In honor of May the 4th and the recent release of Andor Season 2, it seems only appropriate to cover the first season of this show. Before Rogue One, before even the Rebellion, this season would delve into a founding member of the crew that we know and love. While not my personal favorite, I can agree with the fans who critically acclaim its dark tone and thought-provoking dialogue.
What’s Happened So Far?
(Spoiler Warning for anyone who hasn’t caught up or watched the show yet!)
Five years before the events of Rogue One, we first meet Cassian Andor as a reckless individual, who desperately searches for his long-lost sister. However, after murdering two security officers that gave him trouble, a massive manhunt would be launched against him. In order to escape capture, Andor would join Luthen Rael, who’s organizing a big heist to steal the payroll of a whole Imperial sector. Andor would eventually succeed and use his earned credits to escape to a new life, but the Imperials would throw him in jail regardless (and for no good reason either). But of course, this would not hold Andor or his ambitions, and he would escape and find his way back to his adopted home planet. By then, the Empire has taken full control of it, and Andor has to fight his way through everyone looking to capture him in order to save the ones he cares about.
In the background, Andor’s actions in the season premiere would draw the Empire’s attention to his home and tighten their fists around it. One such example follows Andor’s ex-girlfriend, Bix. Because of her close connections to Andor and Luthen, she would get arrested and then tortured in the worst way possible. By the time Cassian would find her, she has become a shriveled shell of her former self, barely able to utter a word. Andor’s adopted mother, Maarva, didn’t get off any better. As soon as the Empire moved in on Ferrix, Maarva was harassed by the Imperials and spied on, and her health declined until she ultimately passed away. While this would lure Andor back home, her tragic death would inspire the whole community to rise against their oppressors. Leaving a heartfelt, passionate recording, she would tell the people to wake up from their slumber and not allow the Empire to walk over them anymore. This would lead to a massive riot, with people pushing against troopers and even blaster fire to keep the citizens at bay.
Finally, we draw the spotlight onto both the political agendas of the antagonists and the other protagonists. First, there’s Syril Karn, who became obsessed with capturing Andor ever since the season premiere. Syril would try to arrest Andor for his murderous crimes, but its disastrous results would drive him to rebuild his life and reputation. This would eventually lead to his first meeting with Dedra Meero, a woman who works for the Imperial Security Bureau. Until she met him, she was focused on tracking down missing Imperial equipment and making a case for a large-scale rebellion movement. This would lead her to pursuing Luthen, then to Andor and Bix because of their connections to him, and finally meeting Syril due to his involvement in the case. However, right under her nose, the Rebellion is starting (and struggling) to gain some traction. While Luthen organizes the Aldhani heist and other rebel activities, he has to keep his cover as an overly friendly shopkeeper. This would allow him to have frequent meetings with Mon Mothma, who would “shop” at Luthen’s establishment. It’s there that we see their hushed conversations about Aldhani, as well as Mothma’s struggle to provide funding for the Rebellion. Throughout the season, we see Luthen fight to keep the fire lit and his secret safe, while Mon pushes through her difficult home life and keep her devotion to the cause.
What Does the Future Hold?
With so much going on in this series, there are just as many loose ends for the second season to tie up. For instance, the series ends with Ferrix fresh off of a deadly uproar, Syril saving Dedra’s life, Mon Mothma at her limits, and Andor facing a standoff with Luthen. But what does any of this mean? Where will the story go from here? How will it impact the overall Star Wars story? Well, to answer this many questions, we need to take a step back and analyze where we got left off.
First thing’s first, there’s the aforementioned standoff between Luthen and Andor. Originally, Luthen came to kill Andor because he was deemed a liability. However, Andor confronted him and seemingly gave the okay to off him, but Andor basically forced him to make a choice between killing him or bringing him into the Rebellion. With Luthen lowering his blaster, it’s pretty clear that they’ll continue to team up in the second season. However, even though Andor survives into Rogue One, it can’t be automatically assumed that would be the case. He could be partnered with Luthen, or Luthen could’ve just let him live. Either way, we can expect these two to get more involved with each other’s activities moving forward. As for what Luthen plans to do with the Empire, it’s honestly up in the air at this point. After the Aldhani heist and a few other plans to fool or incapacitate the Empire, it’s not fully clear what his endgame is aside from kicking the hornets’ nest.
