Drama
The Acolyte
The Acolyte takes Star Wars fans into a time when the Empire didn’t exist. But that doesn’t make everything rosy—in that galaxy or on this show.
A quarter of a century ago, six unemployed steel workers took off their clothes to the cheers and jeers of many women. And unlike your average Chippendale, they decided to go “the full monty”—that is, take everything off.
Well, those men—Gaz, Dave, Horse, Lomper, Dennis and Guy—are older now, and when they said that stripping was a one-time thing, they meant it. But even though they’ve moved on in their lives, they’re still facing other problems.
Take Gaz, for example, the original ringleader of the group. He’s got an estranged high-school daughter now named Destiny, whose lack of proper parenting has found her committing crimes that are increasingly felonious in nature. And unless he rekindles his relationship with her, his police-officer son, Nathan, will be forced to take action.
Dave, meanwhile, is struggling to help his wife, Jean, keep the school she runs from falling apart. And the building’s wear only serves to symbolize their crumbling marriage, too.
The others are having tough times, too: the aging Horse can’t get his social security benefits, for instance, and Lomper and his partner struggle with a culture that’s much more concerned about offensive words.
Things are much more complicated now, so they can’t strip their way out of these issues; their aches likely wouldn’t let them even attempt it, anyway.
Sometimes, cinematic stories should stay finished.
Any time a studio announces that they’re bringing a dated intellectual property back to life, I get more nervous than excited. My first thought is usually, “I hope they don’t ruin these characters” instead of, “I wonder what else my favorite characters have done?”
Revisiting these franchises often results in resounding disappointment. Other times, it just feels like a quick cash grab—a low-risk, high-reward venture that doesn’t require a compelling story because the studio already knows the characters are enough to attract legacy fans to the reboot.
And, well, The Full Monty TV series feels a bit like the latter.
I’ll admit that I never saw the film, but I can’t see the reason for this quarter-century-after-the-fact character reunion. Other than the characters, their friendship and the general location, the show has little-to-nothing to do with the events of the movie—save for a passing reference or two. Instead, it just shows the protagonists as sad and tired old men trying to figure out their way in a new world. The characters themselves, while full of personality, could ultimately have been replaced by a slew of new characters with very little consequence on the plot.
Parents should watch out for heavy swearing, some sexual references (and a noisy sex scene, though nothing critical is shown in it) and more: a woman has an affair; a schizophrenic man makes many references to being John the Baptist; a high school choir sings vulgar songs; and references to a 12-year-old boy attempting suicide. And with Lomper and his partner, LGBT content is obviously present, too.
The thing about going “full monty” is that you can’t go any farther afterward. And The Full Monty, narratively speaking, doesn’t.
When Gaz’ daughter, Destiny, steals a famous dog, Gaz takes helping her as an opportunity for them to reconnect.
We see the pivotal stripping scene from the original film, complete with a shot of the six mens’ nude buttocks. We hear a few references to breasts, including an unfortunately named café. A song includes lyrics about having a wet dream.
People smoke, including a couple people who are in high school. Destiny’s mother is seen drinking, and it is evident that she is, at best, neglectful of her children. Gaz also drinks. We hear a reference to marijuana. Destiny is a kleptomaniac, stealing candy, a dog and a car. She skips school and encourages another boy to skip with her. A schizophrenic man quotes John 1:23 (and Isaiah 40:3), believing himself to be John the Baptist. Gaz considers shooting a dog with a pellet gun but is stopped before he goes through with it.
The f-word is used 26 times. The s-word is heard six times. We also hear the occasional use of “a–,” “h—,” “p-ss” and “b–tard.” We also hear many uses of the British swears “b–locks,” “bloody” and “b-gger.” God’s name is used in vain 13 times, and Jesus’ name is likewise used in vain five times—including an instance where the f-word is interjected within it.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
The Acolyte takes Star Wars fans into a time when the Empire didn’t exist. But that doesn’t make everything rosy—in that galaxy or on this show.
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