. It was probably an easy guess but honestly, I never considered it. Watching Mae kill Sol was shocking but satisfying in a very odd way.
I really liked that we finally got to see the bleeding of a kyber crystal in live-action. The Darth Vader comics and more recently Jedi Survivor are good examples of this but watching it in a series just hits differently.
This process would normally happen with the kyber crystal outside of the lightsaber but I’m not that bothered about this change because it looks very cool and dramatic.
The saddest part of this episode wasn’t Sol’s death but the fact that Mae got her memory wiped. After so many years and problems the sisters managed to end up together only for it to last a few minutes.
It reminds me of this quote that Valkorion says in one of the Star Wars The Old Republic Trailers.
“A man can have anything if he’s willing to sacrifice”
Osha chooses to follow a path that leads to power, but in exchange, she sacrifices her bond with Mae. A sad but fitting outcome for the twins.
Not the Vern I know and love
Vernestra Rwoh is an extremely important Jedi in the High Republic era. She was labeled as a prodigy and paired with Jedi Master Stellan Gios. The young Mirialan became a Jedi Knight at just fifteen years old and had a key role in the fight against Marchion Ro and the Nihil.
What I really liked about “Vern” is that she never hesitated to question the Jedi Order and Republic’s actions. In fact, at one point she became a Wayseeker to have more independence from the Council and its politics.
She eventually returned to serve more frequently in the conflict against the Nihil marauders but she remained critical of the Council’s decisions. How did she end up like this?
Since her early years, Vernestra was labeled as a prodigy. It would be dumb for the Council not to want her in their ranks but I’m really surprised and disappointed of how different she is now.
First, she decided to hide Jedi assassinations because of how bad it would look politically speaking. I predicted that the Order would use Sol as a scapegoat and for once it feels so bad to be right.
The Vernestra I met in the High Republic novels would never do such a thing. Lying to keep appearances is something you would expect from any politician, but not a Jedi. It saddens me to witness how the system she once criticized has absorbed her completely.
Even if I dislike how Vernestra is the one being used to do the damage control, I can’t deny that it’s interesting to see how the Jedi are changing and getting even more involved with politics and all its intricacies.
Additionally, it seems like Vernestra has a secret herself. This episode confirmed that Qimir was her Padawan. His scar was actually made by Vernestra’s lightsaber whip, and that’s unsettling to think of.
Since the High Republic only covers her early years as a Jedi Knight there’s a lot that we don’t know about her. She is currently 122 years old, there are around a hundred years between the latest novels of The High Republic and The Acolyte.
Qimir is a lot older than what he looks like so there’s a very small possibility that he shows up in the upcoming stories of the ongoing Phase III of the High Republic publishing initiative.
It sounds like a really interesting story and I’d rather read it than learn about it in flashbacks of a thirty-minute episode.
You can learn more about Vernestra’s early life in the High Republic from our story recap of this impressive character that appears in both Phase I and Phase III of the stories told from this era.
Darth Plagueis and the future of the Sith
Watching Darth Plagueis appear was super exciting, even if it was just for a few seconds. I wasn’t sure if we would see him or maybe Darth Tenebrous considering the planet with Cortosis’ mines and their relation to it, but he actually appeared.
As soon as my excitement went away I started to have questions about all the implications of this revelation. Everything indicates that Plagueis is the Sith Lord currently training Qimir but then we get to the question that was asked in the first episodes. Why does Qimir need or want an Acolyte?
He is looking for a potential ally to eventually overthrow his master, as Plagueis did with his own master. On another hand, Plagueis would benefit from getting an apprentice that’s a lot stronger than Qimir.
Regardless of the outcome, it looks like both parties have a lot to win. Especially if this is how Plagueis manages to manipulate M-count to manipulate live.
We obviously know that it will be Palpatine the one who actually manages to kill Plagueis, which brings me to the next topic. Is there a possibility of Sheev Palpatine meeting and eliminating both Qimir and Osha? He will be born decades later, so it’s not certain that we’ll get the chance to see the three of them on screen.
