I don't mind Vernestra's portrayal? We keep meeting Jedi like Qui-Gon or Sol or even Obi-Wan who tend to be more exceptions than the rule for the Jedi being friendlier, being more emotional, etc, whereas, Vernestra, 100 years after when many people were familiar with has had the weight of time, she's developed layers of armor/walls and years of experience has taught her to be more circumspect than many of the younger Jedi? It's fun and funny to listen to other people's interpretations of what a Jedi is or should be versus my own.
"she's developed layers of armor/walls and years of experience has taught her to be more circumspect than many of the younger Jedi?" The problem with that is they haven't shown us that or given us any of that through dialogue. That's all your personal interpretation of the character lol What they've given us is a wooden and hollow character trying too hard to be mysterious. I'm all for a stoic & more circumspect Jedi, Qui-Gon is one of my favorite Jedi of all time, but you need to develop the character on screen and show us through their actions, motivations and dialogue why they are the way they are.
Jedi Mog: I'm Jedi Mog! I'm half man, half dog. I'm my own best friend. Except Master Vernestera, she likes me. Vernestra: I don't like you, I find you moderately useful. Jedi Mog: Oh...
Rocha, it's funny that you mention Qimir 'chipping' away at Osha. You asked how Qimir got jacked and my guess would be that he is mining the Cortosis Ore on his little island there, chipping away at the walls to get at it.
Sixteen tons and what do you get, another day older and deeper in Sith! Darth Bane, don't you call me cuz, I can't go~ I owe my soul to this Cortosis vein!
People sure hate this show (Star Wars in general these days really) lol. Sure, its not perfect....few tv shows are. Im loving it though. Its a change of pace in Star Wars and it feels refreshing to me. I do get some peoples complaints for sure (Sol drama being drawn out lol) but its working for me, especially story wise. We are in an age where people nit pick to death, so perhaps thats some of it? Just hope they stick rhe landing with the final two eps. That has been my issue with a lot of the Star Wars shows. Just does not end well. Hope to see Kev back soon for some balance! Lol. Best wishes man!
I think the show is better than Obi-Wan, Book of Boba Fett and even some parts of Ahsoka. But that doesn't mean there aren't glaring issues with the character development, writing, pacing, and direction. I think a lot of the issues with the show are due to the show trying too hard to be mysterious with their mystery. There's a good way to do mystery to where its clever and shocking when you get the reveal but it feels like they're purposely withholding key information about characters and stunting the development of characters for the sake of the mystery which is doing them a disservice.
@@michaellee9926 nah, I don't thing that's even it. People just like to nit pick and complain. It's the norm in this culture and country. Everyone thinks they can do better on their iPhone 😆
@@bctalkspod I do agree with you on most of that. I am not going to completely judge the writing til it's done, cause it's really intriguing to me so far. Pacing wise, I do find it a little rough they are drawing some thi ga out way too long. The directing I do agree with a bit too, but am curious how much lack of budget/run time each ep is effecting it?? I do think there is a lot of depth that is being laid out story wise, and if they stick the landing the final two eps, I think we could be in for some really awesome story telling and projects in the future. And not just from this director
To be fair, I'm not sure how they could have kept the momentum up seeing as most of the people that were there last episode are dead and it's been made clear that neither Mae nor Osha stand a chance against Qimir and Sol is conflicted. But, generally speaking, I think you guys are right. This one may have been the weakest episode for me and I usually love denouement episodes where we pull back from the pace to assess what's happened and lick your wounds, etc. I didn't even mind the Dark Side seduction though I feel like it's been done before and I always find Sith reasoning to be a bit specious, but the part that probably annoyed me the most was the weird stuff going onboard the Jedi ship. Sol seemed completely willing to just leave Basil on the killer moth planet with a possible Sith still running around then, whether he knew it was Mae from the start or not, but regardless, why wouldn't he have immediately gone back for Osha given, again, she's on a planet with killer moths and maybe a Sith still while unconscious? Why did Basil mess around with playing this weird hide and seek game instead of immediately going to Sol and telling him it was Mae, not Osha? I didn't have a problem with Sol jumping away from the incoming Jedi rescue team, but... if he wanted to avoid them, why send a sos message to begin with only to slip out at the last second? As far as Osha being kinda deer in headlights, I don't mind it. How many of us knew exactly what we wanted in our... early/mid 20s? I know people who pretended they knew what they wanted in their early/mid 20s who are now in completely different fields or not what they imagined, but many people I knew may have had some idea of what they wanted to be, but many just didn't know (or didn't genuinely know where they were headed). Finally, Rocha hit the nail on the head. I don't mind slow burn and I don't mind the long con, but this feels so much like a JJ Abrams Lost or some other mystery box show that just keeps dangling it in front of us w/o enough satisfying reveals or resolutions? And the internet will just freak out if they don't stick the landing b/c it feels like the entirety of the story hinges on it. The people who have been fans will be disappointed and it will just give ammunition to the people who've hated it all along (and they have the right to dislike it). I think a lot of this would have been resolved if the episodes and/or season had been longer. I've seen this type of 'shorthand' of scenes and moments work well enough in TCW or Rebels where they have a scene or two and we immediately buy into the fact that Ezra is winning over the students at the Imperial Academy or a scene or two is meant to convey doubt in Ahsoka as to the identity of Vader, etc. It's worked in shows like TCW and Rebels, but eight, 30 min episodes haven't been enough to explore Osha's past, for example. They could have shown us her time as a Jedi student, becoming friends with Yord, developing her relationship and that single storyline would have added more weight to Osha /and/ Yorde. We could have seen Sol be like a doting father figure to Osha where we find out why the two of them are so close, we could have had a little bit of Jecki or Vernestra thrown in to show us how Jecki was brought up as a padawan and seen V having to navigate a Senate or Republic whose faith in the Jedi are slowly starting to crack or opportunists that simply want to poke at the Jedi even if their record to this point had been impeccable. It might have even afforded us a flashback episode of Qimir when he was a student and why he harbors such resentment towards the Jedi? There's so much more that could have been explored that wouldn't have been superfluous to the story and, in fact, added to the weight of Yord and Jecki's fate, we may have been more invested in Osha's journey, we could have understood more where Sol and Vernestra are coming from. This stubborn adherence to short seasons with short episodes is doing them and us a disservice.
