Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Publisher, Christian Black/Disney+
We all know the Skywalker saga. We’ve watched the journeys of Luke, Leia, and Han, of Rey, Finn, and Poe. But the theatrical Star Wars movies tell a few decades’ worth of story on a much vaster timeline. The franchise’s latest TV show, The Acolyte, begins about 100 years before we ever met Anakin Skywalker, toward the end of a galactic dominion called the High Republic.
In the real world, the High Republic brand launched in 2021, as Lucasfilm Press’s first major initiative since Disney bought the Star Wars IP. Beginning with Charles Soule’s novel, Light of the Jedi, the books and comic books explore an earlier era of a republic that would eventually decline and collapse into the Galactic Empire. Setting The Acolyte at that point in the timeline raises questions for anyone with a Disney+ login who might be wondering who characters like Vernestra Rwoh are or what they have to do with the Skywalkers’ later space operas. But don’t worry, we’ve read the sacred Jedi texts so you don’t have to. Here’s what you need to know about the High Republic before lighting up The Acolyte.
The High Republic refers to a time period approximately 500 years before the Rebellion destroyed the Death Star to 100 years before that event. Both the Galactic Republic and the Jedi Order are at the height of their power in an age of prosperity and innovation, as the Republic expands further into the Outer Rim and brings resources to the poorer Galactic Frontier, but one that was not without conflict, despite the opening crawl of The Acolyte premiere. In that political climate, a group of anarchic raiders known as the Nihil emerge. They manipulate hyperspace and cause an accident called the Great Disaster that results in deaths across the galaxy. That is the inciting incident for the books, and over time we learn more about why the Nihil and their leader, Marchion Ro, hate the Jedi.
But you don’t need to know that to watch The Acolyte. According to showrunner Leslye Headland, the High Republic books are not required reading; on the timeline, they start 150 years or so before her show. There’s no direct narrative connection that we know of yet. The novels depict a weakening of both the Republic and the Jedi, building toward The Acolyte’s setting as the “final days of the High Republic.” The first two episodes of The Acolyte showcase the Jedi’s hubris and their failure to even contemplate the return of the Sith as a threat.
The books’ Nihil leader, Marchion Ro, is a villain for the ages thanks to his cunning and his absurdly cool aesthetic (think Darth Vader meets Thor). Under him, the Nihil attack the Chancellor and the Jedi directly, destroying a key symbol of Republic prosperity in a massive Outer Rim space station, then form the Occlusion Zone — a conquered portion of the galaxy bounded by an impenetrable barrier known as the Stormwall, which allows passage only to Nihil ships. That said, Marchion Ro is not a Sith lord like Darth Vader. The echoes of his and the Nihil’s actions linger in the Jedi and Republic’s reputation across the galaxy, but he’s unlikely to appear in The Acolyte.
One is confirmed in the trailers: Vernestra Rwoh. During the novels, Vernestra is a young but prodigious Jedi Knight, famous for her purple lightsaber, which can be modified into a light whip (which is as dope as it sounds). The show will see Vernestra as an older and wiser figure, played by Rebecca Henderson. Our favorite diminutive green Jedi — Master Yoda, who is alive in this era, and Master Yaddle, a female Jedi of the same species — appear in the novels, but Headland has been coy as to whether they’ll be in The Acolyte. The rest of the cast is made up of original characters for the show, but it’s fair to assume there could be some name-drops of popular characters from the books, like Avar Kriss and Elzar Mann.
Honestly, no, you probably won’t. But that’s one of the joys of the show and of the High Republic at large. The Acolyte has the chance to take a lot of viewers out of the relative comfort zone of the Skywalker-saga years, which can only be a good thing.
This is Star Wars after all, so sneaky genealogical reveals are always possible. Having said that, one of the reasons for the High Republic’s popularity is its focus on originality, away from all of the Skywalker-saga stuff. Tying them together with a random Kenobi ancestor, for example, doesn’t feel like it would be in the spirit of the era.
What’s a Star Wars show without a Glup Shitto for hard-core fans to delight in? The Acolyte has the potential for two: one which book lovers would get a kick out of, and another that would have fans of the Prequel Trilogy re-enacting the Leonardo DiCaprio meme from Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood.
Book fans might catch a glimpse of Geode — a sentient rock without arms, legs, or a mouth but with incredible navigation skills and a knack for flirting. Nope, doesn’t make sense to anyone else, either, but we love him anyway. And it’s also not out of the question that we see the four-armed diner owner Dexter Jettster — who shows up in High Republic comics but is best known for identifying Obi-Wan’s mystery dart in Attack of the Clones while scratching his ass in full view of his customers. Those comics and the rest of the books might not be required reading, but the details still matter, after all.
