Disney
While the arc of Star Wars quality has been trending downward since 2019 with the release of the truly abysmal sequel-trilogy-capper Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the iconic franchise might have finally bottomed out with its latest series The Acolyte, according to some fans.
The series currently has a lower audience score the notorious Star Wars Holiday Special, which has long been considered the worst piece of entertainment the beloved sci-fi franchise has ever produced.
Rotten Tomatoes
Granted, user ratings often aren’t an implicit reflection of quality, as massive franchises such as Star Wars, Marvel, Harry Potter, etc., have been known to be review-bombed and cried-about by trolls who throw a tantrum when they think something’s “woke,” a word that’s lost all meaning.
The unfortunate fact about The Acolyte, which had a reported cost of around $25 million per episode, is that it’s simply not near the quality fans have come to *occasionally* expect from the universe’s TV series, such as Andor and the first two seasons of The Mandalorian.
When I screened the first four episodes of the series, my ultimate thought was… why?
“I’ve seen 4 episodes The Acolyte on a scale of Boba to Andor, this is dead center, if not on the wrong side of the mean — passable, but pointless. Action and story are the highlights but the performances and dialogue make it feel like not just TV but quota-mandated streaming TV,” I wrote in my brief review on Twitter.
“The idea of Jedi being fanatical and flawed is rich but the execution almost makes them goofy — the series has a CW-esque sheen and tone to it I just don’t understand (I do) why resources are being put towards making stuff like this instead of epic films that are the soul of Star Wars.”
Had this been the first time a Disney+ Star Wars project felt like filler, maybe Lucasfilm would get a pass. But after The Book of Boba Fett, season three of The Mandalorian, and to various degrees, both Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka, fans’ benefit of the doubt has eroded.
And this isn’t even mentioning the fact that the three sequel films Disney made — The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker — are all equally yet differently controversial in their own rights.
This sentiment has been echoed by others, who seem to be on the verge, if not already at the point, of tuning out of the franchise other than Andor.
“I am unfortunately reaching the point where I’m out on Star Wars for creative quality reasons (outside of Andor, which is excellent) and nothing to do with the toxic BS that unfortunately continues to pop up,” read one tweet from an industry insider.
Editor’s Note: SPOILER WARNING for Episode 4 of ‘The Acolyte’ below.
To be fair, there’s also a flipside, as some fans feel the series is “some of the best Star Wars [fans] have ever gotten,” as evidenced by this tweet with over 3,500 likes.
My mom likes #TheAcolyte, my dad also likes it, my best friend too and I was talking about the series with some co-workers today and they like too!
When you don’t pay attention to the bigots spreading their nonsense hatred, normal people actually enjoy this series! pic.twitter.com/ZOlfNSPhnb— Thomas Storaï (@ThomasStorai) June 18, 2024
The prospects for Star Wars‘ future, unfortunately, don’t look much brighter, however, as the two films that seem to be at the forefront of production are a film about The Mandalorian and Baby Yoda, ingeniously titled The Mandalorian & Grogu, and a Daisy Ridley-starring film that will see the English actress return as Rey, making it essentially a sequel to The Rise of Skywalker, which, as we mentioned, is an abomination.