On the momentum bit, given that this was episode 6 of 8: Space chase/battle (Qimir boarding Sol’s ship maybe) between the two sides. Instead of Sol putting in a call just his comms back off when they reach back out, have him try to call, Qimir damages the ship in a way that makes communication impossible on Sol’s end & now he’s panicking trying to get back to Coruscant before Qimir can stop him. Q manages to catch him/strand his ship mid-space, and upon boarding the ship, Q corners Sol & the episode ends on Sol being forced to tell the truth in front of both sisters. Yes, that would’ve taken away Qimir & Osha’s back & forths, but whatever truth Sol would be about to reveal could be enough to replace the exposition & propel Osha completely away emotionally, still leaving her wide open for Dark Side corruption. It also would’ve dragged out Mae being discovered as herself & not Osha (assuming Sol didn’t immediately see through her anyway), and would give a more compelling reason to tune into the inevitable flashback episode that next episode will be because the person who actually needs to the truth (or at least needs to know the most), Osha, would be there to hear it from Sol
💯 my biggest issue w/ this ep, ep 4, & w/ just 2eps left casting a pall over my view of the show is the TRoS Finn’s “I’ve got something to tell you” of it all. 3x Sol gets interrupted/cutoff in just this ep alone !!!!🤬 w/ the last being a cut to black that is all but the end of the episode at which point I stood up and yelled “cummon !!!”. They appear to have filmed 4hrs of content and chosen to / been mandated to deliver it in what has become an aggravating manner. 4&5 is one ep. I suspect 6&7 will play better together. Last week felt like a turning point of sorts both for the “fans” (a bit) & for the characters that had me expecting to move further fwd than we do this ep. Osha is at least taking steps to move out of her damsel phase (taking up the knife & then the saber, choosing to stay, etc). But the worthwhile stuff is constantly being undercut by the packaging leading me to feel jerked around more than intrigued. Ep 5 provides me w/ some optimism that they can stick the landing but if not… 😬
@@dkarrasEpisode 5 gives me confidence they can do a high action finale, but I dare not dream that the last episode will be narratively "good". I got the feeling that they were writing assuming they'd have another season.
@@bajansamurai Yeah, I hear ya. Laura is right in that Leslye has said that there are some mysteries that will remain unanswered by the end of this season that could be explored in the future. However in the interviews before the series aired she also said that she wasn’t interested in a cliffhanger finale type of storytelling & kind of recoiled against the trend of shows assuming that they are going to get renewed & thus not telling a complete story. Both can be done to greater or lesser degrees so we shall see how successfully they’ll be able to manage that balance & if the mystery element pays off sufficiently in the time we have left. One thing I’m struggling w/ (somewhat in general & somewhat in particular w/ the Buddie’s & Jedi Way rvws) right now is parsing out what issues I’m/ppl are having could be down to misaligned expectations/understanding of the archetypes being explored. Or if those are being understood but just not acknowledged & just simply are difficult to / not being portrayed in a not entertaining enough manner. For me, I’m not as annoyed / frustrated as many are w/ the Osha/Mae storyline but I’m not massively emotionally connected to it either as it does indeed hang on the “what actually happened” of it all.
I agree with Laura that the helmet scene was more about Osha reconnecting with the Force than having fully turned to the Dark. I also read an interview with Headland where she confirms that the planet is NOT Ahch-To but that the parallels to it were purposeful.
Hey! Hey, guys! Sometimes, things happen even on the first date! I'm not appreciating the Sith shaming here just b/c it's only been a day or even a few hours! 😝🤣
This is still a completely left field theory/speculation for me, but the 'tipping of the scales' comment made me think that she is the Sith Lord (sorry, Laura and I know you've been consuming all the HR stuff and I have not) who sees her student grasping at things to 'tip the scales' to gain any advantage against his master, ie, her. Also, Qimir may not be her first student, maybe he was her second or third or fourth, etc.
If Qimir is Plagueis like folks are speculating, someday I need to see the scene when he took young Sheev to the island... "Somehow Palpatine... was skinny-dipping." 🤣
I’m hoping for a strong finish from the show. I’m enjoying the performances from Sol and Qimir, and they’re characters I’m going to add to my faves list. As far as how I would improve the show, I’d give us more time with the twins. They’re supposed to be the anchor of the show but we haven’t spent enough time with them to care enough about this sister story.
The motivations for the switch was setup when they were kids and Osha was the one who wanted to leave her sister and be nothing like her. Mae is the one who has always sought to make up with Osha and initiate the "we are one" chant. Osha was always sort of the mean sister who to want to leave her family for a new one so not sure why everyone thinks this switch now is a big surprise. It fits into Osha's character of now leaving the Jedi for a new family in Qimer just like she was seduced by Sol when he asked her to become a Jedi, the same is happening now with Qimer.
