It’s (somewhat) official: “Star Wars: The Acolyte” will not be returning for a second season.

For anyone following this show, it’s not surprising. While providing at first admirable ratings, the show proved to be polarizing and its quality middling.

Deadline first broke the news, and while the company could still change course, I think it’s unlikely due to the show’s dip in ratings. Had it been a massive success throughout its entire run, Disney would have likely pushed through the show’s negative reviews and given fans what they want. As it stands, it’s hard to justify producing more of it, which came with an over $200 million price tag for its first season.

Did “The Acolyte” deserve to be canceled? Yes and no.

Yes due to its quality. Showrunner Leslye Headland proved incapable of fielding competent scripts and writers, with the show’s dialogue often coming off as amateur and unpolished. Its character arcs perhaps being the worst-executed aspect of the show. There’s a blueprint for a great mystery here, but the show was unable to use it to create something really special.

No because of it potential. There are many redeeming qualities to this show, from its choreography to Lee Jung-jae’s portrayal of Master Sol, to its Darth Plageuis cameo and look into the corruption in the Jedi Order during the High Republic.

It’s worth noting that many great “Star Wars” shows start out clunky or even bad — the first season of “Clone Wars” comes to mind. But it’s also worth mentioning that those shows cost significantly less to produce. “The Clone Wars” cost about $1 million per episode, while subsequent shows are rumored to have been much cheaper. But that still beats “The Acolyte,” which breaks down to at least $25 million per episode.

I suspect that, like the prequels, this series will eventually be treasured. Sol will join the ranks of Qui-Gon Jinn, a character Jung-jae was emulating, who has become a beloved figure for fans despite the disappointing quality of the one film he appeared in: “Episode I — The Phantom Menace.”

The twins, Mae and Osha (Amandla Stenberg) will be back in a “Star Wars” production, possibly years later. Maybe they appear as minor characters in a major new franchise property, like all the canceled Fox Marvel characters did in “Deadpool and Wolverine.” Maybe they get a story all their own.

“Star Wars” tends to have this cycle where many fans hate a new show or film it produces. Then years later, once the backlash has cooled down, its redeeming qualities are pushed to the forefront.

Everyone knows that the prequels are bad. But in 2024, that’s been common knowledge for over 20 years, and almost every criticism towards them that can be made has been. Fans get enjoyment at how corny they are, often celebrating their weirdness, or enjoy those films’ strong themes of betrayal, loss and the breakdown a democratic system of government.

And, of course, there’s the lightsaber fights.

So too will fans learn to appreciate what “The Acolyte” tried to do. It challenged the good nature of the Jedi Order, adding shades of grey into its bureaucracy. It also attempted to flesh out the Rule of Two Sith at the time. Having opposing twins initially serve as the antagonist and protagonist was also an interesting choice that could have led to some great dramatic tension: No look further than the Expanded Universe’s Jaina and Jacen Solo’s faceoff in the “Legacy of the Force” book series.

So long, “Acolyte.” At least we’re getting “Andor” Season 2.