Isn’t The Acolyte making fun of us?

The red lightsaber. His face obscured by a disturbing-looking helmet. Black clothes. The oppressive musical atmosphere. The dark designs. An obvious opposition to the Jedi order… It is clear that, since the beginning of the series The Acolyteeverything seems constructed to make us think that the antagonist is indeed a Sith.

Yet there are indications that this may all be a charade. Or, at least, more complicated than you might think.

The following contains spoilers..

« A Jedi like you can call me Sith »

It all starts with an exchange between Jedi Master Sol and Qimir, a human who turns out to be the “Sith”. Sol sees the extreme power of the one who pretended to be a former smuggler and asks him who he is. It is then that Qimir provides an ambiguous answer. He gives the impression of not considering himself a Sith.

« I don’t have a name, but a Jedi like you can call me…Sith “. Later, when Sol questions him about his intentions, Qimir explains that he wants ” [sa] freedom “. More precisely, ” the freedom to use my power as I see fit without having to refer to Jedi like you “. In short, not to submit to the rules of the Jedi order.

This is when we also understand the meaning of the series’ title. Qimir wants to ” a disciple, an acolyte ” — in this case, it was supposed to be Mae, Osha Aniseya’s twin sister, who are the “daughters” of a witch, and whose origin is supernatural. Is this witch related to Qimir? We don’t know at this point in the series.

Before a final face-off between Qimir and the Jedi knight Yord Fandar, which will be fatal to the latter, the “Sith” delivers a final intriguing indication. While accepting “his dark side” (that is to say, implicitly, the dark side of the Force), he says ” not deciding the rules. These are those of the Jedi “. Its existence would simply be denied by the Jedi order, to hear it.

This whole sequence shows that Qimir does not define himself in the way that the Jedi order tends to qualify those who use the Force in another way. Enough to give substance https://twitter.com/StarWarsFR/status/1274401681309085697 d’Obi-Wan Kenobi : « Many of the truths we hold dependant primarily on our own point of view. »

In other words, not everyone categorized as Sith by the Jedi is actually a Sith. Perhaps the Jedi Order lumped together various Force-related denominations into one catch-all category because they were seen as rivals, or threats. The Acolyte indeed shows that there are varied interpretations of the Force.

Starwars.com refers to him as “The Stranger”

Qimir, in any case, does not seem to adhere to the Sith qualifier and shows it by saying in a way to Sol: ” you just have to consider me a Sith “. Even the official Star Wars website has so far not clearly stated that Qimir is a Sith: his official description is ambivalent and he is instead presented as “the Stranger”.

The term “Sith” does not appear, as of June 27, in the section dedicated to the series. The official synopsis does not mention it either. Even with a broader search associating “The Acolyte” and “Sith” on the entire official site, we find nothing conclusive. Hence the feeling that the series is going to take us in an unexpected direction.

A way to respect history?

When The Acolyte began to be promoted on social media, the question of whether the series would betray The Phantom Menace has arisen. Indeed, in this film a Jedi master, Ki-Adi Mundi, claims that the Sith have not given any sign of life for a millennium. However, a hundred years before the film, the series suggests that they are indeed there.

It was then that this same Ki-Adi Mundi appeared in a cameo in the series, which was interpreted as a sign that the production was not ignoring the problem: having him intervene in The Acolyte would be a way of preparing the ground in order to resolve everything through a sleight of hand in the script. Not making Qimir an “official” Sith is another option.

If this lead is correct, Ki-Adi Mundi will basically neither have lied nor said anything stupid. However, at the rate Qimir is killing the world, he might as well be a Sith and the information would never make it back to higher Jedi authorities. Ki-Adi Mundi could thus be “right”, but because those who knew the truth are dead.

Qimir, moreover, says it quite clearly: those who see his face are doomed to death.

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