Did The Acolyte Just Introduce A Brand New Force Power?
Spoilers ahead for The Acolyte Episode 7!
What’s better than one flashback episode? Two flashback episodes! After The Acolyte Episode 3 showed the events of the tragedy on Brendok as remembered by Mae and Osha, Episode 7 shows it as it really went down, and it turns out it wasn’t a massive accident or a slaughter by the Jedi, but instead a strange combination of impulsive decisions and good intentions.
But mixed up in all the chaos was an entirely new Force power that feels more akin to Harry Potter than Star Wars — and it could change how Star Wars’ classic fight scenes work forever.
In Episode 7 of The Acolyte, Koril is facing off against Torbin, Sol, and Kelnacca, and as an act of defense she appears to use the Force to completely disappear into a black smoke-like fog. She’s still able to make herself heard, but she can’t be struck — a pretty effective strategy.
What is the power behind this mysterious black smoke Koril suddenly morphs into?
There’s no precedence for this in Star Wars canon. While there are similar powers like Force camouflage, which can allow a Jedi to move around unseen, or the Force projection power we see used by Luke in The Last Jedi, there’s nothing that materially changes the location of someone like this used by the Force sensitive. The closest parallel is the instant teleportation power of Mother Talzin, Merrin, and other Nightsisters, but even that left a green fog, not black smoke.
Before you rush to your keyboards wondering why this power hasn’t been seen before in the Star Wars franchise, remember what makes Brendok such a special location in the first place: it’s the location of a Force vergence, a place that makes the Force — and, by extension, Force powers — far more powerful.
Just as the Cave of Evil, the Force vergence shown in The Empire Strikes Back, managed to give Luke Skywalker such a powerful vision, this vergence gives Mother Koril the power to dissipate and reappear.
The Force vergence is heightening Koril’s power.
It’s also worth mentioning that this power may not be purely the Force. As witches, Koril and Aniseya may have access to far more powers than even the Jedi and Sith. Much like how the Nightsisters possess the power to reanimate complete armies, these witches may have their own niche abilities that haven’t been seen elsewhere purely because this coven goes extinct.
But now that this power has made its Star Wars debut, the cat’s out of the bag: we may, in fact, see this power be used in the future. Through the Force, all things are possible — you just may need the right set of circumstances.
