‘The Acolyte’ Episode 2 Recap

Editor’s Note: This recap contains spoilers for The Acolyte Episode 2.

The Big Picture

• The Acolyte
  Episode 2 adds more depth to the overarching murder-mystery plot.
• The series introduces a charming new scoundrel in Manny Jacinto’s Qimir.
• Like Episode 1, the second episode works best as a two-episode premiere.

The Acolyte’s premiere works best if you immediately hit “Next Episode” as soon as the credits roll on Episode 1. Written by Jason Micallef and Charmaine DeGrate, and directed by Leslye Headland, Episode 2 builds on the anxiety-inducing murder plot introduced in the first, as Mae (Amandla Stenberg) sets out to kill the next Jedi on her hit list. The episode opens on the local Jedi Temple on Olega, where Mae has recruited a local child to do her dirty work. With the child’s help, Mae manages to break into the temple and track down Master Torbin (Dean-Charles Chapman), who is peacefully meditating in the heart of the temple. As with Master Indara (Carrie-Anne Moss), Mae tries to instigate a fight, but given his meditative condition, her attempts are thwarted. Before she can figure out how to levy a death blow to the seemingly impenetrable Jedi, the Temple raises the alarm that someone has broken in, and Mae is forced to flee through the roof before she is caught.

On the other side of the galaxy, Osha (Stenberg) makes herself comfortable on the Jedi ship on Carlac where she offers some friendly meknek advice to Jecki (Dafne Keen) about how to make the ship even more functional. Despite Sol’s (Lee Jung-jae) belief that his former Padawan is innocent, Jecki clearly has her reservations about trusting Osha. But they do have a sweet moment where the two might actually be bonding before Yord (Charlie Barnett) puts a swift end to that. He’s so cocksure, which isn’t unusual for the High Republic-era Jedi, but it sets up a lot of potential character growth as he realizes he isn’t actually all that and a slice of polystarch bread.

Via hologram, Vernestra (Rebecca Henderson) reports that there has been another attack, this time on the Jedi Temple on Olega, which makes it impossible that Osha is their suspect. This lends more credence to Osha’s belief that her sister somehow survived the fire on Brendok and is now attacking the Jedi who were stationed near their village. Vern agrees to Sol’s plan to bring Osha with them to investigate the attack, which further annoys Yord — who still doesn’t believe in her innocence.

Manny Jacinto Is a Questionable Scoundrel in ‘The Acolyte’ Episode 2

Back on Olega, The Acolyte introduces audiences to Manny Jacinto’s squirrely scoundrel Qimir. When Mae comes to find him in the apothecary they’ve taken over, he’s taking a nap without a care in the world. She frets over the fact that Master Torbin was essentially impenetrable and worries about fulfilling this step in her mission. Since she can’t easily strike him down, she asks Qimir to make a poison for her. Through this brief conversation, it is revealed that Qimir isn’t just an ally of Mae’s, but someone who also works for the Sith Lord she is an acolyte to.

Star Wars has a very long history of showcasing lovable scoundrels who do the dirty work of warlords, Sith Lords, and every other unspeakable evil in between, but there is something different about Qimir that Episode 2 seems to examine. Smugglers like Han Solo (Harrison Ford) or guns-for-hire like Fennec Shand (Ming-Na Wen) have never been shown as so breezy or carefree about their exploits. It’s this casual indifference that makes Qimir a real mystery box of potential. Why exactly is this aloof scoundrel working for a Sith Lord with a Jedi kill list?

What Exactly Happened on Brendok?

Across the first two episodes of The Acolyte, the series has dropped a handful of hints about what happened to Mae and Osha when they were children. Up until this point, we have learned that Mae was responsible for the fire that killed their family, and that Sol rescued Osha, but very little has been said about what the Jedi were doing on Brendok. As Sol and Osha discuss the past, it’s clear that Sol carries a lot of guilt over what happened that night, in addition to the guilt he carries about Osha’s decision to leave the Jedi Order. He worries that he wasn’t a very good teacher to her.

The Jedi arrive on Olega just in time for Mae’s second attempt on Master Torbin’s life, where these questions about what really happened on Brendok are carried through into the encounter. When Sol, Yord, Osha, and Jecki speak with the Jedi at the temple, they learn that Master Torbin hasn’t spoken to anyone in ten years—which makes it even more profound that he comes out of his meditation to speak with Mae. Mae gives Torbin an ultimatum: confess his alleged crimes to the Jedi Council or be poisoned. He suggests that whatever happened on Brendok was something that everyone involved with deeply regretted and, in a rather surprising twist, he takes her up on the offer to die by poison. He takes the vial, downs the poison, and falls dead before an unexpectedly shocked Mae.

