This article contains spoilers for The Acolyte episode 5, “Night.”

Star Wars has released a new poster, which showcases The Acolyte’s mysterious dark side user known as The Stranger (Manny Jacinto). The seeming Sith Lord was initially shown in the trailers but was only teased. He then briefly appeared at the end of the fourth episode of the new Star Wars series, before being fully revealed in episode 5. In that episode, “Night,” the villain is shown in full in the thirty-minute-long duel between him and the Jedi, essentially slaughtering his foes and showing his skill at swordplay and knowledge of the Force.

Star Wars has released a new poster exhibiting the dark side user. Check out the post below:

The post confirms that his helmet and gauntlet are made of cortosis, a long-canonized metal that’s been awaiting live-action adaptation, and officially names him The Stranger. The post strays away from calling the villain a Sith Lord but emphasizes that he is a dark sider who’s been training Mae Aniseya in secret. The description then says what is revealed in episode 5, that the man behind the mask is Qimir, and that Qimir is merely an alias The Stranger has adopted.

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There is still a lot to be unveiled about The Stranger. So far, theories speculate whether he’s the master or apprentice, whether he’s a true Sith or just a dark side user who came across Sith teachings, or if he’s one of the first Knights of Ren. While the reveal that Qimir was the one behind the mask was predictable, there wasn’t much expectation of how shocking and intense The Stranger’s debut would be.

From the start of episode 5, it’s clear that The Stranger knows how to wield a lightsaber. Throughout the episode, the villain cuts down Jedi with ease, ducking and dodging blows, and creatively using the Force to kill his opponents. It’s ultimately surprising how good The Stranger is at swordplay, making his foes look like amateurs in comparison. His skill is fully realized when he kills off many The Acolyte characters who were believed to be endgame players, including Jecki Lon (Dafne Keen) and Yord Fandar (Charlie Barnett).

The Stranger has received a mostly positive reception, a major shift for the series, which has been facing review bombing. From his daunting cortosis helmet to his shocking body count in episode 5, the antagonist has quickly risen in the ranks of Star Wars villains. While there are many questions about The Stranger, the latest episode of The Acolyte proves that the show has a few tricks up its sleeve.

The Acolyte releases every Tuesday on Disney+ at 9 PM ET.

Source: Star Wars/X