The Reel Rejects - THE ACOLYTE 1x08 Finale' Breakdown & Review!!!!

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Starting point is 00:01:22 Sierra, let's get moving. This week's video is sponsored by Acorns, the money app that makes it simple and cheap to make small yet significant investments. Let's do it, Michael. Yeah, I'm ready to be a shell one last time. Let's do it. Greg, have you ever heard of the tragedy of Darth Plagas the Wise? I have. This is exactly how I wanted him introduced in a live action.

Starting point is 00:01:53 The tragedy of Darth Plagueis, the wise, is that we met him officially, canonically, in live action in the season finale of the Acolyte. Like a creepy animatronic is how it looks like. You know, it's so interesting because I kind of, if it's okay, I want to split up my review into like two parts. here um i guess one is what i guess okay so part one is i want to talk about my feelings on the show as like a show and then i want to talk about the lore a little bit because there are some really cool things that i want to talk about um and so i'm just going to get out my my grumpiness really quick and then i want to talk about the stuff that i actually really enjoyed lore wise um i think we're going to talk about we should talk about plague us right away though that's

Starting point is 00:02:53 the one thing I'm saying we got to do first my one declaration yeah so plague us uh so first off uh super heat that he was there little creepy fingers uh i laughed when he showed him i was the exact opposite reaction i ever thought i would ever have to say You know, it's a, so I don't think that he and the stranger are interfacing or that they're connected is my personal hunch. He's just on that planet. Yeah, which lines up with the Plague's book, like, that all kind of checks the boxes of like some of the previous theories that we had. um he's currently at this point training with his master um and it was kind of this like weird like oh hey wait there's another sit going on over there um which is kind of like a funny you know

Starting point is 00:04:05 um uh i wonder if they're going to pull that thread any further or if that's it my gut feels like that might just be it um but also i kind of love this idea of if we are going to go down that rabbit hole, if there is one thing that the rule of two is very, very important, particularly to that line of SIF. And if you have

Starting point is 00:04:42 two wannabe Siff lords running around at the same time that you have Plagis and his master running around, Uh, you have an interesting plot thread for season two. Um, you know, so really, really kind of curious. Um, you know, uh, I'm pretty sure there's like timeline wise, still like a significant period of time for Plague is kills his master. Um, dude, spoilers for the spin off. Sorry. Spoilers, man. I don't, I don't, I don't, we're not seeing that. We need that. We need this. We have the spin off we got to get to, dude. I don't think we're ever seeing that live action. Yes. Yes, we are. I will will it in, like the wills.

Starting point is 00:05:28 I will will it into existence, Michael. Must there's a virgins of the force. I'll make it happen, buddy. But, yeah, you know, I still kind of maintain, I think that OSHA and the stranger are the origin of the Knights of Wren. And I think you kind of have this, the two paths. Thank God. Yeah, that's what I've been waiting for, man. I've been waiting for the origin of the Knights of Wren this entire time.

Starting point is 00:06:03 So you say that mockingly, but I actually have been waiting for the origins of the Knights of Ren because when the trailer dropped, the Thanksgiving weekend, you know, when the football game was going on for the Force Awakens. And it was like, the Knights of Wren. I was like, I'm so excited. They're going to like, there's going to be like a Sith version, the Jedi Order. And then they did nothing with it for three films except to introduce a bunch of them to just get really quickly slaughtered, you know, in episode nine. And I trust Disney Star Wars to to deliver properly. Well, one must appreciate the Disney Star Wars model of, hey, we're going to introduce something. something, and then over the course of multiple years and several Disney Plus shows,

Starting point is 00:06:56 retroactively try to explain that creative decision because there was zero thought put into it originally. Well, speaking of creative decision, I just got to ask though, Michael, as we're going through these parts of yours, can we just talk about whether or not you actually like this episode? I did not like this episode. I really wanted to I want the world to know that

Starting point is 00:07:27 like from start to finish I genuinely was rooting for the show like I've done my level-headed best to be positive about this and ultimately it comes down to just like none of the beats hit for me there was great ideas and concepts and elements that were played with.

