Polygon's review of The Ninth Jedi, a new Star Wars anime series from Production I.G., argues it offers a much-needed creative boost for a franchise currently in decline, following the box-office failure of The Mandalorian and Grogu, the postponement of Ahsoka season two to 2027, and the cancellation of The Acolyte. Expanding on the original Star Wars: Visions short, the eight-episode series is set in a distant future where both the Jedi and Sith have faded, and is praised for reworking familiar Star Wars imagery into something that feels fresh rather than derivative.

The story follows Jedi master Margrave Juro, who seeks to rebuild the Jedi Order to oppose the warlord Nawaam, while sabersmith Lah Zhima, captured by Nawaam, holds the secret to crafting lightsabers and is being forced to help build a galaxy-conquering kyber crystal weapon. The review singles out Nawaam as a genuinely menacing, Vader-like antagonist and Zhima's daughter Lah Kara as a compelling young protagonist who avoids juvenile storytelling, though it notes weaker supporting characters, such as the underused Homen and some generically written alien races, as minor shortcomings.