Star Wars The Acolyte: S1E7: Choice

The Acolyte's disappointing streak continues with a bloated flashback episode, where major revelations fizzle rather than sizzle.

I know it seems like week in and week out, but I’m bashing “The Acolyte” for one thing or another, and I wish that I could say that trend changed this week, but sadly, it has not.

The latest installment, titled “Choice,” is from the Jedi’s certain point of view regarding the events on Brendok 16 years ago and is a second flashback episode that interplays with the events from the third episode of the series. It was nice to see the different perspective, but except for a few moments, the episode felt bloated for no reason.

We finally get answers to the mysteries Leslye Headland and her creative team have been weaving throughout the previous six episodes of “The Acolyte,” and guess what? Those answers are exactly what we all thought they would be. Not one single thing that happened in this episode felt shocking or worthy of all the hype. I’m beginning to think the many stories from the creatives involved in this series were put out there to generate buzz for this project.

We’ve heard numerous times how this series would be groundbreaking regarding its portrayal of the Jedi and their failings, how it would blur the lines and show that there is no good or evil per se, and how it would usher in an entirely new era of Star Wars storytelling. Having rewatched the series up to this point, I don’t see where any of that is true.

In the latest episode, we do see acts that could portray the Jedi in a poor light, but there’s nothing in there that shakes its foundation. Choices were made, but I think that the Jedi could argue their position on them and still remain the noble protectors they are.

In “Choice,” we’re back on Brendok and find Master Indara (Carrie-Ann Moss), Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae), Master Kelnacca (Joonas Suotamo) and Padawan Torbin (Dean-Charles Chapman) doing field study work on a planet that was deemed free of life following the Great Hyperspace Disaster, which was an excellent reference to an event that kicked off the High Republic book series. It’s tedious work, but the Jedi are content with carrying out their mission – with the exception of Torbin. He’s young and ambitious and feels the calling to grander adventures. He simply just wants to go home to Coruscant.

During their studies, Indara sends Sol off to explore other areas, where he stumbles upon Osha (Lauren Brady) and Mae (Leah Brady). It’s instantly clear that this episode will play as the Jedi’s point of view of the events that happen in “Destiny,” the third episode of the series. He follows them back to their fortress and watches as Mother Aniseya (Jodie Turner-Smith) is conducting some of the training we’ve already seen.

He informs the rest of the team and convinces them to go back to the fortress to find out the truth of what is happening to the young twins. Indara is hesitant at first but agrees. We’re not treated to the screen where the Jedi and the coven of witches have a minor standoff regarding the girls. We get to see Mother Aniseya get into Torbin’s mind and tempt him with the allure of going home.

The focus then turns to the girls’ testing and how Sol may have influenced Osha to help her pass the test. It’s subtle, but it’s there. It would have been nice if you had seen that she is not answering questions correctly, but Sol is so intent on saving her that he lies to the others.

Then, we get to see the truth about the fateful night of the fire that killed the witches. Sol is able to save only one of the girls, and the Jedi aren’t as innocent as they pretended to be.

After running the girl’s blood sample, it’s found that they have a very high midichlorian count, but even more interesting is they share the same symbionts, meaning instead of being twins, they’re, in fact, the same consciousness split into two bodies. They could be the vergence in the Force the Jedi have been trying to find on Brendok, and Torbin realizes they could be his ticket home. He rushes to the witch’s fortress, unknowingly setting off a chain of events that will haunt him for the rest of his life.

Sensing the Jedi’s presence, Mother Koril (Margarita Levieva) readies the witches for battle and instructs Mae to not let her leave if she doesn’t want Osha to leave. This perfectly sets up the events we’ve seen play out before, but the truth is Mae accidentally started the fire, tried to put it out and sought help to save her sister.

There’s also a tense scene between the two mothers, the witches, and the Jedi that shows that Mother Aniseya and Mother Koril are at odds about how to conduct themselves. Where Mother Koril is ready for the fight, Mother Aniseya wants a peaceful approach. When she senses potential harm to Mae, she begins to turn into a black, smoky presence, but not before Sol ignites his lightsaber to stop her.

This sets off a firestorm of fighting, with Torbin masterfully blocking arrows and Sol facing off against Koril. Sensing the tide of the fight not going her way, Mother Koril does that black smoky trick again just before the coven takes control of Master Kelnacca’s mind and uses him as their warrior. Yes, we finally get to see a Wookiee wield a lightsaber, and it’s pretty damn cool. Not the greatest, but still pretty damn cool.

During the fight, we find out how Torbin got his facial scars, and we get a very cool scene where Indara takes control of Kelnacca’s mind to force the witches out. She does a subtle head movement as she’s concentrating, and all the witches fall over dead. Some might interpret that as her severing the connection between the witches and Kelnacca, and that’s what kills them. My take is that she gained complete control over Kelnacca and killed them through the Force by snapping their necks in Chuck Norris style.

As the fortress is engulfed in flames, we come to the moment I think Headland and crew thought would be the earthshattering moment that would leave fans talking. Sol encounters the twins on the catwalk that is broken in half, and unlike the version he’s been telling everyone, both sections begin to fall, and he uses the Force to hold them up, but he’s not strong enough to hold them both or save them both. He makes his choice, and it’s much colder than the story we’ve learned.

Back on the Jedi ship, Sol and Indara are at odds over his and Torbin’s actions, and they all agree to a story that lays the blame on an 8-year-old girl, and Kelnacca is trying to recover from a witch takeover hangover. The episode ends with a weird pop-style song over the closing credits, and it left me wondering once again who the hell is making decisions such as these. They can’t seem to stay out of their own way and just create a good episode of Star Wars television. It shouldn’t be this hard to figure out.

"Choice" is yet another frustrating episode of "The Acolyte" and with only one episode left, I have a bad feeling about this. Some may find my lack of faith disturbing, but when six of seven episodes fail to thrill me, it feels like the Force is not with this series. For me, it all comes down to the lack of understanding of how this universe works.

Headland seems to have gone out of her way to blur the lines between good and evil, even going as far as to say that’s not what Star Wars is about when, in fact, that’s what Star Wars is all about.

We know the Jedi are flawed because we’ve seen it throughout the saga, whether in canon or Legends material. This portrayal makes the Jedi relatable. They embody qualities we aspire to - noble, righteous, and compassionate. Yet, like us, they’re imperfect, which is why we can empathize with them. Their struggles mirror our own, deepening our connection to their journey.

I’ve mentioned before, there are so many good ideas buried within this story that could become something special, yet this series finds ways to foul it up week after week. We get a damn Wookiee with a lightsaber, and even that didn’t feel special, which blows my mind. Maybe I’m just done with “The Acolyte” at this point, but nothing is impressing me.

I will applaud Jung-jae and Chapman’s performances in “Choice.” Jung-jae has been excellent throughout the show, and I enjoyed Chapman in this episode, which I was happy to see. I felt he had been a vital part of the story, and we see how temptation once again leads us down a darker path.

With a single episode remaining, let's hope that Headland has saved the best for last. Right now, I'm not holding my breath. It feels like waiting for a new hope in a galaxy far, far away, but the odds of a satisfying conclusion seem as slim as navigating an asteroid field.