@balkibartokomous I strongly agree with you. Osha's reaching for the helmet is just like she was always reaching for something new. Mae following Qimir should have been expected, because she likes to follow people who are stronger than she is and seeks there approval.
Growing up in the Original Trilogy time, I have actually really liked this show. I’ve wanted something new and we got it. I have liked the performances of Amanda Steinberg, Lee Jung-Jae, Daphne Keene and Manny Jacinto especially.
I think he’s the founding Ren and Venestra’s former padawan. The flaws are a bit major but I still like the series. Hopefully season two leans into the darkness. So much potential. 💯
20:15 That has been a big problem with Disney Star Wars where they rely on interviews or other products (💲💲💲) to either set up or explain scenes or part of the story. It should be clear in the story on the screen.
It's very ironic to me that Rian Johnson, who was widely criticized by Star Wars fans, left and went on to create one of the greatest modern Mystery franchises. Meanwhile the franchise he was basically kicked out of is now trying and failing at their own mystery lol This would probably be a lot more compelling of a show if Rian Johnson had written it
I agree with Laura on Vern. And didn't know that she named her ship after Imri. Great touch. (Interesting thing given the Jedi are or are leading towards the practice of no attachments by this point.) As for her and Brendok, unless she did stuff behind the scenes, she gave Sol the business about not telling her what went down on Brendok, so not sure if it's that. I'm leaning towards her having something to do with Qimir, if not being the master than cut ties with him. She's lived so long that it could fit Qimir's line about being a Jedi a long time ago.
The problem for me with Osha -- even Mae -- is that she's a cypher. There is little established with either of them as characters with genuine lived-in wants. You can kinda see what they're trying to do, so you can kind of anticipate how things will go, but the emotional life is missing beyond the surface.
In general, they should have used the same gimmicky of those White House shows: walking through the corridors of the WH with intensity and purpose. Or just the basic GL direction : faster , more intense.
Coming around to Smet's theory that the true Sith come and snuff out Qimir. I don't Venstra is a Sith or Dark Side user. I think when she was a Wayfinder she saw a vision of the Dark Side rising. She stopped being a Wayfinder, put herself in charge of a bunch Jedi, and did terrible things to try and prevent that future
There was ZERO emotional impact on the two Jedi who went to investigate what happened to their fellow Jedi upon discovering them. They acted as if they were looking at the garbage of someone who littered in the forest as opposed to seeing their fallen comrades. It was ridiculous. The green Star Trek Jedi even referred to them as “the bodies”. If you ever ventured upon you're dead loved ones or even your dead coworkers would you ever refer to them as the bodies at any point in such an emotionally detached way? This writing is strange. The Sith antagonist seemed more Sith-like this week. When he first appeared he seemed off like a poser for some reason. But even with that positive, Leslie had to throw in more gratuitous beefcake moments. And once again, the sets look like sets. Like small, cheap, obvious sound stages instead of real locations in the Star Wars universe. Still love Sol but was overall bored with the episode besides that. I'm not feeling this show and unfortunately don't care how it ends up barring getting blindsided by any holy s revelations. I can't imagine them doing that in the next couple of episodes or doing anything major that would bring me back based on how this show has been thus far.
No one seems to remember , that mae has osha clothes in and sol never ask how did u get her clothes ? Did u kill her? Lets go back look for osha? Instead he says " i have to save osha , I've had 16 years to think of what ild say to you if i ever got ths chance, so ur going to listen!!" To the twin he thought was dead 😂? But leaves the planet not knowing what happened to osha cause remember he was knocked out, so never sees osha ! Make it make sense!
I agree with Laura that this episode is more about seduction to the dark side and manipulation than romance. Quimir just killed Osha's friends. She is becoming fascinated with his philosophy and how it allows her to accept parts of herself that she could not accept as a jedi. He is playing on deep seeded resentments she has against the jedi. They actually don't make sense as a couple.
John &/or Laura, as U📺 is the only “social media” I wade into I don’t know what discussions you’re are / have been a party to elsewhere so I’m wondering if either of you have even engaged w/ any of “What the Force ?” podcast’s content ? Particularly w/ this show given the show runner & lead, WTF?’s analysis seem particularly à propos. I ask because I haven’t been as frustrated over the motivations of the characters (aside from Sol re-enacting Finn’s “I’ve got something to tell you” over, & over, & over & the ep/show length exacerbating that). But I’m certainly more intellectually engaged than emotionally or simply purely entertained. At least enough to be more hopeful for a fulfilling outcome. I’ve just been trying to parse out various takes on the show and the degree to which everything you’ve said about the show can also be true even in light of WTF?’s read on the details of what’s going on. Rather than writing an essay nobody would read, posing this ? seemed the simplest way to address what I’ve been wrestling w/ in regards to the very muddied overall conversation in regards to this particular show. Particularly the issue of if there’s an inherent challenge in presenting these archetypes in a manner that ppl are entertained by/enthused to engage w/ &/or what is the fault of this particular show. Would love to know your thoughts based on WTF? as a particular touchstone.
Hey John, are you hearing ratings information from inside sources? Most reporting on the viewership for the show has it being a success, which could nab it a second season. More than one data firm has said the series is the second most watched D+ Star Wars series behind Kenobi, and the second most watched of all current series on D+ right now. Wouldn't necessarily be surprised if some (or all) of that is marketing, but it could also be doing better than would seem apparent.
