Star Wars: The Acolyte 2-episode premiere recap and review

Star Wars: The Acolyte has pulled a Kraken and been released on Disney+ tonight and if you haven't watched it yet, you are so missing out.

The Acolyte is a series you definitely want to watch this summer and is, quite frankly, exactly the kind of Star Wars story we have been craving from the franchise. Fresh faces, new places, and a story that truly embodies what Star Wars stands for.

Let us dive into a time 100 years before the Empire and away from the Skywalker saga, where the Force is strong, the Jedi are plentiful, and the drama is intense.

So is this two-episode recap I'm about to give you, so please read at your own risk as I recount everything that has happened in these two episodes.

Star Wars: The Acolyte - episode 1, "Lost/Found" recap

Meet Mae, a character who’s more slippery than a Hutt in a mud bath. She’s on a mission to find Jedi, but this isn’t a friendly search – she’s out for revenge. Mae struts into a bustling cantina, eyes peeled for her target. She’s risking discovery, but that’s the least of her worries. She’s got a bone to pick with Jedi Master Indara (a.k.a., Trinity in the Star Wars universe).

Mae approaches Indara and drops a bombshell: “We have unfinished business. Attack me with all your strength.” And then, Mae starts wreaking havoc, attacking innocent folks in the cantina to lure Indara into a fight. And oh boy, does Indara rise to the occasion. What follows is an epic showdown, with tension so thick you could cut it with a lightsaber. As the fight intensifies, Mae produces tiny daggers, trying to catch Indara off guard. Indara, cool as a Hoth winter, pulls out her saber to defend herself. Mae pulls a classic bait-and-switch, throwing a dagger at an innocent civilian to distract Indara. But just when you think Indara’s got it covered, Mae pulls a fast one and throws another dagger right at her. Talk about being bamboozled!

Enter Osha, Mae’s twin sister, who wakes up in a super weird bunker-style room. She’s chatting with the cutest lil’ robot you’ve ever seen. Turns out, Osha is a MekNek, and apparently, that’s super duper dangerous. While Osha’s busy repairing an antenna aboard a ship, she has flashbacks of tending to a small fire that broke out during the repair. Suddenly, Jedi Yord and Tasi Lowa show up, looking for Osha. Surprise! Osha was supposedly in two places at once and committed the crime of murdering a Jedi Master. Things are getting spicy. Tasi starts grilling Osha, and Yord reveals some juicy details about her past: Osha was brought into the Order at age eight, mourning her entire family. The Jedi decide to escort Osha back to Coruscant.

Meanwhile, we meet Master Sol, who’s teaching the tiniest, most adorable baby Jedi (yes, I know they're called Younglings). Master Vernestra interrupts his lesson with news about Indara’s murder. Sol already knows and is shocked to hear that Osha is in custody. He’s calling BS on this whole situation, convinced there’s more to the story. Back on the transport ship, Osha’s fellow prisoners hatch an escape plan. They succeed but leave Osha behind. She manages to lockpick her way out but decides to wake up a super violent criminal. Bad move – he steals her escape pod, leaving her alone on the crashing ship. She survives the crash landing on a snowy planet called Carlac.

Master Sol, ever the compassionate Jedi, feels a deep connection with Osha and convinces Vernestra to let him take a small team to find her. Sol, Yord, and Jecki head to Carlac, where they find Osha’s crashed ship. Sol uses his bond with Osha to track her, showing he’s got heart and compassion – very un-Jedi-like but in the best way possible. Osha, on Carlac, sees a creepy humanoid shadow and follows it. She has a chilling encounter with an illusion of her twin sister, Mae, who starts reciting a childhood rhyme. Mae was supposed to have died in a fire she started herself, leaving Osha freaked out. Master Sol and his team finally find Osha at a cliff’s edge. Sol uses the Force to save her from falling, and they share a heartfelt reunion. Osha tells Sol that Mae is alive, and he believes her. They prepare to face the new threat together.

The episode ends with a haunting monologue.