Starting point is 00:07:52 I thought there were some really phenomenal actors, but none of it worked. And this episode kind of got to the heart of that where it was like, not only was everything just more than just predictable, the pacing was like exhausting. And it just felt so, just flat and and disappointing and you know i think that the challenges is that i think if i could

Starting point is 00:08:28 interject i think i think the one of the problems with the voice of this show is that it came across a little bit like more self-important than it really than it actually is it came across a little bit like like we're freaking deep and heavy and dramatic And I think it weirdly robs the show of a genuine sense of life behind it. And that was, like, I think, the biggest downfall for the experience. That being said, in this interjection, I actually had fun watching this finale. I did. I thought it was a fun finale.

Starting point is 00:09:11 And that's the thing that each part of this, each episode of this show is kind of of sprinkled with these wonderful moments of spectacle and these like little tiny tidbits that are like genuinely really enjoyable. And for me, that might even be the most frustrating part of the show, is that those sprinkles, especially as we got closer and closer to the end, were just a reminder of the potential. And I think you put that so well because it was almost like the show without having developed the characters and kind of earned it with the audience kind of elevated itself internally to like

Starting point is 00:09:55 we're this like premium elevated Star Wars series and then just wasn't you know but acted as though it was and you know and even like last week you know and like yeah the internet was a little hard on them you know but like drop in the song at the end like that was the decision that I think made because i think i think i think they genuinely thought that that episode was going to like break

Starting point is 00:10:24 the internet yeah and you know i i think again it's the most frustrating part is they had so many of the right general ideas and just very very sloppy execution um well i think the difference between you and i not not between you i'm not you and i but i have the difference that i think that I think we have when we're watching versus a lot of other people is that when when stuff that comes up that's like corny or not well done happens or there's like weird choice or bad like we we just laugh about it like we literally laugh about it and I'm sure it affects you more than it affects me because I I just have I'm just like that shit's hilarious this song the way they did plague is that's funny like they don't it's

Starting point is 00:11:18 It's not an intense. It's not a compliment to the creatives because they're not intending for it to be funny because they think they're like, you know, the most important thing that's ever existed. But I feel like that's kind of what you have to do when you watch this show. Yeah. You know, and it's, I empathize with the challenge of making Star Wars IP, you know, like it's a, it's a delicate balancing act of Star Wars means a lot of different things to different people, you know. So, like, trying to create something that, like, for somebody that grew up during the prequel era or the original trilogy, you're talking to two very different audiences. Yeah. And I think that the challenge that this series had is that it didn't quite, I think, hit the mark for either of those buckets. And I think it was attempting, at least this was my impression of it, and maybe I'm reading it wrong. But I think it was attempting to bring in a different audience that is not typically a Star Wars audience or trying to maybe give those that are fans of Star Wars who don't necessarily always have a lot of content that is geared towards them, just a little something more unique, which I appreciate that.

Starting point is 00:12:39 I've always kind of said I feel like one of my favorite parts about the franchise is that there's a little something for. everybody you know um you know whether you're somebody that like loves the clone wars you know or somebody that plays the games or reads the books or comics like there is genuinely a piece for everybody when it comes to star wars um i think the challenge is um so you you appreciate intention oh yeah well exactly i i don't i don't think that uh there can be a world in which this giant franchise it's a freaking galaxy uh In fact, now we've established at least two galaxies of stories that we can play in. There's more than enough room for us to have, like, really dark, gritty, like, adult Star Wars, and then, like, kids' content and also, like, content that skewed towards different demographic.

Starting point is 00:13:38 There's more than enough room for everybody. I think the problem is this show, genuinely, I don't really know. know who was meant for at the end of the day and I don't think it ever really found that base and in the process I think it did a pretty good job at alienating no pun intended a lot of folks and you know I think the challenge is is that it gets to the heart and I've said this before there is no overarching creative vision for this franchise it is just a churning out of content And because there is no shared thematic voice and because there is no concrete vision, the execution is always going to be inconsistent and people are going to continue to be disappointed. And it doesn't matter, you know, what they, you know, you can have a good one-off here and there.

Starting point is 00:14:35 But there was going to be this continued disappointment as time goes on. What did you think about soul dying? You know, it's, it sucks because I feel like the souls, at least this is what I took from it. Souls continued rationalization of the situation made me not feel the way I think I was supposed to feel about his death. like the way that he handled the conversation with May afterwards immediately it just

Starting point is 00:15:15 it didn't hit there was no emotional impact for me which is awful because the entire series I have said soul is my favorite character and then he dies and I feel nothing which either makes me deeply emotionally damaged or means there's a problem with the show

Starting point is 00:15:34 and I'm going to go ahead and blame the show and not myself, because that's easier, Greg. I'll say, though, that, like, I was, I kept hoping, like, genuinely hoping that they wouldn't kill him off, even when he was being choked and everything, even though it was like, it was really obvious OSHA was going to do it. I did have that voice in the back of my, in my head and in my heart that was like, I'm kind of hoping that they actually, I'm really hoping they don't actually do it. So I was, I was bummed.