It would be so cool to watch him eliminate his competition just like he knows how to do so. If that doesn’t happen then the story of Qimir and Osha still needs to be updated somehow. I am not the biggest fan of shipping characters but the two of them eventually becoming a “dark side couple” would be a very fun story to watch.
Love, dark side, and search power. What could go wrong? These three elements are the perfect combination for a drama of galactic proportions. Betrayal, broken hearts, and tragedy are written all over it. That is if we actually get a second season…
Final thoughts of The Acolyte series
This series is something that I consider must be watched in its entirety before deciding if you like it or not. It begins slowly but it gets better with each episode and ends up on a high note.
Sol, Jecki, Kelnacca, and Osha are my favorite characters in the series but almost every important character felt compelling to me. On the contrary, secondary characters felt like NPCs, and other than Senator Rayencourt they didn’t provide anything of value.
The fight choreographies are fun to watch, sometimes it felt like they went a little too hard with the hand-to-hand combat but that’s just my opinion. Lightsabers looked very good in dark scenes but lackluster in broad daylight.
I wish there were a lot more High Republic references and easter eggs. It is a great era and it was a missed opportunity to include or mention something that connects with the most dedicated fans of the books. Even a small mention of Avar Kriss, the Starlight Beacon, or the Nihil would have been very cool.
Whether we like it or not, politics are a huge part of Star Wars and it was nice to see how even the Jedi can’t escape them. The Jedi became so entangled in politics and that became one of the reasons for their downfall. I enjoy watching it unfold in front of our eyes, even if that’s at the expense of Vernestra Rwoh.
Having so many episodes that last just around thirty minutes is disappointing. This might be the only High Republic media that is done in live-action so I really wanted to get the most out of it.
The music was good and enjoyable but it didn’t stick in my head like the pieces we heard in Ahsoka, The Bad Batch, or The Mandalorian. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t imagine how hard it must be making the music for The Acolyte.
It must feel like Star Wars but at the same time, it has to be different because we’ve never experienced the High Republic this way. Maybe my perspective will change after giving it a few more listens but this is how I currently feel about it.
The season finale answered many questions but in good Star Wars fashion, it left many more open. It’s been just a few hours after the last episode aired so it’s practically impossible to know if there will be a second season.
The setup for it is right there, but even if we don’t get a second one it concluded in a very acceptable way, at least for me.
As soon as news about a potential Season 2 or spin-offs appear on the horizon, we will be on top of things for you.
Star Wars The Acolyte Episode Breakdowns
Everything you may have missed while watching Star Wars The Acolyte TV Series. We did detailed breakdowns and analysis of every moment and scene from each episode, all of the characters and their story arks and backgrounds. We've also done our best to help you better understand The High Republic era by providing references and details about anthing you may have missed or be unfamiliar with if you have not read the books and comics.
Star Wars The Acolyte: what you should know before watching
Here’s everything you should know before venturing into The Acolyte series that takes place before the Star Wars Prequel trilogy. It’s a new era, never before seen on the TV or big screen in the Disney Canon timeline, The High Republic Era!
Star Wars The Acolyte Series Premiere Breakdown
Episodes 1 Lost/Found and 2 Revenge/Justice introduce us to the High Republic Era, a period in time that precedes The Phantom Menace. The Acolyte begins with a thrilling combination of tragedy and mystery!
Star Wars The Acolyte Episode 3 Breakdown
“Destiny” is the third episode of The Acolyte. In it, we learn more about Osha and Mae’s past and the events that changed their lives forever.
Star Wars The Acolyte Episode 4 Breakdown
"Day" is the fourth episode of The Acolyte. The mysterious dark figure finally appears before the Jedi right after committing a heinous crime.
Star Wars The Acolyte Episode 5 Breakdown
Night is the fifth episode of The Acolyte. It's packed with action, a massive reveal, and devastating moments.
Star Wars The Acolyte Episode 6 Breakdown
Teach/Corrupt is the sixth episode of The Acolyte. It brings back the mysterious tone of the series while leaving us on a massive cliffhanger.
Star Wars The Acolyte Episode 7 Breakdown
Choice is the seventh episode of The Acolyte. It finally answers what happened in Brendok and why Master Sol feels so guilty about it.