I felt like Osha putting the helmet on was to see if she could reconnect with the force. She tried and failed during the prison escape, and qimir mentioned Her Power, so i wonder if that was why she checked it out. I also got zero sexual tension between Osha and Qimir. Just felt like a sith trying to corrupt. Master Sol is the Sith Lord. His breakdown on the ship was because Qimir has stepped out of the shadows and ruined his undercover plan.
I don't have as much of a problem with the actor portraying Venestra as John and Laura. I mean I think Samuel L. Jackson's acting was a lot worse in the prequels. He seemed completely lost in those movies, probably due to George Lucas not being an "actors" director.
It's curious to me to look at Qimir and Osha as a romance. It doesn't read that way to me at all. This feels purely like seduction for his ends rather than some type of genuine affection.
What you are describing through all this analysis is just plain bad writing, combined with wooden acting, poor visuals, and no overall plan in the arc of the series or the characters. Have been muscling through this waiting for some kind of coherence and buildup to a satisfactory story. It just isn't there. And with 2 episodes left, the only thing they can do is get themselves out of the corner they have painted themselves into concerning the lore. This show isn't some kind of dark mystery, it's just a series that keeps leaving people tying their brains in knots trying to make it make sense. I won't even touch on the discourse and the split among fans, but I will say that blaming the fans for its poor performance is a bush league move.
@@JohnRochaSays Man, can we not? I'm tired of forced romances, especially in Star Wars. You're not going to recapture Han and Leia, stop trying. If you really need romance (and I'd argue you really don't in a story that includes celibate space monks) do something better than a trope that's been done to death.
I understand the reaction of ardent fans to all that hate and trolling - they want to defend this show and all that they love - Star Wars. But there's also truth in saying that love manifests also through harsh but fair criticism. IMO, the Acolyte is not a good show In fact it is bad show, with some brilliant elements to it. It is characterised by 1. Bad, uninteresting exposition 2. Bad characterisation 3. Questionable character decisions that lack explanation For example, when Mae tried to sneak up on Sol and knife him in the back... well, if that was her plan, she could have done this in episode 5, when he was unconscious, instead of wasting time on swapping clothes. Despite the deludge of bullshit whining against this show, I have to concede, it is pretty bad.
@@dRoscoAZ Because most of criticism is bullshit whining. Ki-Adi-Mundi's birthday is bullshit whining - no one care about it until suddenly now, and legends have been retconned since 2013 as if that should be news to some. Lesbian space witches - present in SW since 2009 - is bullshit whining. Master Sol not sensing a dark-sider in his presence - which was Palpatine's whole deal since 1999 - is bullshit whining. You guys focus on small, unimportant nitpicks that could be applied to any Star Wars movie. But - perhaps because many of you have very low media literacy - you ignore glaring issues.
@mreszotnik You keep saying "you guys"... I'm not those guys. Also, there are tons of valid criticisms being brought up. Don't even with the "media literacy" bs. You're not special or clever.
I've heard people mention this, but my problem is that editing it to be shorter does nothing to add weight to the deaths of some of the characters or help to connect with the main ones. I think it'd be helped with the opposite to showcase more of the relationships or characters.
Imo, it’d benefit from the opposite. Where Kenobi needed to be shorter, this needed to be longer. We knew Kenobi, knew Vader, and already had been introduced to a version of Leia before the show, and while they weren’t the entirety of the central characters, it eliminated a lot of the gaps that needed to be filled. Here we don’t know any of these characters (minus Vinestra) coming into it. We have no prior attachments to this cast, and therefore no true reason to care about most of them. More time to flesh them out would have done a lot
I don't mind Vernestra's portrayal? We keep meeting Jedi like Qui-Gon or Sol or even Obi-Wan who tend to be more exceptions than the rule for the Jedi being friendlier, being more emotional, etc, whereas, Vernestra, 100 years after when many people were familiar with has had the weight of time, she's developed layers of armor/walls and years of experience has taught her to be more circumspect than many of the younger Jedi?
It's fun and funny to listen to other people's interpretations of what a Jedi is or should be versus my own.
"she's developed layers of armor/walls and years of experience has taught her to be more circumspect than many of the younger Jedi?"
The problem with that is they haven't shown us that or given us any of that through dialogue. That's all your personal interpretation of the character lol What they've given us is a wooden and hollow character trying too hard to be mysterious. I'm all for a stoic & more circumspect Jedi, Qui-Gon is one of my favorite Jedi of all time, but you need to develop the character on screen and show us through their actions, motivations and dialogue why they are the way they are.
Osha grabs his lightsaber, eh, Rocha? 😆😂
Jedi Mog: I'm Jedi Mog! I'm half man, half dog. I'm my own best friend. Except Master Vernestera, she likes me.
Vernestra: I don't like you, I find you moderately useful.
Jedi Mog: Oh...
Rocha, it's funny that you mention Qimir 'chipping' away at Osha. You asked how Qimir got jacked and my guess would be that he is mining the Cortosis Ore on his little island there, chipping away at the walls to get at it.
Sixteen tons and what do you get, another day older and deeper in Sith! Darth Bane, don't you call me cuz, I can't go~ I owe my soul to this Cortosis vein!
Now that makes sense! Haha Hadn’t thought of that, but that works.
People sure hate this show (Star Wars in general these days really) lol. Sure, its not perfect....few tv shows are. Im loving it though. Its a change of pace in Star Wars and it feels refreshing to me. I do get some peoples complaints for sure (Sol drama being drawn out lol) but its working for me, especially story wise. We are in an age where people nit pick to death, so perhaps thats some of it? Just hope they stick rhe landing with the final two eps. That has been my issue with a lot of the Star Wars shows. Just does not end well.