Starting point is 00:16:06 And I think the choice, like, it makes sense that OSHA would do it, but at the same time, it's like, the way they got to that decision just felt a little bit. It was so fast. It was so fast. Like, they didn't really make, like, a moment out of it. If she had two episodes with The Stranger, OSHA's whole turn is, like, stupid. Like, I hate the way it's handled. Like, I hate the way OSHA's turn is handled. I hate the way, like, OSHA and may are kind of just written in general.

Starting point is 00:16:33 And even Venestra, like, writing him off and. death like which like fine i get but also like hear me out like what if what if osha started to force choke him and then like like crushed his vocal chords but changed her her mind yeah and then soul was still held accountable and framed for all of this and couldn't speak and couldn't like be honest about it but had to like like it could have been so much darker and worse and more powerful and you know you could have done so much more with it um and you know and you could come back with this character you know who later could just sit in silence with with may you know and that whole memory wiping thing i was just like i don't know where i've

Starting point is 00:17:26 seen that before but i'm like why have we why is this so predictable why is this so you know it's That's one of the biggest problems with the show, too. It's such a mystery show, but every theory and prediction, for the most part, like 99% of the time has come true. So when they have these like reveal moments or turn moments that the way the show treats it other than like a casual throwaway line, like, hey, it's my former pupil when he's talking to this person who doesn't have a memory. that that that is it doesn't have an impact because you're like well yeah we all suspected this you know it's pretty obvious like a lot of time it's obvious and it's also the kind of thing that you know you might hear even if you're not the one who theorizes it you're if you if you hear like a theory going around and it's like oh yeah that's probably likely it becomes like a most likely

Starting point is 00:18:24 and listen like let's give the benefit of the doubt of like the internet's a big place there's going to be a theory for everything i think the challenges these were really on the nose right yeah like um it's the biggest problem you know i mean venestra being the master to the stranger was like dur like that was that was so such low-hanging fruit um yeah i i just um And to your point, you know, when we met that senator, uh, oh yeah, he was a great addition. Shit. That would have been amazing.

Starting point is 00:19:08 Some kind of stakes or context. And because, because that was something that I was just like trying to find the, what's the freaking oomph here? Because you're painting the Jedi as as evil, you know, like that's, that's what they're doing. And I understand what they are getting at, but you have to contextualize it with the politics. Of, like, the whole Jedi order is at risk.

Starting point is 00:19:32 Like, the whole system falls apart if the truth comes out. And it puts the audience into an interesting spot where they're in the moral quandary of having that debate themselves of what would they do? And instead of allowing that to happen, we just, we literally watched them, like, commit some atrocious acts. There was no actual moral quandary. it was pretty clear that what the Jedi did was atrocious. The cover-up had zero stakes, and then by the time that there was any kind of, like, political element or any kind of thing that would make us really empathize or agree with the Jedi, Venestra then goes, turns around and does it again, but somehow even worse. And, like, and then we make Yoda potentially complicit in it, which somehow is like, oh, you know. would be, that would honestly, like, not be, I would probably laugh at it at first and then I would

Starting point is 00:20:33 be upset at it. I want to take a quick moment to thank today's sponsor, Acorns. I first heard about this investment app from Dwayne the Rock Johnson. Not directly, I just saw an ad for it. And I was like, let's try this out because let's be real. Investing can feel like a daunting task. And many people, myself included, don't know where to start most of the time. I have many friends who invest impart their wisdom to me and I still get overwhelmed by the

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Starting point is 00:21:53 risk. Acorns Advisor LLC and SEC registered investment advisor. View important disclosures at acorns.com slash rejects. All that being said, I do vouch for them. And so does Dwayne the Rock Johnson. If they did. Well, I mean, I mean, that's why the internet was feeling about

Starting point is 00:22:09 the Kiadi Moondi piece. Like, you know, not only did they change his birth date, which like, whatever, like, I can live with that. Um, but like to make it so that he was privy to the fact that like somehow the Sith returned, even though he was in the Jedi high council at the time during the phantom menace when he's like well what do you mean the sieve

