Star Wars fans are losing their minds over the most meaningless retcon in new series

In news that will shock absolutely no one, Star Wars fans are not happy and this time it is related to the new Disney Plus series, Star Wars: The Acolyte.

Star Wars: The Acolyte is an eight-part series available to stream now on Disney Plus and since its debut episode earlier this month, it’s angered a section of the Star Wars fan base for several reasons. One of these reasons is its treatment of what is or isn't considered to be canon to the Star Wars lore.

Check out our chat with the cast of Star Wars: The Acolyte below!

To say that Star Wars: The Acolyte has received a mixed reception would be an understatement with it scoring 85% from critics and just 14% from users on the aggregate website, Rotten Tomatoes.

What’s more, Star Wars: The Acolyte has not been shy of controversy such as changing the details regarding the origin of Anakin Skywalker. Those displeased with the Disney Plus series have vented their anger by review-bombing Star Wars: The Acolyte, though it seems that some fans have been review-bombing the wrong show by mistake.

Now it seems that fans are angry for another reason, and this time it relates to the apparent age of Ki-Adi-Mundi, a member of the Jedi High Council during the Galactic Republic era and former apprentice to Master Yoda. So why are fans angry with Star Wars: The Acolyte and the age of Ki-Adi-Mundi, I hear you ask?

As reported by Screen Rant, the reason is that Ki-Adi-Mundi's age in Star Wars: The Acolyte states in the show that he was alive during the High Republic which some believe retcons canon. However, Ki-Adi-Mundi's age was only previously revealed in Legends, a tale of non-canon tales, so in other words, his age in Legends is unofficial.

What’s more, Star Wars: The Acolyte isn't retcon, which means that its creators can pretty much do what they want with the story, within reason. Ki-Adi-Mundi made his first appearance in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace and he claimed that the Sith had been extinct for millennia, with some fans believing this contradicts what is said in The Acolyte, despite other Star Wars stories stating that the Sith were never extinct.

I’m about to wander into minor spoiler territory, so consider this your final warning. Ki-Adi-Mundi makes a cameo appearance in episode four of The Acolyte, which sparked fans to debate that the new Disney Plus series is once more breaking canon. For reference, Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace is set around the year 32 BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin) and The Acolyte, is around 132 BBY.

This means, that according to The Acolyte, Ki-Adi-Mundi's cameo appearance, must have been born around 100 years before the Disney Plus series. Previous apparent canon claimed that Ki-Adi-Mundi was born in 93 BBY, roughly 40 years after The Acolyte (this is getting messy).

However, the birth year of Ki-Adi-Mundi was only mentioned in the aforementioned Legends stories which were non-canon. So again, this pretty much means that the creators of The Acolyte were free to change whatever details they felt necessary to better fit the story they’re trying to tell in the Disney Plus series.

Let’s just hope that one day, some bigwigs in charge of Star Wars will officially confirm the real age of Ki-Adi-Mundi. Star Wars: The Acolyte is available now on Disney Plus with each episode airing weekly. The final episode arrives on 16 July 2024.