Hope to see Kev back soon for some balance! Lol. Best wishes man!
I am with you.
People tend to hate shows with amateurish writing, pacing, and editing with some poor acting sprinkled in
I think the show is better than Obi-Wan, Book of Boba Fett and even some parts of Ahsoka. But that doesn't mean there aren't glaring issues with the character development, writing, pacing, and direction. I think a lot of the issues with the show are due to the show trying too hard to be mysterious with their mystery. There's a good way to do mystery to where its clever and shocking when you get the reveal but it feels like they're purposely withholding key information about characters and stunting the development of characters for the sake of the mystery which is doing them a disservice.
@@michaellee9926 nah, I don't thing that's even it. People just like to nit pick and complain. It's the norm in this culture and country. Everyone thinks they can do better on their iPhone 😆
@@bctalkspod I do agree with you on most of that. I am not going to completely judge the writing til it's done, cause it's really intriguing to me so far. Pacing wise, I do find it a little rough they are drawing some thi ga out way too long. The directing I do agree with a bit too, but am curious how much lack of budget/run time each ep is effecting it?? I do think there is a lot of depth that is being laid out story wise, and if they stick the landing the final two eps, I think we could be in for some really awesome story telling and projects in the future. And not just from this director
To be fair, I'm not sure how they could have kept the momentum up seeing as most of the people that were there last episode are dead and it's been made clear that neither Mae nor Osha stand a chance against Qimir and Sol is conflicted. But, generally speaking, I think you guys are right. This one may have been the weakest episode for me and I usually love denouement episodes where we pull back from the pace to assess what's happened and lick your wounds, etc.
I didn't even mind the Dark Side seduction though I feel like it's been done before and I always find Sith reasoning to be a bit specious, but the part that probably annoyed me the most was the weird stuff going onboard the Jedi ship. Sol seemed completely willing to just leave Basil on the killer moth planet with a possible Sith still running around then, whether he knew it was Mae from the start or not, but regardless, why wouldn't he have immediately gone back for Osha given, again, she's on a planet with killer moths and maybe a Sith still while unconscious? Why did Basil mess around with playing this weird hide and seek game instead of immediately going to Sol and telling him it was Mae, not Osha? I didn't have a problem with Sol jumping away from the incoming Jedi rescue team, but... if he wanted to avoid them, why send a sos message to begin with only to slip out at the last second?
As far as Osha being kinda deer in headlights, I don't mind it. How many of us knew exactly what we wanted in our... early/mid 20s? I know people who pretended they knew what they wanted in their early/mid 20s who are now in completely different fields or not what they imagined, but many people I knew may have had some idea of what they wanted to be, but many just didn't know (or didn't genuinely know where they were headed).
Finally, Rocha hit the nail on the head. I don't mind slow burn and I don't mind the long con, but this feels so much like a JJ Abrams Lost or some other mystery box show that just keeps dangling it in front of us w/o enough satisfying reveals or resolutions? And the internet will just freak out if they don't stick the landing b/c it feels like the entirety of the story hinges on it. The people who have been fans will be disappointed and it will just give ammunition to the people who've hated it all along (and they have the right to dislike it).
I think a lot of this would have been resolved if the episodes and/or season had been longer. I've seen this type of 'shorthand' of scenes and moments work well enough in TCW or Rebels where they have a scene or two and we immediately buy into the fact that Ezra is winning over the students at the Imperial Academy or a scene or two is meant to convey doubt in Ahsoka as to the identity of Vader, etc. It's worked in shows like TCW and Rebels, but eight, 30 min episodes haven't been enough to explore Osha's past, for example. They could have shown us her time as a Jedi student, becoming friends with Yord, developing her relationship and that single storyline would have added more weight to Osha /and/ Yorde. We could have seen Sol be like a doting father figure to Osha where we find out why the two of them are so close, we could have had a little bit of Jecki or Vernestra thrown in to show us how Jecki was brought up as a padawan and seen V having to navigate a Senate or Republic whose faith in the Jedi are slowly starting to crack or opportunists that simply want to poke at the Jedi even if their record to this point had been impeccable. It might have even afforded us a flashback episode of Qimir when he was a student and why he harbors such resentment towards the Jedi?
There's so much more that could have been explored that wouldn't have been superfluous to the story and, in fact, added to the weight of Yord and Jecki's fate, we may have been more invested in Osha's journey, we could have understood more where Sol and Vernestra are coming from. This stubborn adherence to short seasons with short episodes is doing them and us a disservice.
On the momentum bit, given that this was episode 6 of 8: Space chase/battle (Qimir boarding Sol’s ship maybe) between the two sides.
Instead of Sol putting in a call just his comms back off when they reach back out, have him try to call, Qimir damages the ship in a way that makes communication impossible on Sol’s end & now he’s panicking trying to get back to Coruscant before Qimir can stop him. Q manages to catch him/strand his ship mid-space, and upon boarding the ship, Q corners Sol & the episode ends on Sol being forced to tell the truth in front of both sisters.
