The latest episode of The Acolyte might have felt a bit anticlimactic, especially when it comes to the show’s growing list of mysteries. In truth, though, it may have already answered the questions that fans have begun to ask.
Episode 6, “Teach/Corrupt,” is largely focused on getting to know The Stranger (Manny Jacinto), formerly known as Qimir. But it also puts an interesting focus on Vernestra Rwoh (Rebecca Henderson), who until recently has largely been observing these events from the sidelines. “Teach/Corrupt” sees the Jedi Master dealing with the fallout of “Night” — and though her screentime is brief, it could inform the series’ latest mystery.
Spoilers ahead for The Acolyte Episode 6!
The Acolyte gives us just two new facts about Vernestra, and each will be familiar to fans of the High Republic novels that feature a much younger version of the character. When Vern learns that Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae) and his Jedi team have run into hostilities on the planet Khofar, she doesn’t hesitate to send a team to recover the dead. Naturally, she joins the party as well, which surprises her pupil Mog (Harry Trevaldwyn). “You get nauseous when you travel through hyperspace,” he tells Vernestra — to which she replies, “I don’t get sick. I find it unsettling.”
Why doesn’t Vernestra like hyperspace?
Vernestra’s exchange with Mog, however brief, serves as a reference to her past, and her unique ability in the Force. Vernestra may not get sick when she travels through hyperspace, but she does occasionally experience visions. The High Republic novel Out of the Shadows by Justina Ireland depicts those visions in detail: she’s typically transported to another place or time, and can even commune with other Force users. That comes in handy when battling the Nihil, a group of marauders that used mysterious hyperspace routes to attempt a galaxy-wide takeover.
Such a power is certainly cool in theory, but Vernestra treated it less like a blessing and more like a curse in the novels. Even in The Acolyte, she seems to be keeping her unique abilities a secret. Out of the Shadows posits Vernestra’s secrecy as a potentially fatal flaw, and we may see the extent of that in The Acolyte. We’ve already seen how reluctant Vernestra is to share any details of Sol’s mission with the High Council. The Jedi may be hiding something even more personal, something that connects her to the shows Big Bad, The Stranger.
Did Vernestra predict Qimir’s turn?
Like Vernestra, we don’t get a lot of Qimir backstory in “Teach/Corrupt” — but what he does reveal about his past is potent in itself. He tells Osha that he was once a Jedi padawan, a long, long time ago. He also reveals a massive scar on his back, but he doesn’t explain who gave it to him. Theories are already swirling about who his Jedi Master was, and whether they could have been the one to wound Qimir and, as he describes, throw him away.
After The Acolyte finally gave us our first glimpse at Vernestra’s modified lightsaber, fashioned into a whip, it’s hard to ignore a possible connection between these characters. There’s a high chance that Qimir was once Vernestra’s padawan, and that the Force showed her a vision of Qimir embracing the dark side in the future (in a parallel to Luke’s vision of Ben Solo in The Last Jedi). That could have caused an altercation between master and padawan: perhaps Vernestra mortally wounded Qimir with her lightsaber, and later reported that he was offed in an accident off-world. It’d explain his resentment for the Jedi Order, and his dogged pursuit of freedom. It’d also introduce a bit more tension to an episode that left a bit to be desired (especially after the nonstop action in Episode 5).
Of course, this is a lot of speculation to put on a few brief scenes. But with only two episodes left in the season, The Acolyte is (hopefully) building toward an explosive conclusion — not just for Mae and Osha, but hopefully for Qimir and his mysterious master.