As for Syril and Dedra, they’ll undoubtedly get more involved with each other as well. Syril’s obsession with Andor, mixed with Dedra’s own obsession with Luthen, have caused their paths and goals to align (at least for now). And whether Dedra wants him around or not, it’s doubtful that Syril will give her a choice. After all, if he was willing to wait outside her workplace and even try wooing her (“oh ever since I met you I feel different blah blah blah”), then he’s not going anywhere quietly. Plus, with their equal levels of ambition and their shared desire for justice and security, you can see some sparks between them. Plus, with how he saved her from being torn apart by the rowdy citizens of Ferrix, it would certainly lay the groundwork for a romantic relationship. But whether they get into a relationship, keep it or not, or work up to it, is left to speculation. In addition, what if Syril’s drive to bring Andor to justice clashes with Dedra’s dedication to the Empire? In one episode, Syril’s requests about Andor have basically annoyed the ISB so much that Dedra had to tell him to stop. How much worse could it get if they worked more closely with each other?
Finally, with the Rebellion, things might finally start heating up in season two. For example, take Mon Mothma and her current situation. She was already jumping through hoops to move her money around on her own, but she ended up having to deal with a shady banker. The good news is that he’s able to hide her financial support to the rebels, but the bad news is that her daughter has to marry the banker’s son. Even though the daughter isn’t fully opposed to it, Mothma still hates having to sacrifice her own family even if it’s for the greater good. As if that wasn’t enough, her home life was already a mess long before that. Her husband was an absolute jerk, barely supported her, and frequently invited her political enemies to their house. Her daughter wasn’t any better, as she constantly rebelled and fought against Mothma, making life unnecessarily difficult for her. All of this becomes especially heartbreaking when you remember Mothma’s grand escape from Imperial forces, riding with the Ghost crew and forming her rebellion on Yavin 4. With the way things are going, Mothma might have to take a heartbreaking leave from her family without looking back. But if anything good were to come out of it, I hope to finally hear Mon Mothma’s speech about the Ghorman Massacre, where she called out Palpatine and made said escape.
Overall Opinion
When I first watched this show, I admittedly didn’t have a high opinion of it. However, after rewatching it a couple times, I’ve come to appreciate it a lot more. One thing I’ve learned is that this is DEFINITELY not the kind of show where you can just chill on your phone. But in all seriousness, eliminating distractions allow you to notice the amazingly deep, philosophical discussions and themes. There are so many of them, that they can’t all fit into one article. One good example, though, comes in the final episode. In this particular scene, Luthen’s mole inside the ISB wants out, so he has to snap him out of it. When the mole asks what Luthen is sacrificing compared to him (his family’s safety), Luthen chillingly remarks that he’s sacrificed his own soul. He goes on to say that he knows he’s beyond redemption, and that he won’t live long enough to see the potentially good future that will come out of this. When he shouts that he’s sacrificed everything for this rebellion, it causes instant chills when you realize how much of himself this man lost in the fight for peace.
Another aspect of this series that I’ve admire most is its overall tone. Much like Rogue One, this show is a lot more realistic, and not shying away from the darkness. Instead, Andor dives very deeply into the morally grey of warfare, especially within the rebellion. For instance, there was a moment when Luthen wanted Saw Gerara to team up with a fellow rebel leader in order to attack an Imperial establishment. However, after finding out the ISB already knew about it, he tells Saw not only to stay out of the fight, but also to keep quiet about it. Luthen defends this decision by explaining that the Empire would know something was up if the rebel leader called off his attack, so not telling him would keep the rest of the rebellion safe and also keep the Empire from getting suspicious. The worst part is that, in a morbid sort of way, it actually makes sense. While the action itself would lead to the deaths of many people fighting for a noble cause, it would ensure the Rebellion’s ultimate victory in the long run. But it’s still that complexity that pulls people like me into watching these episodes, because I have to pay attention to every word and pick it apart.
Yet, in spite of these amazing attributes, I still have some reservations about a couple small things. In particular, there’s the mystery surrounding Andor’s sister. As described before, he searches for her on another planet and ends up killing two officers, kickstarting the events of the whole show. However, aside from Maarva telling him to stop looking for her, we never hear or see anything else about the issue for the rest of the season. After all, if Andor’s sister meant that much to him, how come he never picked it up again? Andor was already brash and stubborn, so I’m surprised that he seemingly dropped his search so quickly. Granted, he had more pressing concerns, but dropping it so soon makes it look more like a cheap way to open a series. Aside from that, my only other main issue is the lack of aliens, droids, and even stormtroopers in this first season. While I understand that they’re trying to take a realistic approach, it barely feels like Star Wars without the iconic aspects I grew up with. It simply doesn’t feel the same if I don’t see enough astromechs sliding around, white-armored men blasting people, and bizarre creatures in a bar. Nevertheless, it’s not so bad to the point where it takes out the experience for any Star Wars fan.
Conclusion
Overall, this show is pretty good for the most part. While it’s not something I’d personally watch on a regular basis, it’s still an enjoyable watch. Especially for the side of fans who appeal to the “noir” genre. Anyway, with such an amazing first season, it makes me excited to review the second season soon!