Yes, that would’ve taken away Qimir & Osha’s back & forths, but whatever truth Sol would be about to reveal could be enough to replace the exposition & propel Osha completely away emotionally, still leaving her wide open for Dark Side corruption. It also would’ve dragged out Mae being discovered as herself & not Osha (assuming Sol didn’t immediately see through her anyway), and would give a more compelling reason to tune into the inevitable flashback episode that next episode will be because the person who actually needs to the truth (or at least needs to know the most), Osha, would be there to hear it from Sol
💯 my biggest issue w/ this ep, ep 4, & w/ just 2eps left casting a pall over my view of the show is the TRoS Finn’s “I’ve got something to tell you” of it all. 3x Sol gets interrupted/cutoff in just this ep alone !!!!🤬 w/ the last being a cut to black that is all but the end of the episode at which point I stood up and yelled “cummon !!!”.
They appear to have filmed 4hrs of content and chosen to / been mandated to deliver it in what has become an aggravating manner. 4&5 is one ep. I suspect 6&7 will play better together.
Last week felt like a turning point of sorts both for the “fans” (a bit) & for the characters that had me expecting to move further fwd than we do this ep. Osha is at least taking steps to move out of her damsel phase (taking up the knife & then the saber, choosing to stay, etc). But the worthwhile stuff is constantly being undercut by the packaging leading me to feel jerked around more than intrigued.
Ep 5 provides me w/ some optimism that they can stick the landing but if not… 😬
@@dkarrasEpisode 5 gives me confidence they can do a high action finale, but I dare not dream that the last episode will be narratively "good". I got the feeling that they were writing assuming they'd have another season.
@@bajansamurai Yeah, I hear ya. Laura is right in that Leslye has said that there are some mysteries that will remain unanswered by the end of this season that could be explored in the future. However in the interviews before the series aired she also said that she wasn’t interested in a cliffhanger finale type of storytelling & kind of recoiled against the trend of shows assuming that they are going to get renewed & thus not telling a complete story.
Both can be done to greater or lesser degrees so we shall see how successfully they’ll be able to manage that balance & if the mystery element pays off sufficiently in the time we have left.
One thing I’m struggling w/ (somewhat in general & somewhat in particular w/ the Buddie’s & Jedi Way rvws) right now is parsing out what issues I’m/ppl are having could be down to misaligned expectations/understanding of the archetypes being explored. Or if those are being understood but just not acknowledged & just simply are difficult to / not being portrayed in a not entertaining enough manner.
For me, I’m not as annoyed / frustrated as many are w/ the Osha/Mae storyline but I’m not massively emotionally connected to it either as it does indeed hang on the “what actually happened” of it all.
@@dkarras For me Osha/Mae are stiff, but I understood all of their behaviors right up until the [stereotypical] trust-the-bad-guy piece.
I agree with Laura that the helmet scene was more about Osha reconnecting with the Force than having fully turned to the Dark. I also read an interview with Headland where she confirms that the planet is NOT Ahch-To but that the parallels to it were purposeful.
I definitely saw her putting on the helmet bc she wanted to interact with the force in a new way, not necessarily her joining him all the way yet
Best of wishes to Kevin
Hey! Hey, guys! Sometimes, things happen even on the first date! I'm not appreciating the Sith shaming here just b/c it's only been a day or even a few hours!
😝🤣
This is still a completely left field theory/speculation for me, but the 'tipping of the scales' comment made me think that she is the Sith Lord (sorry, Laura and I know you've been consuming all the HR stuff and I have not) who sees her student grasping at things to 'tip the scales' to gain any advantage against his master, ie, her.
Also, Qimir may not be her first student, maybe he was her second or third or fourth, etc.
What did you think of this weeks numbers John?
Watch the review. It’s in there.
@@JohnRochaSaysFound the ref…Very disappointing aren’t they. I’m watching the show with an open heart but it’s not delivering the numbers…
If Qimir is Plagueis like folks are speculating, someday I need to see the scene when he took young Sheev to the island... "Somehow Palpatine... was skinny-dipping." 🤣
I’m hoping for a strong finish from the show. I’m enjoying the performances from Sol and Qimir, and they’re characters I’m going to add to my faves list.
As far as how I would improve the show, I’d give us more time with the twins. They’re supposed to be the anchor of the show but we haven’t spent enough time with them to care enough about this sister story.
The motivations for the switch was setup when they were kids and Osha was the one who wanted to leave her sister and be nothing like her. Mae is the one who has always sought to make up with Osha and initiate the "we are one" chant. Osha was always sort of the mean sister who to want to leave her family for a new one so not sure why everyone thinks this switch now is a big surprise. It fits into Osha's character of now leaving the Jedi for a new family in Qimer just like she was seduced by Sol when he asked her to become a Jedi, the same is happening now with Qimer.
@balkibartokomous I strongly agree with you. Osha's reaching for the helmet is just like she was always reaching for something new. Mae following Qimir should have been expected, because she likes to follow people who are stronger than she is and seeks there approval.
Growing up in the Original Trilogy time, I have actually really liked this show. I’ve wanted something new and we got it. I have liked the performances of Amanda Steinberg, Lee Jung-Jae, Daphne Keene and Manny Jacinto especially.
I think he’s the founding Ren and Venestra’s former padawan. The flaws are a bit major but I still like the series. Hopefully season two leans into the darkness. So much potential. 💯
Qimir, Kylo Ren: The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many gains some consider unnatural. 😂
20:15 That has been a big problem with Disney Star Wars where they rely on interviews or other products (💲💲💲) to either set up or explain scenes or part of the story. It should be clear in the story on the screen.
