Star Wars: The Acolyte

The Acolyte was a show that featured a fandom divided between people who genuinely loved the series and grifters who harassed others to monetize hate. While not a perfect show, The Acolyte should have been celebrated for trying many new things, its diversity in front of and behind the scenes, and how it presented so much extended universe lore on a silver platter. Instead, the ugly side of fandom became so loud that it showcased the ongoing issues of our society. It featured the problems of how toxic social media has become and how YouTube leaves the door open for fans to be targeted. The Acolyte is the perfect example of how broken the current TV streaming model is as it collapses across all networks. It displayed the cowardice of Lucasfilm, leaving their actors out to fend for themselves against racist and bigoted vitriol. Star Wars fans shouldn’t have to be genuinely scared for the wellbeing of the child actors from Skeleton Crew, but here we are. This show was a wake-up call for many Star Wars fans. People loved The Acolyte. Sadly, it was the horrible fandom that took over the narrative of this series.

The two weeks that aired “Night” and “Teach/Corrupt” were some of the most peaceful weeks I can remember in fandom, a big thanks to Manny Jacinto. His reveal as the Sith Lord and how sensually he tempted Osha with the dark side, balanced with his brutality of slaughtering Jedi around him was some of the best Star Wars television in a long time. The Acolyte is also a rarity in that it is Star Wars is written from a female gaze and these episodes truly fed the girlies and the gays well.

If Star Wars has taught us anything, it's that the hate will pass. People hated The Empire Strikes Back as a sequel, the Prequels, Ahsoka Tano in The Clone Wars, and every single new thing introduced into this franchise. With time, The Acolyte will continue to find its audience, its place, and, like everything listed above, the love that it deserves once we have moved away from the negative noise.