"“The Jedi live in a dream, a dream they believe everyone shares. If you attack a Jedi with a weapon, you will fail. Steel or laser are not a threat to them, but an Acolyte… An Acolyte kills without a weapon. An Acolyte kills the dream.” "

- Mae's Master

And then, we see Mae smiling ominously as her Master lights up a red saber.

Star Wars: The Acolyte - episode 2, "Revenge/Justice" recap

The episode kicks off with Mae up to no good at the Jedi Temple in Olega. She’s got a sneaky plan involving a little girl to lure out a droid from its hole. Mae tosses an overriding disc onto the droid, gaining access to the temple. She’s on the hunt for Master Torbin, who hasn’t spoken a word in ten years and is perpetually wrapped in a Force shield, deep in meditation. Mae tries to fight Torbin but gets no response, failing to land a single hit. Talk about frustrating!

We then cut to Osha and Jecki. Jecki is frustrated, unable to fix a console, but Osha steps in and tells her what to do. They start chatting, and it’s clear there’s some tension but also some budding camaraderie. Yord expresses his doubts to Sol, wishing Osha was restrained. He still suspects Osha might be guilty, but Sol points out she hasn’t trained in six years. Sol contacts Master Vernestra, filling her in on Osha’s twin, and she asks him to investigate another incident with Osha in tow.

Back to Mae. She meets her friend Qimir, her go-to supplier. She’s desperate, claiming Torbin has no weaknesses. Qimir, ever the philosopher, insists everyone has a weakness. Mae asks him to make her a poison, wanting to do things her way to please their mysterious Master by killing Jedi without weapons. Qimir whips up the poison, and they discuss the Jedi’s so-called “peace” being a lie. Mae threatens Qimir to ensure his silence about their dealings.

On the ship, Master Sol and Osha have a deep conversation. Osha suspects Mae is behind Indara’s murder but struggles with how Mae survived. She reassures Sol that what happened to their family wasn’t his fault. They share a moment of mutual guilt and reflection on their past. As Master Sol and his team arrive in Olega and head to the Jedi Temple, Mae sneaks back in. Osha senses Mae’s presence and sees a vision of younger Mae taking a different path to reach Torbin, while Sol and the others take the scenic route. Mae confronts Torbin, offering him two choices: confess his crimes to the Jedi Council or seek forgiveness by drinking the poison. In a shocking twist, Torbin opens his eyes, apologizes, and drinks the poison. Whatever dirt Mae had on him was worth dying to hide.

Master Sol senses a disturbance and rushes to Torbin’s side. Osha gets there first, identifying the poison as Bunta, a plant native to her planet. Sol is puzzled by Torbin’s willing ingestion of the poison, and the Jedi discover Qimir and concoct a plan: Osha will pretend to be Mae to extract a confession from him. Osha, super awkward, fails to convince Qimir she’s Mae. However, Qimir slips up, mentioning the poison before realizing she’s not Mae. Sol and the team intimidate him, and he suggests returning that night to catch Mae.

Sol insists on facing Mae alone. Osha, still angry at Mae for destroying her life, is cautioned by Sol to let go of her grief and see where revenge has led her sister. Sol’s compassion and desire to save Mae are evident. Sol spots Mae and confronts her, accusing her of the murders. Mae throws a dagger, and an intense kung fu battle ensues. Sol stealthily removes her daggers and probes her mind, discovering she doesn’t know who her Master is. Mae is shocked to learn Osha is alive and tries to flee, but Jecki and the ship catch up, and Mae escapes using a sand trick.

Mae flees, and Osha catches up, aiming her weapon. They lock eyes, and Osha fires but misses. Mae gets away, and Sol isn’t happy with Osha’s actions. Sol reports to Vernestra, who demands he return to Coruscant for a debrief. Reluctantly, he agrees.

Mae, feeling betrayed by Qimir, attacks him, but he promises to help her get to Khofar, where Kelnacca resides. As they flee, we get a glimpse of Master Kelnacca, a Wookie, using the Force to snap a weapon in half before the episode ends.

The verdict

With The Acolyte off to such a wonderful start, don't forget to tune in to Disney+ every Tuesday for a new episode.