Full spoilers ahead ahead The acolyte.
We’re now four episodes deep Star Wars: The Acolyteand it’s becoming increasingly clear that the show’s big Sith Lord reveal is going to be a major disappointment.
With episode 4 – simply titled ‘Day’ – dropping today (June 19) on Disney Plus, the latest series set in Lucasfilm’s iconic galaxy has officially reached its midpoint. But with four episodes to go before the final credits roll, I – and, judging by what I’ve read online, many other viewers – have already deduced the identity of this Star Wars TV show’s overarching villain.
This is your final warning: major spoilers follow The acolyte episodes 1 to 4. Turn back now if you are not overtaken.
Okay, let’s cut to the chase: the mysterious Sith Lord has Being Qimir. That’s right, the same Qimir – played with a pleasant detachment and goofiness by Manny Jacinto – who aids Mae in her quest to kill four Jedi Masters.
The signs were there from the very beginning – and I’m not just talking about the very first episode of the show. Look back to The acolyte‘s official trailer, and it was clear then that something was… out about Qimir as a character. As I noted in my article The acolyte‘s last trailer, Qimir, seemed at least a Sith sympathizer. Hey, you don’t say ominous, Sith-esque lines of dialogue like “peace is a lie” when you’re walking a righteous path.
The arrival of The acolyte episode 2 – Qimir did not appear in the show’s premiere – gave further support to the idea that Qimir was more sinister than he let on. How did he know that Mae could track down the self-exiled Wookiee Jedi known as Kelnacca on Khafor? How does he know his way around Khafor? Why was he so mysterious about the identity of the Sith Master? And, more importantly, why is he helping Mae in the first place?
As for the last of those questions, in Episode 4, Qimir claims he “owes” a favor to said Sith Lord. A nice cover story if ever there was one, Qimir… I’m on to you, Mr. Sith Master.
#TheAcolyte spoilersThat’s Qimir, right? There is no one else right now who this could be. He’s been everywhere, knows what the master wants, then disappears and the master appears pic.twitter.com/5pB87UtaOFJune 19, 2024
There’s a lot more evidence of where that came from. In Episode 4, Qimir continually brushes off Mae’s attempts to learn more about her mysterious Dark Side trainer. He suggests that he’s never seen that person’s face, and changes the subject when Mae starts digging a little too deep into what Qimir knows about their shared, Force-wielding contact.
Need more proof? How convenient is it that he leaves Mae halfway through the episode and in the last few minutes of “Day” we learn – along with Mae – that Kelnacca has been murdered by a mysterious assailant? The Wookiee Jedi was also killed with a lightsaber; the scorched flesh and knife-like wound are a clear giveaway. The arrival of the unnamed Dark Side wielder in the final moments of episode 4 also shows him wearing a cloak that bears more than a passing resemblance to Qimir’s. Oh, and let’s not forget how expressive Qimir’s hand gestures are; something we see similarly with the Sith’s rapid wrist movements in the final scene of episode 4.
#theacolyte spoilers, etc. the sith in question is qimir and his excessive hand gestures are what gave it away pic.twitter.com/kMlNvEaCnSJune 19, 2024
Okay, okay, I’ll get into the equation with that last piece of evidence. At this point, though, I’m convinced that Qimir is one of the big bad things about the best Disney Plus shows. I’d like to see this revelation as a deception – it is indeed possible that Qimir is the apprentice of a more notable Sith Lord that we have yet to see or hear about. It is also likely that Qimir is training Mae to become his apprentice. Once she passes this final test – that is, killing the four Jedi she holds responsible for the alleged destruction of her and Osha’s home and family in Episode 3 – she will be strong enough to help Qimir take down his Master. Qimir then becomes the new Sith Lord, Mae his apprentice, and ensures that the Sith’s Rule of Two doctrine is upheld.
However, based on the above evidence, all signs point to Qimir’s existence The acolyte‘s not-so-mysterious Sith Lord. Star Wars fans on the internet are as convinced as I am, by threads ResetEramultiple Star Wars Sub redditsand X/Twitter reveals that many agree on the series’ main villain.
I’ll happily eat humble pie if Qimir a) isn’t the Sith who appears in episode 4 and/or b) isn’t the main antagonist pulling the strings from the shadows. But halfway through the show, it’s painfully obvious that one of these things is true. For a show that indicated it would do things differently than previous Star Wars projects, I won’t be able to hide my disappointment if (and probably when) that turns out to be the case.