Star Wars’ New TV Show Is The Phantom Menace Prequel I’ve Always Wanted

WARNING! This post contains spoilers for The Acolyte.

Star Wars: The Acolyte has officially begun with a two-episode premiere on Disney+, and this show is exactly the prequel to the Star Wars prequel trilogy I was hoping for. The Acolyte takes place about 100 years before Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, making it both the earliest point in the Star Wars timeline to be shown thus far in Star Wars’ movies and TV shows and a clear prequel to The Phantom Menace. With this period of time comes answers about the Jedi and the Sith, and the two-episode premiere alone has answered some of those questions.

In fact, The Acolyte has already begun to connect directly to the events of the prequel trilogy, particularly as it pertains to the Jedi. Unfortunately, the Jedi faced their demise in the prequels, so, while The Acolyte is set during the High Republic Era—largely considered the golden age of the Jedi—their end is coming. Interestingly, this era isn’t as peaceful and idyllic as the prequel trilogy had me believe; rather, the Jedi are already showing signs of the issues to come, even as they are in their prime.

The Phantom Menace’s Jedi Order Was Already Waning

Even In The First Prequel Movie, The Jedi Were Declining

Although the true fall of the Jedi didn’t happen until Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, the Order was already declining in The Phantom Menace. In fact, Qui-Gon Jinn was perhaps the best proof of that, as he was extremely dissatisfied with the way the Order was handling things. On the one hand, his grievances with the Jedi Order, the Council in particular, revealed the problems with the very things he took umbrage with, most notably the Council’s rigidity when it came to upholding policies such as the age restriction for Initiates.

However, Qui-Gon being so frustrated in the first place elucidated that many Jedi were already becoming disillusioned with the Order even before the Clone Wars began. This was thrown into even sharper relief when Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones revealed that Qui-Gon Jinn’s own Jedi Master, Count Dooku, had become a Sith. The Jedi had declined in other ways, too. They were no longer stationed on planets across the galaxy, helping locally in addition to having their main Jedi Temple on Coruscant, and they were already proving themselves to be too involved with and influenced by politics.

The Acolyte Shows The Jedi Order At Their Height

The Jedi Order Feels Very Different In This Show Already

The Jedi Order in The Acolyte is quite different from the one in The Phantom Menace. Although the basics are the same—a Jedi master guiding younglings, the classic Padawan braids, Jedi robes—the show feels almost regal in comparison. In part, this is styling. The Jedi of The Acolyte are shown in bright white and yellow robes, which are considerably lighter than the dark brown and noticeably drabber Phantom Menace robes, for example. However, it also comes down to an ambiance that is difficult to place.

Everything about The Acolyte’s Jedi Order felt loftier to me. The manner of speaking of many Jedi Masters, though especially Master Rwoh, Master Sol, and Master Indara, gave off an immediate sense of wisdom and authority but also an odd, almost austere distance. While Mace Windu may have been more emotionally reserved, the Jedi of The Acolyte are a far cry from Master Yoda’s jokes and Obi-Wan Kenobi’s cheeky attitude (at least so far).

Even beyond this more regal style and the aloof Jedi Masters, though, the Jedi of The Acolyte on the whole are inarguably in their prime compared to the prequel trilogy Jedi. In The Acolyte, the Jedi seem much more trained in combat, especially hand-to-hand combat; in fact, lightsabers seem like a last resort for The Acolyte’s Jedi. This is quite different from the draw first and ask questions later lightsaber style of the prequel trilogy Jedi. However, that isn’t to say The Acolyte doesn’t show signs of what’s to come.

The Flaws Of The Jedi Are Still Visible

The Cracks In The Order Had Already Begun In The Acolyte

In truth, I was surprised by how many warning signs I could identify in the first two episodes of The Acolyte alone. Because the show had been billed as taking place during the golden age of the Jedi, I had assumed that, for the most part, the Jedi would seem quite secure. On the contrary, the Jedi in The Acolyte share many of the same issues seen in the prequel trilogy, and it’s clear that the Jedi themselves see it too.

Arguably the Qui-Gon Jinn character of The Acolyte, as he is clearly an independent thinker and doesn’t mind stretching the rules, Jedi Master Sol in particular represents the issues of the Jedi to come. For one, he argues with Master Rwoh at one point about the need to take the time to meet with the Council to make a decision. Sol expresses frustration with the idea that the Jedi must take the time to schedule and have a meeting rather than jump into action in response to an issue—a problem that plagues the prequels as well.

Similarly, and most shocking (and horrifying) to me, the Jedi are clearly already concerned with politics. When Rwoh and Sol are discussing the possibility that a rogue Jedi Padawan could be killing Jedi, Sol expresses concern about what their “political adversaries” will think. I was surprised to hear that even during the High Republic Era, the Jedi were preoccupied with the optics of the Jedi Order and what effects they would have on politics. The Jedi obsession with the Republic in the prequel trilogy significantly contributed to their downfall, so this is surely a harbinger of bad things to come.

We’re Even Getting Jedi Versus Sith

Despite The Jedi’s Beliefs, The Sith Were A Threat 100 Years Ago

There are also more exciting, positive aspects of The Acolyte that make it a thrilling prequel to the prequel trilogy. For one, despite the Jedi of The Phantom Menace believing that the Sith have been extinct for a millennium, there is at least one Sith in The Acolyte. In fact, the meaning of The Acolyte’s title suggests that the masked Sith in the premiere is one seeking to take on his own apprentice by identifying an Acolyte to take up the role. This surely means that epic, brand-new lightsaber battles between the Jedi and the Sith are coming.

Moreover, getting a new Sith character will truly set The Acolyte apart, as Star Wars has had a bit of a Sith problem since re-using Palpatine in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. So far, I’ve felt The Acolyte has managed to avoid such pitfalls and is instead an ideal precursor to what follows in the prequel trilogy. Of course, only two episodes have been released thus far, so it remains to be seen if Star Wars: The Acolyte will remain the perfect prequel to the Star Wars prequel trilogy.

The first two episodes of The Acolyte are now streaming on Disney+.

The Acolyte

The Acolyte is a television series set in the Star Wars universe at the end of the High Republic Era, where both the Jedi and the Galactic Empire were at the height of their influence. This sci-fi thriller sees a former Padawan reunite with her former Jedi Master as they investigate several crimes – all leading to darkness erupting from beneath the surface and preparing to bring about the end of the High Republic.

Cast

Dafne Keen , Lee Jung-jae , Amandla Stenberg , Jodie Turner-Smith , Joonas Suotamo , Carrie-Anne Moss , Margarita Levieva , Charlie Barnett , Dean-Charles Chapman

Seasons

1

Streaming Service(s)

Disney+

Writers

Leslye Headland , Charmaine De Grate , Kor Adana

Directors

Leslye Headland , Alex Garcia Lopez

Showrunner

Leslye Headland

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