It's very ironic to me that Rian Johnson, who was widely criticized by Star Wars fans, left and went on to create one of the greatest modern Mystery franchises. Meanwhile the franchise he was basically kicked out of is now trying and failing at their own mystery lol This would probably be a lot more compelling of a show if Rian Johnson had written it
@@bctalkspod ruin Johnson is a hack. Anyone who thinks he's a smart writer is gravely mistaken. 🤦🏽♂️
I agree with Laura on Vern. And didn't know that she named her ship after Imri. Great touch. (Interesting thing given the Jedi are or are leading towards the practice of no attachments by this point.)
As for her and Brendok, unless she did stuff behind the scenes, she gave Sol the business about not telling her what went down on Brendok, so not sure if it's that. I'm leaning towards her having something to do with Qimir, if not being the master than cut ties with him. She's lived so long that it could fit Qimir's line about being a Jedi a long time ago.
Leslye Headland has said the unknown planet is not Ahch-To, but it was intentional to parallel it.
Smets you were missed this episode for sure!
Great breakdown John and Laura!
This series is slowly turning into the Madame Web of Star Wars streaming shows.
The problem for me with Osha -- even Mae -- is that she's a cypher. There is little established with either of them as characters with genuine lived-in wants. You can kinda see what they're trying to do, so you can kind of anticipate how things will go, but the emotional life is missing beyond the surface.
In general, they should have used the same gimmicky of those White House shows: walking through the corridors of the WH with intensity and purpose. Or just the basic GL direction : faster , more intense.
I think this was my favoriete episode of the acolyte so far.
Coming around to Smet's theory that the true Sith come and snuff out Qimir.
I don't Venstra is a Sith or Dark Side user. I think when she was a Wayfinder she saw a vision of the Dark Side rising. She stopped being a Wayfinder, put herself in charge of a bunch Jedi, and did terrible things to try and prevent that future
Grace Randolph there Jessica-Chastaining James Gunn, and John Rocha here putting Filoni on Hayword Island! 🤦🏻♂️😅 Dear goodness! Hahaha
@@gustavoolivieri6568 Yeah. I’m not. I’ve got pretty good sources on this, buddy.
I have seen a few other reactors say this was one of their favorite episodes. I personally lean more that way.
Episode 6+7 should've been one long episode
There was ZERO emotional impact on the two Jedi who went to investigate what happened to their fellow Jedi upon discovering them. They acted as if they were looking at the garbage of someone who littered in the forest as opposed to seeing their fallen comrades. It was ridiculous.
The green Star Trek Jedi even referred to them as “the bodies”. If you ever ventured upon you're dead loved ones or even your dead coworkers would you ever refer to them as the bodies at any point in such an emotionally detached way? This writing is strange.
The Sith antagonist seemed more Sith-like this week. When he first appeared he seemed off like a poser for some reason. But even with that positive, Leslie had to throw in more gratuitous beefcake moments.
And once again, the sets look like sets. Like small, cheap, obvious sound stages instead of real locations in the Star Wars universe.
Still love Sol but was overall bored with the episode besides that. I'm not feeling this show and unfortunately don't care how it ends up barring getting blindsided by any holy s revelations. I can't imagine them doing that in the next couple of episodes or doing anything major that would bring me back based on how this show has been thus far.
No one seems to remember , that mae has osha clothes in and sol never ask how did u get her clothes ? Did u kill her? Lets go back look for osha? Instead he says " i have to save osha , I've had 16 years to think of what ild say to you if i ever got ths chance, so ur going to listen!!" To the twin he thought was dead 😂? But leaves the planet not knowing what happened to osha cause remember he was knocked out, so never sees osha ! Make it make sense!
I agree with Laura that this episode is more about seduction to the dark side and manipulation than romance. Quimir just killed Osha's friends. She is becoming fascinated with his philosophy and how it allows her to accept parts of herself that she could not accept as a jedi. He is playing on deep seeded resentments she has against the jedi. They actually don't make sense as a couple.
@@paulab5264 Tell Leslye Headland that. She came out in an interview saying she supported people saying they should be a couple.
John &/or Laura, as U📺 is the only “social media” I wade into I don’t know what discussions you’re are / have been a party to elsewhere so I’m wondering if either of you have even engaged w/ any of “What the Force ?” podcast’s content ? Particularly w/ this show given the show runner & lead, WTF?’s analysis seem particularly à propos.
I ask because I haven’t been as frustrated over the motivations of the characters (aside from Sol re-enacting Finn’s “I’ve got something to tell you” over, & over, & over & the ep/show length exacerbating that). But I’m certainly more intellectually engaged than emotionally or simply purely entertained. At least enough to be more hopeful for a fulfilling outcome.
I’ve just been trying to parse out various takes on the show and the degree to which everything you’ve said about the show can also be true even in light of WTF?’s read on the details of what’s going on. Rather than writing an essay nobody would read, posing this ? seemed the simplest way to address what I’ve been wrestling w/ in regards to the very muddied overall conversation in regards to this particular show. Particularly the issue of if there’s an inherent challenge in presenting these archetypes in a manner that ppl are entertained by/enthused to engage w/ &/or what is the fault of this particular show.
Would love to know your thoughts based on WTF? as a particular touchstone.
Hey John, are you hearing ratings information from inside sources? Most reporting on the viewership for the show has it being a success, which could nab it a second season. More than one data firm has said the series is the second most watched D+ Star Wars series behind Kenobi, and the second most watched of all current series on D+ right now. Wouldn't necessarily be surprised if some (or all) of that is marketing, but it could also be doing better than would seem apparent.
That was early on. The numbers have dropped dramatically over the last three weeks.
Venestra is acting a sith lord. It is NOT A RIDICULOUS IDEA.
