Leslye Headland’s comments about The Acolyte’s review bombing is logical but it can’t stop fans from finding faults with it.

The Star Wars franchise is currently at its most middling state as most of the shows that they are putting out, aren’t landing well with fans. Since the modern trilogy, the franchise has been incredibly divisive among fans with respect to its narrative, characterization, and contribution to the overall franchise.
A still from The Acolyte | Lucasfilm

A still from The Acolyte | Lucasfilm
The ongoing Star Wars show The Acolyte has arguably become the most hated show, with fans consistently complaining about its lack of coherent narrative, making it a lackluster show. There has also been rampant review bombing of the show and showrunner Leslye Headland expressed how she already expected that to happen. However, fans are still underwhelmed with her work on the show.

Despite Leslye Headland Addressing The Acolyte‘s Review Bombing, The Show Continues to Falter

The Acolyte's extremely short runtime for each episodes is one of its major criticisms | LucasfilmThe Acolyte‘s extremely short runtime for each episodes is one of its major flaws | Lucasfilm
The Acolyte and its terrible responses have become a big talking point for the Star Wars franchise, including its deteriorating reputation among fans. Over 6 episodes, the show continues to get criticized for its frustrating short episode lengths, incoherent narrative, and underwhelming characters that failed to do justice to its promising premise.

However, there have also been people with certain political or personal agendas who have been criticizing and reviewing bombing the show without watching it. Leslye Headland, the showrunner of the series told Collider that she and his team expected that to happen amidst the current climate of Star Wars. She said,

I was like, ‘Does anybody take that seriously anymore?’… if you’re in the Star Wars fandom … you already know what review bombing is … behind the scenes, we all know what it is — it’s not that it’s not concerning — but I think it’s pretty expected.

Headland is right about how audience ratings and reviews have now become less reliable and have no meaning anymore because of the constant review bombing. However, fans have legitimate criticisms about the show (that have been mentioned before) and thus are not impressed by Headland’s latest statement. Here are some of the reactions on X,

 

 

 

 

The current toxicity within the Star Wars fandom and all the review bombing have fused to create something very negative that has certainly affected the show. While review bombing is not fair, liking/disliking a show is a subjective thing and the show has failed to work narratively. This has been the major complaint of fans irrespective of the toxicity around it.

Dafne Keen Believes Her Character Had A Noble Death As A Jedi Knight

Dafne Keen as Jecki Lon in The Acolyte | LucasfilmDafne Keen as Jecki Lon in The Acolyte | Lucasfilm
Dafne Keen played Jecki Lon in The Acolyte, who is Sol’s Padawan, joining him in the hunt for Mae and the powerful Sith Lord. The character evolved as she started to use her training in real life which has stakes. However, she meets a grim fate in last week’s episode of the show when she fights the mysterious Sith Lord.]

In episode 5, the Sith master (revealed to be Qimir) kills Jecki after a brutal duel. In an interview with Vulture, Keen revealed that Jecki died fighting for a noble cause and passed away as a Jedi knight. She stood up for herself and took her ultimate fate with grace and beauty. The actress said,

And in a really beautiful way, Jecki dies as a Jedi knight. She made it to Knight. She was on a mission; she died fighting a noble cause, fighting a Sith. She was doing really well, he cheated, and she took the death with no anger and with grace. As she says herself, it’s always a beautiful thing to watch anything or anyone become one with the Force. She had that happen to her.

Keen gave an incredible performance as her character and her unexpected death moved audiences. One can feel the absence of the character when they see episode 6. The first 6 episodes of The Acolyte are streaming on Disney+, with the finale dropping on July 26, 2024.