Star Wars: The Acolyte: Episode Four: Day

[Dave]

Racing to the next target, the Jedi head to a new world as they close in on the clever assassin.

Actually, almost every character is racing to the next target, the Wookie Force-wielding Kelnacca, who has hidden himself on the forested planet of Khofar. Mai goes along with side-kick* Qimir, initially to kill him, but suddenly has a change of heart and ditches Qimir. The gang of Jedi goes to stop her and capture her.

Unfortunately, we don't get to see Kelnacca in action because he is already dead when Mae arrives.

Very little of note happens. It's a filler episode and only 32 minutes at that (the recap and the credits are almost as long.) It is mostly a build-up to the cliff-hanger ending, the first TV appearance of Mae's Jedi Master, aka Count Binface himself!

*Online commentators are suggesting strongly that Count Binface is in fact Qimir.

 

[Culhwch]

Good and bad in this episode, I thought. Maybe more bad? I'm not sure...

The bad...

The dialogue continues to be very clunky and, I don't know, obvious? Modern/slangy? Just not quite right.

I don't really love this 'kill a Jedi without a weapon' task. I just don't think it's been sold all that well. Feels like a 'cool' idea someone had in the writers room and they rushed it in without bothering to give it any actual weight. Maybe that will come.

Mei's reverse heel turn was not earned in any way. Totally out of left field. Maybe if we'd spent time with her and her master, and seen her be treated in a way that makes us root for her to make this realization, that would be something. But this... No, not it.

The wookiee Jedi got killed off screen! Come on! I wanted to see him fight! We may still in a flashback, of course, but for now minus points for denying us that. Also, why'd they go back to Coruscant and not directly to him? They knew he was next on the list, but it's cool, I'm sure we've got time for some Jedi calisthenics classes back at the temple.

The length of the episode.

The good...

Ki Adi Mundi and the angst his appearance has caused the usual suspects.

The giant pill bug alien things were pretty cool. And there was a background Jedi that looked like a five foot tall cat that I want to know more about.

The maybe-Sith design is intriguing and creepy, and the way he just wrecked a half dozen Jedi was a nice little cliff hanger.

I'm still on board, but I'm hoping it improves on this episode next time around.

 

[Parson]

All in all, not bad, but not good either. I thought for a good long time this was going to be one of those episodes where setting the scene was the thing with nothing actually happening, but we had a little action at the end. Mei's switcheroo at the end came out of left field for me. Also the Stith/proto Vader looked like someone was going for a horror face. But I suppose it's just possible that we have some sort of new alien here.

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I was doing a bit internet searching to find out which twin was Mei, and I run across the first listed YouTube rant under "The Acolyte. The Twins" search and this guy is saying how terrible it is and how Disney is ruining the franchise, and then this: "I haven't actually seen The Acolyte yet, nor do I intend to. But based on the reviews ...." --- I mean What?! If you haven't seen it you have no business criticizing nor praising it. Are people really this gullible? Is having an opinion even without research important?