Starting point is 00:22:28 haven't been around at a thousand years you know like so like and she addressed him as master and and for the for that to come in and for yoda to have trained like this downline of this like awful jettine it's kind of crazy no it's you begin to be like is the real villain here yota The track record ain't great. You know, so it becomes this sort of challenging, like, listen, I think it's okay to play around with, like, okay, the principle of what the Jedi are. And listen, like, the sequel trilogy played around with this. Like, you know, it's like when Luke, like, tried getting rid of the books and all that, you know, like, the institution of the Jedi, in many ways, runs counter to what the Jedi represent.

Starting point is 00:23:21 And I think this would have been a really interesting opportunity to play around with, like, yeah, how did the Jedi order end up in the debacle that they were in by the time of the prequels? Yeah. And instead, we just end up with like, wow, this is just amateur hour. Like, they're just doing like war crimes and coverups. And like, you know, meanwhile, the senator who's a jerk who comes in is like, hey, I don't mean to be a conspirators. theorist at all, but, like, what happens if one day one of you decides to turn to the dark side, kill all the other Jedi, and then overthrow our democratically elected government and turn it into an empire? You know, he, like, kind of spot on predicted exactly what was going to happen, you know? Now, granted, that's what the writers were intending.

Starting point is 00:24:12 But the point being is that this show drove me crazy in that there was so much potential. I personally just kind of understanding the viewership numbers and the cost for the series have a hard time imagining them getting a second season, at least with their current budget, you know, or it being matched as it is now. You know, they probably have to get some like kickass showrunner, some like good, some name behind it to get people excited if they were going to do it. you know personally i would if i were them uh i would i would come up with a new name to remove the baggage and uh i would bring in a different showrunner and and some really quality writers and um you know continue part of that story um you know but i'm also like you know make it a book uh you know god i'm gonna get so much hate for that but i just you know it's uh i guess it's it's frustrating for me um and i know you feel the same way so like

Starting point is 00:25:32 you know uh i'm a producer like that's what i do um it's tough at a moment in our industry when there are so few things getting greenlit and going up and you see a show that receives such a large budget and you think about all the amazing series that could be made if you were to just take this budget and split it up and like send it out to a bunch of great creatives that can work on a tighter smaller budget and it's hard for me to justify it when it's not really doing anything that is innovative or pushing the creative limits and like, yes, did I

Starting point is 00:26:15 absolutely love watching a lightsaber chyber crystal bleed in a real time? Absolutely. That's cool. Like, did I enjoy watching a wookie lightsaber battle? Yeah, absolutely. Um, but like, do I think that

Starting point is 00:26:30 it's like worthy of the mantle of Star Wars and worthy of the budget? No, I don't. um and uh you know and if they've got something that is let's go for it let's do it but like what made star wars the original and the prequels you know for all their faults and and even the animated series like what made all of these things so special it wasn't that they were perfect it's that they pushed the creative limits they did something different that hadn't been done

Starting point is 00:27:03 before and they weren't scared to try something new and i think my challenge with this is that there was nothing innovative or interesting about what was being done here um the creative risk were wholly predictable which means they weren't very risky um and you know in terms of the technology in terms of all there there was there was nothing that that had that edge to it and at the of the day like what makes star wars so special uh is just that um and you know it's it's why i love this this franchise um it's it's why so many filmmakers were inspired to get into the craft um but i can't believe that there is any like young filmmaker that's going to watch the acolyte and at the end be like i want to make movies you know i want to make tv um and i think that's the

Starting point is 00:28:03 date is, you know, if you want to make Star Wars, make something that's going to inspire the next generation of storytellers. I will say it is the first Star Wars show that feels the least lived in. Like it feels small and not in a complimentary way. And that's where I think that's what ultimately lends things that when you hear the complaints of things feeling like cosplay and stuff is because of that. Like it actually doesn't feel lived in. There's something that feels like artificial about it.

Starting point is 00:28:33 And you can't do that with Star Wars. That's the whole point of escaping into the galaxy far, far away. And they really missed the mark on that. And I like the fight scenes, though, a lot. I like the fights a lot. I feel like that's where, like, their most creed. That was, like, the one thing they really nailed down was let's do fights that are as good or second best to the prequels, you know? And I think that was, like, their best thing that a lot of people would confidently subscribe to.

