Annlyel expresses her enthusiasm for the brilliantly executed lightsaber battles in The Acolyte.
I have been on cloud nine for the past three weeks. The third episode of The Acolyte, “Destiny,” was a fascinating look into Osha and Mae’s past. We learned about the coven they came from, how Mother Aniseya seemed to dabble in the dark side to create the twins, and that the Jedi, as the galactic peacekeepers that they are, may have done some questionable things that night when the entire (or is it?) coven was killed. The fourth episode, albeit much shorter, was fun with a lovable new alien tracker named Bazil.
However, the episode’s final few minutes turned it from okay to “Omg, what just happened!” And now, this week, we’ve reached showrunner Leslye Headland’s personal favorite episode, “Night,” which is a rollercoaster of emotions from beginning to end.
THE DARK SIDE EMERGES
Instead of having an incredible five minutes of lightsaber action before returning to exposition, nearly the entire episode is a lightsaber action sequence, and boy, is the action phenomenal. As a Star Wars fan, there are many things to love about this franchise. But something that has always made me giddy about watching these stories are the lightsaber duels. And maybe that’s because I grew up on the prequels, which are the pinnacle of lightsaber action in the franchise.
Whether we’re talking about the Duel of the Fates in The Phantom Menace or the iconic duel between Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi in Revenge of the Sith, when it came to lightsaber duels in the prequels, you got your money’s worth.
LIGHTSABER DUELS IN THE SEQUEL TRILOGY
In the years since it’s been a bit of a mixed bag for me. The Force Awakens, admittedly, has an excellent lightsaber duel sequence with Kylo Renn vs. Finn and then Kylo vs. Rey in the forest on Starkiller Base. Between the setting, the longer runtime of the action sequence, and the stakes, it makes for an exciting watch. Unfortunately, since then, lightsaber duels have been somewhat mediocre.
The Rise of Skywalker tried to craft an epic lightsaber duel between Rey and Kylo Ren on the ruins of the Death Star amid a roiling ocean, but it isn’t an entertaining duel to watch. Obi-Wan Kenobi sought to rival the iconic Kenobi/Skywalker duel in its finale. Unfortunately, it’s not one of the more memorable lightsaber duels due to the painfully bland setting, dark lighting, and somewhat meh choreography. The same can be said for Ahsoka, which, while having lightsaber duels, the choreography always feels a bit slow or too practiced. Sometimes, it almost feels like you can see the actors remembering the moves.
NEW SITH/NEW DUELS
These cons do not apply to The Acolyte. Leslye Headland has already said that there would be lightsaber duels in this story to rival the prequels, and while I had hope, I didn’t dare let myself get my hopes up. Well, it did not disappoint. As I write this, I’m still buzzing from the incredible action presented in this week’s episode.
The lightsaber duels were extensive, dynamic, intense, and energetic, and each new iteration of the extended action sequences helped drive the plot and raise the stakes. The lightsaber duels weren’t just fun to look at; they provided character development and singlehandedly thrust viewers into a near-reset for the story, which has a chance to be even more fascinating moving forward. Throughout my viewing, I cheered, gasped, wide-eyed, terrified, and fully engaged in what I was watching. By the time the episode ended, it felt like I could breathe again (I hadn’t realized how tense I was throughout the entire episode.)
RISE OF THE SITH
With the arrival of a new lightsaber-wielding baddie that I get a chance to obsess over, The Acolyte has already turned out to be my favorite new Star Wars series since the first and second seasons of The Mandalorian, and this fifth episode has only confirmed my high regard for this series. Lightsaber duels are a massive part of why I’m a Star Wars fan, and this episode was so riveting that it made me play Star Wars Jedi: Survivor so that I could show off my lightsaber moves for a second.
In conclusion, Star Wars is very much alive, and now I’m going to need Leslye Headland to make that KOTOR movie because she gets it, and I want to see more of what she has to offer this franchise.
Future of the Force will cover the series from every angle. That begins with our customary in-depth review, which will drop within hours of each episode. If that isn’t enough, our traditional poster and concept art coverage will keep you entertained as we build the hype for the latest episode. You’ll never miss a thing with Future of the Force. So be sure to hit that subscribe button at the top of the homepage and get the latest post delivered straight into your inbox!
STAR WARS: THE ACOLYE continues on July 3rd only on Disney Plus.
Did you enjoy the opening five episodes? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Annlyel James is a Senior Correspondent of The Future of the Force. She is passionate about Star Wars and Marvel but loves a wide variety of movie genres. Aside from her role with Future of the Force she also writes for her blog: annlyelonline. Follow her on Twitter where she channels the Force frequently!
