November 23, 2022 saw the release of the season 1 finale of Star Wars: Andor on Disney+. A series that many didn’t seem to take much notice of until it’s release. It has an almost Marmite (a yeast extract product in UK) quality; fans either love it or hate it. For my part, I think this is the best Star Wars series that we have ever had, and I want to have a look back on the season, thinking about what made it so great and what has made it leave such an impression on so many fans.
A while ago I was trying to explain to a friend why the Original Trilogy is so timeless. George Lucas’ original idea was to make the galaxy look worn and beaten, that it was a long time ago. With the passing of time, it makes this weathered galaxy look even more like the idea that Lucas first had, meaning the older it gets, the lore authentic it looks. Add to this that all the effects are models as opposed to digital and you have a timeless set of films that continue to embrace fans. So why is this so important for Andor? As a father, I introduced to my son to Star Wars through the Original Trilogy first, not the episode order. I know I’m not alone in this, in fact it’s the most common way to introduce the films to the next generation. The impact of this though, is that a lot of the generation gravitate to Luke or Leia as their hero, they play with their parents using old Original Trilogy toys and generally have an affinity for the same films their parents do. Again, what impact does this have for Andor? It’s because even the newer generations are enjoying the stories set in the Original Trilogy era, and with it being so timeless, probably always will. The stories that fans of all ages want, aren’t those set during the First Order, but those that show the battle between the Empire and the Rebellion. In this Disney era, there seems to be lots of wanting to push the timeline further, but it’s not needed, people still want that same era from those original movies. Even Lucas, when he finished writing the massive script, went for the ‘middle bit’ because it was the most interesting. Andor is set in this era, following the battle that we all had such a vested interest in. We want to see how the Rebellion was formed; we want to see more of the Empire bringing it’s oppression.
Following on from this is the popularity of Rogue One, which owes it success, in part to the above reason. As welling as showing us more of what we wanted to see, it showed us characters that we could sympathise with as well as an ending none thought Disney would be brave enough to do. Introducing new characters to only have them all die is a brave move, the right move, but in the early days of Disney having the license, no one believed that they would do such a thing. When it happened, it created such an emotional pull for fans that we wanted to see more. With no further story to be had, only a prequel could fill that void and give us more of the characters we fell in love with. Rogue One is arguably the best Star Wars film to have been released under Disney, providing a series that gives us more is perfect.
The design of the show was flawless. It didn’t try to update anything but stayed true to the original films. Every design choice was made with a thought of, if they had made this in 1977, what would they have done? You can see it throughout the season, from mics that are reminiscent of old high school announcers, to the clothes, to the design of the weapons, using World War 2 weaponry with gubbins on. It’s how it was done in 1977 and they’ve repeated it here too much success. This again stems from the fact that we want to see more of the Rebellion era and like the films it’s based on, this sort of design ensures that Andor will also age well.
While some complain it is slow, for me, that is the beauty of this show. The current consensus on a lot of popular television shows at the moment is to go lightning fast, crash, bang, wallop and that’s it done. Yet Star Wars isn’t like that, it’s about building characters that we fall in love with. Shows like Lost, Heroes and Battlestar Galactica, all beloved by fans, took twice the number of episodes to delve into their characters and when finishing a season, you came away with so much more. Andor really delves into all its characters, it doesn’t shy around them or circle around who they are, it keeps going deeper, providing viewers with a rich experience. When people come to rewatch the series, I think this will be seen better, the character arcs and development will be so noticeable. Episodes for me were over in the blink of an eye, the time vanished in seconds. It kept leaving you wanting more.
Finally, the characters. Fan favourites from across the franchise, to new and engaging ones, to organisations taken from the very start of the Expanded Universe, this series is littered with something for everyone, embracing multiple different eras. The actors chosen to play these characters are of the highest quality, academy award winners who treat this project as something so much more than the Star Wars label would suggest. Diego Luna returns to Andor and plays the role to perfection, creating the almost Han Solo cynical character but so much darker. The performances of Stellan Skarsgard, Fiona Shaw and Denise Gough are exceptional, bringing their characters to life with little screen time. Genevieve O’Reilly returns to play Mon Mothma and her storyline surprises us all, brining so much more depth to the character and really showing the audience her incredible range as an actress. These characters we have all grown to love (or love to hate) and with such a high calibre cast, it’s easy to see why this series has drawn so many of us in.
Of course, there are other reasons that Andor is one of the best series we have had as fans. It’s worrying to think this series will only have one more season, but with the characters introduced, I wonder if we’ll see a spin off or two featuring them. This series is everything I could have wanted for a series since I was a child watching A New Hope for the first time. If you have yet to watch it, don’t be put off, sit back, relax and see how a spark of Rebellion could lead to so much more.