Starting point is 00:29:03 Yeah. And, and hey, if they do get a season two, I'm hopeful that, you know, they hear this as, like, a loving critique. And I hope that, like, it's, they won't. It gets better. No, probably not. You know, but I think that's also a culture shift that needs to happen of, like, like, fans push back. It doesn't necessarily mean that, like, you should shut them out from the conversation. I think it means that you should listen because somewhere between all of the BS and the hate mail

Starting point is 00:29:38 are some really valid concerns and criticism. And in the love that they received, and there is people that genuinely enjoy the show, there's some really great strengths that they should continue to lead on. And I hope that if this does get a second season, that they do just that. In the meantime, Greg,

Starting point is 00:30:01 with whatever Star Wars content comes next, I will do my best to maintain my positivity and to be a force of good and kindness and joy but to all of those who joined us

Starting point is 00:30:17 on this journey. Thank you. For the hate mail, for the death threats, for calling us shills and soy boys and all the other fun things. No, genuinely there was a lot of passion in this one and um uh you know for all the for all the feelings uh it says something about star wars that we care enough to even take the time out of her day

Starting point is 00:30:43 to watch it and to write about it and um thanks for going on the ride with us and uh thank you know gregg thanks for taking me along um it's always a pleasure to to be your co-pilot amen to that brother anyhow we'll see you guys for the mandol I know who Landon Miller really is. Who's Landon Miller really? I want you to do some detective work here. Okay. Without giving away his full email.

Starting point is 00:31:14 Okay. What's the first part of his email? Okay. Do you want me to answer this out loud or just no to it to myself? It's a T. Okay. T. And then what's his last name?

Starting point is 00:31:29 Miller. It's T.J. Tim Miller. This is extraordinary. Tim Miller. It's Tim Miller, and he's hiding here in plain sight. Dude. Why would his email start with a T?

Starting point is 00:31:45 But then his username start with Landon? Is that even a real name that people have? But he kind of wants to be discovered, so he put his real surname in there. Yeah, people, I mean, if you're going to that degree of, you know, puzzle making, you want to be recognized. for it. We won't turn our back on Ryan Reynolds. He's brought us Wolverine again. Yeah. So despite whatever problems you've had with him in the past, that all can go straight down the pipes. Because we are here to support Ryan. You selfish bastards, showing up in our Patreon. What do you think we're going to give Terminator Dark Fate a better review now?

Starting point is 00:32:23 Oh, hell no. No, you ruined John Connor. You ruined John Connor. You specifically. It was going so well. until you showed up with that sequel we had uh nick kroll who's the guy in the third one doesn't matter then we had stalled we had john clark was his name we had jason clark jason clark jason clark we had christian bail oh my god forgot about that one they were all great they were great until you showed up t muller had to go and rub your face all over it or it could be t j miller it could be t j miller another dead another guy who's had a falling out with ryan wren What's with the T. Miller's having fallouts with Ryan Reynolds?

Starting point is 00:33:04 All of the T. Miller's, eh, you know, that's why he went by Landon because he sees that there's a consistency of being a Tim Miller, you will be excused from coming on to a Deadpool film. Exactly. And so he wanted to hide by this identity because he thinks he might get into a Deadpool film. Yeah, he's like, maybe if I change my name a little bit, but still use a different director's name. Disgusting. You should be proud of your sick. You should be proud of your sick. Jordan change his name?

Starting point is 00:33:30 Or did everyone start showing up to Cree because they thought legendary basketball player was starring in the new Rocky franchise? He's going to do the stretchy arm again. But for a punch this time. That would have been cool, though. That would have been cool. Actually.

Starting point is 00:33:44 Tim Miller, if you could get Michael Jordan to do a Creed sequel, I think that would be the moneyest. Just leak the footage. Just do like a Deadpool all over again. Film a proof of concept with Michael B. Jordan versus is Michael, Jordan, and then, you know, think of all the merchandising.

Starting point is 00:34:04 Then you could do a Creed Space Jam crossover, so many sneakers you could sell, branded gloves and whatnot. So true, John. Dude. So true. All the Millers. Keep it up. All right.

Starting point is 00:34:17 We did. We did it. We love you.

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The Reel Rejects - THE ACOLYTE 1x08 Finale' Breakdown & Review!!!!

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