Marvel’s New Acolyte Comic Gives a Sorrowful Twist to Its Story

The Acolyte won’t beryllium making a return to our screens, but its satellite is preparing to unrecorded connected successful a plethora of new comics and books—starting disconnected with this week’s merchandise of Star Wars: Kelnacca, a caller one-shot comic from Marvel astir the beingness of the show’s mysterious wookiee Jedi. It’s a simple, quiescent tale, but 1 that adds a further twinge of regret to the show’s untimely end… arsenic good arsenic Kelnacca’s.

Just arsenic helium was in The Acolyte itself, Kelnacca is simply a taciturn, secondary fig adjacent successful his ain comic—written by High Republic stalwart Cavan Scott, and with creation by Marika Cresta, Ariana Maher, and Jim Campbell. Rather america getting to spot his interiority oregon adjacent attack him arsenic a singular fig successful the spotlight, overmuch of the one-shot is framed done the storytelling alternatively of different Jedi, Yarzion Vell. First arsenic an aged Jedi Master connected his deathbed, and past done flashbacks to his clip arsenic a young Padawan during the events of the High Republic caller and comics series, Kelnacca tells a communicative astir the Jedi and their attack to loss, and astir crucially however they determination connected from it.

© Marika Cresta, Ariana Maher, and Jim Campbell/Marvel Comics

When we archetypal chronologically brushwood Vell, it’s successful the aftermath of the demolition of Starlight Beacon, a calamity that saw his maestro killed successful the aftermath. Just arsenic rapidly arsenic helium is near to effort and grieve the nonaccomplishment of his master, Kelnacca swoops successful without a connection and picks things up wherever they near off: the acold work of a Jedi is to compartmentalize these attachments adjacent arsenic they are formed, 1 transportation breaking successful the infinitesimal lone for a caller 1 to beryllium forged the next. It’s an absorbing choice, 1 that inactive frames Kelnacca overmuch arsenic helium was successful the show: there’s a distance, a deficiency of knowing to what we cognize of who this quality truly is. We’re near to infer things successful the silence, and successful Vell’s position some recounting this communicative to his ain Padawan adjacent the extremity of his life, and erstwhile helium was a young lad likewise dealing with the nonaccomplishment of a mentor figure.

That mightiness beryllium frustrating to the benignant of scholar who, perhaps, mightiness person preferred to spot Kelnacca’s backstory laid retired and categorized much explicitly, but adjacent the 1 existent “fact” we get astir him successful this communicative is little astir a singular portion of accusation to his character, though it does necktie this communicative of attachment and grief backmost to Kelnacca’s untimely end in The Acolyte. During Vell’s recollections, we larn that helium erstwhile explained the tattooed markings connected his caput arsenic a reflection of taste practices from his species; a motion of respect to a large mentor fig is to ink their sanction successful runic publication connected your caput to correspond their portion successful your ain story. Just arsenic Vell did it erstwhile for his archetypal master—and she successful crook did it for him—it’s revealed during the climax of the story, arsenic Kelnacca comes to sojourn Vell conscionable arsenic helium passes connected into the Force, that the shaved caput and tattoos we spot connected him successful The Acolyte are successful information him honoring that aforesaid signifier for Vell.

© Marika Cresta, Ariana Maher, and Jim Campbell/Marvel Comics

It’s an absorbing revelation for 2 reasons, not conscionable for its knowing of Jedi attachment—that it is not this cut and adust thing—but for besides however it plays into Kelnacca’s eventual end. Throughout the one-shot Kelnacca is presented arsenic idiosyncratic who knows erstwhile to travel successful and beryllium determination erstwhile necessary: the mode helium swoops into Vell’s life, the mode helium yet knights him and lets him spell arsenic a Padawan, the mode helium returns to spot him 1 past time, adjacent the mode helium carries connected that rhythm conscionable arsenic effortlessly by picking up Vell’s ain Padawan arsenic his adjacent student. It’s the reflection of the Jedi’s ain spiritual apex astatine the clip of the High Republic, this thought that they are open-minded astir this thought of attachment, but it’s besides 1 that mirrors the diminution we spot successful them by the clip of The Acolyte.

Traumatized by his portion successful the events connected Brendok, Kelnacca’s lone prime by the modern timeframe of the amusement is to beryllium isolated and abandoned by the Jedi, mostly near to himself by prime and by the Order’s ain reticence to scope retired (in part, due to the fact that they ne'er knew the afloat representation acknowledgment to Indara and Sol’s lies, conscionable different furniture of organization rot). And so, erstwhile Kelnacca is killed by the Stranger connected Khofar, he’s near to dice alone, unreflected on. There is nary 1 to transportation Kelnacca’s communicative with them, prevention for Sol, who takes it to his ain death soon enough. The Order’s recalcitrance means that nary 1 was determination to enactment him, and lone arrived erstwhile it was excessively precocious and the concern needed to beryllium turned into a clean-up. It’s a fascinating small footwear to the gut, and an absorbing mode to reframe and reenforce the The Acolyte‘s larger communicative astir the Jedi successful the process.

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