As the Jedi head off to see Master Torbin, Osha breaks away from the fold to follow a figure that looks exactly like the vision of her sister she saw on Carlac. Yord trails after her, and thank the Force for that. The figure leads Osha to Master Torbin’s body, just as Sol and the rest of the local Jedi enter the room, which leaves her looking like the prime suspect once again. Thankfully, and perhaps disappointedly, Yord assures them that Osha couldn’t have killed Torbin because he was dead when they arrived. Osha recognizes the scent of the poison: it’s bunta, a poison from her homeworld, which makes it even more obvious that Mae is behind these killings.

The Jedi Pull a Fast One on Qimir in ‘The Acolyte’ Episode 2

Master Torbin’s death leaves the Jedi with a lot of questions. There is no sign of struggle, suggesting that Torbin willingly took the poison, which doesn’t make sense to any of them. The fact that he was killed with poison at least gives them a lead to investigate the local apothecary, which is presently being occupied by a mysterious man who isn’t the regular shopkeep. Jecki suggests that Osha should go and speak with the man in hopes that he will mistake her for Mae and give up vital details about the murder. Sol and Yord seem hesitant about the plan, but Osha agrees to disguise herself as her sister.

Qimir seems surprised that Mae has returned so soon and assumes that she got away with killing Master Torbin without the use of the poison. As the Jedi listen in on the conversation, they catch a cryptic comment: “He will be so pleased.” Who is the he in question? As Osha and Qimir dance around topics that Osha isn’t privy to, Qimir realizes he isn’t talking to his ally. The Jedi descend upon the apothecary before Osha gets herself into danger, and Qimir pleads ignorance when they question him about what Mae is up to. He claims he is just a supplier, but no one seems convinced by that explanation. Sol questions Qimir about who the “he” is, but all Qimir gives up is that Mae is looking to kill four Jedi and will return to the apothecary later that evening.

The Jedi decide to stake out the apothecary as they wait for Mae to return. Sol worries that Osha is looking for revenge against her sister for what happened when they were children and that it could lead her down a similarly dark path. Osha does seem rather vengeful toward her sister and tries to justify those feelings by pointing out that if Mae is looking to kill four Jedi, Sol will be one of them. After all, there were four Jedi on Brendok that night: Master Indara, Master Torbin, Master Sol, and Master Kelnacca (Joonas Suotamo).

Happy Reunions Are Overrated in ‘The Acolyte’ Episode 2

Despite being one of the Jedi that Mae is likely targeting, Sol is the one to confront her when she returns to the apothecary that evening. Mae tries to instigate a fight again, just as she has with Indara and Torbin, but Sol is only interested in talking. They do have a short tussle, which proves to be a very fun fight to watch, but it’s short-lived. Sol reveals that Osha survived the fire on Brendok, but Mae doesn’t believe that to be true. She believes her sister died, which might explain why she’s targeting the Jedi who were involved in that traumatic night. Mae doesn’t believe Sol, even when Yord steps in to confirm this fact. Feeling cornered, Mae taps into the Force to create a sandstorm as a cover to escape.

As Mae makes a break for it, she crosses paths with Osha, and they’re both so startled to see their twin looking back at them. Osha aims her blaster at her sister, but when she pulls the trigger she misses, and it ends up giving Mae cover to escape into the city proper without being caught. At this point, it’s hard to tell where things might go for the sisters. There’s clearly a lot of trauma in their past that has shaped them into very different people. And given the fact that Mae isn’t acting entirely on her own, there’s a Sith Lord standing between them too.

Mae is rightfully pissed that Qimir all but sold her out to the Jedi, but not mad enough to part ways with her ally. As the episode draws to a close, the duo prepares to track down the next Jedi on their hit list: Kelnacca, who is stationed on Khofar. While viewers will have to wait until next week to see if Mae will fulfill her mission, Episode 2 does take audiences to Khofar, albeit briefly. Before the credits roll, The Acolyte shows Kelnacca milling about in the thick jungles of the planet without a care in the world. After the High Republic novels introduced Star Wars fans to the endearing Wookiee Jedi named Burryaga and Star Wars: The Clone Wars gave us Gungi, fans have been clamoring to see the concept play out in live-action with Kelnacca, so it’s safe to say that ending Episode 2 on this cliffhanger was a smart decision to get people excited about where the story is headed.

While Episode 1 and Episode 2 are excellent on their own, they ultimately work best as a paired debut. The plot has a chance to really play out between the two installments, creating an even more compelling story as audiences get a little more time to meet these brand-new characters and the high-stakes mystery they’ve been thrown into.

The Acolyte premieres June 4 on Disney+ with its first two episodes, followed by new episodes released weekly.

Watch on Disney+