The Acolyte Hero Is More And Less Than She Appears
The Acolyte is finally here and the first two episodes left me with a theory I can’t shake. This is far from my first fan theory but, because of the cynic in me, I suspect I might finally get one right because in this case I’m hoping I’m wrong. My suspicion is that we’re soon going to learn that twin sisters Mae and Osha–both played by Amandla Stenberg–were once one person, that the four Jedi Mae is hunting somehow used the Force to split one person into two, and that this is why Mae is seeking vengeance.
No Record Of A Twin Sister
The first piece of evidence in my The Acolyte theory is that, according to Yord (Charlie Barnett), he and his padawan had no idea Osha had a twin sister when they arrested her. If they had known, this obviously would have impacted their assumption that it was Osha who killed Indara (Carrie-Anne Moss).
When Sol (Lee Jung-jae) first mentions Mae in front of Yord and Jecki (Dafne Keen), he seems to realize he’s made a mistake and revealed something he shouldn’t.
That a little girl has a sister seems a fairly basic piece of information for a futuristic government to have access to. Could it be there was no record of it because there originally was no sister?
Sol’s Certainty
Sol is a big part of my The Acolyte theory.
Osha’s former Jedi master never seems to have any doubt that Osha is innocent of Indara’s murder. After saving Osha from what would have been a fatal drop–and in spite of supposedly believing Mae is dead–he seems to believe Osha immediately when she claims it was Mae who killed Indara.
Both Mae And Osha Believed The Other Was Dead
One of the biggest surprises to me in The Acolyte so far–and one of the main things to inspire my theory–is the reveal in Episode 2 “Revenge/Justice,” that just as Osha previously believed Mae was dead, Mae believed the same of Osha.
More to the point, Sol betrays no surprise when Mae screams at him, “My sister is dead!” It’s possible this has nothing to do with my The Acolyte theory and could just be indicative of Sol’s ability to hide his emotions.
It could also suggest that Sol was well aware that Mae believed her sister was dead.
The Poem
In Episode 1, “Lost/Found,” Osha has a vision of Mae as a child. During the vision they recite a poem which includes the lines, “I give you you, and you give me me.” Another piece of The Acolyte theory, it suggests a much stronger connection than just twins.
It’s also interesting to note that it could not be Mae who sends Osha this vision, at least not consciously.
In the following episode we learn Mae thought Osha was dead, and neither Jedi nor Sith tend to send psychic messages to the dead.
Why Would The Jedi Split One Girl Into Two?
Without knowing more specifics that will likely be revealed in upcoming episodes of The Acolyte, my theory is still a little raw. But my suspicion is that, if I’m right, the four Jedi sensed that whoever Mae/Osha was before the split–she was already extremely powerful at the young age of 8, but also far too in touch with the Dark Side of the Force.
So, someone would have come up with the idea that if somehow the Jedi could split Mae/Osha in two–with one “sister” being the side of her connected to the Light, and the other to the Dark–they could save one and destroy the other.
Which would also explain, according to my The Acolyte theory, why Sol believed Mae was dead and why she wants revenge–i.e., the Jedi did something in the hopes of killing Mae, believed they succeeded, and they were wrong.
This would also explain why Torbin (Dean Charles-Chapman)–the second Jedi Mae goes after–is so consumed by guilt that he stops speaking for a decade, and why he’s willing to commit suicide. Believing you’ve murdered a child can cause that kind of guilt.
How Would They Split One Girl Into Two?
Admittedly, I am not a Star Wars deep diver. I’ve seen all the movies and most of the shows, and read some comics here and there, but I don’t know the lore as well as many. As a result, the how of this thing is the biggest hole in my The Acolyte theory.
So while I wouldn’t necessarily blame a more knowledgeable Star Wars fan for dismissing my The Acolyte theory outright, I would respond to that with two points.
First, The Force is essentially magic, and with magic, just about anything is possible. Even there is no specific Star Wars sourcebook that lists examples of The Force being used to split one person into two, that doesn’t stop new stories in the mythos from introducing it. Everything has a first time.
Second, while I am not a Star Wars loremaster, I do know there is precedent for multiple Force users (like, say, four Jedi) pooling their abilities to accomplish things a single Force user couldn’t. For example, in Legends there was the insanely destructive Thought Bomb, which took multiple Sith acting in concert to create.
I’d also point out that if my The Acolyte theory is correct, it will be really hard to sell it as anything but ridiculous in the series, which is why I hope I’m wrong.
