The first live-action TV show to take place before the Star Wars movies in order is here, as The Acolyte, which is set 100 years before The Phantom Menace, premiered to Disney+ subscription holders earlier this week. Unlike shows like Obi-Wan Kenobi and Andor, this latest small screen offering is comprised entirely of characters never seen onscreen before, including Charlie Barnett’s Yord Fandar, a by-the-book Jedi Knight. Well, it hasn’t taken long for this character to assemble a fanbase, as #YordHorde memes have started popping up on social media, and I’m enjoying them immensely.
When you have a character with a rhymable name like Yord, it’s no wonder that hashtag was started. #YordHorde has quickly spread across X (formerly known as Twitter), with our first post channeling a popular NBC show as its punny contribution to the new meme craze.
SPIN-OFF! #YordHorde pic.twitter.com/ivBN0Wza8kJune 6, 2024
Of course, if you have a fanbase name like the Yord Horde, it’s important to make sure one has the proper identification to enter the clubhouse.
Come get them while they’re hot #YordHorde pic.twitter.com/nojQWE82idJune 5, 2024
Going back to pun territory, Yord’s name also easily lends itself to him being a member of an extremely-exclusive group of Dark Side users.
Sorry, someone had to🤷🏼♀️#YordHorde #theacolyte pic.twitter.com/SjGVYGyWAIJune 6, 2024
This next meme makes fun of the nit-picky criticism that The Acolyte has already received, namely about how the first episode showed a starship catching fire in space (not the first time this has happened in a Star Wars project) and how Amandla Stenberg’s Mae was able to kill a Jedi (no spoilers here on who it was) with her knives.
Haters gonna hater, Yorders gonna Yord #Acolyte #TheAcolyte #YordHorde #StarWars #starwarsfans pic.twitter.com/HUNtqrCHNKJune 6, 2024
It’s amusing to see someone meld Yord and Yoda together for the below meme (side note, I’m hoping that the latter eventually appears on The Acolyte given that he’s active during the High Republic era).
you’ve heard of yoda but have you heard of yorda #yordhorde pic.twitter.com/4ZSZ6CCMWyJune 6, 2024
Finally, here’s one more pun to take us home, this one throwing us over to the Shrek franchise, which is always a good source for meme material.
Yord Farquaad #YordHorde pic.twitter.com/JPANRZdjpSJune 7, 2024
Star Wars fans may be having fun with Yord Fandar, but Charlie Barnett’s character is certainly not one for comedy like this, as he takes his Jedi duties very seriously and so far has demonstrated himself as a rule follower who’s not able to think outside the box. Yord is also the third person to wield a yellow lightsaber in a TV/film setting, followed by Daisy Ridley’s Rey igniting her own at the end of The Rise of Skywalker and Asajj Ventress using two of them in The Bad Batch Season 3. Barnett and Stenberg are joined in The Acolyte cast by Lee Jung-jae, Dafne Keen, Manny Jacinto and Rebecca Henderson, to name a few.
New episodes of The Acolyte, which was created by Leslye Headland, drop Tuesdays at 9 pm ET on Disney+. Keep visiting CinemaBlend for more coverage on the series and the upcoming Star Wars movies and TV shows, and if you’re on X, don’t stop looking for #YordHorde memes, because they’re excellent.