Revenge/Justice

There seems to be 2 types of Star Wars live action:

• Andor, the mandalorian season 1-2

OR

• kenobi, book of boba fett and ahsoka

This new acolyte show heavily leans towards the latter group. I am holding my opinion, but offering my perspective.

I would say that early to late teens would be the best audience for this show. The acting and script level is on par with Nickelodeon and Disney teen shows.

The plot is very straight forward backed by a script that will state exactly what will happen next.

The fight scenes are very well filmed and coordinated. The feel of it reminded me of watching Kung Fu tv shows as a kid.

The cast is more diverse than ever before. So new audiences will be able to find their own heroes in the Star Wars universe.

Sets and props are stunning. Really this is the part that shines in the show. But I don't think this part has ever been anything but excellent in SW.

This show clearly emphasizes pushing boundaries in a Star Trek like scenes, casting and dialog at times the show seemed like Star Trek entirely but with Star Wars sets. This aspect may make it or break it for you. I know this is a contentious topic. So I'll leave that there.

This episode seemed better than the 1st because one or two characters seemed intriguing to me.

... but it gets so much right that the things that go wrong are twice as infuriating. While not the most original storyline with a twin-twist that was so lame that I was actually suprised (that they went there), this hasn*t really been done in this universe yet. While it is nice to experience an era with a fully functional order and repubolic this particular plot doesn't really make use of it.

I like the small scale, for once we are not in an all encompassing conflict that will decide the fates of trillions (or at least has the potential), and the writing, music and presentation are mostly ok - there are some bad hickups in all three of them, though.

What really could have made this a success is a better cast, or at least a more experienced one. Stenberg has to play not one, but two very distinct main roles, and she's just not there yet. This becomes even more apparent when she is on the screen with people who know what they are doing, like Moss or Jung-Jae. And with the main protagonist AND antagonist being overwhelmed AND outclassed most of the scenes don't stick the landing.

That being said, unlike pretty much every other offering after the Mandalorian I'll continue watching, if only to see if the cast and crew are getting more comfortable in their respective roles - the music, for example, is almost there, and could we maybe get a setting without sand! It's coarse, and it gets everywhere.

Instead of a two part opener. This could had easily been combined with the first episode.

The flat script and the earnest acting did not help the opening minutes. It felt too vanilla.

Also being just too late to save the next victim from his fate was a trope that could quickly become tiring.

The saving grace is that Acolyte does have few gears to crank. The mystery is just what did these four Jedis do in the past. What guilty sin are they shouldering?

This includes Master Sol, his name is in the hitlist.

So there is a mystery worth exploring but also just what to do with the Osha and Mae saga.

The writing and acting will certainly need to pep up a bit.

I really hated the first episode. It reminded me of everything wrong with Disney Star Wars. Although the second episode wasn't MUCH better, it did get more enjoyable. They set up all the pandering in the first episode, so once you get past that and know what to expect, you can enjoy the show for what it is.

I'm disappointed at how they made yet another goofy male character over-eager to fight being berated by a wiser, more discerning female character. It's like Disney's go-to for the last 20 years.

The action is great. The Star Wars mysteries are being developed. Hopefully they finally bring in some more of the religious aspects of the Force that fans have been dying for in the live-action stuff.

At this point, we have become so used to "Star Wars" being set in a specific place in time, and to see something that doesn't feel like it's a part of the Skywalker Saga can be a bit strange at times. There are moments where I have to remind myself that this is not set during the prequels, but actually an entirely different chapter of this universe. And it feels great to be watching something where I don't have any idea about its final direction. This episode continues in the veins of the previous one, both in terms of its strengths and its few shortcomings.

A lot of the issues I had with the first episode are repeated here, but the writing for this is considerably more of a mixed bag. The additions to the mystery of what went down on Osha and Mae's home planet and why Mae bears a grudge against the Jedi are all very fascinating and fulfills the promise of this feeling like a detective show in a way. It also continues to bring in a slew of interesting characters, but the issue is that the episode's don't dedicate nearly enough time for any investment in these new characters. Lee Jung-jae's Sol continues to be the highlight of the show, but a lot of supporting characters seem to be exclusively a personality and not a lot more. It's not that they are bad characters, there's just not enough in there for me to actually care for them, so a few big events of this episode left me pretty emotionless. However, the action sequences are still proving to be among some of the franchise's very best, and the idea of Jedi fighting without using their lightsaber and adapting more a martial arts style of combat is so visually pleasing to watch and it makes for some incredibly fun and badass fight scenes. The episode also features a more pleasing visual look as a lot of the visual effects are better and the Volume is less aggressively used in this episode, although some of the production design does feel reminiscent of things that we've seen in the universe before.

"Revenge / Justice" makes for another solid entry as it continues to lay the groundwork for the show, but the writing is an overall mixed bag. The fight choreography is still a highlight of the show, and the visual effects are better utilized in this episode, making the world feel more vibrant and lived-in.