The Acolyte Episode 8: What That Red Lightsaber Means - And How It Changed

The following contains spoilers for "The Acolyte" Episode 8 — "The Acolyte"

The season finale of "The Acolyte" pays off Episode 7's twist ending, which changes Star Wars by revealing Master Sol (Lee Jung-jae) is responsible for the death of Osha's (Amandla Stenberg) mother, indirectly setting off a chain of events that kills the rest of the coven. Osha discovers what Sol did on Episode 8, and she pulls a classic Darth Vader move by Force-choking Sol to death — killing a Jedi without a weapon, as it were. It's an emotional moment, with Osha's descent to the dark side further confirmed when she holds up Sol's blue lightsaber to Qimir (Manny Jacinto) and the weapon's blade changes color to red. For many, this was likely there first time seeing how a red lightsaber is created. 

Red lightsabers go back to the origins of Star Wars, with Darth Vader and other dark side users wielding them. Jedi lightsabers can be an array of colors, with each one holding a unique meaning, but Sith are pretty much known for just having red. Dark side users obtain them through a process called "bleeding" in modern Star Wars canon, and that's precisely what Osha has done here. She has joined the dark side, and fans are more attuned to a critical rite of passage. 

Bleeding has been referenced before in Star Wars lore. Notably, fans can see Darth Vader bleed a kyber crystal to acquire his red lightsaber in the comic book "Star Wars: Darth Vader" #5, from writer Charles Soule and penciller Giuseppe Camuncoli. Vader defeats Jedi Master Kirak Infil'a in battle and gets his kyber crystal as a result, thereby bending it to the dark side of the Force through his anger and hatred. While Jedi simply travel to Ilum to get the kyber crystals that will power their lightsabers, the Sith take a different path. They take kyber crystals from Jedi they have killed in battle, which is explained as much by Darth Sidious in the 2021 book, "Star Wars: The Secrets of the Sith." 

"The saber of a Sith is not given," it's written. "It is taken. Then, they must infuse that crystal with their pain, anger, and hatred, bending it to their will ... making it bleed with unbridled crimson power." There can be hiccups in the process; some kyber crystals will resist bleeding or break during the transformation. But it remains the only way for red lightsabers to be born, and even though Osha may not have intended it, her hatred and anger after learning that Sol killed her mother broke and bled the kyber crystal within Sol's lightsaber. 

"The Acolyte" ends with a massive body count. If the show gets a Season 2, it's going to need a largely new cast, but one thing's clear: Osha's journey to the dark side has only begun.