Laura is just being ridiculous in justifying Venestra.
U ever seen Attack on Titan Rocha? Very good show in case u haven’t seen it. Heavily regarded as one of Best anime of the last decade
I definitely need to check it out!
@@JohnRochaSays if u do check it out, avoid as many spoilers as possible. The story and characters are worth it 🤙🏽
Mid. It was mid.
Deep lol
Thoughts to Smets & the fam.
Only episode I’ve liked so far.
I felt like Osha putting the helmet on was to see if she could reconnect with the force. She tried and failed during the prison escape, and qimir mentioned Her Power, so i wonder if that was why she checked it out.
I also got zero sexual tension between Osha and Qimir. Just felt like a sith trying to corrupt.
Master Sol is the Sith Lord. His breakdown on the ship was because Qimir has stepped out of the shadows and ruined his undercover plan.
I don't have as much of a problem with the actor portraying Venestra as John and Laura. I mean I think Samuel L. Jackson's acting was a lot worse in the prequels. He seemed completely lost in those movies, probably due to George Lucas not being an "actors" director.
It's curious to me to look at Qimir and Osha as a romance. It doesn't read that way to me at all. This feels purely like seduction for his ends rather than some type of genuine affection.
Osha and Qimir are going to have a Sith wedding 😂
The alcolyte is a shitshow but the Jedi way is still on point 🤌
That kung fu panda stamp scene with Mae was pathetic.
It’s funny they went in expecting they were going to get a S2, I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t touch this era on screen again for a while.
What you are describing through all this analysis is just plain bad writing, combined with wooden acting, poor visuals, and no overall plan in the arc of the series or the characters. Have been muscling through this waiting for some kind of coherence and buildup to a satisfactory story. It just isn't there. And with 2 episodes left, the only thing they can do is get themselves out of the corner they have painted themselves into concerning the lore. This show isn't some kind of dark mystery, it's just a series that keeps leaving people tying their brains in knots trying to make it make sense. I won't even touch on the discourse and the split among fans, but I will say that blaming the fans for its poor performance is a bush league move.
Sorry for bitch n moanin this but it is a good episode and to summarize the episode the word...sematics comes on to play.
3:52 "Break-neck speed" too soon Rocha ... RIP Yord
Venestra has not been good and Amanda hasn't been much better.
I don't see how you can defend either.
It was manipulation not romance 😮
Tell Leslye that. She’s made it very clear that it’s an ETL situation and that she supports people shipping these two characters. 😮
@@JohnRochaSays Man, can we not? I'm tired of forced romances, especially in Star Wars. You're not going to recapture Han and Leia, stop trying. If you really need romance (and I'd argue you really don't in a story that includes celibate space monks) do something better than a trope that's been done to death.
The twins have ruined this show for me. Feel nothing for them.
Amendela is not the problem. The entire show is a half assed mess. The script is bad, the direction is bad, and the overall story is bad.
I understand the reaction of ardent fans to all that hate and trolling - they want to defend this show and all that they love - Star Wars.
But there's also truth in saying that love manifests also through harsh but fair criticism.
IMO, the Acolyte is not a good show In fact it is bad show, with some brilliant elements to it. It is characterised by
1. Bad, uninteresting exposition
2. Bad characterisation
3. Questionable character decisions that lack explanation
For example, when Mae tried to sneak up on Sol and knife him in the back... well, if that was her plan, she could have done this in episode 5, when he was unconscious, instead of wasting time on swapping clothes.
Despite the deludge of bullshit whining against this show, I have to concede, it is pretty bad.
Why would the mass criticism of this show be considered a "deluge of bullsh*t whining"... when you just conceded, it's bad. ???
@@dRoscoAZ Because most of criticism is bullshit whining. Ki-Adi-Mundi's birthday is bullshit whining - no one care about it until suddenly now, and legends have been retconned since 2013 as if that should be news to some. Lesbian space witches - present in SW since 2009 - is bullshit whining. Master Sol not sensing a dark-sider in his presence - which was Palpatine's whole deal since 1999 - is bullshit whining.
You guys focus on small, unimportant nitpicks that could be applied to any Star Wars movie. But - perhaps because many of you have very low media literacy - you ignore glaring issues.
@mreszotnik You keep saying "you guys"... I'm not those guys. Also, there are tons of valid criticisms being brought up. Don't even with the "media literacy" bs. You're not special or clever.
@@dRoscoAZ Yes, yes I am.
All valid concerns, but there are people who genuinely like/love the show, so there is some subjectively in your opinions.
It's a really immature show from a writing perspective.
I think this show will benefit from a more concise edit similar to Kenobi. The fan film of that show was really good; the show wasn’t.
I've heard people mention this, but my problem is that editing it to be shorter does nothing to add weight to the deaths of some of the characters or help to connect with the main ones. I think it'd be helped with the opposite to showcase more of the relationships or characters.
Imo, it’d benefit from the opposite. Where Kenobi needed to be shorter, this needed to be longer. We knew Kenobi, knew Vader, and already had been introduced to a version of Leia before the show, and while they weren’t the entirety of the central characters, it eliminated a lot of the gaps that needed to be filled.
Here we don’t know any of these characters (minus Vinestra) coming into it. We have no prior attachments to this cast, and therefore no true reason to care about most of them. More time to flesh them out would have done a lot
You guys are trying way to hard to find meaning and reason to these performances. This is just bad writing and acting. End of discussion
It's hilarious watching people try to pretend this show is good. 🤣🤦🏻♂️
This show Is bad……